Activities for the Wine / Beer Aficionado
BY CYNTHIA PARSONS • CONTRIBUTING WRITER
North minnesota
CRAFT BREWERIES
Traveling to breweries and wineries Up North is a wonderful way to experience beautiful scenery and local landmarks while enjoying unique brews and tasty wines along the way . Website links are provided below as hours of operation can vary .
According to Outsider . com , Minnesota now has about 200 craft breweries located throughout the state . The Minnesota craft beer movement started when the so-called “ Surly Bill ” was introduced in 2011 , paving the way for what is now known as the brewery taproom . The Minnesota Senate approved not only producing beer on site , but allowing customers to pull up a stool and have a pint of beer just feet away from where the beer was brewed .
In Downtown Alexandria , less than a block from the iconic Big Ole statue , Copper Trail Brewing Company has its 150-seat taproom with craft beers and huge vats where beer is created 20 feet away . In 2022 , a new restaurant named 205 Grill , serving lunch and dinner , opened inside the taproom . The space is family-friendly with games such as checkers , Jenga , Scrabble , shuffleboard and cribbage . Plus , there ’ s a pool table . There is also a full wraparound patio with tables , stools , and benches to watch the sunsets . Visit coppertrailbrewing . com destinationupnorth . com 9