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Jack Rendulich
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Canal Park Brewing is part of the eruption of regional craft beer brewers around the Big Lake, a trend spurring what some call “beer tourism.”2 of 10
Jack Rendulich
Building a Better Beer
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Jack Rendulich
Building a Better Beer
Pairing the right brew with your dish is half the fun at Canal Park Brewing in Duluth.
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Jamie MacFarlane
Building a Better Beer
Castle Danger Brewery owner Clint MacFarlane and brewer Mason Williams.
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Jack Rendulich
Building a Better Beer
Rick Boo, left, of Carmody Irish Pub & Brewing in Duluth, and Pepin Young of Canal Park Brewing.
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Jack Rendulich
Building a Better Beer
Patrons enjoy a beer at Carmody Irish Pub & Brewing in Duluth.
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Jack Rendulich
Building a Better Beer
Canal Park Brewing, which opened in its new building the weekend after Thanksgiving in 2012, offers a variety of beer styles.
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Jack Rendulich
Building a Better Beer
The sleek-looking brewhouse at Canal Park Brewing in Duluth, where windows provide generous Lake views.
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Jack Rendulich
Building a Better Beer
Canal Park Brewing offers "flights," small glasses of different beers for those wanting to sample and choose a favorite.
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Courtesy Sleeping Giant Brewing
Building a Better Beer
The owners of Sleeping Giant Brewing in Thunder Bay, from left, are Andrea Mulligan, Kerry Berlinquette, Kyle Mulligan and Rob Burlinquette.
A New Wave of Regional Craft Brewers
Like many craft beer brewers, Kyle Mulligan of Sleeping Giant Brewing Co. in Thunder Bay started by making beer at home.
“Back when I started home brewing, I was making different styles I had only read about,” says Kyle. His home success encouraged him to try a wider audience than friends and relatives … and a business was born.
Sleeping Giant Brewing opened in June 2012 as a microbrewery, and this year it plans to brew 720 barrels of beer – about 22,300 U.S. gallons.
The Thunder Bay brewery is one in the eruption of regional craft beer brewers around the Big Lake. It seems brewpubs and microbreweries are springing up everywhere, spurring what some call “beer tourism.”
In January, Sleeping Giant hosted a bus trip for beer lovers that traveled between Thunder Bay and Duluth.
Besides Thunder Bay, new operations have opened in Michigan’s Keweenaw Peninsula and especially along the Minnesota shores, with at least seven new brewers since 2010.
Being the only craft brewer in Thunder Bay “puts us in a good spot,” Kyle says. “More importantly, it puts us in a position to educate people in our area about different beer styles.”
But what is a craft beer? The simple answer is beer made by small, independent brewers. Generally they emphasize local ingredients and tout the specific flavors and unique aspects of their brews.
Like other craft beers, those at Sleeping Giant sport one-of-a-kind names with local ties, like Elevator Wheat (Thunder Bay has its share of waterfront grain elevators) and Skullrock Stout (from Silver Islet’s earlier name). Sleeping Giant beer is served at local bars and restaurants and is sold on site by the take-home growler.
Sleeping Giant’s four owners – Kyle and his wife, Andrea, and Rob and Kerry Berlinquette – run the operation. Kerry is the only full-time, albeit unpaid, brewery employee. Kyle is a family physician and the other partners also have day jobs.
"People are looking for high quality, honestly made crafts, and that is what craft brewing is all about," says Nick Cameron, co-owner of Dubrue.
The craft beer boom is more a trend than a fad, says Dale Kleinschmidt, head brewer and operations manager for Duluth’s Lake Superior Brewing Co., which started in 1994 in the Fitger’s Complex before moving to the Lincoln Park neighborhood of the city. One of the oldest craft brewers in the Twin Ports and now a commercial microbrewery, Lake Superior Brewing’s staff of four produces a total of 2,000 barrels a year. Its year-round standards are Special Ale, Kayak Kolsch, Mesabi Red and Sir Duluth Oatmeal Stout.
Dale and other brewers say the beer-drinking public has developed more sophisticated tastes.
In Minnesota, changes in state law also have encouraged small start-up breweries. In the past, craft beer makers could either be brewpubs – bars that serve food and beer made on-site – or production breweries selling to retailers.
The first change in the law allowed for off-sale of growlers, or half-gallon jugs, direct from brewers to the public, and then in 2011, a new taproom law allowed breweries to sell beer on site by the pint.
New start-ups are taking advantage of those changes, as are established operations like Lake Superior Brewing, which plans to open a taproom to promote its line and give curious fans a taste of the beer at its source.
One of Duluth’s newest brewers agrees with Dale that consumers’ tastes are more refined.
“Outside of it being really cool to go down to a local spot that only serves their beer, I think that consumers’ tastes are changing away from the big-beer model and looking for more flavor,” says Pepin Young, general manager of Canal Park Brewing. “I think that people want good beer, and that’s what it boils down to. … Craft beer’s a culture. It’s more than the beer in the glass.”
Canal Park Brewing, created by regional developer and hotel entrepreneur Rockie Kavajecz, opened the weekend after Thanksgiving 2012 and typically produces eight to 12 styles, from a pub draft on the lighter side to an India pale ale (IPA) and its Dawn Treader Belgian Tripel, a “high-octane” brew with 9.5 percent alcohol.
The brewpub’s new red brick building blends nicely with its neighbors and offers Lake views from the beer hall or in the brewhouse, where 1,500 to 2,000 barrels will be produced annually.
In May, Bent Paddle Brewing was set to open in Duluth with a 30-barrel brewhouse, a canning operation (the beer will be in cans) and a taproom to sell pints and growlers. Bent Paddle makes Golden IPA and Bent Paddle Black, which falls between porter and stout. The beers will also be sold at bars, restaurants and liquor stores.
Like Sleeping Giant Brewing, Bent Paddle is owned by two married couples: Bryon and Karen Tonnis and Colin and Laura Mullen.
The company name came from their canoeing passion, Bryon says. “All four of us like to spend a lot of time outdoors.”
The passion for craft beer, Bryon suggests, comes from people “looking for affordable luxuries,” and well-crafted beers are among them.
Another brewery began about two years ago in Duluth. Dubrue makes a pub ale and India black ale. It gets a fair number of people for tours, but does not have a taproom or sell growlers.
“I think the craft beer explosion has followed a larger trend toward more local and more authentic crafts,” says co-owner Nick Cameron. “People are looking for high quality, honestly made crafts, and that is what craft brewing is all about.”
Carmody Irish Pub & Brewing in Duluth began making its own beer in 2010 and now brews 120 barrels a year of favorites like Famine 47 Stout (made with potatoes) and Agnes Irish Red (named for co-owner Eddie Gleeson’s great aunt).
Co-owner Rick Boo says craft beer “is something unique that you can’t get anywhere else. It’s local and regional.”
The popularity of craft beer is making Duluth a destination for beer lovers. “I think this summer is going to be a great one,” Rick says, with travelers trying out the brewpubs and the different beers. "It’s a boom for the economy.”
Last year Carmody Irish Pub opened a second operation, Carmody 61 in Two Harbors, Minnesota, where it also serves its microbrews.
Each brewer is different, Rick says, and tasting different beers is a subjective experience. “When people come in and say (they) don’t like something, I just say that’s OK. We’ve got plenty of other beers.”
Tips to Tap
New to the world of craft beers? Here are some local expert tips:
- Don’t be afraid to ask. If you don’t know a pale ale from a kolsch, you’re not alone. The bartender or server can explain the differences and nuances of all the styles. Ask for a sample.
- Order a flight – small glasses of several beers. It’s a great way to sample several styles of beer.
- Tap the staff. At Canal Park Brewing Co., General Manager Pepin Young says the staff tells patrons about their personal preferences. “There’s so many different varieties, you really have to get to know your customers. … If we pour you a beer that you really don’t like, that doesn’t fit your palate, we’ll bring you another one.”
- Try it, you might like it. Taste is subjective; you shouldn’t dismiss a style until you’ve tried it, advises Dale Kleinschmidt, head brewer at Lake Superior Brewing Co.
- Nick Cameron, of Dubrue, believes there is a right craft brew for everyone. “Most people who haven’t dabbled in craft beer think of either huge hoppy beers or ‘that dark stuff,’ like stouts. There are a number of beer styles that are very approachable to new beer drinkers. I guess to put it into one sentence: Don’t judge all craft beer from the first experience. There is a lot out there.”
One of the city’s largest craft beer producers is also a brewpub. Fitger’s Brewhouse in the Fitger’s Complex makes 80 styles of beer each year, including the Starfire Pale Ale and Big Boat Oatmeal Stout. Its 3,000 annual barrels supply Burrito Union and Tycoons Alehouse in Duluth, along with Fitger’s. All are owned by Rod Raymond and Tim Nelson.
We are, of course, a region of beer appreciators. While the Brewers Association in Boulder, Colorado, reports the craft beer share of sales in the United States in 2012 was 6.5 percent by volume and 10 percent in dollars, “in Duluth, it was probably closer to 40 percent,” says Fitger’s Brewhouse spokesman Brad Nelson.
“People more and more are looking for a taste of local culture in any way they can get it,” Brad says. People are coming to Duluth to try the new beers and brewpubs.
Fitger’s is running out of brewing capacity at its current location and plans to build a main brewery in the former Carlson Bookstore Building, a few blocks east on Superior Street. Plans are also in the works to open Endion Station Public House and sell beer and sandwiches in the historic depot in Canal Park.
Minnesota has had recent law changes, but craft brewing is on the rise everywhere. You find brewpubs and microbreweries in Wisconsin’s cities of Superior and Ashland and Michigan’s Upper Peninsula in Marquette, Houghton, Calumet, Newberry and now Copper Harbor.
At Keweenaw Brewing Co. in Houghton, co-owner Paul Boissevain says there’s “huge demand out there for microbrews.” His company opened in spring 2004, and last year produced 8,300 barrels of beer, a figure expected to grow to 11,000 barrels this year.
“I think that people have learned to appreciate (beer) and acquire that more sophisticated taste,” Paul says. It’s a phenomenon similar to what happened with coffee and artisan breads.
Craft beers are defined, he says, by their attention to flavor and by being small and local. Keweenaw Brewing has a taproom in downtown Houghton, where it makes specialty brews, but most of its brewing is done in nearby South Range and sold around the region. The company sells its beer in cans to preserve freshness and flavor, Paul says. Some of its six styles sport names related to mining or shipping – Old Ore Dock Scotch Ale, Pick Axe Blond Ale and Widow Maker Black Ale (widow maker after a drill used in the mines).
In 2012 Copper Harbor laid claim to the most northern brewery in Michigan – the Brickside Brewery opened by Jason Robinson and Jessie Coltas. Brickside has eight beers on tap and seven in bottles.
In Superior, Thirsty Pagan Brewing celebrated seven years in May. It has expanded from six employees to 35. Last year, the brewpub made 400 barrels of craft beer, and owner Steve Knauss hopes to boost that number to 500 barrels.
Thirsty Pagan offers nine varieties on tap during the week and 12 on Saturday and Sunday, when the lineup includes limited brews. Ales are house specialties, including the light Lawn Chair Cream Ale, a robust Burntwood Black ale and a version of a West Coast India pale ale called India Pagan Ale.
Steve attributes the popularity of craft beer to having customers who want local brews and support a local company and are willing to pay more for that. “It’s made in the USA,” he says. “There’s a level of quality there.”
One regional brewery probably has an advantage when it comes to “beer tourism.”
Castle Danger Brewery is part of Castle Haven Cabins resort between Beaver Bay and Two Harbors, Minnesota. Owners Clint and Jamie MacFarlane opened their brewery in March 2011, and last year made 12 different styles with their three-barrel system. Their beer is served at local bars and restaurants, and growlers are available Fridays and Saturdays at Castle Danger. Its Danger Ale is the only year-round brew.
“We are the only brewery-resort combination in Minnesota,” Jamie notes. That makes it a destination for those who travel in search of good craft beers.
The hard work of running a third-generation resort and a microbrewery has paid off for Clint and Jamie. The couple hired brewer Mason Williams and hopes to expand in downtown Two Harbors next year with a larger brewing site and a taproom.
Possibly the smallest brewery around is Ken Thiemann’s Borealis Fermentery near Knife River, Minnesota, which opened in April 2012. It’s a one-man operation that produced 30 barrels of Belgian-style ales last year. Ken is shooting for 100 barrels in 2013. (Borealis is available at several Duluth bars, restaurants and bottle shops, but Ken’s small operation is not open to the public.)
Ken bottles his beer in wine bottles. He calls it a specialty drink, and with 6 to 9 percent alcohol content – double that of national brands – it’s a sipping brew to be savored, not chugged. “When I go out fishing,” he admits, “I drink Labatt’s.”
“Smaller batches, better ingredients,” all of these are essential for craft beers, says Ken. “People like to buy local products, and craft beer is real. It’s the real deal.”