I can’t say I’ve watched much of the Saints this year, but I know they have a killer offense, and what some call a good defense. I expect all the experts are predicting a Saints win, especially since it’s in the Superdome. I disagree, I think the Vikings will pull off a victory, and not a small one either. I think the final score will be somewhere in the 14-31 point range in favor of the Vikings. Why? Well first off the Vikings defense is playing well again, especially their front four. And no matter now good Drew Brees may be, he can’t do anything when he’s lying on his back. Also Brett Favre won a Superbowl in that dome, and regardless of what I said about him in the past, he’s playing at an unseemly level for a 40 year-old and somehow I think he’ll repeat history this weekend. I still don’t like him, but I begrudging have to say I was wrong about how he would impact the Vikings.

But that’s not the only Minnesota related competition happening Sunday. It turns out that the chefs at Saffron were picked to compete on the Food Network’s the Iron Chef. Guess when the show airs? Sunday! It starts at 8 so there might be some overlap with the game, but since the Vikings are going to crush the Saints there will not be much.

So here is the deal, Azia is generously hosting a viewing party for us. The party kicks off at 7 and the show will be on at 8. Along with that, Azia is purchasing a case of Rogue Brewery’s signature Morimoto Soba Ale. So not only do you get to watch some creative cooking you get to drink some creative beer.

So how about it, can you handle cheering for two Minnesota teams in one day? If you can, make your way to Azia and enjoy some good beer, good food, and have a chance to see Minnesota pull off two victories in one day.

RSVP here.

I’m tracking what beers I drink as well so it should be fun to see how many different types of beer I can try this year. I’m kind of excited about this.

*Someday Daytum will allow me to easily embed a panel showing my beer count on my site and not force me to send you elsewhere to see my consumption.

• I really like this poster that you need to  make. Christmas present anyone?
• Ed calls out Zygi Wilf for the welfare recipient that he wants to be. (note: I don’t want the Vikes to leave, but when we can’t pay for roads we can’t pay for a stadium)
• Nicole concocts a plan involving Sarah Silverman, brisket, and nudity. I’m all for it.
• Love this serving glass.
• If you ever want to know what beer you should drink, this chart has you covered.

Have a great weekend everyone. It’s supposed to be in the 20s, so get out there and enjoy it. I for one am going to be playing in the snow all weekend. Of course by playing in the snow I mean running from the bus to the bar as quickly as possible because even 25 is too freaking cold.

I’m writing this letter because  I’m a huge fan of your beers. From Coffee Bender to Cynic, they are all delicious.  I’ve introduced a few friends to Furious, a couple to Bender, and one or two to Cynic and I intend to continue this.  You have a rabid fan base, and a growing market share.  I know there is a big waiting list for liquor stores that want to carry your beer. I’m happy for you, you’re local, a good company, and very much not mainstream. All of which make you awesome.

But you have a problem.  Your public relations or lack of PR is hurting you.  You may not notice it, and you may not notice it for years to come, but it will come back to bite you if you want to grow.  In the last few months, I’ve had three experiences that would have possibly kept me from continuing my patronage of your beer if you weren’t local and didn’t brew such good beer.  Now neither of these directly affects the quality of the product, but it does impact the perception of your company.  In a few years, if you want to continue to grow, this may be important.

The first happened a few months ago, around the time you released Hell for the second time.  First, at the time I, a new Surly drinker, thought this was your first release of this beer.  I headed off to Moto-i, excited to try out this new brew.  Well my friend and I walked into the bar, and it was apparent from the start that no one quite knew what was going on.  Only one bartender really knew what the plan was, the signage was minimal, and things just didn’t seem organized.  Things went smoothly overall, thanks to some great staff at Moto-i, but I was disappointed in the event, I expected a bigger deal to be made of the beer, maybe some giveaways, or at least some effort to make it a party.  Again, maybe I should not have had these expectations, but when an event is billed as a “Release Party”, the party aspect seems like a legitimate expectation.

The second thing that happened followed this very closely.  I’ll admit I was disappointed in Hell.  I wrote about it on my blog, and then commented on a post written over at The Captain’s Chair.  I stated that though I liked Hell, I was disappointed because I had expected something crazy and instead got a light, though tasty, beer.  During a back and forth on the Captain’s Chair’s post though, we continued to get defensive responses that seemed to complain about the perception we all had and that it’s not fair to you for us to have this perception.  Those of us commenting really wanted to give you advice to help and instead we got defensive answers.  Of course, the readers of Captain’s Chair are going to be big fans so I doubt you lost any drinkers, but an exchange like that with less enthusiastic fans might lose you a few customers.

Finally, Monday night I went to the Darkness Release Party at Hell’s Kitchen.  From the moment I walked in the door, it was obvious that at yet another release party, no one really knew what was going on.  Our bartender only knew he was selling Darkness, from what my companions said when the Surly reps came in the door you seemed confused and didn’t know how the bar was laid out.  Other than a band in the restaurant side, you wouldn’t have known anything was going on.  Also, like at Moto-i, no one from your brewery stopped by to say hi, even though I was at a table of six people all enjoying Darkness.

So, here is what I recommend.  Hire someone who knows a thing or two about public relations and event planning.  Your events should be exciting.  When you bill something as a release party it should feel like a party.  Giveaways are not necessary, but at least make those who set aside a Monday night to enjoy a glass of your beer feel like they are not just there to buy your product.  You also need to work on your public responses.  It is great that you do your own PR and you want to keep you voice as inline with your company culture as possible.  Just try and do this without sounding defensive.

I also think you need to look at your marketing.  As I mentioned when I wrote about Hell, I had a misperception due to the name that caused me to be unimpressed with Hell.  This would have been easy to avoid had you either named it something differently, or just spent a little time promoting what you were trying to do with the beer.  You are a company that has built itself into a box by brewing big beers.  You can get out of that box, just make sure your customers know when you step outside of that box so we aren’t surprised.

I am no expert so my advice may be complete crap, but I hope it’s not.  Keep up the good work and keep making great beers, just pair it with some better events and public relations.

Warmest Regards,

Conner McCall

I took the day off on Friday and went to Duluth.  I had planned on this a few weeks ago, hoping that I could get some photos of fall leaves and the lake.  Instead it was rainy with 40+ mph gusts.  At first I was disappointed, but it didn’t take long after hitting up Fitgers before I had struck up a few conversations with other bar goers.  During one conversation a couple who was also on vacation told me three fun Twins related stories.

This couple was from Woodbury and had lived in the Twin Cities for most of their lives.  The husband,  said that back in ’91 his friends went to Vegas and asked if he wanted to place any bets.  He asked his friend to bet on the Twins to win the ALCS, but apparently this wasn’t possible so his friend placed the bet on the Twins winning the World Series.  The story gets even better, because not only did the Twins win the World Series that season, but he managed to get tickets to see the 7th game of that series and sat in center field.

The wife told me a story about the time when she was very young and her and her family went to the game at the Metropolitan stadium.  She somehow got separated from her family and some strangers took her to a local hotel and dropped her off with the management.  Apparently this was the hotel that the Twins players stayed at and she ended up hanging out in a room with the team.  Her parents managed to find her but she said she wasn’t really that excited to leave with all the attention they team was giving her.

Finally the husband told me about attending a game at the ’65 World Series.  His father’s friend had an auto parts store who got a bunch of tickets to one of the games.  He took the bus to the stadium and when he arrived he discovered he had left his ticket in a book at his school.  Instead of turning around and heading back, and missing a good chunk of the game, he went to the gate and somehow was let in because he knew the name of the auto parts store that had purchased the tickets. Somehow I don’t think this would be possible in today’s world.

Of course I didn’t do any of these stories justice, but they are still fun.

Coffee followed by a trip to the Lyndale Farmers Market,  a long bike ride along the Mid-Town Greenway and the bottom half of the Grand Rounds.  Lunch at Sea Salt, a quick stop a Lake Harriet followed by going home to spend the day reading and enjoying a few fall beverages.  In other words, almost perfect.

Edit:  Yes, that is a craw fish Po’Boy which goes against my attempt at a meatless month.  I just couldn’t resist, and this was only my second trip to Sea Salt this year.  Still, no red meat this month and I’ll be meatless for the next three days.

I’m a big fan of some of Surly’s beers.  I love Furious, really enjoy Bender, and their Cynic Ale is one of the better ales.  Unfortunately, Hell was not impressive.  To be fair, part of this was my assumptions, for a brewery like Surly, the name Hell seemed to shout flavor.  This isn’t the case though.  Hell is a German Style Lager brewed in the tradition of Munich Helles.  It’s a little too light for me, though it had plenty of good flavors.  I would consider it a fine replacement for the usual PBR/Hamm/Budweiser that I usually take camping.

One thing that I wish I would have done is ate something while drinking it.  I had grabbed dinner before I left the apartment in an effort to save money so I didn’t try any of the food they were serving with the beer.  I think having the right food pairing with it could have brought out some of the sweeter flavors hidden in the beer.  Thankfully it appears Surly appears to be releasing it in cans so I may get a chance to pair it with something from my own kitchen.

The last thing I want to say is that Moto-i and Surly didn’t do the best job organizing this event.  Everything went okay, but they were making you buy tickets for $5 to purchase either Hell or any of the food they were serving as part of the event.  This would have been fine, but they also had a full bar available that was taking cash for anything else.  They said it was for tracking purposes, but it created a fair amount of confusion earlier in the evening.  Hopefully next time they have a better system in place to allow them to track things yet make things simple for their customers.  That being said, I did have a great time at Moto-i, which definitely isn’t something new.

I finally found this, and it was worth the stop in a Shakopee liquor store.  It’s Brau Bro’s 2009 series, and it’s wonderful, hoppy, yet with a clean finish.  The perfect beer for the perfect spring evening.

If you don’t know about Brau Brothers and your from Minnesota, you need to check them out.  They are from Lucan, MN and know there beer.  Check out their website, and follow them on Twitter.

Common Roots Cafe – I checked out this spot after my visit to the Walker.  We were going to go to The Bulldog, but changed our minds as the atmosphere wasn’t exactly conducive to a conversation.  My date told me that the bagels were phenomenal, so we ordered one to share.  I also had a beer at that time, I believe it was a Surley but can’t really remember.  Unfortunately, the bagels were stale so I didn’t really get the full experience.  I returned last Saturday as I was meeting a friend for some web design work and this time I ordered coffee and a egg and cheese bagel.  This time the bagel was phenomel.  I told one of my co-workers from Conneticut that if she wanted a good bagel this is a great place.  It has a wonderful atmosphere, plenty of tables, and the food, when it’s fresh, is tasty.

Longfellow Grill – I went here last Saturday after visiting the winter carnival.  My plan had been to check out the Blue Door Pub but it was packed, and since I was by myself I didn’t  feel like waiting for a table to open. I had been intrigued by the sweet potato fries ever since I read about Ed’s fry day, so I decided to check it out.  The first thing I have to say is that the employees here are wonderful.  I sat there for about 2 hours and chatted with the bartender, the manager on duty, and a couple of the servers about everything from cell phones to the inauguration.   They had an excellent selection of beer, and the food was fabulous.  I ordered the Turkey Burger and the sweet fries and it was one of the best meals I’d tasted in a while.  I would definitely recommend checking them out if you haven’t already.

Wilde Roast Cafe – I took a date here last Sunday.  After driving by it and circling for what seemed like forever(I really don’t know NE Minneapolis at all), I finally figured out where to park and headed in.  I will admit it wasn’t what I excepted, it’s like Common Roots in that you order at the counter and then they bring you your food.  We had the artichoke dip and rosemary chicken pizza, both of which were wonderful.  Apparently if you order two entrees you can get a bottle of wine for 1/2 price, we didn’t take advantage of this, but it definitely an option if you are looking for an inexpensive night out.  I wouldn’t say it’s my favorite place I tried recently, but definitely worth a trip sometime.

Herkimer - I met @artallen for a drink after my incredibly ridiculous experience at work Tuesday.  I didn’t try any of the food, but did try a couple of their beers.  I enjoyed the Alt beer, though it wasn’t as hoppy as I would have liked.  I also tried the Sky Pilot Cellar Beer, which was good.  I wouldn’t say I found my favorite beer here, but will definitely return.  I’ve been told the food there is great, so I plan on going there earlier some night so I can test this for myself.

I’ve been keeping busy the last few weeks, and loving all the new things I’ve been doing.  Have you tried anything new recently?

• Summit Brewery Tour
• Choose the best Jucy Lucy
• Take the Schell Brewery Tour
• Go to a Timberwolves game
• Go to a Wild Game
• Go to a Gopher hockey game (preferably against the Sioux so I can be harassed by Gopher fans)
• Go to a Gopher football game
• Go to a Vikings game
• Visit the Minnesota History Center
• Go to a Gopher basketball game
• Visit the North Shore
• Photograph eagles by Lake Pepin
• Go to a concert at First Ave
• Visit the Russian Art Museum
• Go to a Saints game
• Go to a Lynx game
• See a show at the Guthrie
• Bike the entire Grand Rounds
• Go fly fishing
• Visit James J. Hill House
• Attend a meat raffle
• The Grand Meander
• St. Paul Winter Carnival – Review
  
• Sunday brunch at Campiello
• Wabasha Street Caves
• Pavek Museum of Broadcasting
• Visit Keegan’s Pub
• A concert at the the state fair
• Animal judging at the state fair
• Mill City Farmers Market
• Bike the Greenway
• Minnesota Zoo
• Broomball
• Make lefse
• Miesville Mudhens
• Schaar’s Bluff
• Tour the state capitol
• Outdoor movie at the Walker
• Movie on the rooftop at Solera
• Renaissance Festive
• Concert at Pevey Plaza
• Autumn Brew Review
• The Walker – Review
  
• Mill City Museum
• History Museum
• Bell Natural History Museum
• GLBT Pride Festive
• Cinco de Mayo in St. Paul
• Saint Patties day in St. Paul
• Milk Carton Boat Races
• Minnesota Orchestra
• Metropolitan Symphony Orchestra
• Fringe Fest
• Fort Snelling
• Paddleboat on the Mississippi
• Minnesota Opera
• Weekend in Duluth
• Punch Pizza
• Grumpy’s
• Science Museum of Minnesota
• Nina’s – Review
  
• Kensington Runestone
• Holidazzle
• Sea Salt Eatery
• Jay Cooke State Park
• Gooseberry Falls
• Two Harbors
• F. Scott Fitzgerald’s house
• Conquer both Minneapolis and St. Paul sky ways (I have Minneapolis’s nearly figured out)

This is just a tiny portion of the things there are to do in Minnesota and the Twin Cities area.  After starting this list I realized I wanted to limit myself so I could actually finish it by 2010.