Clyde Iron Works in Duluth Opens Brewpub With a Traditional Tap List

Photo via Clyde Iron Works

rom Fitgers to Bent Paddle to Ursa Minor and beyond, Duluth has become a bustling craft beer hub on Minnesota’s North Shore. An addition has been made to the list in the form of a brewpub at the Clyde Iron Works facility in the Lincoln Park neighborhood. Clyde Brewery opened its doors in mid-January.

Head brewer at Clyde Brewery, Dale Kleinschmidt, is no stranger to the craft beer scene. He has both homebrewing and professional brewing experience.

“The first beer I ever made was in May of 1971,” Klienschmidt reminisces. “The directive I was given then was to go to the baking section of Piggly Wiggly and get blue ribbon malt extract, bread yeast and water. It ended up being good enough and I thought, hey, this isn’t terrible.”

That Piggly Wiggly experiment triggered his career. Kleinschmidt spent nearly 25 years at Lake Superior Brewing as head brewer and eventually co-owner.

According to Kleinschmidt, owner of Clyde Iron Works, Alex Giuliani has been interested in adding a brewery component to the facility for quite some time. However, he was waiting until Kleinschmidt could be involved. When Lake Superior Brewing Company (under its previous ownership) closed its doors in 2019, Kleinschmidt’s schedule freed up.

“I was laid off on a Friday,” Kleinschmidt explains. “And then on Tuesday he [Giuliani] said, ‘well, I’ve been waiting.’”

And just like that, the brewery side of Clyde Iron Works was a go. The brewery has been in the works since 2020; three years later, it is open to the public.

Clyde Brewery is equipped with two floors. Downstairs seats about 85 people and the upstairs can be reserved for private events. The brewery is equipped with a Craft Kettle five barrel brewing system with six fermenters.

“My goal right now is to make sure we’ve got a consistent flow of all the beers,” Kleinschmidt says. “As time and room allows, I’d like to do some seasonals. Right now, though, we’re concentrating on the main six.”

The six beers that Clyde Brewery currently offers are a cream ale, a Hefeweizen, an IPA, a stout, a Kolsch and a dark lager. These beers can be found on tap and in crowlers to go.

“The focus will be on traditional styles, nothing crazy,” Klienschmidt says. “We’ll make what we make and make it as good as we possibly can.”

Along with enjoying a few brews, folks can grab a bite to eat at Clyde Brewery. The menu includes housemade pastas, pizzas, burgers and more.

“Our main goal is to make sure we serve a good product,” Klienschmidt shares. “And as much as I can make of it. What’s the saying? We make it, we drink it, we sell what’s left!”

Brewer:

Dale Kleinschmidt

Beer:

Cream Ale

Whirley Wheat

Stiff Leg IPA

Mcgiffert Logger

Steam Skidder Stout

Empire Kolsch

Address: 2920 W. Michigan Street, Duluth, MN 55806

Hours:

Monday – Thursday: 4-9pm