Beer, Art and More Beer on the Last Official Summer Weekend

A blonde from Bent Paddle. Photo by Joy Summers

Thursday, September 17th

Women love beer too

The Herkimer Pub and Brewery will host Women in Beer Panel, where eight influential women in brewing will discuss how they have succeeded in the male dominated beer industry, both nationally and locally and the challenges they continue to face. Panelists include Deb Loch, brewer and co-owner of Urban Growler, Laura Mullin, co-owner of Duluth’s The Bent Paddle, and Jacquie Berglund, founder and CEO of Finnegans Beer, the first brewery to donate 100% of their profits towards ending hunger. Tickets will include beer samples and passed hors d’oeuvres.

Third Thursday: Art of Food

Ferran Adrià: Notes on Creativity, an exhibition focused on drawings by master chef Ferran Adrià, will open at the Minneapolis Institute of Arts on Thursday. Other activities that evening will include Midwest Pantry Local Food Poster Show, live music from Fury Things, a Feeding America photo booth in support of Second Harvest Heartland and Hunger Action Month and a line up of popular, local food trucks.

Friday, September 18th

Prost!

Oktoberfest returns to St. Paul with a two-day celebration that promises to include lots of steins filled with German style beers and classic Deutsche cuisine like bratwurst, sauerkraut and hot pretzels from eateries like Black Forest Inn and Burbach’s European Pancakes. There will also be some friendly competition between four local craft breweries vying for the Best Fall Beer, the winner of which will be crowned at the event.

Saturday, September 19th

Drink beer for a good cause

Deschutes Brewery is holding a pop-up pub that they are calling "the ultimate craft beer block party." All proceeds from the street pub to Second Harvest Heartland food bank. Forty taps will be serving up Deschutes Brewery beers in downtown Minneapolis, along with food pairings from local restaurants like Red Cow, Republic and more.

Last year's Open Streets at Hola Arepa. Photo by Katie Cannon

Sunday September 20th

Open Streets

Grab a bike and hit Nicollet Avenue for the chance to explore the area streets without worrying about getting mowed down by a bus. From 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. the Lake Street to 46th Street stretch is closed to traffic and the businesses are taking much of their wares outside. It will be a glorious day to sample dishes from the myriad of restaurants along the way including Corner Table, Hola Arepa, Nighthawks, Revival, Lowbrow, Butter Bakery, Kyatchi - the list goes on and on.