Six local breweries are seeking removal of the “growler cap,” legislation that prohibits breweries that have reached a certain level of success from selling large containers of beer directly to consumers. The recently formed Alliance of Minnesota Craft Breweries, including Schell’s, Surly, Castle Danger, Fulton, Indeed, and Lift Bridge, aims to remove the 20,000-barrel cap on selling growlers, calling it a punishment against Minnesota small businesses for succeeding.
The law requires Minnesota breweries to either sell growlers on-site and keep production small or continue to grow, but curb direct sales to consumers. One of the breweries to smack into these restrictions was Castle Danger up the North Shore.