Grain Belt Lock & Dam Lager

Grain Belt makes "The Friendly Beer."  Now brewed by the August Schell Brewing Company of New Ulm, Minnesota, it was originally brewed starting in 1893 by the Minneapolis Brewing Company.  In the 1960's it became Grain Belt Breweries and was sold in 1976 to G. Heileman.  In the 1980's Grain Belt was taken over by Minnesota Brewing Company who brewed it until 2002 when Schell's took over. Schell's has bought back the iconic Grain Belt sign that faces the Hennepin Avenue bridge, near one of the Mississippi River locks. That inspired this new brew in the Grain Belt family.

The beer pours a dark honey golden, with tones of amber and copper. There is an inch of white, foamy head. The aroma is toasted malt, light caramel, straw, with a bit of lager funkiness. The taste follows the aromas, malty, grassy, with a crisp lager funkiness. The finish is dry and moderately bitter. The beer drinks with a very crisp and refreshing carbonation. This is a nice pilsner-like copper lager.