A Look Back at Past Summit State Fair Beers

The Minnesota State Fair is nearly upon us! And we’ve got a brand new fair beer in our tanks that we literally can’t wait to unveil. Until then, let’s take a walk down Summit State Fair Beer memory lane and look back at our past State Fair beers.

First up is our Berry Bazaar. An ode to the International Bazaar where you can find Summit on a Stick, this slightly hazy, Kölsch-style ale boasted notes of mixed berries and flavors of a slightly sweet pie crust. Tart and refreshing, it finished clean and crisp. It was the perfect beer to wash down all those usual and unusual fair treats for two years in a row. Now, having a beer run for two years is definitely out of the ordinary. However, there was a very good reason as to why we wanted to keep it on tap for 2022. You see, last year was the first year attendance to the State Fair was back to normal with no attendance limits. So, with that exciting announcement made, we decided it was important to bring forward a non-alcoholic beer that A) could be enjoyed all day and B) tasted like a beer. And just like that, All Day A-Fair was brewed and tapped alongside Berry Bazaar for the 2022 Minnesota State Fair. All Day A-Fair was brewed to be a classic hop-forward India Pale Ale with all the notes of tangerine, apricots, and mixed berries while having a whopping 0% of alcohol in it. It was perfect for those fairgoers who maybe took a 2-year hiatus from the fair and lost a bit of tolerance or for those who prefer that NA lifestyle
and just wanted to enjoy a beer with out the buzz.

It’s no secret that we love ourselves some IPAs over here at Summit. However, you can only enjoy so many before things get, uh-cloudy… So, with that in mind, we went to work brewing something with the taste of a traditional IPA with a fraction of the ABV so fairgoers could enjoy a couple while walking the fairgrounds. Our Mini-Sotan IPA was hopped in flavor but not calories or carbs. This IPA featured aromas of pineapple, grapefruit, and apricot, finishing with flavors of biscuits, bread crust, and sweet citrus. The Mini-Sotan IPA was created specifically to complement the over-indulging, not keep you from it

Finally, in 2018, we thought plenty of people do IPAs, so let’s do a lager. So we brewed a lager, but not just any old lager. We mathed some ingredients, we scienced up some yeast and eventually brewed a special pale and unfiltered lager called Helles Ya, You Betcha! As the name suggests, this Helles-Style Lager had flavor notes of bread crust, sourdough, and graham cracker, plus supporting orange peel, peach, and apricot aromas. Then, for the pièce de résistance for this beer, we decided to, in Head Brewer Damian McConn’s words, “dry-hopped the $#!+ out of it” with some German hop variety Mandarina Bavaria. It was light-bodied, low in ABV but full in flavor, making it just about perfect to pair with an abundance of State Fair bites.

There have been a ton of State Fair beers we miss, but like the State Fair, the short window of which they’re available makes them even more special. Also, be sure to follow us via social media or check back soon as we roll closer and closer to our 2023 Minnesota State Fair unveiling. We think you’re going to love it!