Our second stop on our 2023 beer fest tour took us to St. Paul MN and the Brewsology Beer Fest at the Science Museum of Minnesota. A few months back Heidi and I had come across an ad for a new type of beer festival that would be visiting Minnesota in February. It’s called Brewsology and would be taking place at the Science Museum of Minnesota. We didn’t hesitate on getting tickets because it sounded like something we both would love. We booked a room at the unique and historic Celeste of St. Paul Hotel & Bar. We wanted to enjoy St. Paul as much as possible during our short stay in the city. We made plans to visit Can Can Wonderland and Black Stack Brewing as well as get a couple of good meals in the area. The idea was to take a simple trip to the city and turn it into an adventure we wouldn’t forget.
We arrived in St. Paul around 1pm and decided to see if we could check in at the hotel. We were lucky enough to be able to check in early and make our way to our room. The Celeste of St. Paul would be our home base for the day and evening. We didn’t waste any time and found a place to get lunch that was within walking distance of the hotel. We headed out and walked the 3 blocks to The Loon Cafe St. Paul to have lunch. The Loon Cafe is located off Seventh Place Mall and across the street from the historic Landmark Center. We chose a table next to the large windows that looked onto the Seventh Place Mall and seasonal patio seating area. We had a great lunch and talked about our plans for the rest of the day. We decided to head back to the hotel and get ready for our next adventure.
When we were planning our trip to St. Paul, a friend of mine suggested that we check out Can Can Wonderland and Black Stack Brewing. Can Can Wonderland is a whimsical destination full of arcade and vintage pinball games. There is even an 18 hole artist-created mini golf course. Can Can Wonderland and Black State Brewing are located in a former American Can metal food can manufacturing complex that used to be the largest tin can factory in the U.S. We decided to take an Uber to Can Can Wonderland and expected to spend the afternoon playing games and drinking beer. When we showed up we followed the signs through the labyrinth of halls and stairs to the long waiting line for Can Can Wonderland. It didn’t take us long to decide that we had neither the time nor patience to stand in line to enter Can Can. We decided that we would head to Black Stack Brewery and get a beer and decide what to do from there.
We headed back up through the stairs and hallways to the ground floor and Black Stack Brewing. The brewery was very busy but we were able to be served right away. Heidi ordered a beer called Holes. Holes is a Donut Milk stout that is infused with toffee, carmel, chocolate, and doughnuts from The Doughnut Trap. The Doughnut trap doughnuts are also sold in a vending machine in the hallway between Can Can Wonderland and Black Stack Brewing. I decided to go with a dessert in a beer form. The Parent Trap is a blend of fresh and barrel aged imperial stout that is infused with large amounts of Oreos and peanut butter cups. After getting our beverages we found a couple of chairs that looked like they came right out of the 70’s by a bank of big windows. Black Stack Brewing’s seating area is larger than most breweries and has a mix of tables and casual seating areas with chairs and couches. We took our time drinking our beer and talking about our day & evening. We decided to head back to the hotel and our central location after finishing our beers. After a short ride in an Uber we were back at the hotel and starting the next phase of our day.
When we returned to the hotel we took a bit of time to look around the art & architecture inside. The Celeste of St.Paul is a unique boutique hotel with an interesting history. The building was completed in 1909 and was the former home of St. Agatha’s Conservatory of Music and Art and a convent. The conservatory closed its doors in 1962 and was converted into offices and classrooms for McNally School of Music. In 2017 the building was bought by Rebound Hospitality that turned it into the Celeste of St.Paul Hotel and Bar. The building was returned to its original glory with the addition of modern guest rooms. The Celeste opened its doors to the public on November 1st of 2019 with the 71 room hotel designed with the idea of paying homage to the original purpose of the building. The decor of the building was meant to look as it did when the sisters walked the halls with most of the woodwork being original. There are religious artworks and other design cues from the original religious setting. The hotel has done a great job of giving acknowledgement to the building's religious history but has added a humorous twist to it.
When we were done exploring we returned to our room and got ready to go out to dinner. We decided earlier that we wanted to try to get dinner close to the science museum and were lucky enough to get reservations at Herbie's On The Park. We started our walk towards Herbies On The Park and remembered that the St.Paul Winter Carnival was going on. We worked our way through the crowd and found ourselves in front of the iconic statue of Herb Brooks the legendary hockey coach who coached the 1980 gold medal winning US olympic team that beat Russia in the hockey game that came to be known as the “Miracle on Ice ''. Herbie’s On The Park is located right next to Herb Brooks statue and the building that was formerly the Minnesota Club. The interior of Herbie’s is warm and inviting and makes it easy to envision how it looked as a social house before becoming a restaurant. Our food and service were great and we took a quick look around to get pictures before we headed out. When we left the restaurant we walked right into the middle of the festivities going on outside for the winter carnival. The streets and sidewalks were packed but we were able to make our way over to Rice park. We were hoping to look at the Ice sculptures in the park but the park was too busy to stop and look. We were lucky enough to catch the fireworks going off over the park. After the fireworks we stopped quickly to check out the historic Landmark Center and then headed back to the hotel to get ready for the Brewsology beer festival.
When we got back to the hotel we decided to stop off at the bar in the front parlor of the hotel. We were hoping to sit in one of the cool back rooms of the bar but all the cool hiding spots were already taken. After finishing our drink we got ready and headed back towards the Science Museum of Minnesota for the beer fest. Heidi and I are always looking for unique experiences and when we heard about the Brewsology beer festival we knew we had to go. The event went from 7pm to 11pm and was our first evening beer sampling event. When we arrived at the Science Museum of Minnesota we were excited to see that they had spread out the breweries throughout the whole museum. There were 4 floors of exploring, learning and drinking to be had at the museum. We would stop and get a sample from a brewery or cidery and then walk around and look at the different exhibits. When our sample glass was empty we would repeat the process. We went from floor to floor looking at exhibits and sampling different beers and ciders. It was like taking a field trip as a kid but with alcoholic beverages. Besides the large variety of beers and ciders available there were food options for sale on the top floor. There were more people there to sample beer than expected but the lines went fast and the spaces never really felt overcrowded. The event sold out weeks before the event and the promoter of the event has added a second event in August 2023. The event promptly shut down at 11 and we walked back to the hotel in the quiet winter air.
The next morning we got up and enjoyed breakfast at the hotel before heading out to find a place to hike. We decided to head over to Minnehaha Regional Park. The park is located in Minneapolis and is about a fifteen minute drive from the hotel. When we arrived, we parked on the street and headed towards the falls. The park was quiet for Sunday and we had most of the paths to ourselves. We made it to the frozen falls and took a bunch of pictures and enjoyed the splendor of the area. We decided that taking a long hike was not going to be an option. The freezing and thawing cycles this winter had coated the sidewalks with a layer of hard packed snow that was glazed with a layer of ice. We did take a short walk before heading back to the car and on to our next destination. We decided to head to the Lake Nokomis area to get some coffee. We ended up at Nokomis Beach Coffee. The coffee shop is located in a cool old building that has other business as well. The coffee shop was warm and full of the midday sun and it was easy to sit back and relax and enjoy our coffee. We took our time drinking our coffee then headed home after a great couple of days in the cities.
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