Mill City Explorer

I was surprised recently when someone pointed out to me that Minneapolis does not have a full fledged brewery within its borders. The James Page Brewing Company was the last brewer to independently produce beer for distribution, and left the city several years ago after a number of poor financial moves and production changes. While in my opinion it was a decent product, it was never quite able to compete with the Summit Brewing Company, which was at one time its peer brewery. James Page never produced more than 1,500 barrels in a single year though, while Summit's production has grown to over 80,000 barrels per year.

However, a new hope for Minneapolis beer is on the horizon. A new entrant in the local market is poised to compete with the brewing giant across the river. The first batches of Fulton Beer were brewed in a garage in the Fulton Neighborhood of Minneapolis in 2007. Due in part to encouragement from a high consumption rate by friends and family, production grew to the point of a public release several weeks ago. The entrepreneurs have experienced a blitz of local media exposure over the past month, and seem to be capitalizing on the opportunity. I spoke with Brian, one of the Co-Founders at the Acadia Cafe a few weeks ago, and he made it clear that they are trying to brew and market more traditional beers. It was encouraging to hear, as I for one have tired of the over-hopping of beer that has become so popular in recent years. Currently the beer is being produced in Wisconsin, but the owners would like to return to the Twin Cities soon. So go out and consume some Fulton Beer, let's help expedite the process of returning brewing to the Mill City.