Fire Update

On January 6th, 2019, we experienced a catastrophic fire that destroyed our downtown Walker facility. Thanks to the thirty some volunteer firefighters in the area, the loss was limited to our property and no one was injured. For now, Portage is closed for buisiness, but we will be back and we will #rebuildportage.

Efforts have already begun to take shape, as we begin the early stages of rebuilding. A community event was held on Friday, January 11th, to celebrate our wonderful community. We thank Chase On The Lake Resort, Corey Medina & Brothers, Paul Nye, Jeff Menten, Keith Thunem, Lucky Moose Bar and Grill, Bensons Eating and Drinking Emporium, and Piggy BBQ for throwing us one heckuva party. We were able to pour our last few kegs of beer, including the Butte County Resilence IPA, which is an international brewing project to help fun the suffering losses of the Camp Fire in California. $700 were raised for that project, from the event.

We'd also like to thank Northern Namaste Yoga, Lynn Mineer, Steve Reiter, and all of the silent auction donors for a donation based yoga session. It was wonderful to take a break from the madness and enjoy a night of reflection.

We'd also like to thank the many Minnesota breweries, like Modist Brewing, Bemidji Brewing, Bent Paddle Brewing, and Aegir Brewing, that have stepped forward with ideas to help out. In coming months, we'll be gypsy brewing and collaborating with many of these great community members. 

We've also decided to approve a GoFundMe to Rebuild Portage. Coming from the Friends of Portage, comprised of locals, employees, and fans afar, this fund is designed to help us with our redesign efforts specifically. Extraneous design costs beyond what insurance is likely to cover, like architectural plans and further investments into the spaces of our dream facility, are areas they've offered to focus. Thank you Simon Whitehead, Scott Hoefler, and Randall Morrison for heading this project up. Please visit the link below if you're interested in helping out with that. We're also taking suggestions for additions and other ideas in the comment box of that page. Let the ideas begin.

REBUILD PORTAGE

On ahead,

Portage Brewing Company

Halloween Release: Mad at Midnight

A day of darkness, approaches, and we want to make sure you're ready. Dropping this Wednesday, throughout the state of Minnesota, is our second statewide release, Mad at Midnight. In this imperial wheat porter, we layered the most complementary ingredients to reenact the famous mole chocolate. Beginning with a complex malt bill of stout, caramel, chocolate, and black malts, below a layer of flaked wheat for added creaminess, below pounds of ancho chilis, ceylon cinnamon, toasted cacao nibs, and vanilla beans - this beer is well suited for a cool night on your stoop, handing out candy - or howling at the moon if you're into that kind of thing. 

Mad at Midnight will be releasing across multiple beer stores, as well as our Walker taproom on Wednesday, October 31st. Locations and times for the drop will vary, so please follow our story on Instagram and Facebook. Here's where you can find it:

- Portage Brewing Company Taproom (4PM)
- Edina Liquor (all 3 locations)
- The Ale Jail
- Ombibulous MN
- Elevated Beer Wine & Spirits

Blueberry Honey Dreamsicle Milkshake IPA / Release Details

FRIDAY, OCTOBER 5TH

Say hello to our very first, statewide beer release. This IPA was conceived from what we believe is the juiciest combination of IPA friendly ingredients. Pounds of blueberries, wildflower honey, El Dorado hops, vanilla beans, and milk sugar went into this recipe - constructing a purple, hazy treat of sweet berries and stone fruit.

We'll be co-releasing this beer across multiple beer stores, bars, and are even throwing a release tap takeover party at Stanley's Northeast Bar Room, on Friday, October 5th, at 4PM. Be sure to come by and sample Portage Beer for the first time in MSP. Plan ahead, here's where you can find Blueberry Honey:

IN CANS..
- Portage Brewing Company Taproom (12PM)
- Edina Liquor (all 3 locations)
- The Ale Jail
- Ombibulous MN
- Elevated Beer Wine & Spirits
- Central Ave Liquor

ON DRAFT..
- Minneapolis: Stanley's Northeast Bar Room - Release Party + Tap Takeover at 4PM
- Baxter: The Boulder Tap House at 11AM

Take 5: The Week of Releases

It's been awhile since we last sat down to reflect, write, and share updates with you. All of the silence has been leading up to this, a week full of new beers for you to try. Staring on Friday, July 29th, we kick off what we're calling it the Week of Releases. Being that it's the 4th of July, and nearly all of our favorite customers are North, we want to give everyone a chance at these five beers.

This past month has been full of some challenging experiments - working with our first spontaneous sour, forming entirely new styles, and using ingredients anew to us. We're tinkering with jalapeños, flowers, pomegranate, lime and grapefruit juice, and a bunch of juicy hop combinations. Plan to see these ingredients throughout the week. Scroll below to see what we're unveiling. On ahead.

Cloudrest / Mixed Fermentation DIPA

Our second-ever DIPA, but with a slightly bigger bang. Made with our house blend of wild yeast, and 5 pounds per barrel of citra, simcoe cryo, and vic secret hops. Available in cans and on draft only. 8%.
Can + Draft Release: June 29th

Jalapaloma / Sour Slushie IPA with Jalapeños, Lime, and Grapefruit

Here's a new one for you. Coming soon is our first-ever sour slushie IPA, brewed with cases of freshly squeezed lime and grapefruit juice, alongside pounds of jalapeños, and sorachi ace hops. Available in cans and on draft only.
Can + Draft Release: July 4th

ABLOOM / Spontaneous Wild Sour

This could be our most exciting release yet, and it was all an experiment. Introducing our very first sour, fermented and keg conditioned with 100% local microflora from Chippewa National Forest. Fragrant notes of lemon, citrus, and flower pack this wild ale full of terroir. 5.5% ABV. ABLOOM will be available on draft, and in very limited quantities - kegs are being released in random pop-up format throughout the next few months.
Draft Release: July 4th

Guava Passionfruit ABLOOM / Spontaneous Wild Sour Conditioned on Fruit and Brettanomyces

Let's just make this the day of sours. Introducing a very limited, 5 gallon batch infusion of our soon-to-be-newly released ABLOOM Wild Sour. Ten pounds of guava and passionfruit were added to this beer, then conditioned on brettanomyces. Tropical fruit notes, with a funky backtone.
Draft Release: July 4th

Pomegranate Cucumber Dreamsicle / Vanilla Chocolate Porter

Brewed in collaboration with the Upstream Homebrewers Club, this was the winning recipe from our Frostfest event this past February. Brewed with pounds of pomegranate, cucumber, cocoa nibs, and vanilla, this beer packs some refreshing fruit flavors, backed by a roasty chocolate porter.
Can + Draft Release: July 6th

Oh, Peaches! Milkshake IPA / Release Details

• When: Saturday, April 21st, at 12PM
• How: Crowler Cans and Draft Only
• What: Milkshake IPA made with peaches, coconut, vanilla, and lactose sugar
• Also: It's our 1 year anniversary, and we're throwing a party. Wear any of your Portage gear, and dinner is on us. Food starts at 5:30

Mango Sticky Rice Wild IPA / Release Details

It's time for a vacation, somewhere far away and warm. The brutality of winter made us do it. Let this tropical sand escape, made from fragrant el dorado and mosaic hops, mangos, toasted coconut, vanilla, and lactose, transport you there. 

Join us for the release party on Friday, January 26th, at 5PM. Only 200 cans are being produced, with the rest being left for draft patrons. Details and ways to RSVP can be found here.

On ahead,

Portage Brewing Company

Yakima Valley Hop Collab + Save Summer + New Gear

YAKIMA VALLEY HOP COLLABORATION + SAVE SUMMER + NEW GEAR

Over Labor Day, our head brewer traveled to the epicenter of all things hops. Learn what he took away (literally) from the experience, along with what's happening during our Scout Series Yakaya Wet Hop Golden Ale collaboration. We've also got updates on our 2nd Annual Save Summer Bike & Brew Fest this weekend, and new gear being released.

Hop production facilities at Loza Farms typically only run for 8 weeks, between mid-August and mid-September. Mmm, fresh Cascade hops.

DID YOU KNOW?

"Washington state’s Yakima Valley is home to one of the most fertile and productive hop growing regions in the world. The hot and cool desert climate, combined with the abundant irrigation provided by the Yakima River, creates an ideal environment for producing this key beer ingredient. The Yakima Valley contains approximately 75 percent of the total United States hop acreage, with an average farm size of 450 acres (182 hectares) accounting for over 77 percent of the total United States hop crop."

 

OUR COLLABORATION

We traveled to Yakima to do just that - better understand the culture and infrastructure of such an important component of the brewing process - you don't have beer if you don't have hops. Heading up stream to see how hops are manufactured taught us a lot about what goes into not only beer and recipe construction, but how those ingredients come about. On September 23rd, in collaboration with Yakima Valley Hops, Loza Farms, and CHS Farms, we'll be releasing our latest Scout Series - Yakaya Wet Hop Golden Ale. Made with freshly harvested Cascade and Chinook hops - this is the freshest hoppy beer you're likely to try. Please join us at Save Summer Bike & Brew Fest for its release. 

SAVE SUMMER BIKE & BREW FEST UPDATE

If you haven't yet heard, the biggest party we've planned to date is happening this Saturday from 12-9PM. Bringing you our first wet hop beer release - alongside live music by Big Bass Ramblers and Yma & The Big Thick, and Fall foods being paired with our beer by Green Scene Organic Market. Further, we're releasing a shirt design just for the event (see below) - get it for a discounted rate of $15, at this event only. Learn more.

NEW GEAR, RELEASED

To the left, our limited edition Save Summer T-Shirt - designed by Rebecca Cahill (learn more about her work at www.rebeccacahill.com). On the right, our fall hat release - made with waxed cotton to keep your head warm and fairly dry while out in the elements.

On ahead,

Portage Brewing Team

Stainless Steel Growler + Aluminum Crowler® Can Release

We're pleased to announce an addition to our growing, off-sale package, beer family.

Releasing This Week: 

• FiftyFifty 64 Ounce, Double Walled, Stainless Steel Growler, in Silver

• FiftyFifty 750 mL, Double Walled, Stainless Steel Growler, in White

Releasing Next Week:

• 750 mL Crowler® Cans

In The North Newsletter: Vol. 1

June 23rd, 2017 -- We'd like to unveil our latest project, In The North - a bi-weekly newsletter of brewery updates, area adventures, and beers we're tinkering on. We've received a lot of questions about our process, events, new beer releases, and things to do in our area - this is our forum to prepare you with everything that you'll need for a beer trip north.

As the official start of summer has just arrived, things at Portage are moving at a wildly fast pace. Beer production for tourist season has already required us to purchase two new tanks, and we're in your debt for the thirst and support. None of us could've anticipated this, and we're working around the clock to say on top of it all. Read on below to see what we've been up to - and as always, boat, bike, or drive up to share a cold beer with us. Current hours are Thursday / Friday from 4 to 9, and Saturday from noon to 9. On ahead.

- Jeff Vondenkamp, Co-Founder + Head Brewer

WILD IPA RETURNS, NEW BEERS RELEASING SOON

After running dry of our most popular beer again, we're back with a newer and juicer version of the fruity, hazy New England style IPA. Back on tap this weekend, along with our newest Session IPA which packs a light punch of malt sweetness and fruity hop aroma. Releases next week include our CoffeeCake Blonde Ale, Cocoa Wheat Porter, and Peanut Butter Cocoa Wheat Porter.

WE'RE HIRING A BREWERY INTERN, YOU SHOULD APPLY

Are you interested to immerse yourself in the world of commercial craft beer? Our head brewer is looking for an intern to take under his wing. Brewing, design strategy, and bar training are just a few of the learning opportunities being offered. Must love beer, be 21 or older, and able to work in Walker, MN for 20 hours per week to apply.  Please email us if you're interested at hello@portagebeer.com, and we'll send you more details. 

PARTNER SPOTLIGHT: KAFFE HAVN COFFEE ROASTERY

As our top rated beer, CoffeeCake, has earned keep into our list of flagship beers, we can't forget to tell people how this came together. Back when we were preparing to open, ideas about all kinds of recipes came to the table. After getting to know the local community, we learned that a coffee roastery had taken shape in the old Leech Lake Brewing facility - Kaffe Havn. At our first meeting the team greeted us with countless ideas ways to partner, and relationship was born. The CoffeeCake Blonde Ale is a culmination of that - we call it a breakfast beer that surprises most who try it, and resembles a piece of fluffy coffee cake. Thanks to the Kaffe Havn team, we were able to drop a lightly roasted Columbian bean into our recipe, offering drinkers a unique blend of fruity, cocoa, coffee flavor. 

A background of their team is important as they strive to fuel a social mission of assisting disabled people through their local facilities. An explanation of how the two projects came together from the owner, Jim Rogen - "our goal is provide good quality coffee competitively priced with the added social benefit of the consumer knowing they are helping to employ the disabled; coffee with a purpose. A saying we have is “everyone needs a reason to get out of bed.” These jobs do help our workers get out of bed. Like anyone else, they know that most jobs give more than a pay check. They understand the self worth and the sense of team and purpose that comes with a job."

We've also added vietnamese cinnamon and vanilla to the mix which balances the coffee flavor and adds some complexity. We're currently out of this but are in the process of brewing for the July season.

AREA ADVENTURE: HIKE THE NCT

THE NORTH COUNTRY TRAIL

Our latest adventure spotlight comes from a most obvious place known to most Walker residents - the North Country Trail. This 4,600 mile contingent trail passes right by Walker, stretching from North Dakota onto New York, and offers expansive opportunities to hike, camp, and bike. Please visit our writeup on a recent trip our head brewer took into the park, here.

Upcoming Events:

• Live Music by The Norquists, July 1st, 4-8PM
• All Pints North / July 29th / Duluth, MN / Tickets Here

Thank you for subscribing to In The North. Please share our subscription link with any friends you think might enjoy it.

On ahead,

- Portage Brewing Team

We. Open. This. Weekend.

It's been a phenomenal amount of time since we talked last - we're sorry for falling off the grid there. Since then, a ton has happened - we brewed our first four beers, finished the taproom, and completed all licensing needed to open and sell beer. (zZz)

With that, it brings us a lot of happiness to tell you that WE OPEN THIS WEEKEND. Well sort of, it's our soft opening but you're all welcome to stop in for a beer on Saturday from 3-10 PM. We're pouring our first few batches so some nostalgia will be flying in the air. Currently tapped is our Coffee Cake Blonde Ale, Lakefellow Pale Ale, Cocoa Wheat Porter, and Wild IPA. We've still got a lot of work to do in the brewhouse, but we're happy nothing's needed to be poured out. Below, are a few photos to get you updated on what's been going on at the brewery.

On Ahead,

Portage Brewing Team

Approved: Let's Brew

THIS MONTH AT PORTAGE BREWING COMPANY

Hello from north country,

It's been two months since we wrote last and there's a lot to catch you up on.

We're happy to announce that on Tuesday, March 7th, we received official approval to begin brewing operations at our facility. This is among the biggest hurdles for a starting brewery - and after working closely with federal and state officials, we've been green lit to start testing and brewing in preparation for our opening this Spring.

The taproom also nears completion, with painting, touch up, and furniture work still needing to be finalized. We expect approval for serving within our taproom to take place next month. 

Within the brewhouse, we've been carefully planning and talking with maltsters, hop growers, and yeast laboratories around the US - attempting to finalize our final recipes and raw materials moving forward. The logistic and planning processes that go into commercial beer production is truly complicated and remarkable, and we can't wait to get started working with some of the best manufacturers in the industry.

What comes next for news will likely include our proposed opening date, some new designs, and events going on at the brewery. We hope to provide updates in a more timely fashion moving forward, and hope you'll come join us this Spring for a pint. 

On ahead,

Portage Brewing Team