Surly Brewing founder Omar Ansari wanted to make great beer. The first beer was Bender, an oatmeal brown ale. That opened the door. Furious, an aggressively hopped IPA, kicked it in, transforming the way Minnesota thought about craft beer. Word spread, especially among the Twin Cities craft beer community. Best-of lists and Brewery of the Year honors followed.
As this idea started to gain momentum, Omar was perplexed by a Prohibition-era Minnesota law that prevented production breweries from selling their beer onsite. He worked with Minnesota legislators, and the vocal, passionate Surly Nation, to change that law. The so-called “Surly Bill” passed on May 24, 2011, and scores of new breweries and taprooms bloomed. Minnesota’s proud brewing history, unchanged for so long, finally got another chapter, one that’s still being written.
In December 2014, the Brooklyn Center taproom poured its last pint and Minneapolis’ Prospect Park neighborhood officially became home to the Surly Destination Brewery. The 50,000 square-foot facility hosts a brewhouse, beer hall, beer garden, company store, event center, pizza restaurant, and Festival Field concert venue.
We talk with Omar about how Covid has impacted the brewery and what's next on the horizon.
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