On a recent visit to Minneapolis, my husband and I participated in the Friday night public tour with Bitter Minnesota and had a fantastic time! We are craft beer fanatics, and love to try new, local beers. We consider it an essential cultural experience. But on our own, in a city new to us, it would not have been easy to find these craft brewers, and of course, transportation would have been an issue...
We decided to let Bitter Minnesota take the worry and guess-work out of our craft beer meanderings in the Twin Cities area. We let the experts at Bitter Minnesota handle the driving and details, so we could just enjoy :-)
Bitter Minnesota has "nailed it". Every aspect, from start to finish. Easy online booking. Convenient pick-up location, downtown at the parking lot of a famous bar "Grumpy's". However, rather than going in there, we added another craft brewery to our checklist, Day Block, which is right next door. We left the car at our hotel near the airport and took the light rail to the downtown. The Bitter Minnesota guides were punctual and very welcoming. That bright blue little school bus just stands out and makes you smile at the sight of it. (Hee hee, you can see it in Google Streetview.)
When you book the tour, you will see that they visit 3 different breweries per night, but the selection varies each day. Honestly, if I was staying longer, or even as a local, I would do this tour over again to get a different 3, then three more... it was that much fun! But of course, even at a single place, you cannot try everything...
The tour guide's beer expertise and local knowledge really make this work. Not only do they plan the trip by diversity of brewing styles/establishment and geography, they also have backup plans in case a place is too crowded. Our three breweries were Harriet, Dangerous Man and Sociable Cider Works. We appreciated Johnny's recommendations of notable beers to try. (As the driver, he only drank pop, but he knows his beer!) Loved the atmosphere at all the places, and the beer, oh the beer!
As advertised on their website, but in case you haven't visited it, Bitter Minnesota provides water, delicious seasoned pretzels and a cooler to store purchases. They think of every detail.
We were sure sad to part company at the end of the night. The tour guides and other guests on the tour were so friendly, and we shared wonderful conversations as if we'd known each for far longer than a night of beer :-) Thank you all for a memorable night.