10 Best Breweries in Minnesota with 30 Beers Worth Trying
Minnesota brewery routes stretch from Minneapolis and St. Paul to Duluth, Two Harbors and Grand Marais, with a separate lager-focused trip to New Ulm. These ten editorial picks offer thirty beers across pale ale, IPA, hazy ale, cream ale, blonde ale, wheat beer, porter, stout, brown ale and lager.
Three beers per brewery make useful comparisons without claiming a statewide tasting score. Current producer pages take priority over older directories; brewery-authored profiles fill clearly identified gaps. Check the actual menu, package and batch before travel, especially when older profiles retain a different ABV.
Minnesota brewery picks at a glance
| Brewery | Base | Three beers to explore |
|---|---|---|
| Surly Brewing Co. | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Furious · Hell · Coffee Bender |
| Summit Brewing Company | St. Paul, Minnesota | Extra Pale Ale (EPA) · Sága IPA · Summit Lager |
| Indeed Brewing Company | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Day Tripper Pale Ale · Mexican Honey Imperial Lager · Pistachio Cream Ale |
| Fulton Brewing | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Lonely Blonde · Sweet Child of Vine · Hop Kingdom 300 |
| Modist Brewing Co. | Minneapolis, Minnesota | Dreamyard · False Pattern · First Call |
| Urban Growler Brewing Company | St. Paul, Minnesota | Cowbell Cream Ale · Vanilla Latte Blonde Ale · Minnow Bite Pilsner |
| Bent Paddle Brewing Co. | Duluth, Minnesota | Bent Hop · 14° Degree Amber Ale · Black Ale |
| Castle Danger Brewery | Two Harbors, Minnesota | Castle Cream Ale · Aurora Haze · George Hunter Stout |
| Voyageur Brewing Company | Grand Marais, Minnesota | Devil’s Kettle IPA · Trailbreaker Belgian Wheat · Palisade Porter |
| Schell’s Brewery | New Ulm, Minnesota | Firebrick · Dark · No Frills Pils |
1. Surly Brewing Co.
Surly’s Minneapolis destination gives this list its opening contrast: caramel-backed IPA, pale lager and coffee brown ale. The current producer pages supply distinct recipes and strengths; use them to choose among beer families rather than treating the brewery’s strongest releases as the default experience.
Furious and Hell have current packaged formats listed, while Coffee Bender’s product page currently shows draft. Confirm the actual menu before arranging a visit. This selection covers the named originals and keeps barrel-aged releases, variants and older strength information separate.
Furious
Brewed by Surly Brewing Co.
A caramel-backed IPA with five named hop varieties and an assertive citrus direction.
BAR NOTES
Surly builds Furious around Warrior, Ahtanum, Cascade, Simcoe and Amarillo hops, with English ale yeast and a substantial grain bill. The brewery describes a caramel foundation beneath its aggressive hopping, making this a useful comparison with the softer texture of Aurora Haze.
The reddish amber appearance comes with more malt presence than a pale, delicate lager. Start with a modest pour beside grilled mushrooms or sharp cheddar, and use the American IPA recipe to explore how grain and hop balance can work together.
Hell
Brewed by Surly Brewing Co.
Pale gold lager with Sterling hops, bready malt and a crisp finish.
BAR NOTES
Hell takes its name from the German word for light. Surly lists Pilsner and Carahell malts, Sterling hops and German lager yeast; its 5.0% strength refers to the beer, while the name describes a pale color rather than a reduced-alcohol claim.
This is the counterpoint to Furious at the same brewery: bready sweetness, floral hop character and a balanced finish instead of a caramel-backed hop surge. Try it beside pretzels or roast chicken, and compare its lager fermentation with the ale yeast behind Cowbell.
Coffee Bender
Brewed by Surly Brewing Co.
Current producer-listed 5.5% brown ale with coffee; older profiles list 5.1%.
BAR NOTES
The current Surly product page lists Coffee Bender at 5.5%, while its historical beer profile retains 5.1%. Use the current producer figure here and check the actual batch you receive. This is a coffee brown ale, distinct from plain Bender and darker stout releases.
Oats and chocolate malt appear in the brewery grain list alongside pale and crystal malts. Those grain names describe brewing ingredients rather than a chocolate dessert addition. Its coffee identity offers a useful partner to nutty baked goods and a comparison with an American brown ale base.
2. Summit Brewing Company
Summit’s St. Paul roots and its original Extra Pale Ale provide a useful anchor for the Twin Cities route. Sága brings a more assertive IPA direction, while the regular Summit Lager offers a lower-strength, lager-fermented comparison without turning this section into three similar pale ales.
Current product pages take priority over historical profile strengths for these three cards. EPA’s current page also contains two IBU figures, so that detail is left unresolved rather than averaged. Check the actual package or draft batch, and verify Ratskeller hours before visiting.
Extra Pale Ale (EPA)
Brewed by Summit Brewing Company
Summit’s original English-style pale ale, with current producer ABV of 5.1%.
BAR NOTES
Summit dates its original Extra Pale Ale to 1986 and describes caramel and biscuit malt with a citrus hop edge. The current product page lists 5.1% ABV; older profiles say 5.2%. Its own page disagrees on IBU, so the card avoids presenting one bitterness number as settled.
Bronze color and a malt-supported finish make EPA a different starting point from a hazy IPA. Summit suggests serving it at 45–50°F. That slightly warmer range can help its malt detail emerge when comparing it with the brewery’s paler, lager-fermented Summit Lager.
Sága IPA
Brewed by Summit Brewing Company
Classic Sága IPA at the current producer’s 6.3%, distinct from Hazy and Imperial variants.
BAR NOTES
Sága takes its name from a Norse goddess associated with poetry. Summit’s current page lists 6.3% ABV and 65 IBU, while older profiles retain stronger figures. Choose the original IPA deliberately; the brewery also uses the Sága name for separately specified hazy and imperial releases.
The producer describes kiwi, passion fruit and apricot aromas from its hop program, including Citra and Amarillo. Those descriptors do not establish added fruit. Compare Sága’s assertive finish with an IPA style guide, then contrast it with Fulton’s malt-supported Sweet Child of Vine.
Summit Lager
Brewed by Summit Brewing Company
A 4.5% American lager with Czech Saaz hops and a dry finish.
BAR NOTES
Summit Lager joined the producer lineup in 2025. Its current product page lists 4.5% ABV and 14 IBU, with Czech Saaz hops, lager yeast, pale malt, Heritage Gold, Munich malt and malted wheat. A beer profile retains 4.6%; the current producer specification takes priority here.
Subtle toast and biscuit flavors accompany a dry finish rather than IPA-level bitterness. This is the regular Lager, separate from Summit Light Lager. Compare it with Surly Hell and the principles in an American lager recipe to explore how similar-looking golden beers can differ.
3. Indeed Brewing Company
Indeed’s Minneapolis brewery gives this guide a distinctive three-beer spread: an established pale ale, an imperial lager using orange blossom honey, and a pistachio cream ale. The producer also operates in Milwaukee; this Minnesota guide focuses on its Minneapolis identity without assigning every distributed batch an unverified production origin.
Indeed’s current site separates regular beers from seasonal products and differently named variants. Read the full name on the package: Mexican Honey Imperial Lager and Mexican Honey Light are separate selections, as are regular Pistachio Cream Ale, Imperial Pistachio and its flavored relatives.
Day Tripper Pale Ale
Brewed by Indeed Brewing Company
Indeed’s original year-round pale ale: citrus, resin and a touch of malt sweetness.
BAR NOTES
Indeed calls Day Tripper its first year-round pale ale and says its refreshed appearance keeps the same beer underneath. The current producer lists Cascade, CTZ and Summit hops, with pale, caramel and Munich malts supporting a resinous, citrus-led West Coast-style pale ale.
At 5.4% and 45 IBU, it can anchor a comparison between balanced pale ale and a larger IPA. Its citrus description does not establish a fruit addition. Follow the grain-and-hop relationship through the American pale ale recipe before comparing it with Modist’s hazy False Pattern.
Mexican Honey Imperial Lager
Brewed by Indeed Brewing Company
An 8.0% imperial lager brewed with Mexican orange blossom honey.
BAR NOTES
Mexican Honey uses orange blossom honey from San Luis Potosí, with Pilsner and Vienna malts, Amarillo hops and lager yeast. Unlike hop-derived fruit descriptions elsewhere in this guide, honey is a stated brewing ingredient. Indeed lists this original imperial lager at 8.0% ABV.
Do not substitute Mexican Honey Light when comparing strengths: that is a separate beer. The original’s higher alcohol makes a small tasting pour useful beside roasted vegetables or mildly spicy food. Its floral and honeycomb direction contrasts clearly with the simpler lager balance of Summit Lager.
Pistachio Cream Ale
Brewed by Indeed Brewing Company
A crisp 5.5% cream ale with a pistachio flavor direction.
BAR NOTES
Indeed’s regular Pistachio Cream Ale combines pale ale malt, flaked corn, Hallertau Tradition hops and A15 yeast in the published specification. The producer describes pistachio aroma and taste with a crisp, spritzy mouthfeel. This card covers the standard version, not Imperial, Latte or nonalcoholic siblings.
The cream-ale name alone does not establish lactose or dairy in a beer. Here, use the brewery’s actual description and ask it about ingredients when a dietary restriction matters. Compare its nutty direction with unflavored Cowbell and Castle Cream Ale rather than assuming all three taste alike.
4. Fulton Brewing
Fulton’s Minneapolis lineup includes its established Lonely Blonde and Sweet Child of Vine alongside the West Coast-style Hop Kingdom 300. Those choices give a useful progression from restrained noble-hop blonde ale to two different approaches to IPA, with published malt and hop details behind each.
The current portfolio also includes numerous blonde variants and Hop Kingdom relatives. This section uses three named originals so their specifications remain comparable. Check the taproom’s current beverage menu and local package stock rather than assuming every format or family member is always available.
Lonely Blonde
Brewed by Fulton Brewing
Balanced American blonde ale with pale and crystal malt, wheat and noble hops.
BAR NOTES
Lonely Blonde is Fulton’s original blonde, distinct from its fruit versions, shandy, light and nonalcoholic releases. The current producer lists 4.8% ABV and 29 IBU, describing American pale and crystal malts, a small wheat contribution and German noble hops behind its crisp carbonation.
The wheat component adds a grain detail without making this a witbier or hefeweizen. Compare the regular beer beside simple grilled chicken or a mild cheese, and explore the American blonde ale recipe before tasting Urban Growler’s more specifically flavored Vanilla Latte Blonde.
Sweet Child of Vine
Brewed by Fulton Brewing
Fulton’s 6.4% IPA with CTZ, Glacier hops and a substantial malt backbone.
BAR NOTES
Sweet Child of Vine receives CTZ and Glacier hops during the boil, followed by another Glacier addition late in fermentation. Fulton emphasizes the malt structure that supports those additions. Despite the name, the producer describes an IPA built around hops rather than a grape-containing beer.
Its 6.4% strength and 69 IBU make a useful contrast with Fulton’s 7.0% Hop Kingdom 300. Taste the pair in smaller pours and look for the balance between grain and hop aroma. A substantial malt foundation can be as important to an IPA’s identity as its hop selection.
Hop Kingdom 300
Brewed by Fulton Brewing
West Coast IPA with 100% Mosaic dry hopping and a hint of caramel malt.
BAR NOTES
Fulton names Mosaic as the featured hop in Hop Kingdom 300 and specifies that the dry hop is entirely Mosaic. The kettle uses a blend, so calling the whole beer single-hop would overstate the producer’s claim. Its current specification is 7.0% ABV and 74 IBU.
Berry, citrus, stone fruit and tropical fruit are flavor descriptions in the producer account, supported by a small caramel-malt contribution. They do not indicate a fruit blend added to the tank. Keep this regular 300 separate from Hop Kingdom 300 Double Juicy IPA when choosing a package.
5. Modist Brewing Co.
Modist’s North Loop brewery offers a different grain-and-texture angle on Minneapolis beer. Dreamyard and False Pattern use oats in hazy hop-forward beers, while First Call puts cold press coffee into a pale lager. Their current producer pages agree on strengths with their brewery-authored profiles.
The current site lists many experimental releases and similarly named variants, including Pineapple Dreamyard and First Call Pumpkin Spice Latte. Choose the regular names in these cards when making the comparison. Today’s menu and availability-to-go information remain the useful final check before a visit.
Dreamyard
Brewed by Modist Brewing Co.
Oat-and-wheat hazy IPA at 7.1%, separate from fruit and stronger Dreamyard variants.
BAR NOTES
Modist’s current site lists regular DREAMYARD as a 7.1% hazy IPA. Its brewery-authored beer description identifies oats and wheat with Citra and Sultana hops, emphasizing stone fruit, pineapple and citrus aromas. Pineapple Dreamyard and Double Dreamyard are separately named products with their own specifications.
This oat-and-wheat approach puts texture alongside hop aroma. Compare a fresh pour with Furious to examine softness against a caramel-supported, more assertive IPA. The grain statement does not make the beer gluten-free: wheat remains an ingredient, and any dietary suitability needs specific producer confirmation.
False Pattern
Brewed by Modist Brewing Co.
A 5.5% hazy pale ale brewed with oats and hopped with Mosaic and Simcoe.
BAR NOTES
False Pattern offers a smaller-strength comparison to DREAMYARD without simply becoming the same beer diluted. Modist’s brewery-authored profile describes a hazy pale ale made with oats and Mosaic and Simcoe hops. The current producer lists it at 5.5% and available to take away.
Start with the pale ale before the stronger IPA if you want the differences to remain clear. Its oat-driven texture offers another angle on Indeed’s more resinous Day Tripper. Distinguish the regular product from Double False Pattern and separately named dry-hop or collaboration releases.
First Call
Brewed by Modist Brewing Co.
Light-colored cold press coffee lager at 6.5%, distinct from flavored First Call releases.
BAR NOTES
First Call places coffee in a pale lager rather than the brown-ale base of Coffee Bender. Modist’s current producer page lists 6.5% ABV and calls it a cold press coffee lager. The regular beer sits alongside separately named Pumpkin Spice Latte and other flavored releases.
The lighter color makes this a useful reminder that coffee flavor does not require a dark grain bill. Try a small pour beside a plain breakfast pastry to examine the coffee character without a competing sweet glaze. Check which First Call version is actually on the menu.
6. Urban Growler Brewing Company
Urban Growler’s St. Paul story identifies Deb Loch and Jill Pavlak and presents the brewery as Minnesota’s first women-owned microbrewery. Its current flagship list supports Cowbell Cream Ale, Vanilla Latte Blonde Ale and Minnow Bite Pilsner, replacing older assumptions about which beers anchor the menu.
These three selections also make ingredient reading useful. Cowbell’s cream-ale name does not establish dairy, while Vanilla Latte explicitly includes lactose and local coffee. The current producer menu supplies strengths and serving identity; confirm ingredient suitability directly whenever a dietary restriction affects an order.
Cowbell Cream Ale
Brewed by Urban Growler Brewing Company
Urban Growler’s 5.2% cream ale, with specialty malt and flaked maize.
BAR NOTES
Cowbell is listed among Urban Growler’s current flagships at 5.2% ABV and 20 IBU. The producer identifies specialty malt and flaked maize, with a light gold color and restrained bitterness. Regular Cowbell is distinct from fruit additions and the Dirty Cow blend with De-Lovely Porter.
A cream ale can provide a gentler comparison to the stronger stouts and IPAs in this guide. The style name does not by itself mean dairy was added. Set Cowbell beside Castle Cream Ale and compare how each producer describes malt, texture and bitterness rather than expecting identical beers.
Vanilla Latte Blonde Ale
Brewed by Urban Growler Brewing Company
Vanilla blonde ale blended with local espresso roast and containing lactose.
BAR NOTES
Urban Growler explicitly describes vanilla infusion, a light espresso roast from St. Paul’s True Stone Coffee Roasters and lactose in Vanilla Latte Blonde Ale. Its current strength is 5.6%. Those declared additions distinguish it from a blonde ale whose coffee or vanilla words only describe aroma.
Lactose makes this specific beer relevant to a dairy restriction; check with the producer before ordering when needed. Compare it with the pale coffee lager First Call and darker Coffee Bender to see how base beer, sweetness and roast can create different coffee-beer experiences.
Minnow Bite Pilsner
Brewed by Urban Growler Brewing Company
A 4.6% pilsner balancing subtle malt sweetness with a Saaz hop edge.
BAR NOTES
Minnow Bite appears on Urban Growler’s current flagship list at 4.6% ABV and 22 IBU. The producer highlights a gentle Saaz hop bite against subtle malt sweetness. Its brewery-authored profile classifies it as Czech or Bohemian pilsner, providing a more specific context than simply golden beer.
Taste it beside Surly Hell or Schell’s No Frills to compare pilsner bitterness with a softer helles direction. Saaz’s familiar floral and spicy character makes this a useful bridge between approachable lager and a more hop-led pour. Recheck the actual tap list before traveling.
7. Bent Paddle Brewing Co.
Bent Paddle’s Duluth taproom and production brewery sit in the Lincoln Park area on West Michigan Street. Its current producer pages identify Lake Superior water and offer specific grain, hop and yeast details, making Bent Hop, 14° Degree Amber and Black Ale useful comparisons across three balances.
The brewery’s current can designs reference regional views with printed coordinates, while the brewing location remains Duluth. Historical ESB categorization for 14° Degree and porter-stout language for Black Ale are retained as context without replacing the producer’s present names or confusing them with coffee and seasonal variants.
Bent Hop
Brewed by Bent Paddle Brewing Co.
Bent Paddle’s 6.2% flagship IPA, led by Centennial and El Dorado hops.
BAR NOTES
Bent Hop combines American and European malts with a hop program in which Centennial and El Dorado are prominent. The current producer lists 6.2% ABV and 68 IBU, describing grapefruit, citrus and pine. Those flavors are hop descriptors rather than proof of grapefruit or pine ingredients.
Bent Paddle’s current can art references a specific shoreline view, but that image does not relocate brewing from Duluth. Compare its malt-backed IPA balance with Furious, or taste it after the same brewery’s 14° Degree Amber to find the change in hop emphasis.