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Minnesota Beercation 2025

From the patio at Vintage Escapes Winery & Vineyard

This is the fourth year of having a summer vacation with our best friends, the Richlings. We are well into the groove to the extent that we optimize the vehicle space to ensure that the massive 55-quart cooler can make the trip. Yes, it is heavy, but this Blue brand cooler keeps the beer ice cold while visiting breweries. On this trip, Paul even brought a tape measure to ensure everything would fit before heading out on the road to Minneapolis, Minnesota.

Lua Brewing in Des Moines

Last year’s beercation took us to Iowa, and our first stop was at Lua Brewing. We decided to go there again as a nice break from the drive to Minneapolis. This is always a great place to start, thanks to the excellent food and craft beer! Paul and I were shocked to find out that they had Gil’s Pils served from a slow-pour tap. The anticipation of when the beer is finally ready to be served is overwhelming!

Kristi enjoyed the Say Yes sour with blueberry, boysenberry, and blue raspberry—her favorite from last year—but this time, there were no four-packs available. I think the trauma lasted for the next two hours after leaving Lua Brewing. I had the hazy Pale Ale called Tiny Beam of Light, which is made with just Citra hops and is very tasty!

The next stop was a beautiful property near Kilkenny, Minnesota - Vintage Escapes Winery & Vineyard. This is Kristi’s happy place! She did a tasting to determine what to bring back to Omaha. Her favorites were the Riesling, a dry version of this style of wine, and the Hotsy-Totsy, an off-dry wine blend. It was a gorgeous day, and I enjoyed the legendary Grain Belt Lager. There is a rich history surrounding this beer that you can enjoy here.

A beautiful waterfall in a city park

After arriving on Thursday, we headed to Minnehaha Park on Friday morning to see the waterfall. We had a lovely walk, taking in the sights and seeing that many others had the same idea that we did. It was enjoyable to see a mother and her two children wading and laughing in a shallow pool along the stream. If you're a numbers person, you might be interested to know that it took 106 steps to walk down to the water level to take in the waterfall. It was time for lunch, and Kristi was up to the challenge of finding a great place to go to!

The Yard House in Minneapolis

We were looking for a place to go for lunch that would be close to our afternoon brewery destination. Kristi found the Yard House in the Shops at West End. If you've never been to a Yard House, the beer selection is massive, with over 100 taps. My first experience was in Las Vegas while I was attending a conference.

Everyone found a beer to enjoy. I enjoyed the classic 3 Floyds Brewing Zombie Dust. Kristi found a local sour - more to come on this later. The food was incredible, and the service was outstanding! This was a great choice as we headed to Utepils Brewing.

Friday afternoon will be a time that we will never forget! We spent over two hours at this incredible brewery with Dan Justesen, the creator and owner of Utepils Brewing. A lot was happening during this visit, and to fully enjoy it, you will need to read the story I wrote to savour the sun!

After the brewery visit, we did some shopping and then had dinner. I should clarify that Mrs. Joe and Kristi went shopping, while Paul and I walked to the nearest watering hole, which luckily had some local craft beer.

So, I have tried to build up the anticipation of why we chose Minneapolis. It was the perfect choice because my oldest, Jae, and her significant other, Jasper, had recently moved there. It was incredible to have the two of them show us the city and put up with my mediocre selfie taking. I think the picture captures our happiness while walking in Fort Snelling State Park.

I think our original plan for this Saturday morning was to take a short, two- to three-mile walk. The trails were very nice, and we made it to where the Minnesota and Mississippi rivers meet. It was a lovely morning on a day that would hit 97 degrees! Somehow, I think I got punked because before we knew it, we were on the back side of the fort. Our navigation skills might not be the best, but we were having such a great time that we didn’t care!

We arrived at Fort Snelling and were ready to explore the fort! Unfortunately, because it was such a hot day, there were no self-guided tours available, and the next one wouldn’t be for another hour. Jae and Jasper agreed to guide the old guys, Paul and me, back to the vehicles so that we could go pick up the wives back at the fort. I was very grateful to Jae and Jasper, especially when we made it back to the parking lot! Before getting back on the road to pick up the wives (thank you, Google Maps), Paul and I took a minute to enjoy a great friend of mine, Dort Munder. I think it was Paul’s first time meeting Dort.

After heading back to the hotel for a shower and lunch, we were ready to explore a couple more breweries! Kristi was excited to visit Pryes Brewing Co. The brewery is situated along the Mississippi River and features a massive outdoor patio. Kristi was on a mission to see if they had the blueberry sour available in a 4-pack - this was the sour she loved at the Yard House!

I grabbed an IPA flight, and Kristi had a sour flight. My good friend Paul, who was driving, disappeared; he had to inquire about the dry sauna company that was poised outside the brewery. Hmmm, I was wondering who would want to go into a sauna when it is 97 degrees outside. I can see how this can be an attraction in the cold winter months in Minneapolis, though.

I took a few notes about the IPAs I had, and here were my thoughts.

  • Miraculum is a Midwest IPA that is malty and balanced between sweetness and hop bitterness, with an ABV of 6.4%.

  • Glamorama is a West Coast IPA with a light body. It features notes of pineapple and stone fruit, with a low level of hop bitterness. This was my favorite, coming in at 7.1% ABV.

  • Hazy Citra Pale Ale has citrus notes that are well-balanced with some earthy hoppiness. It is easy drinking at 5.1% ABV.

  • Mass Haze-Teria is a hazy IPA with notes of citrus and stone fruit. It is mildly dank with a fuller body that comes in at 7.1% ABV.

Kristi enjoyed the sours, but the elusive blueberry sour was not available in 4-packs. It was a bummer to find this out. Oh, what about Paul? Good news, he did not succumb to the pressure of getting into the dry sauna. We were off to the final brewery of the day!

While we were at Utepils Brewing, the owner suggested we check out Arbeiter Brewing Co. The brewery’s name, Arbeiter, is derived from the German word for worker. The brewery owners state on their website that they are firm believers in the idea that you get only what you work for.

As we arrived, the wives found a couple of bookstores, which were awesome! So that meant Paul and I could spend more time at the brewery. As we walked in, it was hectic, but luckily, there were two open seats at the bar! My favorite place to learn about a brewery is at the bar!

We had heard about Ha Ha Pils, a northern German Pils, that you could say is the world’s best German Pils after winning gold at the 2025 World Beer Cup and 2024 Great American Beer Fest. This beer didn’t disappoint, and I would say it is in the top two of German Pilsners that I have ever had! Our beertender was very nice to explain the different beers, even though they were extremely busy with an international painting contest, according to a gentleman whose wife was participating.

The dark beer pictured is named Roggen Stickum, and it is a Sticke Alt with Rye coming in at 9% ABV. This is my first time having this style of beer. As the beer warmed, the dark fruit and brown sugar notes blended seamlessly with the spiciness of the rye malt. This was the most unique beer of the trip, and I was glad to have the opportunity to try it!

We left to grab some food to take back to the hotel, where the night would become competitive!

A night in at the hotel and we found a table to play the game Carbles (also known as Aggravation). The game involves using cards to move marbles around a board, to get all your marbles into your "home" space. It is an enjoyable game, and Paul made the beautiful wooden board.

The game got competitive when we had teams of husbands vs wives. The intensity was that of a boxing match to see who would win the title. I needed water to continue this battle!

You know Joe would never instigate anything, but somehow when I opened my water bottle, Kristi got wet. The same thing happened to me later, when a random sprinkler turned on and soaked my shorts. I think it was a distraction just so that the wives could win!

We headed out Sunday morning to go home and made it just in time for brunch at Barn Town Brewing in West Des Moines. There is nothing like having a Groovy Ruby (hazy grapefruit IPA) with an omelet and their house potatoes. Makes me want to go back very soon!

We have such a great time on beercations, and next year will be our fifth anniversary! We will have to plan something special for this one!

Cheers to good friends, fond memories, and the occasional water incident!

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Utepils Brewing - Savor the Sun

Dan Justesen, the creator and owner of Utepils Brewing

I often wonder many things about a brewery when I'm traveling, and I rarely get to meet the person who created it. It just happened that I posted on social media about a Kolsch from Utepils Brewing. My friend Daniel Stewart, who works in the craft beer industry, saw the post and said he knew the owner, Dan Justesen. Daniel offered to connect the two of us, which was awesome!

Dan was gracious enough to spend a couple of hours on a Friday afternoon with my wife, me, and our two friends to share the brewery’s story. I have to say Mrs. Joe Java-Stout was sitting at the edge of her seat, and that has never happened before!

As we walked up to the brewery, I could tell this was no little brewery. Dan first opened it over eight years ago. Back then, it spanned 18,000 sq. feet; now, it boasts around 30,000 sq. feet of brewing equipment, the Fernweh taproom, and an outdoor beer garden. As we met Dan, I was worried that I wouldn't be able to keep up with writing down the notes from this superb storyteller!

The best way to start is to learn how Dan got into brewing. During his time as co-owner and president of Vine Park Brewing (established in 1995), an on-premise brewing experience, he realized it was all about helping people have fun during the brewing experience. Over time, people would come in knowing that the folks at Vine Park Brewing would do most of the work for them, but they did get to discover the key steps in the beer brewing process and enjoy the final product.

In 2015, Minnesota enacted a law allowing breweries to sell growlers of beer. The new law quickly changed who the customers were, starting with people from local neighborhoods coming to purchase beer. Initially, Vine Park Brewing was one of only three establishments in Minnesota to serve growlers. Over time, customers began to travel from further away to enjoy the early stages of craft beer's growth in Minnesota.

Taps containing all of the wonderful European-styled beer

Ewald the Golden - Bavarian Style Hefeweizen

Initially, in 2014, Dan began developing a business plan for a brewery. Seeing the success of growler sales in 2015 only increased his desire to build something bigger. After attending some beer festivals and pouring beer, Dan discovered his calling in engaging with people about something they enjoyed - craft beer.

In 2015, Dan embarked on several ventures to learn more about craft beer, including participation in the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP) and a brewing class in Munich, Germany. It was an eye-opening experience to learn about the tradition of brewing, especially how each city had its unique style of beer. Perhaps the most unexpected experience was a beer vending machine located in the hotel lobby where Dan stayed.

Dan was now convinced it was time to open a brewery and made one last attempt to convince his business partner. His business partner wasn’t ready to make such a big commitment, so Dan parted ways and began construction of the brewery in 2016. Utepils Brewing would become the home of the sixth-largest brew house (50 barrels) in Minnesota when it opened its doors in 2017.

The brewing kettles and all of the equipment was built in Bavaria.

So, how do you stand out from other breweries? Dan told us that he remembers many breweries focusing on making IPAs. It seemed that everyone wanted to create something with more IBUs (International Bittering Units), and they kept adding more hops to out do their competitors. On the other side of the IPA craze was the hazy IPAs, with breweries touting the fruit-forward, less bitter version of this style.

For Dan, it was all about keeping it simple. Make it local, fresh, and good. Now this is where the story gets interesting—it’s almost like a poker player with an ace in the hole. The ground on which the brewery was built was formerly the site of a water bottling company. The artesian spring water, available from historic wells, was a bonus in crafting incredible beer.

So, I was thinking that Dan has access to great water and attended beer school in Germany, so it must be an all-German beer brewery! I was way too narrowly focused, as Dan’s passion was to brew the finest European-style beers from ingredients from Europe. Now I understand how Utepils can stand out in the 200+ breweries that exist in Minnesota!

Dan explained that if you are staying true to a style, such as an Altbier from Düsseldorf, Germany, or a Kolsch from Cologne, Germany, you must use the ingredients, like malts, that are local to the area where the beer style originated. To brew a Czech Pilsner, you need local hops, which can require research and an understanding of how to source them effectively. Dan described a trade alliance between the Czech Republic and its partners to get better access to the hops. There is an annual event, and Utepils has been selected multiple times to serve their fantastic beer at it.

The difference in these styles of beer would be most noticeable to someone who has experienced the beer from its origin in the world, such as my good friend Paul, who was with us. For others like me, the fact of making a beer as close as possible with the ingredients from that region is mind-blowing!

Several elements in the taproom bring the charm of a European brewery to Utepils Brewing. The copper kettle pictured above comes from the Fuschen Brewery in Düsseldorf, Germany. Fuschen Brewery was established in 1848 and was one of the original Alt breweries. European brewery tradition is to reuse these items in their taprooms or other public-facing areas of the brewery.

The cool Utepils sign at the bar

It was time to grab a beer, but I was afraid to leave the table because all the stories were so intriguing. I returned, and Dan was discussing some of the brewing practices from centuries ago. The pure magical part of the brewing process was catching yeast from the wild, the wind from a local bakery, or some other crazy means.

For example, Kveik yeast originates from Norway and was captured from the wild. Today, it is known for its distinctive citrus and spice characteristics. In Norwegian farmhouses, the tradition was to preserve the yeast by drying it and passing it down to the next generation. Kveik is believed to be the original dried yeast!

Other less sophisticated ways were used, such as capturing some yeast, storing it on the ceiling, and bringing it down for the next time you brewed. Brewing with yeast like this had to be unpredictable in terms of the results it would yield. It’s wild because I've been to a brew day where I counted live yeast cells under a microscope to ensure the quality of the yeast! The fact that they were able to brew beer successfully then seems unbelievable.

The unique flight boards at Utepils

I know by now, you are thinking, Joe, when are we going to find out more about the beer, and what does Utepils mean? I'm glad you asked, and I had to get the t-shirt with the meaning on the back so I can share the story with others. Utepils is a Norwegian word that translates to “Enjoying your first beer in sunshine after a long, dark winter.” I can completely relate to that, living in Nebraska, where we seem to have six months of winter. That first beer on the patio on a sunny day is something I look forward to every year!

Now to the beer! A special thank you to Eric Harper, head brewer, for bringing all these outstanding beers to life in Minneapolis! Let’s talk about the five beers in the very cool ski flight board, going from left to right.

  • Skolsch is a Kolsch with a deep straw color that leans into bready notes. The soft, clear body is complemented by a mild dose of hops, balancing out well in this 4.9% ABV ale.

  • Helles is a 5.1% ABV Munich-style lager that is malty and crisp with just a touch of honey notes. The light hop bitterness comes from hops grown in Germany’s Hallertau region.

  • Alt 1848 is a German alt beer brewed in the tradition of a brewery founded in Düsseldorf in 1848. This Altbier has a deep copper color, and its notes change as it warms. A lot of caramel and a hint of hop spiciness for me in this incredible 5.4% ABV beer.

  • Ewald the Golden is a Bavarian-style Hefeweizen that combines pale wheat with malted barley, resulting in a light-bodied beer. I'm not a big fan of Hefeweizens, but this one I thoroughly enjoyed! I think it was a combination of just a hint of banana notes and the body of this 5.2% beer that made it more enjoyable than the ones that have strong banana and clove notes.

  • Pontoon Afternoon is a 4.9% ABV raspberry Kolsch that is refreshingly light with subtle raspberry notes. An excellent patio beer that you can savor in the sun!

One that was not in the flight is a Czech-style Pilsner. This Pilsner is brewed with Czech-grown barley and hops. It also uses a Czech Lager yeast strain. I love a Czech Pils that has a subtle hint of sweetness, and this does! To date, this is the best Czech-style Pilsner that I have ever had!

The brewery features notable elements, including paintings created by Sean Gray. There are many in the brewery that depict how advertisements were made hundreds of years ago through imagery. I would love to do a blog just about them someday!

From the Utepils website: “Sean captured an Utepils moment with five friends raising a glass of delicious pilsner. The stained glass frame features a mix of hops and barley, the core ingredients of beer. The rushing creek and green grass are a nod to our biergarten, and the Siberian iris is always one of the first flowers to bloom in spring. Sunshine. Friends. Beer.”

Additionally, the large patio is an excellent place for people to gather and enjoy a beer. Utepils hosts many festivals, such as the annual "Artepils" event —a weekend-long art festival featuring local vendors, music, and food trucks. If you're looking for another favorite, you must attend their Oktoberfest celebration!

What an amazing time at Utepils Brewing! As we were wrapping up, Dan described the amount of time he puts into answering questions people have on social media about the beer and the brewery. This is a great commitment to helping others understand about the Utepils experience. In addition, he spent several years serving on the board of the Minnesota Craft Brewers Guild to help grow the vibrant beer community of the state.

Thanks to Dan, his wife, and the wonderful staff for their hospitality! This is a brewery you must visit.

Prost!

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