Archive: Month: March 2016

Malt of different roasting levels

While many people celebrate spring, or Easter, around this time of year, we celebrate Daniel Wheeler Day! On March 28th of 1817 Daniel Wheeler received a patent for his malt roaster. This roaster allowed brewers to consistently and efficiently roast pale malts to create a darker brew, paving the way for the modern porter.

Ask the Brewer

How were Porters colored prior to roasted malts?

Slainte!

Every year on March 17, the Irish and the Irish-at-heart across the globe observe St. Patrick’s Day. What began as a feast day for the patron saint of Ireland has become an international festival celebrating Irish culture with parades, dancing, special foods and a whole lot of green.

Why green? Well, blue is purported to be the first color associated with this day, however, that started to change in the 17th century, right before the time that Irish immigrants in America held some of the first St. Patrick’s Day parades. During this same time period, St. Patrick’s revelers thought wearing green made one invisible to leprechauns, fairy creatures who would pinch anyone they could see (i.e., anyone not wearing green). People began pinching those who didn’t wear green as a reminder that leprechauns would sneak up and pinch green-abstainers.

In honor of St. Patrick’s Day, the Irish heritage running through our families and the Twin Cities, we are tapping our Irish Red Ale on Thursday, March 17th. We hope you will come down and join us in the taproom for a pint or two!

Ask the Brewer

What are some good beer limericks?

Nothing like a beer… and a good book about beer!

Our first ever beer dinner in partnership with the Signature Cafe has officially sold out! The restaurant has created a wait list in case of cancellations, and we are discussing doing a second dinner in the near future. As always, we will make sure we post information about any future events on-line and in the taproom.

Ask the Brewer

What are some good books to give a beer lover?

While there are lots of excellent choices out there for beer lovers, we decided pick one from each state that we are distributed in.

For the beer lover in Minnesota, you can’t go wrong with Land of Amber Waters. This beautiful book by Historian Doug Hoverson explores the rich history of brewing in Minnesota. It starts with the state’s first brewery in 1849, and traces the rise and fall of the beer industry up into the modern resurgence of the craft beer scene.

Wisconsin’s Best Beer Guide is jam packed with updated information on Wisconsin breweries and brewpubs. The book, written by Kevin Revolinski, has a companion Facebook page that features upcoming events, news and even recipes.

For North Dakota, we venture into the realm of quirky autobiographies.  There is a Road in North Dakota: The Adventures of a Dakota Budman, by Sam McQuade, chronicles his life, from growing up Catholic, to his travels and adventures in France, to joining his father in the family beer business.

For South Dakota, while it is not a book per se, The Ramblin’ Guide to Rapid City, SD – From the Badlands to Rushmore!, by the Constant Rambler, is an excellent on-line read.  Not only does it feature great spots to stop for beer and food, it highlights local attractions throughout this area of South Dakota.

The most recently published in our list is from Nebraska, by Tyler A. Thomas, Nebraska Beer: Great Plains History by the Pint just came out this past October and chronicles the development of Nebraska’s beer scene from the 1800’s onward to the thriving craft movement of today.

So, when the spring weather turns cold and rainy, pick up your favorite beer and a good beer book for a long read in a cozy location!

Taproom Tidings

This weekend features a continuation of our Roasted Too Ale, an experimental brew the demonstrates how slight changes to a recipe can result in dramatic flavor changes.

Food options for this weekend include Signature on Wheels on Friday, March 11th and Soup Coupe on Saturday, March 12th.  Two days of deliciousness!

• Tap selection includes Pyro APA, Roasted Coffee Ale, Fused Orange Blossom Honey Ale, Cranberry Shandy, Raj-Agni IPA & Roasted Too
• Thirsty Thursdays $1 off pints and $2 off growler fills
• Coconut Turtle Cupcake from Groundswell includes a coconut chocolate fudge cake with pecans, whipped cream, honey caramel sauce, and chocolate ganache

Final Thoughts

This Saturday, March 12th, we are participating in the Wings & Brew Fest. Held at Treasure Island Resort and Casino and sponsored in part by KWNG, this festival features beer from over 40 breweries, and wings from area restaurants. The 99 Bottles of Beer raffle held during the festival benefits Gillette Children’s Hospital. We hope to see you there!

As always, if you have questions, drop us a note via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!

Moose hunters in Alaska, having a few beers!

We are excited to announce that we have partnered with the Signature Cafe for our first ever beer pairing dinner on Sunday, April 3rd!

This unique event will be held at the Cafe starting at 4:30pm and feature five gluten-free courses paired off against five of our delicious gluten-free beers. Reservations are required (612-378-0237 or signaturecafe@learn-2-eat.com), so make sure to call/email ahead as this one will fill up fast.

Ask the Brewer

Why is it illegal to give a moose a beer in Alaska?

As the photo above aptly demonstrates, moose and beer don’t always mix. Even in Minnesota, it can be a bit dicey to give a moose a lovely beverage, as the following story illustrates:

If You Give a Moose a Beer

The moral of this story is that giving a moose a beer could lead to the complete and utter destruction of your home, hence our recommendation to never give a moose a beer, even if it’s a really good one, like Pyro!

Taproom Tidings

The Dry Stout is still thinking things over, so while we wait (patiently) for it to do the right thing, we thought we might share something a little different. You see, Dane wanted to demonstrate to the staff how changing one or two ingredients in a beer can have a dramatic impact on the taste. So, he took our Roasted recipe and brewed it up using both a different yeast and a slightly modified schedule of hops. The resulting beer is delicious, but has notable differences to it’s cousin. So, we thought it might be fun to share the experience with the rest of you. Stop in this weekend and ask for a pint of our Roasted Too Ale.

Food options for this weekend include the farm fresh, made from scratch offerings of Tollefson Pork Farm. Chef T-Bone will be whipping up his culinary delights on both Friday, March 4th and Saturday, March 5th.

• Tap selection includes Pyro APA, Roasted Coffee Ale, Fused Orange Blossom Honey Ale, Cranberry Shandy, Raj-Agni IPA & Roasted Too
• Thirsty Thursdays $1 off pints and $2 off growler fills
• Coconut Turtle Cupcake from Groundswell includes a coconut chocolate fudge cake with pecans, whipped cream, honey caramel sauce, and chocolate ganache

Final Thoughts

As the snow melts and the temperatures warm, spring approaches, as does the advent of the beer festival season.

For those of you who love to travel, we recommend checking out Midwest Microwbrews, which maintains a calendar of beer festivals occurring through out the Midwest.

With a little planning, a person could spend their whole summer going from beer festival to beer festival.

(a feat typically done only by those who work at breweries <grin>)

As always, if you have questions, drop us a note via Email, Facebook or Twitter.

Cheers!