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MidwestMicroBrews -- contact@midwestmicrobrews.com |
| St. Cloud Craft Beer Expo January 22nd, 2011 - St. Cloud, MN |
| More than 2,000 people showed up. 1,300 were projected. |
| The camera always finds the beer hat guys. |
| The Breckenridge Brewery guy demonstrates the perfect pour. |
| The staff of the original Granite City in St. Cloud. |
| KVSC provided the music and entertainment. |
| Stillwater, MN's Lift Bridge Brewery and their Farm Girl Saison. |
| The line to get inside. |
| McCann's Food & Brewpub... a St. Cloud favorite. |
| There were 42 brewers there from all over. Odell Brewing Company is from Fort Collins, CO. |
| The sign outside the Civic Center. |
| Surly won the People's Choice Award. Mark, the event organizer, on the left. |
| The first annual St. Cloud Craft Beer Expo exceeded the expectations of everyone involved. Organizers expected about 1,300 beer enthusiasts to show up at the first annual event. But more than 2,000 funneled into the Civic Center, and organizers had to turn away nearly 400 people after tickets sold out. The diverse crowd ranged from beer experts with a refined palate to sloppy college students taking advantage of the "all you can drink" for $25. Expo patrons went home with a commemorative glass, unless they were one of the dozen or so who dropped theirs on the ground, shattering the glass and igniting a humiliating roar from the crowd. After tasting delicious brew crafted by some of the 42 brewers from around the nation, people voted for their favorite. The winner of the People’s Choice Award was Surly. Based in the Twin Cities, the fast-growing brewery was the talk of the expo. The gigantic Civic Center room was packed for the duration of the event, but the party didn’t stop there. Many of the brewers, including Surly, took their brewing stations to downtown bars to serve their tasty beer to the late night patrons. When asked if there will be a second annual event, organizers said, “Hell yeah!” In fact, they’re already planning an outdoor Oktoberfest event for downtown St. Cloud, in addition to a second annual Craft Beer Expo next winter. |
| Brooklyn Center MN's Surly Brewing Company was -- unsurprisingly -- a crowd favorite. |
| Some of the many eager beer drinkers in attendance. |
| Expect to see these t-shirts on a lot of the attendees at the 2012 St. Cloud Craft Beer Expo. |