A Double Edition of The Best Things We Drank

We were out of town a good chunk of last week getting a little R&R on a family fishing trip in northern Minnesota but now we're back and ready to catch up with a double edition of Best Things. Grab a beverage and settle in!

June 19 - 25
Being back in the Midwest we couldn't help but seek out some old favorites but also took the opportunity to try beer from some of the newer places that have sprung up since we left seven years ago. The former was rewarding, the latter was hit and miss.
Bell's Kalamazoo Stout - Bell's, which has seen some exposure in the Portland market, is extremely skilled when it comes to stouts and this beer is a Bell's classic. Roasty and smooth, this 6% stout is one that can be enjoyed year round.

Summit Saga IPA - Summit is similar to Widmer in that it has been around since the early days of craft beer in its respective state and like Widmer, has its standard lineup but has also managed to remain relevant with new offerings. Saga is newer (in the last five years) and is hoppy enough for NW IPA lovers to enjoy, a profile that comes from the combination of hops, both in the brewing and dry-hopping stages.

Fargo 1.21 Gigahops (2017) - This is the first beer that we've had from Fargo Brewing Company and although a bit sweet, it is appropriately so considering that it's an imperial IPA clocking in at 9.5%. The 12oz can size is just right for enjoying one. Interestingly, the founders and the brewers they hired have been influenced by the Pacific Northwest (give their history a read if you're so inclined).

Rewinding to the week before we headed out to Minnesota, it is a bit interesting to see that our top two beers actually hailed from that state. Those beers were enjoyed when we were invited to join in a bottle share with friends of a friend who were visiting Portland.

June 12 - 18
Lift Bridge Commander Bona Fide Barleywine - We've enjoyed Commander on numerous previous occasions and are proud to call the Lift Bridge guys friends. This, however, was the first time we'd had a "bone fide" version wherein the 12.5% beer is aged in Heaven Hill barrels. So smooth without any trace of heat, this is one to savor with friends.

Indeed Wooden Soul Cherry Dust - Indeed is one of the older of the newer breweries in MN and while we've had some good things from them, we haven't been 100% sold. This sour beer definitely improves our view of them and makes us hope they continue to produce sour beers. At a sessionable 5.4% the wild yeasts, tart cherries and wood aging mingle to produce a beer we'd happily drink a full 22oz bottle all on our own.

The rest of the beers that hit high notes for us that week hailed from Portland and California.

Great Notion Double Dry Hop Hop Dry Double - One of the beers at Eclicptic's Masters of IPA event during PDX Beer Week, we'd heard in advance that this was a good'en. They call it an "imperial session IPA" that is "a verbal assault on your palate." We call it juicy and drinkable. Now only if we had more of it to drink!

Montavilla I-205-PA IPA - Fans of Montavilla in general, on our most recent visit, this was the beer that really spoke to us with the combination of Amarillo, Simcoe and Mosaic hops. As much as other styles try too woo us, the hops always lure us back to IPAs.

Fire on the Mountain Galena Goodnight - We go to Fire on the Mountain for their wings (the best in town we say!) and have been pleased to find that their beer has continued to improve as the brewery has come out of its infancy. Labeled as a CDA the mouthfeel is more like a porter or stout with a deliciously roasty flavor.

Modern Times Oneida - We might sound like a broken record with the consistency that Modern Times has been making the Best Things list but dang it, the hits just keep coming. A complex pale ale, the flavor shares some characteristics with Fortunate Islands, another one we quite like although it is more aggressively bitter, which speaks to our hop-loving taste buds.

Lagunitas Dark Swan (2017) - Found in the sour section of The BeerMongers cooler, this 8.5% sour ale was a steal at $2.90 for a 12oz bottle. Lightly sour, the wine-ish flavor (with gorgeous grape color to back it up) drank more like grape juice. Adult juice box anyone?

Now a few days back in the Portland saddle we're finally feeling caught up from being gone and looking forward to what July, Oregon Beer Month, will bring.

Twin Cities Beer: New and Old

Since we moved out of the Twin Cities nearly three years ago the craft beer scene has really been picking up. New breweries are opening at a pace that would be astonishing if not for the fact that the pace is as rapid if not faster in Portland. In addition, "The Surly Bill" was passed which will allow Surly Brewing to build their destination brewery as well as making the laws more favorable in general for breweries.

Thanks to some great friends I've been able to try some beers from the new places that have opened but that's nothing compared to actually visiting the breweries. While I didn't have enough time to make it around to all the new places my lovely "tour guides" Kat and Scott took me to two of their favorites (after putting down a good jiffy burger base at The Blue Door Pub St. Paul).

The interior of Dangerous Man has an industrial bent.

The first stop was Dangerous Man Brewing located in the heart of Northeast Minneapolis. Dangerous Man doesn't bottle any of their beer and due to recent demand they're limiting growler sales to a mere 10 per day, one per person. The place was packed when we arrived post-lunch although we were able to get our beer fairly quickly. Of the five beers on tap I was only uninterested in one - German Kolsch - simply because I'm not a great fan of the style. The three of us shared "short pours" (10 oz) of the other four - Double IPA, Matchbox Coffee Porter, Chocolate Milk Stout and El Dorado Rye.

L to R: Double IPA, Coffee Porter, Milk Stout & Rye

I'd heard great things about the Chocolate Milk Stout, most notably that it was adult chocolate milk, and it lived up to the billing 100%. The porter surprised me with the depth of flavor and just the right amount of coffee and the rye, while being one of the most rye-forward beers I've had, was very enjoyable. The Double IPA was a bit much on the booze profile for me but still an enjoyable and well-made beer.



Indeed's taproom uses more classic touches.

Next we headed over to Indeed Brewing which Kat had described it as the most Portland-esque taproom in the Twin Cities. She was right. Just the feel of Indeed was more to my liking with the classic wood bar, exposed brick wall and shuffleboard table. Indeed does bottle some of their beers and I had been lucky enough to try a bottle of their flagship Day Tripper American Pale Ale earlier this year.

Pretzels and Hot Box

They had that on tap along with three others that we shared - Midnight Ryder American Black Ale, Hot Box Imperial Smoked Pepper Porter and Burr Grinder Beer Coffee Ale. The Coffee Ale didn't do much for me and the Hot Box was heavy on the smoke but the Midnight Ryder was very good. I had commented earlier in the day that I prefer smoked beers with food instead of on their own so Kat grabbed a bag of Sully's Sweet & Heat Pretzels from the food truck parked outside. They increased my enjoyment of Hot Box considerably and even improved the Coffee Ale.

After that it was time to head to a couple of old favorites, places that a trip back wouldn't be complete without - Town Hall Brewery and Great Waters. Town Hall's weekly Pint Club from 4 - 5 pm Saturdays brought in many familiar faces and I got my French fry fix (theirs are the best on the planet hands down). The stop at Great Waters was a bit unplanned, I'd been hoping to take in Sunday Mug Club there, but due to the "holiday" they would be closed. Still I got to see a favorite bartender, Chuck, and enjoy a pint of St. Peter Pale Ale.

It was a great day of drinking new and old in Minnesota; one I would have liked to make two-day adventure. However due to lovely Minnesota laws, taprooms are not allowed to be open on Sundays (oh, and neither are liquor stores...the only place one can buy beer) so whatever beer I'll enjoy for the remainder of my time will be at a bar (which are allowed to be open) or from a friend's cellar.