What's new
By:
USCHO Fan Forum

This is a sample guest message. Register a free account today to become a member! Once signed in, you'll be able to participate on this site by adding your own topics and posts, as well as connect with other members through your own private inbox!

  • The USCHO Fan Forum has migrated to a new plaform, xenForo. Most of the function of the forum should work in familiar ways. Please note that you can switch between light and dark modes by clicking on the gear icon in the upper right of the main menu bar. We are hoping that this new platform will prove to be faster and more reliable. Please feel free to explore its features.

Twin Cities Breweries

Proud2baLaker

Proud2baLaker

Master of Science
So I'm going to be in Minneapolis visiting a friend from Aug 20-28. Wilco concert on the 20th and probably some time at the state fair. The main goal of this trip is to go to breweries everyday.

So I'm looking for suggestions on breweries we should try. I'm a fan of most beer types except maybe sours. Also take any suggestions for a good pub with good/interesting food. Will celebrate my birthday while I'm in town and would like to find a cool place for dinner.

Thanks all!
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

A lot of craft beers at the fair so take advantage of that.

Hit Surly, obviously. I've become fond of Bad Weather on 7th in St. Paul.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild. You can put in an address and look for breweries with a radius or look at specific cities.

Fulton is okay. Summit specializes in pale ales, but the Oktoberfest should be coming out soon which is very smooth. Surly is a bitter beer specialist, not my favorite by a long shot. 612 was okay, but could do without another.
 
Last edited:
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

Nordeast Mpls (different from North Mpls, as any local can tell you ;) ) has a ton of options. If you can travel a little (say, 30 minutes to any of the suburbs), I'd highly recommend Hammerheart Brewing in Lino Lakes. Very complex beers. LTD in Hopkins (about 15 minutes from downtown Mpls) usually has 10-12 taps, many different styles. They try to have something for all tastes. Another recommendation is New Bohemia (a couple locations, I believe there is one actually in Mpls city limits now). The one by me has 34 taps, and the "biggest" brewery they carry is Goose Island. Great mix of local and national crafts. They are also a Wurst Huis, with regular and exotic sausages like elk, gator, duck, rattlesnake, etc.

Many taprooms don't serve food, something about the laws/designations, but you can bring food in, whether it be takeout/delivery/etc. Often have menus in the taproom.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

There are an effing ton of little taphouses and breweries now. There are a couple of regions that have a ton really close together. Surly, Lake Monster, and Urban Growler are pretty close together. Both Surly and Urban Growler serve their own food. Lake Monster has great beer, however. If you're fine with a food truck or ordering delivery give it a shot.

Another spot with a bunch together is the intersection of Broadway and Central. Indeed, Able, 612, and Bauhaus are all close. All of these have no food of their own. There's another place not too far called Dangerous Man. Again, no food, but it is only a couple blocks away from Anchor Fish & Chips.

Cripes, that area is bonkers. Just thought of another one. Tattersall, which is a distillery. No beer. Liquor and cocktails. They make a mean sidecar and old fashioned. Of course, no food. Almost always a good food truck there though.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

The no food aspect won't keep us from going to a brewery. I'm all about food trucks. My friend whom I'm staying with lives on the south side. Not to far north of the airport. She has to work during the day unfortunately (going to take at least one "sick" day). If anyone has suggestions for interesting things to do during the day time please share. I don't gave any definitive plans get. Probably the zoo one day as I enjoy zoos a bit.

I appreciate the suggestions and will be coming crack to this thread while I'm in town.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

Proud2baLaker said:
The no food aspect won't keep us from going to a brewery. I'm all about food trucks. My friend whom I'm staying with lives on the south side. Not to far north of the airport. She has to work during the day unfortunately (going to take at least one "sick" day). If anyone has suggestions for interesting things to do during the day time please share. I don't gave any definitive plans get. Probably the zoo one day as I enjoy zoos a bit.

I appreciate the suggestions and will be coming crack to this thread while I'm in town.
Click to expand...

If you see the "Hot Indian Food" food truck. GO THERE. So f*ing good. bbdl will back me up on this.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

Surly, Bad Weather, Barley John's, Northbound, Tin Whiskers, Lift Bridge.

If you are coming from Wisconsin then stop at Oliphant in Summerset.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

I don't have a good eye for Minny brews, having not lived there since I was 20.

Grain Belt Nordeast is one of my favorite cheap beers, and my old man (in his more drinky days) went for Pigs Eye.

Neither are all that exciting. It's like recommending the new Schlitz or La Crosse to people visiting WI.

I have had Schell's and Surly, though. Both are very good (although I'm not one for super hoppy IPAs in the case of the latter.
 
Last edited:
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

ExileOnDaytonStreet said:
I don't have a good eye for Minny brews, having not lived there since I was 20.

Grain Belt Nordeast is one of my favorite cheap beers, and my old man (in his more drinky days) went for Pigs Eye.

Neither are all that exciting. It's like recommending the new Schlitz or La Crosse to people visiting WI.

I have had Schell's and Surly, though. Both are very good (although I'm not one for super hoppy IPAs in the case of the latter.
Click to expand...
I think any tour (by "tour", I mean drinking) of Minnesota craft beers has to start with Summit. It's just kind of the father of Minnesota craft brewing, and candidly they just make good beer. A lot of people that I know have gotten into craft beers simply because they started drinking one of the Summits. They're just good gateway drugs into craft beers if you haven't yet developed a taste for beers with more "flavor."

Also, if the OP is in fact going to the fair, that's a pretty good opportunity to experience a sample from a wide variety of brewers around the state, not just from the Twin Cities area. Here is a recent update on what you might find there. I try to avoid the gimmicky ones, but I've never failed to find a handful of new ones that I really like at the fair.

http://growlermag.com/the-growlers-complete-guide-to-beer-at-the-2016-minnesota-state-fair/
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

Summit was the original, Surly fought the legislators and blew the gates wide open. Minnesota craft brewing owes a lot to both of them.

I've thought of a few more that are pretty good. Tin Whiskers in St Paul, Bent Brewstillery in Roseville, Northgate in MPLS.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

We are going to the fair at least one day. Will use it as an opportunity to try as many as I can.

I actually do a little brewing with a small local brewery in Idaho where I live. It starts as a fairly normal pale ale but then we add some local native sage. Sounds gimmicky (though given we live in sage land I'm surprised others haven't done it) but it's actually really good. We have had young, old, male, female, craft beer lovers, macro lovers and everything in between drink it and enjoy it. We've done mostly small batches of it but hope to make 5-7 barrels sometime in September.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

I would really consider Schell's to be the father of Minnesota beers. It kind of walks the line between craft and macro.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

dxmnkd316 said:
I would really consider Schell's to be the father of Minnesota beers. It kind of walks the line between craft and macro.
Click to expand...

By pure definition, it doesn't, IIRC. Those designations are set: barrels per year, although Boston Beer Co (Sam Adams) is trying to change that, to keep the "craft beer" designation. I do know what you mean, though.

And I agree that Schell's is the father of MN beers. Very good brewery.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

Schell's is I believe the oldest and perhaps father of the old school, but certainly not of the new school. I haven't had a chance to try their Noble Star beers since they were released after I moved here. Although Schell's overall output may not allow them to wear the craft label I have to imagine quite a few of their offerings are not big batched.
 
Re: Twin Cities Breweries

Ended up having beers from 15 different breweries. (Will list later). Went to a Saints game (caught my first version foul ball), the state fair (not a fan...I hate crowds), the Minnesota zoo and the MIA. And lots of good food. Also spent a day floating the Mississippi up by Becker/Monticello. Caught a fair number of smallmouth including one that was about 20 inches. Not a bad little trip.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top