Minnesota Beer Advice - State vs State contest

That's a lot of beer...

Some that would be in my 12 pack outside of the usual suspects (Furious, Abrasive)

Cold Press Black
Hop Dish
Day Tripper
Lucid Goslar

 

Off the top of my head Steel Toe Size 7 (Wee Heavy), Brau Brothers Moo Joos, Dangerous Man Chocolate Milk Stout, Indeed Day Tripper and Stir Crazy (Rum King if it fits your criteria) and Surly Abrasive (if it ever comes out)

 

Bent Paddle Cold Press Black
Bent Paddle 14ᵒ ESB
Indeed Stir Crazy
Surly Bitter Brewer (but, this is a summer seasonal, so if you can find any, it will be a bit old...)

PS: It is hard to describe anything from Surly as a "hidden gem" or "under appreciated" ... ... but Bitter Brewer comes pretty close!

 

Bent Paddle's ESB is a well made take on the style. Any of the Schell's Star of the North series sours are really solid.

Honestly, if I was making a 12 pack it would mostly have Surly, Indeed, Steel Toe and Bent Paddle beers in it.

 

Saga!

 

I would definitely include something from Bauhaus--I have been drinking a lot of Wonderstuff lately. It's unique, and a real gem.

 

This is a fun question to tackle, but I’m afraid Minnesota isn’t going to do very well in the competition, especially given those parameters. The problem is that some of the best beer brewed in the state isn’t distributed in bottles or cans, be it from great upstarts like Dangerous Man, Sisyphus, Fair State, and HammerHeart or brewpub favorites like Town Hall, Barley John’s, and Fitger’s. All seven of those breweries are strong contenders for my personal list of the top ten breweries in the state. California and Colorado in particular blow Minnesota out of the water in terms of beers available in stores, possibly even in liquor stores within the state of Minnesota. If all the state representatives do their jobs well, California should win in a walk and Colorado a comfortable second, but Minnesota may be able to give Washington a run for third place, although Washington would be the favorite. What’s happening now in Minnesota is great, but we’re about two decades behind those other states. I’ll attempt to stick to your requirements (no special releases or imperials), and I’ll also attempt to stay away from IPAs for the most part because most of our best (excluding Surly) will pale in comparison to California examples. Can’t win; don’t try. I’ll also leave out Surly because you have Surly covered already.

Schell Schmaltz’s Alt – An old Michael Jackson favorite, and, as a German-style beer, it will stand out against the competition
Bad Weather Ominous – Just a solid, likable beer
Badger Hill White IPA – GABF gold medal winner
Bauhaus Wonderstuff Neu Bohemian Pilsner – The best pilsner I’ve had in a long time
Bent Paddle 14 ESB – I’m less of a fan of this brewery than a lot of other people are, but this one is very good for its style.
Indeed Day Tripper – Gets national buzz, excellent for the style
Lake Superior Mesabi Red – I’d take Lake Superior’s standard lineup over Bent Paddle’s, and this is a particularly interesting one. Sir Duluth Oatmeal Stout probably is even better but doesn’t stand out as much.
Olvalde Ode to a Russian Shipwright – I definitely would include something from this brewery, which brews some of the most thoughtfully designed beer in Minnesota.
Steel Toe Size 7 – I would do Douglas CDA if it were available, but it’s a spring seasonal.
Summit Winter Ale – The best of Summit’s standard line-up

 

That's a great beer and definitely unique....after drinking 12 of them now I think I have identified what makes it unique. I think they have Sorachi Ace hops in it which give it a lemony flavor...I don't know for sure but that is my guess. Their website doesn't list what hops they use.

 

Id assume you want everything in a 12/16oz bottle/can for the sake of costs and ease. Unfortunately most of my favorite MN beers are in bombers of growlers, but nonetheless here's a few I would use-

Summit Saga
Schells Pils
Badger Hill Foundation Stout
Bad Weather Ominous
Surly Coffee Bender
Indeed Day Tripper
Fulton Worthy Adversary

and a Nordeast because MN.

 

Most of the beers I was thinking of are on this list so I'm just going to second this fantastic list. Nicely done, Islay. :-)

 

I'm on my third bottle of Jingle Fever and am really impressed. Very good Baltic Porter. A little cost prohibitive including a bomber in each 12-pack though.

 

Lift bridge hop dish is great fresh. Too bad Steele toe doesn't bottle 12oz. But they have great offerings
Second worthy adversary.

 

It's too bad they don't bottle date on Hop Dish. I rarely buy it as I just never know how long some of this product sits on shelves in my neck of the woods. Love it fresh.

 

Yeah I've had it at some of their tasting events at beer stores and it tastes way better than the ones I've bought. Definitely because they served fresh bottles and the ones I've bought were probably lying around for a while. Draft tastes delicious as well. I second that they need to add a bottled date

 

As has been mentioned, if you can add bombers you've got to include Olvalde. They just recently released some Cask Aged stuff...and it's off the chart amazing.