USA, MN: Nine Mile Brewing Company to become Bloomington’s first craft brewery

Nine Mile Brewing Company announced on May 13 plans to open the first craft brewery and taproom to be located in Bloomington, Minn., Brewbound reported.

Bob Countryman, founder and operator, has partnered with a group of local investors to establish the new gathering place at 9555 James Ave S. The Nine Mile vision is to provide a warm, friendly atmosphere where friends, family, community members and other patrons can enjoy fresh craft beer, lively conversation and a variety of entertainment.

The 10,500 square-foot Bloomington location will include a 3,000 square-foot taproom, a dog-friendly outdoor patio, brewing facilities and 2,000 square-feet of event space. The new taproom will seat approximately 200 guests, where they can choose from a dozen or more craft beers on tap, play games and more. The taproom and brewery are set to open to the public in the Fall of 2021.

“Running the gamut from crispy pilsners, to sure-fire Hazy IPAs, to vivid sours and everything in-between will be made for y’all to enjoy,” John Leingang, Head Brewer at Nine MileBrewing Co. “Paying homage to established styles, digging up forgotten recipes, and endlessly riffing upon anything that can be considered beer will be the name of the game. Exploring all avenues of the vast realm of this lovely liquid means that there will be something for everyone to imbibe.”

Unique in Bloomington as the only brewery and taproom, Nine MileBrewing will be a community space focused on excellent customer service, high-quality and distinctive brews, live music, games and other events – a little bit of something for everyone to enjoy.

Serving as Bloomington’s first taproom, Nine Mile Brewing Companyis planting its roots in the city after the Bloomington City Charter passed aballot measure in 2019 removing language from the Charter that had previouslyprevented breweries from serving freshly brewed beer on-site in taprooms.

“We’re really looking forward to opening the first craft brewery and taproom in Bloomington. While Bloomington has a lot to offer already, we believe residents are ready to embrace a local brewery and taproom. We are really fortunate to have John, formerly head brewer at Dangerous Man, as a part owner and our head brewer,” said Countryman. “In the future, we are looking forward to expanding our event capacities to provide even more opportunity for community gatherings and experiences.”

Nine Mile Brewing takes community focus a step further, naming the brewery with a nod to a local landmark, Nine Mile Creek, which runs through the city of Bloomington. Additionally, the founding team of Nine Mile Brewing investors has more than 300 years of Bloomington residency, with a goal to keeping all areas of the business close to home.

The concept and development have also been influenced by strong industry experience. “I worked with Bob on developing this project and I think we came up with a really cool model that is uniquely Bloomington,” said Ilan Klages-Mundt, consultant and part owner at Nine Mile Brewing. Klages-Mundt also co-founded Insight Brewing in Minneapolis in 2014. “I traveled around theworld learning from top breweries and gained a lot of knowledge from thatadventure. I’m still surprised that this will be the first brewery in Bloomington, but am thrilled to help bring this vision to reality.”

Punctuating the anticipation of opening, Leingang said, “At the end of the day, it’s just beer… let’s drink it and have fun with it, shall we?”

13 May, 2021