Community Corner
One Man's Ode to the 'Hudson Sunday Beer Run'
It's a 'tradition as old as the bridge crossing the St. Croix River,' writes Andy Sturdevant at MinnPost.
MinnPost columnist Andy Sturdevant took a deep dive into Hudson's liquor store culture in an art posted Wednesday under the headline Minnesotans' Sunday booze run: Hudson stores stand ready. An excerpt:
"I got the sense that everyone in the store was a Minnesotan, and they were all vaguely guilty and irritated by the fact that they had to make the trip over the river to buy their booze. I’m from Minnesota and I forgot to buy beer yesterday, their silent scowls seem to suggest as they studiously avoid eye contact with me, but you’re in the same boat, partner, and here we are in Wisconsin together. Much of the branding of the local beers trumpets the fact that they’re available 'only in Wisconsin.' The [Setter's Liquor] clerk who pointed out the subpar quality of the Minnesotans’ parking chops did so before I showed him my Minnesota ID. I felt like I was getting privileged information. Of course, his coworker was wearing a Twins hat, so maybe I was just reading into it too much. ...
"In the back section [of Casanova Liquor], an employee named Johnny proudly shows a list he’s compiled of 'Beers Not Found in Minnesota.' And it’s comprehensive, too: 24 great American brews, from Ale Asylum to Toppling Goliath, all ready for sale seven days a week, and all emphatically nowhere to be seen in Minnesota’s liquor stores, even if they were open."
Also included in the article's hand-drawn map: Spirit Seller Liquors, Chicone's Liquor Mart, Northland Liquors and Hudson Liquor.
Sturdevant also posted an extra set of Hudson liqour-store photos from his research.
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