Minnesota craft breweries lean on community to weather COVID-19 storm The COVID-19 pandemic has been a daunting challenge for breweries across the state, but they're not alone in this fight. Written By: Gabriel D. Lagarde | 8:23 am, Mar. 6, 2021 × John and Karen Eull enjoy a drink Thursday, March 4, at Jack Pine Brewery in Baxter. Kelly Humphrey / Brainerd Dispatch BRAINERD, Minn. -- Craft breweries, much like any industry founded on or tied to hospitality and kicking back with friends, have taken a beating during COVID-19. But their answer to the pandemic is a microcosm of how small businesses, great and small, are finding ways to hang on.