Hazy IPA Image from Rogue

Photo via Falling Knife Brewing Co.

Welcome to Beer Dabbler’s Freshies, our weekly rundown on the newest beers hitting the store shelves and taproom coolers in Minnesota from your favorite local and national breweries. 

B

lack Friday continues to be a themed beer day, with limited big, bold, and black-hued offerings. Imperial stouts and limited variants are most common on this week’s Freshies list of what’s new in the state, but we see a variety of styles that range from seasonal spices and ingredients to smooth Vienna lagers and fruity goses and sour ales too.

Each week, the Beer Dabbler team highlights the most tantalizing new beers available across the state that we’re most excited to try. Check out these Top Flights at Dabbler Depot—Click on each image for stock levels.

Barrel Theory Double Dry Hopped Rain Drops 4pk 16oz –  Easy sipping Hazy India Pale Ale with Citra, Mosaic, and Nectorian hops! 7.5% ABV

Barrel Theory Shadows In Time 4pk 16oz –  Check out this strawberry cheesecake sour with vanilla, marshmallow, graham cracker, and strawberry. 6% ABV

Blackstack Brewing Pigs Fly 4pk 16oz – How deep does the rabbit hole go? We’re not sure, but we can tell you one thing…we’re gonna f*ck around & find out. Going on 7 years & aging like fine swine, Blackstack has brewed this to celebrate their 1,000th batch of beer to come out of our humble little murk shop, with piggish amounts of our hand-selected Mosaic, Mosaic Cryo, Idaho 7, Idaho 7 Cryo, Talus, Talus Cryo, Cryo Pop on a lush, and a nectarous base. When are you gonna make a Quintuple IPA? WHEN PIGS FLY. 14% ABV

Blackstack Brewing That Remains Unclear 4pk 16oz –  How’s it looking out there? Where to start… Smooth sailing with clear skies courtesy of some hop choices of Nugget, Amarillo, Amarillo Cryo, and Mosaic Cryo. That remains unclear, but clearly… this crispy little number is a winner. 7.1% ABV

Arbeiter Brewing Westküst 4pk 16oz –  West Coast meets Hallertau (hop growing region in Germany)! Westküst finds its way as a West Coast American IPA by enlisting a full array of German-sourced hops and malts. 6.9% ABV

New beers available this week across Minnesota

Looking for a taste of these great new beers? The icon indicates beers available at Dabbler Depot. Keep in mind—stock is limited! Check dabblerdepot.com or text (651)-802-2112 for availability.

Bad Weather Brewing Company

  • 2023 Calamity – The barrel-aged Russian imperial stout returns, with Bad Weather noting “Aromas of cocoa, nougat, roast, oak, dark fruits, and vanilla. Flavors of chocolate, molasses, vanilla, marshmallow, and oak. Medium to full-bodied with a medium bitterness with a semi-sweet and pleasant warming finish.”
  • MN Pint Day Golden Ale – Tapped last week, this recipe is a collaborative effort with the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild, bringing notes of pineapple, citrus, and cereal malt.

Bear Cave Brewing

  • Cozy Corner – A 5.9% ABV, 27 IBU porter with flavors of dark chocolate, rich caramel, and light smoke.
  • Euclid – A new amber Vienna lager with freshly baked bread, toast, brown sugar, and light floral notes. 5.3% ABV, 25 IBU.

BlackStack Brewing

  • Morning Routine – A 7.7% ABV stout conditioned on granola.
  • Straight Fyre – The double-dry hopped double IPA is back. 8.8% ABV and made with Citra, Citra Cryo, and Galaxy hops.
  • That Remains Unclear – A West Coast-style IPA brewed with Nugget, Amarillo, Amarillo Cryo, and Mosaic Cryo hops. 7.1% ABV.

Day Block Brewing Company

  • Porter – Recently tapped.

Duluth Cider

  • Bliss – Available for Thanksgiving in limited supply, the cidery says of Bliss: Tart cranberry, crisp apple, as well as aromatic herbs like rosemary, sage, and thyme. 
  • Imperial – A big seasonal cider, pouring 8.9% ABV and sold in bottles.
  • Paragon – A wine barrel-aged fruity rosé made with black currant and apple. 8.5% ABV and sold in bottles.

Fair State Brewing Cooperative

  • Keller Kazbek – Back on draft at the brewery this Thursday, this 5.0% ABV unfiltered Pilsner has grassy and herbal notes. 

Falling Knife Brewing Co.

  • Screaming for Vengeance – The double barrel-aged imperial stout is back on tap and very limited.

  • Velvet Decadence – “Feel the warm embrace of chocolate and roast notes with toasted coconut perfectly blended together, amped up with the richness of vanilla and a hint of sweetness from the addition of milk sugar,” the brewery says.

Fulton Brewing

  • Cold Digger – A blonde ale with cold press coffee, described as a subtle coffee beer at 4.7% ABV, 12 IBU. Taproom only.
  • Cranberry Sour – Available now on draft and in 4-packs.
  • MPLS Mild – A light-body, dark-hued ale. “It’s the bitterly roasted cousin to Chill City Chugger,” Fulton says. 4% ABV, 15 IBU. Taproom only.

Inver Grove Brewing Co.

  • Sky High Coconut Cream Ale

Island City Brewing Company

  • Lit AF – A pilot batch IPA tapped in mid-November. “A crushable 7% IPA with just enough Munich and Crystal to balance the citrus, floral, tropical fruit, and stone fruit aromas,” the brewery says.

Lakes & Legends Brewing Company

  • Super Weich – An 8.3% ABV juicy, soft, and hazy double IPA. 8.3% ABV.

Lift Bridge Brewing Co.

  • Commander – Aged in bourbon barrels, this annual English-style barleywine offers malty, complex flavors with a note of cardamom. 12.5% ABV.

Mankato Brewery

  • Motueka SMaSH IPA – A citrus-forward IPA made with Pilsner-2-row malt and Motueka hops.
  • Yuletide Lager – An annual beer that also helps to raise funds for Kiwanis Holiday Lights.

Oliphant Brewing

  • Grandma Got Runover By A Bog Boy – A THC+CBD cranberry spice drink.

  • Santa Squishy – A cherry cola sour ale at 5% ABV.
  • Spicy Margarita Pickle Beer – One of two taproom-exclusive pickle beers. 
  • Strawberry Pickle Beer – One of two taproom-exclusive pickle beers.

Portage Brewing Company

  • Longest Way Home – A collaboration between Falling Knife Brewing and Portage Brewing, this is a dark lager with notes of bread, wood tannins, and subtle smoke. 5.7% ABV.

Pryes Brewing Co.

  • Amis Du Cidre – Translated to “Cider Friends” this new Idyll Forest wild cider-ale hybrid is a collaboration with Keepsake Cidery, explaining, “Nate and I took fresh pressed apples from their own orchard with all their native cultures and blended them with our spontaneous golden house cultures to give you this incredible apple experience like no other,” the brewery says.

Shakopee Brewhall

  • Spruce Tree Pale Ale – A collaboration with neighbors Schram Haus and Mana, this is a limited pale ale with spruce tips, resinous with notes of caramel and fruit.

Surly Brewing Co.

  • Oasis Canoe – Part of the Intelligent Design series, Thai is a prickly pear gose, on tap at the brewery.

Third Street Brewhouse

  • Sugar Shack – A maple stout at 6.5% ABV.

Thousand Lakes Brewing Co.

  • Fell Beast – “A dark variation on the Belgian Saison,” the brewery begins, “It presents similar to a brown ale but features the dry, effervescent finish and fruity/spicy yeast characteristics of a saison. Add that to the bready, toasty, caramel, and light roast malt flavors.”
  • Tastes Like More – The amber lager is back after a brief Oktoberfest-length hiatus.
  • Tiny Bubbles: Apple Pie – A new spin on the brewery’s Caramel Apple seltzer with added seasonal spice.

Trove Brewing

  • The Goon – Earthy, dank, and grapefruity flavors set the tone in this 6.5% ABV West Coast-style IPA.

Have a new beer we should know about? Send the details to newbeer@beerdabbler.com for inclusion in Freshies.