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OUR PHILOSOPHY: NO SHORTCUTS
There are a few things we care deeply about: using quality ingredients, delivering a clean and distinct flavor, and offering an ever-evolving range of styles and varieties. We want to make outstanding, intentionally crafted beer. And we never want to be predictable.
Just as important is our collaborative approach to creating the beer we love. Everyone who works at BlackStack is encouraged to suggest improvements to our process and our menu, which has resulted in more and better offerings.
Not only do we value collaboration through our team but we aim to support other breweries and small businesses. On any given day, you can find a local food truck parked outside the taproom!
A LIFELONG PASSION FOR BEER
After helping develop what’s now the Wells Fargo Place tower in downtown St. Paul, Scott Johnson helped run a beer importation company in the 1990s and early 2000s. In addition to European beers, he was also at the forefront of bringing early craft brews like Lagunitas and Three Floyds to Minnesota.
Scott devoured books on brewing and beer culture, particularly by the British beer writer and TV host Michael Jackson. At one point, he reached out to Jackson to let him know he appreciated his work. Jackson called him back: I’m in Antwerp right now; would you like to join me? So Scott hopped on a plane the very same day, and one of the most influential voices in the beer world took him brewery-hopping in Belgium.
Scott had a special gift of making customers and employees feel welcomed, heard and valued. Although he died unexpectedly on April 11, 2023, his legacy lives on through his children and the vibrant business BlackStack has become.
INTENTIONALLY CRAFTED BEER AT BLACKSTACK BREWING
The Johnson family has had a long love affair with great beer. In the 1990s, patriarch Scott Johnson owned All Saints Brands, Inc., a distribution company that helped bring European classics like La Trappe, Tripel Karmeliet, and Pauwel Kwak to Minnesota.
After years of careful planning and hard work, the entire family launched BlackStack Brewing in 2017. As company owners and leaders, they take a hands-on approach to running the business. If you stop at the brewery on any given day, you’ll likely find one of the Johnsons stocking inventory, checking on the newest beer recipe, or serving a customer.
Although Scott Johnson passed away in 2023, the Johnson family—matriarch Shawne Murphy Johnson and her three kids, Murphy, Cooper, and Quinn—continued the work they started in 2017, with plans to expand into new markets throughout Minnesota and the Upper Midwest. Blackstack Brewing is what it is because of the people who lead it, and we couldn't have more passionate and driven owners.