Steel Toe Brewing, St. Louis Park
I decided to take a detour from my plan to revisit all of Minneapolis' breweries and took a little trip to neighboring St. Louis Park and Steel Toe Brewing. (Actually, some map apps and such give Minneapolis as the city for Steel Toe, but they are wrong.) During our time of strangeness, when I revisit breweries or write about them for the first time and they are outside of Minneapolis, I'll call it either Twin Cites or Greater Minnesota, or something, I'll figure it out, no big deal.
Additional diversion: Once, Jason declared that I could count Steel Toe as "my local" since it is so close to me, and the closest ones to me don't count, because I'm not much of a fan of either LynLake or Herkimer (recently expired). Those two are 0.7 miles from me. Steel Toe is 2.9 miles from me. Closer than that are EastLake (2.0), Lakes & Legends (2.4), and Sisyphus (2.3). I'll keep calling Sisyphus my "local."
Okay, enough of that. I decided to go to Steel Toe because it's so close, and I feel like I don't visit them enough. (Later on, I checked Untappd. It seems that I went there last October, and September, and August...I guess that's not bad.) I get on the Midtown Greenway, taking it to the Cedar Lake trail until it hits the construction road block and take the detour through the office park. In moments, we go from Beltline Boulevard to 35th St. and see Steel Toe Brewing, where they have added to the patio by encroaching into their parking lot, which was always plenty big. Underneath a tent out front is longtime bartender Chelsea, who didn't recognize me with my mask on. You buy drink tickets from her, or whoever mans the stand, and take a reservation marker to your table. I had no choice but to use a 4-top, though they were never entirely full during my stay. Into the taproom to get a pint, where they've removed all bar stools and tables, replacing them with metal shelves, housing empty growlers. A bar with no stools made me very sad, indeed.
It's a warm, sunny day, but clouds are encroaching. I started out with a Rainmaker, a random decision, but a beer I like and haven't had in a while. served in compostable plastic. Beer #2 was the raspberry wheat called Sissel, which went down smooth, tart, and fruity. It was excellent accompaniment to the brisket sandwich from the Market Barbecue food truck.The threat of rain drove me indoors (though, of course, it didn't really start raining until I was on my way home, on bike), where I had a final pour, the bourbon barrel-aged Dissent, their regular export stout. This was wonderful, not too thick or heavy, but full of bourbon-y goodness. I would have liked to take a bottle of this home, but that was not possible.
What I did take home was a growler of Size 4, because I have no pale ales at home, and the only beer I'd never had before, the pilsner, notes on which you will find directly below.
Steel Toe Split-Point Pilsner. 5.5 % ABV. 38 IBU.
Steel Toe Brewing, St. Louis Park, MN.Crystal clear, bright golden, large ivory hued head.
In the nose: Exquiiste. I don't say that often. Flowery, delicate, delightful. Nicely hopped.
In the mouth: Lean bodied, lightly hopped, moderate bitterness, slim malt character, too, and exceptional use of drinking. Crisp, clean, light, and lovely. If there/s a pilsner lover in your party, they won't be disappointed. Pretty much delicious and refreshing. Exactly what you want in a pilsner.
SPLIT-POINT PILSNER (May/Aug seasonal) American-style Pilsner with German influence
Built on the success of our previously available Brewers Evolution Series Pils, we made some tweaks to get this Pilsner right where we wanted it. Brewed in a traditional process, using 100% imported German malt, and only the finest noble hops. Exemplifying the crisp, crackery malt base, with a distinct hop character. Our classic interpretation is our continuation toward a semi-regular lager brewing program. Look for more to come.
Pale straw, crystal clear.
Alcohol content by volume: 5.5%
International Bitterness Units: 38
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