News & Updates

D4th of July & Surly #’Merica

By on July 2, 2015in general beer
merifuckinkaBefore craft beer entered my life, there was punk rock. And one fine day in central Minnesota twenty (?!?!) years ago, Dillinger 4 entered my life. D4 played my hometown of Fergus Falls to a mixed crowd. By and large, none of us really knew what to expect of this young band from the Twin Cities, but by the end of the night we were fans and couldn’t wait for the next show.
Saturday, Dillinger 4 celebrates 21 years with the biggest D4th of July ever at the Triple Rock Social Club in Minneapolis. In addition to punk rock greats like Scared of Chaka, Off With their Heads, Toys that Kill and Against Me! (and a bunch of other bands) ,our friends at Surly Brewing Co. will debut their new beer, #Merica! in celebration of the D4th (and the 4th) of July.
The folks from Surly call #MERICA! “a true ‘Merican beer.” This beer is a pre–Prohibition American lager with brewed with flaked corn and soft hop aromatics weighing in at 6% ABV. This is a summer beer perfect for the 4th (and D4th) of July.
WHAT: D4’th of July: D4 Turns 21!!
WHEN: Saturday, July 4th, 1pm
WHERE: Triple Rock Social Club, 629 Cedar Ave., Minneapolis, MN, 55454
WHO: Dillinger Four; Against Me!; Scared of Chaka; Toys That Kill; Off With Their Heads; Tim Barry; Pink Mink; Nato Coles and the Blue Diamond Band; United Teachers of Music and SURPRISE Special Guests
TICKETS: Still available, +21, $50, http://ticketf.ly/1NwmcJA

Fare Well My Firkin Friends

By on June 26, 2015in beer stores
The Four Firkins, May 2008

The Four Firkins, May 2008

Seven years ago, a small boutique beer-centered shop opened its doors in a nondescript strip mall in St. Louis Park. The strip is one that you’d probably ignore, filled with a couple of quiet storefronts, an auto shop and martial arts studio, among other things. The Four Firkins made that fairly forgettable location into a tiny craft beer mecca loaded wall-to-wall with great beers, enthusiastic customers and an engaged staff. Their classes and tastings were phenomenal, bring together brewers, reps and cicerones with new and seasoned beer fans. Very quickly, The Four Firkins built up a community around its store and a loyal following. I routinely stopped in while biking home from work, leaving with beer in my messenger bag and a smile from good conversation.

Seven years ago, the craft beer landscape was quite different. Our scene was smaller and a bit more intimate. We put on extra miles to hit some of the better liquor stores in search of great beer. Cellars in Minnetonka was my g0-to for quite some time. I also made the occasional run south of the river to Blue Max or East to hit some of St. Paul’s finest. These places were all great and I met some amazing beer folks through my travels. The Four Firkins, on the other hand, landed squarely in my backyard. They were different, putting focus almost entirely on beer and community. I remember them being so so damn tiny that they cycled through beer like mad. Tastings and classes were a madhouse, and, needless to say – cozy. One one particular evening, I recall dodging corks as Sean popped open saisons for a tasting. We were all friends, and at that point the ‘Firkins had become more than simply a beer store.

Jason Alvey, owner, Four Firkins

The Four Firkins, October 2011

Though I wasn’t in the store nearly enough over the course of the past couple of years thanks to juggling a challenging day job and two kids, I’ll miss The Four Firkins dearly. In the years that have passed since the Four Firkins opened, it’s become much easier to find great craft beer at liquor stores around the metro. The sense of community and connection that the Four Firkins exuded isn’t quite as easy to find.

Rockabilly Street Dance Saturday at Bent Brewstillery

By on June 25, 2015in Bent Brewstillery, charity

rockabilly

The fine folks from Bent Brewstillery and Beerploma are throwing a fun party for charity Saturday at the brewery. Visit Bent Brewstillery for a Rockabilly Street Dance benefitting Folds of Honor Minnesota. They’ll have a DJ playing rockabilly tunes all night long, the Katfish Kittens will be present collecting donations and you’ll find no shortage of Bent Brewstillery beers, food and giveaways.

This event is free, but free-will donations will be collected for Folds of Honor. Folds of Honor is a non-profit organization that provides scholarships to the children and spouses of fallen or disabled soldiers.

Schell’s Starkeller Peach

By on June 17, 2015in August Schell Brewing Co.

Trip Fontaine, ‘The Virgin Suicides” – “Peach schnapps. Babes love it.”

Peach is one of those flavors we sometimes associate with sticky sweet things like wine coolers and the aforementioned schnapps. This, my friends, is not cut from that mold. As described, Starkeller peach is hazy, golden and full of peach aroma. You’ll find no candy-sticky-sweetness here. Instead you’ll probably catch the traditional Berliner Weisse tartness with just a bit of sweetness and… get this… peach. Seek this one out!

“It’s a beauty Clark.” Nice work @schellsbeer.

A photo posted by MNBeer.com (Ryan) (@mnbeer) on

Tin Whiskers to Expand

By on June 4, 2015in Tin Whiskers

twbasement

Very cool. Our friends at Tin Whiskers are celebrating their One Year Anniversary on Saturday, June 6th from 1-6pm.

1-2pm — Brewery Tour w/ Co-Founder Jeff Moriarty
2pm — Watts Wheat Wine Release! Receive a special edition glass w/ purchase while supplies last!
2-3:30pm — Hands-on Lego Robot Mural Build-off
3:30-4:30pm — Brewery Tour w/ Co-founder Jeff Moriarty
3:30-5:30pm — Meet & Greet w/ The Family Place *Donations accepted and $1 of all pints sold will be donated to them, all day!
4-6pm — Complimentary food from Rival House and beer truffles from Legacy Chocolates

Tin Whiskers has also announced that they’ll expand their capacity by over 50% in July. They’ve seen steady growth in their first year. President Jeff Moriarty notes, “We’ve exceeded all of our expectations for our first year.  We plan to replace three 15bbl fermenters with 30bbl tanks in July, increasing our overall production capacity by 60%.” They also plan to replace a set of bay window with glass garage doors and add a larger pilot brewing system to allow for more experimentation.

It’s always fun to watch breweries grow from the ground up. Jeff, Jake and George invited me out to their basement brewery a couple of years ago. I really enjoyed that night and the samples and wished them well. It’s nice to see that in less than two years, they’re up and running and surpassing their expectations. Nice job guys!