There are times when I’m proud to be a member of the human race, and this is one such occasion. I mean, not to put too fine a point on it, but it is a great week! Not only do we have the great fortune of being able to look back at the likes of Storyteller Sunday with Stay Human, Ridley and the Rascal: 2 Chaotic to Christmas, Ditty Wish Ventures to do a GAMESHOW, as well as the debut of our Third Tuesday Trivia, but we’re happy, nay, privileged to be able to look ahead to such things as the return of the Radiance Drag Show, Open Mic, and Festivus!
But I’m sorry, I appear to be burying the lead. My main point on why it’s such a great week is because Thursday, Dec. 19, is the grand return of Magic Roundabout, our Bourbon Barrel-Aged Imperial Vanilla Stout. Why is this so exciting, you may ask? To quote Tasha, the brewery co-owner and good taste impresario, “So here’s the thing, the best beer we’ve ever done, hands down, is Magic Roundabout. I’m going to say that on the record, it is Magic Roundabout.”
Yes, it will be back. It’ll be back on tap. It’ll be back in cans. And it’ll be back in bottles! We’ve taken a little hiatus on imperial beer bottling, but it looks like supply chain issues have resolved themselves enough to get some 750 ml bottles again. So crank up the heat on that colored wax, we got some bottles to seal!
Which, I should add, is right on time for Christmas. The only question is, who do you like enough to give a bottle of Magic Roundabout to?? Hopefully the answer is: yourself.
But it ain’t Christmas yet! We got another holiday this Saturday; Winter Solstice! For all you pagans or just those of you who enjoy turning points on the solar cycle, we present to you Radiance! Our first drag performance three months ago was an amazing night, one we knew we had to replicate. And what better time than Winter Solstice to bring those fabulous queens and kings back?! The performance, which is 21+ and $15 at the door, starts at 9 p.m. and will go past midnight as our own Malachy Koons (who is more well known for his work at KAXE) will be DJing a dance party following the show. The energy was just too infectious at the last show, so we figured we’d channel that into an after party this time!
If dancing the night away ain’t your thing, maybe singing in the afternoon is more your cup of tea. With Solstice out of the way, might as well sharpen your caroling skills because we’re going to be doing an old fashioned bar sing following Open Mic on Sunday, Dec. 22. We normally do Open Mic on the last Sunday of the month, but the fourth Sunday will just have to do for December. Works out nice though, since it would feel weird to sing Christmas Carols after Christmas! This is likely going to be a monthly thing, the bar sing, since there’s an ocean of bar shanties out there just dying to be sung with a pint in hand. So c’mon out for the inaugural sing; I guarantee you know at least a few of these classic songs!
Though if Christmas just ain’t your thing at all, and you’ve rained blows down on your fellow shopper over a doll for your son for the last time, maybe you should come celebrate Festivus with us. On Monday, Dec. 23, the traditional day of Festivus, we are going to have a day of music by Sam Miltich, a potluck dinner, an airing of grievances, feats of strength, and of course, plenty of Festivus miracles. Hosted by Ditty Wish, there will be joy and merriment in abundance, particularly when it comes to the leg-wrestling.
After that… Merry Christmas!
But in case you’re looking for an extra dish to share for the holiday…
EAT YOUR BEER!
You don’t have to look too long before you find a recipe that requires a pint of beer. Some of them even have you put it in the food (slaps knee). Case in point, you could look in the Minnesota Brewers Cookbook and find a ridiculous amount of them. One such recipe is from our very own Tasha Klockow, and is for Asparagus Risotto. All you need is:
6 cups broth
5 tbsp unsalted butter
1 large onion
1 pound asparagus, cut
2-4 cloves of garlic
2 cups Arborio rice
1 cup Crosswind Kölsch, or any other light, dry beer
1/2 cup frozen peas
1 cup grated Parmesan cheese
1 lemon
Salt and pepper to taste
Put the broth into a pot and bring to a boil. Chop the onion and asparagus, and put the asparagus ends in the broth for added flavor. Reduce heat and simmer.
In a large pan over medium heat, melt 2 tablespoons butter. Add onion and salt, cook until soft (about 5 minutes). Add garlic and cook until fragrant (about 30 seconds). Add rice, stirring constantly for about 3 minutes. The edges of the grains will start to turn translucent.
Add 1 cup of beer and continue to stir for about two minutes, or until all the liquid is absorbed. Then, using a strainer, carefully pour 5 cups of the hot broth into a measuring cup and add to the rice. Reduce heat to medium low, cover, and cook for 18 minutes, stirring every 6 minutes. Add more broth if it absorbs too quickly.
With 6 minutes left, melt 1 tablespoon of butter in a pan and add asparagus. Cook for 5 minutes, then add peas and cook for 1 minute then remove from heat. Asparagus should still be crunchy.
Add 1/2 cup more of the hot broth to the rice and stir constantly to get a creamy texture. Add Parmesan and stir until well combined. Remove from heat and cover for 5 minutes.
Finally, stir in remaining 2 tablespoons of butter and the juice from the lemon (as little as half the lemon, or the entire thing). Fold in the asparagus and peas add salt and pepper to taste.
Then enjoy! May your Christmas feast be full of great eats, delicious drinks, and plenty of good cheer! Prost!!
~
Thanks for checking out our humble little brewery! As long as you keep coming by, we’ll do our part by making the best damn beer possible and serving it in our always inviting atmosphere.
The Klockow Staff
Beer drops this past week:
Local, etc. -
Dutch Room & Mad Dog’s Pizza - Grand Rapids
SuperOne Liquor - Grand Rapids
Locker Room - Coleraine
Hotel Rapids - Grand Rapids
Pokegama Lake Store - Grand Rapids
Boulder Taphouse - Grand Rapids
Eagles Club - Grand Rapids
Pickled Loon - Grand Rapids
SuperOne Foods South - Grand Rapids
Pokegama Plaza Liquor - Grand Rapids
NoPo Coffee - Grand Rapids
Sammy’s - Grand Rapids
Itasca Curling Association - Grand Rapids
Timberlake Lodge - Grand Rapids
Rocket’s - Cohasset
Metro, etc. -
Northbound Liquor - Cambridge
Isanti Municipal Liquor Store - Isanti
Lexington Liquors - Lexington
61 Liquors - Maplewood
Ombibulous - Minneapolis
Top Ten Liquors - Roseville
Stinson Wine, Beer, and Spirits - Minneapolis
South Lyndale Liquors - Minneapolis
West world, etc. -
Landmark Liquors - Perham
Brew Ale’s & Eats - Perham
Dorset Corner Off Sale Liquor - Park Rapids
Red River Liquor Co. - Akeley