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The 10th Annual Winter Beer Dabbler is happening this weekend. It’s the Twin Cities favorite excuse to get outside with a few hundred close friends and beer fans to sample a dizzying variety of beverages. More than 180 breweries and cideries will descend upon the Midway of the Minnesota State Fairgrounds to form a true winter wonderland of libations and revelry. Of those 180, 23 will be appearing at the Winter Dabbler for the first time. These are new kids, along with the corresponding booth numbers. Swing on by, give them a nice warm welcome, and treat yourself to a glass of deliciousness.
Coming from across the border in La Crosse, WI, 608 comes to Winter Beer Dabbler six months after its grand opening. 608’s mission is to create a fun, friendly, and clean environment for La Crosse and the Driftless Region.
Booth Number: 14
Ashby, Minnesota is home to 437 people and one dynamite brewery. They’ve been serving quality craft beer to locals and the greater Fergus Falls area since October 2017.
Booth Number: 15
Blue Wolf is named for a fictional wolf that was born in the imagination of owners Mike and Jennifer Campbell. The beer is a work of nonfiction and the Brooklyn Park based brewery will be a welcome addition to this year’s Winter Dabbler.
Booth Number: 135
Boston Marathon 26.2
This beer celebrating the greatest marathon in the world from Sam Adams Brewing is a Gose style ale that’s been brewed in partnership with the Boston Athletic Association since 2012. So if any Dabblers are feeling ambitious and want to hydrate up for a long run at some point in the afternoon, this may be the booth to stop at.
Booth Number: 65
At long last and all the way from beautiful Delaware, Dogfish Head craft beers will be enjoyed at Winter Dabbler. Dogfish Head produces beer at an incredible rate and have over 20 new beers due to be released in 2019.
Booth Number: 50
Purveyors of fine unfiltered craft cider, Downeast was founded by two farm-fresh-apple enthusiasts during their senior year of college. Five fresh apples go into every single can of Downeast.
Booth Number: 35
Giants of the Seattle brewing community, Elysian has brewed over 350 different recipes since opening in 1996. Each one more amazing than the last. You don’t stay in business this long without making the good stuff.
Booth Number: 83
Firestone Walker Brewing Company
California’s fourth-largest craft brewery is bringing its hoppy ales to the Midway this Saturday. Hailed as brewers of some of the finest IPAs in the country, don’t skip this booth even if you think hops aren’t for you. Give them a chance to change your mind.
Booth Number: 74
Funkwerks comes to the Winter Dabbler from beautiful Fort Collins, Colorado and we’re glad they’re here. They specialize in saisons and have won just about every award there is to win in the category. The Oud Bruin (a barrel-aged Belgian-style sour ale) won gold at the 2018 World Beer Cup.
Booth Number: 72
This brewery from small-town Bethel, MN, may be new to Winter Dabbler, but the super popular jalapeno Kolsch could quickly become a staple of the event. This is the booth to visit once the cold starts kicking in. This Kolsch is bringing the heat.
Booth Number: 140
With a name like this, you won’t be surprised to learn these brewers from New Prague, MN are bringing a top shelf German lager to the table.
Booth Number: 168
The Hawaiian brewing giants will undoubtedly be a wonderful addition to the stacked lineup. The forecast for the event calls for a high in the mid-thirties. Pretty tropical for the Twin Cities in February.
Booth Number: 87
The thistle is the national emblem of head brewer Steve Finnie’s native Scotland. In Scotland, the thistle represents bravery, devotion, durability, strength, and devotion. In Rochester, MN it represents an exciting new brewery with an experienced brewmaster at the helm.
Booth Number: 141
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Downtown Mankato’s newest taproom will bring its wide-range of approachable style beers to this year’s Winter Dabbler. Each beer is carefully designed to celebrate and highlight something specific about the Mankato area.
Booth Number: 4
You don’t need more than a hand or two to count how many U.S. markets where it’s easy to find Mikkeller. This brewery’s presence in the Twin Cities and at this event is a testament to the beer scene that’s been built here over the years.
Booth Number: 88
Another brewery from our neighbors to the east making a Winter Dabbler debut. The Pride of Plover, WI boasts an impressive lineup of quality beers, but the flagship is a wheat ale, appropriately named, ‘The Big O.’
Booth Number: 11
Roundhouse Brewery pays homage to the history of the railroad in the Brainerd Lakes area and beyond.
Booth Number: 2
The first brewery in Monticello, MN makes its first appearance at Winter Beer Dabbler. Rustech has put together a beer list covering a wide variety of styles; from fruit-infused to wheat beers, IPAs to Belgians.
Booth Number: 154
One of Downtown Saint Paul’s newest breweries was founded by a group of childhood friends on the belief that ‘good beer is always a good bet.’ Its conveniently located taproom is smack dab in the center of downtown.
Booth Number: 163
It’s almost the one-year anniversary for this brewery from charming Cannon Falls, MN. Try the Tipsy Gingerbread Man, a winter porter with molasses and ginger.
Booth Number: 144
Open as of last summer in Spring Lake Park, MN Torg Brewery boasts a can’t-miss beer list, including a wild rice mild called the Libidinous Hefeweizen.
Booth Number: 5
This is your first chance to checkout one of the hottest new breweries to hit the beer scene in the Twin Ports.
Booth Number: 157
From the picturesque apple orchards of Western Michigan, Vander Mill Cider will be treating Dabbler attendees to liquid gold made from the best locally grown and hard pressed Michigan apples. Give the Totally Roasted a try, if you’re not totally roasted already, of course.
Booth Number: 29
