Bent Brewsillery's Awesome New Digs

It’s finally here! Bent Brewstillery opened their new taproom Thursday, and the place is fabulous! I have been able to see the transformation from the beginning and was excited to see the finished product. So, Vicky and I went out on opening day for a couple beers to check out the new digs. Here are some of the things that make this taproom awesome.

(Cheers from Beerploma at Bent!)

First off, the taps. Bent hasn’t gone with taps on the wall or side of a cooler or even on the bar. At Bent the taps come from heaven... That’s right, they are suspended from the ceiling! How cool is that?!?! Inventive and unique, just like Bent’s beer!

(Curved bar and floating taps!) 

Another unique thing is the curved (or is it Bent.... he-he!) bar. This thing is pretty huge! It was made by owner Bartley’s son-in-law, and he did a damn fine job. The bar has plenty of places to sit as well as plenty of places to squeeze in to buy a beer quick without having to throw elbows.

The views of the actually brewery and distillery are pretty cool. From most seats in the house you can see the shiny tanks of the brewery. From the front of the bar you can see the big still right behind the beertenders. This really gives you an “awesome, I am in the middle of a brewery!” feel, which other than top notch fresh beer is kind of the draw to taprooms.

(Taps and the still in the background)

The bathrooms are beautiful! I might be biased a bit because my buddy Mark tiled them, but they are really nice with awesome fixtures. Maybe a seemingly small thing, but decent bathrooms are a pretty nice attribute to a taproom.

(Nice tile job, D-Boy!)

Seats are plentiful. That is a big deal to me. I have been to a lot of taprooms/tasting rooms where there are a few seats and then it’s pretty much standing room only (yep, looking at you Flat Earth! Great room, but get some chairs.). Bent has tons of tables of all different sizes, plenty of bar stools, and a really nice patio for the nice days. You can sit back, relax with friends, and have a cold one in comfort!

(Seating and a bit of the patio outside)

The best part of the taproom is the beers! They have a lot of taps, around 7 or 8 I think I remember counting, plus a cold pressed coffee on nitro! We had Acclivity (you can read about it here), a fruity summery version of Nordic Blonde called Lakeside Blonde, and an Australian Sparkling Ale called Rage On Wombat. All were great! I’ve come to realize that Bent Brewstillery just doesn’t make beers I don’t like.

(A few taps and the still)

Being unique is what, to me at least, sets Bent Brewstillery apart in their beers, and they definitely followed suit with the taproom. The place is customer focused with plenty of space, plenty of parking, plenty of seating, and plenty of top notch beer! Head over to Roseville and GET BENT!

(Soooooo good!)

www.bentbrewstillery.com

P.S. If you enjoy our blog, please take a minute to click on the link at the top of the page and nominate Beerploma for best MN Beer Blog.... And of course Moe Pug wants you to name him the best MN Beer Writer, he just has a hard time typing with no thumbs....

Brews and Reviews: Indeed's L.S.D (Lavendar, Sunflowers, and Dates) Honey Ale Craft Beer Review

There is a time when you first hold on to a bottle of beer that you realize you had something special in your hands.  That happened to me when I saw my Father-in-law crack open a gift containing a bottle of Indeed's L.S.D Honey Ale.  The wax dipped neck and the extravagant art work teased the greatness that was held within.  Unfortunately this bottle was out of my control.  For all I knew it was flying back to Germany today to be drank overseas, far from discerning tastes...

Luckily he must have saw the hint of jealousy in my eyes as I translated the description to him, in German, because he decided it was best to enjoy it with someone who would rejoice in such a beer!

 

With a little difficulty we finally chipped through the wax and flipped off the cap.  The earthy/raisiny aroma of dates hit us before we could even get our nose into the bottle.  A floral bouquet added a layer to the atmosphere as we poured it into our glasses.  It formed a thick tan head as it continued to waft flavors to our noses.  On closer inspection I was also picking up a slight fresh pine smell too, hiding behind the other aromas.  The first thing I noticed about the taste was a doughy-bready-smooth taste followed a heavy sweet, yet earthy, taste of dates backed with honey.  As the beer warmed up, the flavors came out even more.  The sweetness mellowed a bit, and more earth like flavors came out.  The beer became more mellow if that was even possible.  It had a slight bitterness in the after taste, but it didn't linger long.  This beer had a medium to heavy mouthfeel, and ample, if not subdued, levels of carbonation.

Overall this beer is a great beer to sit on your deck and sip. When I think of this beer it reminds me of the beer recipes I have seen coming from Mesopotamia and Ancient Egypt.   If you are looking for something really different, unique, and well crafted you need to look no further.  While the German Pilsner drinkers might not find this crisp or cold enough, it certainly warmed up to me.  This was easily one of the best beers I have drank this year!  Rating:  Excellent!

Oh and Andy!  Thank you for this "Golden Opportunity" to write about this beer!

Brewz and Reviewz: Big Wood Bad Axe and a Sneak Preview of Jack Pine Savage

I normally leave the beer reviews to Andy and Des, but this week at Midweek Beer Geek we got not one but two tastes of one of Minnesota's newest breweries:  Big Wood Brewery out of White Bear Lake, MN.  

Their first offering was their Imperial IPA Bad Axe.  But they had a surprise for us, a taste of their new and upcoming beer Jack Pine Savage, and American Pale Ale.

The Jack Pine Savage is your typical American Pale Ale.  Nice fruity/citrus aroma.  Very crisp clean golden color with a little bit of haze (though that might have been the cold temperature the beer was served at).  This was you typical American Pale Ale with an earthy bitterness.  It had a light mouth feel, and a dry bitter after taste that lingered a little too long.  Pretty decent for an American Pale Ale, and will be a great addition to a summer line up.  Rating:  *1/2 Stars (out of *** or a "Good" rating).

The Bad Axe had a deeper, reddish gold color, hazy.  It had a great fruity aroma to it and formed a nice creamy head.  It was very sweet, and well carbonated for an Imperial.  Medium mouth feel, and a pleasant after taste.  It was also NOT bogged down by a heavy alcohol flavor.  Overall this is one of the best Imperial IPAs that I have ever had.  Rating:  *** Stars (out of *** or an "Excellent" rating).

Overall I enjoyed these two offerings and am looking forward to the future of this wonderful Minnesota craft brewery!

Jack Pine Savage (Left), Bad Axe (Right)

Dez's Brewz and Reviewz: Third Street Brewhouse: Three Way Pale Ale

I've let it be known in past reviews that Pale Ales are not my cup of tea. Seems lately, I may be in the minority as week after week I see super-duper double hop, hoptastic, hop till you drop....and on and on it goes. So when Third Stree Brewhouse offered up a Pale Ale...I was hesistant (3 kinds of hops!?). When so many other brewers are packing as much HOP as they can into a bottle the Three Way Pale Ale was a great suprise. It pours a hazy, golden amber with little head. Taste is light and a little sweet/fruity. But most of all, and most important to me, the hoppy bitterness was kept under control, making this an unbelievably easy drinker. Maybe its the balance between the 3 hops and 3 types of malts? Both in appearance and tastiness, I kept trying to figure out what it reminds me of. Some that came to mind were: Smithwicks and Yuenglings. Somewhere along the lines of great Irish Reds and Lagers. I wish Third Street was closer to the Metro area, but they will give me a reason to head out of town this summer. *** Stars (too obvious?) Like I said when I drank it "only bought 1, should have bought 6"

Coming soon: Cigar City Brewery of Tampa, FL and hopefully whats on tap at Epcot Walt Disney World...stay tuned!

 

Rise of The Beer Baron Pt. 1: Where we are going!

 
First off who is the Beer Baron?  Well the answer to that is easy.  It is no one, but it is who I strive to become.  I want to be in the middle of the Beer Revolution that has sprung up all around us in the Great Midwest.  I want to be a teacher, a mentor, a resource, I want to be YOUR buddy who hands you a cold one.  Yes, I want to be THAT Beer Baron.

Part of that is why I started this blog.  I knew I wanted Beer Reviews, Homebrew News, Beer Studies, but I felt there was something missing.  So I thought about the blogs that I read.  One of them is called Making Magic.  Its a weekly post by Mark Rosewater, Lead Designer for the game Magic: The Gathering, a game I haven't played in over three years.  But I keep going back to read this article.  He puts a great personal twist about how is personal life helped to shape the game, and how the game shapes his personal life.  He tells these great stories that suck you in, and helps explore human psychology.  He identifies and recognizes the mistakes he makes (both personal, and in his job).  I am mesmerized by how this man writes about everyday things. I realized this is what our blog needs to go from good to great.

So here is my introduction to that personal twist.  In these articles we will talk about how I became involved with beer, why I drink it, and I might even share some of my personnel favorites and failures.  So kick back and enjoy a cold one, because it is time for the Rise of the Beer Baron!

Thank you for reading and I look forward to hearing back from you!

Will