fitgers has always been my go to when I head to the north shore. Now that hoops is gone, has the quality kept up?
When you visit Grand Marais stop in at Voyageur Brewing, some nice brews and an outstanding deck and brewpub overlooking Lake Superior
Good to hear they have turned around. I was there when they opened and was disappointed. Any suggestions?
Liked the IPA and PA, they were pine forward if you like that style, just had a really good time there , nice folks that own run the place.
Get a sandwich or smoked fish to go from NWSH, go to bent paddle, consume victuals and drink more than one 20oz venture pils.
Might have just been in my head but I thought quality dropped slightly....more bland and less assertive on certain beers I've had before.
Picked up a growler of azecca ipa which is solid. The good news is that mosaic will be ready in 2 weeks and will be sold in cans. The batch will be 4X larger. He also said the hops were dank green. According to him some of the hops last year were brownish. If this batch is better then last years it would be an embarrassment of riches.
In Duluth Bent Paddle is the clear winner in my book. Fitgers is always fun too, even after Hoops left. Skip Canal Park, Dubh Linn and Carmody (as long as we're listing off places that brew their own beer). Also, definitely take @CLevar's advice - Northern Waters Smokehaus in Canal Park is amazing. If there is a line (on weekends and around lunch there probably will be), wait it out, it's worth it. I also recommend making a short drive into Wisconsin for Thirsty Pagan. They always seem to have 16 or so beers on tap (most of which are very good), and the pizza is awesome. On the way to Grand Marais definitely stop at Castle Danger in Two Harbors. Someone else mentioned their Mosaic Fresh Hop...if you happen to be there when they have that you are in for a real treat. In Grand Marais, (I've only been once so take this with a grain of salt) I personally had better luck at the Gun Flint Tavern than at Voyageur. Because of the close proximity of the two, however, you can easily check out both and decide which is more your style. My (future) wife and I will be heading up to the north shore again in a few weeks for our mini-honeymoon. This is essentially a list of places we will be stopping at.
If you've never been, Northern Waters Smokehaus Restaurant is really good, too. Not quite as busy as the Canal Park location and much easier to park at. A different sandwich menu from Canal Park location, good beers on tap, dinner menu (Unfortunately, no lunch menu sandwiches after 3 PM) and a great bottle shop next door (Mount Royal Bottle Shop). Checks a lot of boxes for this BA. I'll also second Thirsty Pagan.
I visited Voyageur earlier this summer & 2 of the beers I tried were diacetyl butter bombs, very disappointed. Maybe their packaged product might resemble something more drinkable.
I've only been once about a year ago, but I too noticed brewing flaws in more than one of their offerings (can't remember if they were flagship or seasonal though). I had one of their offerings across the street at the Angry Trout and it was worse than at the taproom. For my money, I like the Gun Flint Tavern better, although I've heard stories from others who have had the exact opposite experience with the two. I'll be up in Grand Marais in about 3 weeks so I'll report back then.
Voyageur has a great upper level deck and cool taproom. But I'd agree that the beer is subpar. Only time I've ever seen my wife not finish a beer.
Not much to add, but I will say I also enjoyed the Gun Flint Tavern. Pretty nice bar on the side of the joint(you don't have to sit right up in the front bar). I had some beers I really enjoyed when I was there last winter. Food was pretty good as well. The owner was entertaining to talk to. I had a Voyageur IPA on tap at Lutsen; was not impressed. The brewery itself is always closed when we've been up(during the week usually) so never got a chance to try it. Hopefully by now things have improved. We're heading back up there in 2.5 weeks. Just in time for relatively fresh Mosaic Fresh Hop. Can't wait!
Is there an official or tentative release date for the Mosaic Fresh Hop? I'll be up near Two Harbors for a week starting 10/16 - nothing would make me happier than my trip lining up perfectly to drink a truck load of that stuff. Easily my favorite fresh hop from last year.
Wonder no more about the former head brewer for Fitger's new plans: http://growlermag.com/hoops-brewing-to-open-in-duluth-in-2017/
Thanks for posting. I'm very excited. To me Dave definitely belongs on the Minnesota Mount Rushmore of brewers and this article just confirms what I always thought about his style and brewing commitment. Sounds like he will be hands off with the brewing side but I know he would only do that if totally confident in the head brewers abilities. I guarantee this place will be one of the top places in the state if not the top.
