The company I work for does an event every quarter. After we’re done there are a handful of regulars that like to keep things going. We were in Eagan and someone mentioned that there was a new place that had opened recently. Before long I was closing my vehicle door and searching for the entrance to Union 32 Craft House.
Continue Reading…Gun Flint Tavern
November 8, 2017
Earlier this spring I mentioned to my wife that this could be a good year to hike the entirety of the Superior Hiking Trail. A crazy suggestion, yet just a handful of months later we were pulling into Grand Marais with one sleep left between us and the trail. In the morning my parents were going to drop us off on the Canadian border and to temper our nerves we had planned our last meal at the aptly named Gun Flint Tavern.
Continue Reading…Tanzenwald Brewing Company
August 1, 2017
We’ve got a handful of friends located in the south metro area and beyond. We’re always looking for places that may be more convenient for them to avoid requiring them to drive to the cities every time we want to visit a new taproom. When we heard that Northfield would soon be home to two breweries, we planned accordingly. The first to arrive was Tanzenwald Brewing Company.
Continue Reading…Golden Road Brewing
July 30, 2017
My coworker and I had gotten this far so we couldn’t turn back now. Navigating through the maze that is Los Angeles had brought us to an industrial area of the Atwater Village neighborhood, but finding our destination was proving a little difficult. We finally spotted a warehouse with a warm yellow glow and once we parked we breathed a collective sigh of relief. The Pub at Golden Road was now our reality.
Continue Reading…Giesinger Bräu
March 20, 2017
We ascended the steps of the Silberhornstraße U-Bahn station on a crisp winter evening in Munich. The sun had long set on our merry band of down coated travelers. We’d braved brisk February days and nights by jumping from biergarten to bierstube drinking refreshing Helles (bright) and malty Dunkles (dark) in the homeland of the famous Bavarian potation. On this night, as the warm glow of the underground station disappeared behind us, the neon glow of our destination appeared: Giesinger Bräu.
Continue Reading…Union Pizza & Brewing Co.
March 8, 2017
On an early December evening Samantha and I were in our car headed northwest to knock the last couple of breweries off of our Northern Ale Guide list. That day the destination was Fergus Falls where the furthest brewery that remained was located. It was a long drive and under the darkness of the night we arrived at Union Pizza & Brewing Co.
Continue Reading…Forager Brewery
February 22, 2017
During our effort last year to complete our Northern Ale Guide we knew we’d have to make a trip or two to knock a bunch off the list. We set aside a weekend with our friends Megan and Mitch to hit the southeastern Minnesota breweries. So on an early October evening we started our journey at Rochester’s Forager Brewery.
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We’re experiencing a renaissance of craft beer across the country and in 2016 Minnesota really hit its stride. With a new brewery opening weekly there were a glut of new breweries to visit and a many others establishing themselves within the community. Since it was my first full year blogging and after visiting over fifty breweries, I figured it would be worthwhile to do a recap of my year in Minnesota craft beer and hand out some awards for my own personal favorites. Read on to see the winners!
Continue Reading…Lakeville Brewing Company
December 30, 2016
We are always looking for breweries that are closer to our home in the outer suburbs. So when we heard that Lakeville added two breweries we had to check them out. Then I learned they were next door to each other, how convenient! So we planned a weeknight to visit and headed to Lakeville Brewing Company.
Continue Reading…Grand Rounds Brewpub
April 17, 2016
My family had planned to visit my brother in Rochester for Easter, and one of the choices for dinner was the Grand Rounds Brewpub. It was suggested as a good place for food but I was also curious about their beer. After driving down and spending the afternoon with family we made the short trip from my brother’s house into downtown Rochester for dinner.
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