Welcome back to The Flyover, your daily digest of important, overlooked, and/or interesting Minnesota news stories.
Like a Tidal Wave of Stout, Darkness Looms for Summit
BMO Bank is suing Summit Brewing for $8 million over unpaid debts, Carson Hartzog reports (gift link) for the Star Tribune. Per court docs, that could result in a liquidation of assets that puts the pioneering St. Paul brewery’s properties, including its brewery at 910 Montreal Circle, and equipment at risk.
The grim fiscal situation “reflects the difficult capital environment the entire craft brewing industry is navigating,” Summit CEO Brandon Bland writes in a court filing. The 40-year-old brewery’s day-to-day operations won’t be impacted by the lawsuit, according to Bland; no hearings have been scheduled. Since expanding to the tune of $13 million in 2013, a move that doubled production capabilities, Summit has been in retreat mode—layoffs, limited distribution, eroding market share in a crowded craft beer sector.
The long fussed-over craft beer bubble appears to finally be popping in 2026. The amber rush that saw breweries pop up throughout the state in the 2010s appears to be over, and now craft breweries are reckoning with younger generations that don’t drink as much (or do they?) and a looming federal ban on THC beverages. According to intel from industry group the Brewers Association, U.S. taproom closures began outpacing openings starting in 2024.
Bang, Bang: Local Sex Workers Talk Guns With Playboy
Enter: A (digital) issue of Playboy you will pick up for the articles. Specifically, this one from labor journalist Kim Kelly about how sex workers around the country are forming self-defense gun clubs…