Stories From Story Feast Collective
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Partner Spotlight: Lift Bridge Brewery
Lift Bridge Brewery | Story Feast Partner Spotlight | St. John's Abbey
Stillwater's first brewery since Prohibition and Minnesota's first taproom. Lift Bridge Brewery brought craft beer to our dinner and their famous root beer to every goody bag.
Root Beer from Stillwater-based Lift Bridge Brewery was included in our well-stocked goody bag!
A Story Feast Partner at Our Inaugural Gathering
When we set out to find beverage partners for our first gathering, beer was an essential. This is the Midwest, after all! We wanted a brewery that understood what we were trying to create: a company rooted in place, committed to quality, and proud of where they come from.
Lift Bridge Brewery checked every box.
Stillwater's First Brewery Since Prohibition
Lift Bridge Brewing Company was founded in 2008 by a group of friends, neighbors, and homebrewers in Stillwater, Minnesota. It was the first brewery to operate in Stillwater since Prohibition… and when Minnesota changed its laws in 2011 to allow craft breweries to sell pints on-site, Lift Bridge opened the state's very first taproom.
That pioneering spirit runs through everything they do.
Named after Stillwater's historic lift bridge over the St. Croix River, the brewery has grown into one of Minnesota's largest craft beer producers. But they've never lost their connection to the community that raised them. Through every can, bottle, and tap pull, Lift Bridge wants drinkers to taste the history of Stillwater: the pride, the fun, and the uncompromising natural ingredients that go into every batch.
At St. John's Abbey
During our gathering, we served a selection of Lift Bridge beers throughout the dinner to give guests a taste of Minnesota craft brewing alongside the harvest feast.
And in every goody bag, guests took home a can of Lift Bridge Root Beer.
Lift Bridge became one of the first breweries in Minnesota to craft nonalcoholic root beer back in 2014, originally available only in their taproom. It's made with the same care and attention as their beer; no shortcuts, no artificial anything. Just a delicious, old-fashioned root beer that feels like a celebration in itself.
Why We Partnered
Story Feast is about place. It's about celebrating the people and producers who make a region extraordinary. Lift Bridge embodies that spirit: a brewery built by friends who believed Stillwater deserved great beer, and who've spent nearly two decades proving them right.
We're grateful they said yes.
Learn more about Lift Bridge Brewery →
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Every Wednesday in my Substack newsletter, What’s Good Here, I share a new, well-tested recipe alongside guides, how-tos, interviews with inspiring people, and stories about what it means to live a good life. Every other Friday I also share five original recipes plus a step-by-step guide to host a Fantasy Feast inspired by your favorite movies, books and television shows.
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Interested in partnering with us for a future gathering? See partnership opportunities →
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What's In Your Bag? Our Approach to Goody Bags
What's in the Bag | Story Feast Goody Bags | St. John's Abbey
No junk. No promos. Just high-quality products from the people who made the evening possible: ceramics, honey, baked goods, pickles, kombucha, sparkling beverages, root beer, and more. A look inside the Story Feast goody bag.
Root Beer from Stillwater-based Lift Bridge Brewery was included in our well-stocked goody bag!
From our inaugural Story Feast Gathering at St. John's Abbey in Minnesota
Let's be honest: most event goody bags are forgettable. A few branded pens, some promotional flyers, maybe a granola bar. You toss it in the back of your car and forget about it by the time you get home.
That's not what we do.
A Celebration, Not a Promotion
At Story Feast, the goody bag is an extension of the gathering itself, a way to carry the evening home with you. Every item is chosen with care: things to eat, to drink, to savor long after the candles have burned down and the table has been cleared.
No junk. No logos on cheap plastic. No flyers for things you'll never read.
Just beautiful, high-quality products from the people and places that made the evening possible.
The St. John's Abbey Goody Bag
When guests left our inaugural gathering, they carried home:
A ceramic whiskey tumbler from Maine Prairie Studio — handmade especially for the event to accompany whiskey from Brother Justus Whiskey
TÖST — the nonalcoholic sparkling beverage served throughout the dinner
Lift Bridge Brewery Root Beer — a Minnesota classic. Lift Bridge was a Story Feast partner and we served their fantastic beer during dinner and then sent guests home with a nonalcoholic product from this must-visit brewery in Stillwater
Honey from St. John's Abbey — harvested on the monastery grounds and included in Chefs Mateo and Erin Mackbee’s dishes throughout the evening.
Baked goods from Flour & Flower Bakery — made by Chef Erin Mackbee
Housemade pickles from Krewe — made by Chef Mateo Mackbee and also served throughout dinner
Kombucha from Northstar Kombucha — in a variety of flavors and also served throughout dinner
And more!
The only problem? The bags were so stuffed that guests had to hold them from the bottom. We genuinely worried they might break.
That's the kind of problem we're happy to have!
Why It Matters
A Story Feast gathering isn't just a meal. It's an experience, one that we hope stays with you. The goody bag is our way of extending that feeling: a reminder of the place, the people, the flavors, and the stories you shared.
When you open a jar of those pickles a week later, or pour a glass of that kombucha on a quiet evening at home, we want you to remember the candlelight, the conversation, the moment you realized you were sitting next to someone who would become a friend.
Every future gathering will include a goody bag like this, a celebration of the place and the people who came together to create something unforgettable.
You'll leave happy. You'll leave content. And you'll leave with something worth keeping.
My newsletter
Every Wednesday in my Substack newsletter, What’s Good Here, I share a new, well-tested recipe alongside guides, how-tos, interviews with inspiring people, and stories about what it means to live a good life. Every other Friday I also share five original recipes plus a step-by-step guide to host a Fantasy Feast inspired by your favorite movies, books and television shows.
Subscribe to What's Good Here →
Interested in partnering with us for a future gathering? See partnership opportunities →
Interested in joining a future gathering? See upcoming events →