Now nearly a forgotten style, Mild ale originates from England, where less than a century ago it represented the majority of beer brewed there. At 3.2% ABV, Fulton Preservation Mild is the definition of a session beer. Six grains, including flaked oats and Britain’s prized Maris Otter, lend it a garnet brown color, silky mouthfeel and surprisingly substantial body. Preservation greets your palate with a subtle interplay of nutty, roasty, and toffee malt character. It’s so easy to drink, you’ll soon find yourself ordering another, and another – if our brewers haven’t finished it all already. There’s more to this Mild. Preservation is named in honor of local non-profit Friends of the Mississippi River. Since 1993, FMR has worked to preserve and improve the quality of the Mississippi’s waters. The folks from FMR will be joining us at the taproom launch tomorrow, and our Ful10 Fund will be donating $1,000 to support their ongoing efforts. Preservation will be available on draft and in growlers at the taproom, and you'll also be able to find it on draft at local bars and restaurants. We won't be limiting the availability of growlers, so you can get them until we run out. Better yet, growlers will be just $10, and pints can be had for just $4 (tax included, as always). No bottles this year, unfortunately.

Just in time for summer, we're finishing construction on a new patio in front of our brewery. It'll be a great place to enjoy all of our taproom beers and sodas as well as food truck fare. We're working with our friends atTangletown Gardens to bring a little greenery into our urban setting, and we'll be expanding bike parking as well. We expect the patio to be open in early June, and we'll be adding finishing touches over the remainder of the summer. Also, your midweek happy hour planning just got a little easier: starting June 5th, our taproom and patio will be open every Wednesday from 3-10, Twins game or not.

In recent months, we've asked for your support at the Capitol. First, as a member of the newly-formed Minnesota Brewer's Association, we advocated a change to the law that cut off breweries from selling growlers after they surpass 3,500 barrels of total annual production. After negotiating an increase in that limit to 20,000 barrels of production, our proposal was adopted into the omnibus liquor bill, and we're happy to report that Governor Dayton recently signed the bill into law. The law change means you'll still be able to pick up a fresh growler at Fulton and some of your other favorite local breweries as we surpass 3,500 barrels this year. Just as importantly, the ability to continue selling growlers will help Minnesota's packaging breweries continue to invest in our businesses -- which means more jobs and more local beer for everyone. Just when we thought we could be content with a good year at the legislature, we were hit with a surprise: The House of Representatives proposed a 600% increase to the state excise tax on alcohol. While small brewers such as Fulton would be exempted (at least for a while), we opposed the change because of the devastating effect it would have on the entire beer industry. The tax would have effectively raised the price of a case of beer by $3-$4. The distributors and retailers who bring our beer to you would have suffered badly, and larger local breweries like Summit and Schell's would have been tagged with tax increases of over a million dollars a year. Thankfully, the Senate flatly refused to include the tax increase, which was seen as both regressive and damaging to Minnesota's economy. We appreciate the support of everyone who called, emailed, and wrote our legislators and Governor Dayton to oppose this bill.