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Lost Saint Brewery gets Rising Star Award

Blue Earth Chamber will present the award at Feb. 3 banquet

By Chuck Hunt - Editor | Jan 26, 2025

Mike Lahti, of Lost Saint Brewing Company in Blue Earth, is honored that Lost Saint Brewery is the Blue Earth Chamber of Commerce’s selection for its Rising Star Award.

Mike Lahti, of Lost Saint Brewing Company in Blue Earth, had just a few words to say after he learned that Lost Saint Brewery is the Blue Earth Chamber of Commerce’s selection for its Rising Star Award.

“Its an honor,” he says. “A real honor for me and I am truly grateful for it.”

He continued by adding that he felt it was a reward for making a commitment to the Blue Earth community.

“I believe in making a commitment to the community,” he explains. “That is a huge, huge reason I wanted to pick Blue Earth to do this (build a brewery).”

Lahti is a 1989 graduate of Blue Earth Area High School, and has had family connections here since 1975.

After graduation he left Blue Earth to go out and learn about the business – and the art – of beer making.

He says he began as a “bottle wrangler” on the packaging line at Lake Superior Brewing in 2001.

He worked as a “cellar man” at Harpoon Brewing in Vermont and Boston, and Upland Brewing in Bloomington, Indiana. His first head brewing job was at Figure 8 Brewery in Valparaiso, Indiana. He helped create a startup brewery in Bakersfield, California.

In 2020 he came back to Minnesota with the goal of opening his own brewery. While he was working on the project, he also worked as a fill-in head brewer at LTS in Rochester and Lake Time in Clear Lake, Iowa.

“In April of 2021, we became an LLC and started getting things going,” Lahti says. “Of course that was COVID time so that slowed us down.”

So did lots of roadblocks along the way, from a change in planned location, to delayed inspections and lots more.

“We finally opened in June of 2023,” Lahti says. “And it has been going well ever since.”

When he says “we,” he is referring to the fact that he has a group of investors, some of whom are local and some who are from out of state. He adds that he is grateful for these investors, and everyone else who has supported him during this start up time. They, he says, deserve to be part of this honor of receiving the Rising Star Award.

Part of Lahti’s commitment to the community is his use of local products. That is true when it comes to the food items he uses at the brewery.

“I get some of my food products from places like Conger Meat Market, Goette Farms and Blue Dirt Farm,” he says. “I get peanuts and other items from the Rainbow Food Co-op. I try to keep it local as much as possible.”

Lahti sells some beverages other than beer at the brewery.

“We do make our own root beer,” he says. “And we also sell wine, which is made in Albert Lea.”

But, of course, at a brewery, beer is always No. 1. Lahti says he brews five beers that are on tap year around and has another seven seasonal ones on tap as well.

Over his many years in the beer brewing business he has received many awards on a state and national level for his beers.

“My No. 1 commitment is to making great beer,” Lahti says. “If the beer at a brewery is not good, then the experience of going there won’t be good.”

He has made another commitment to his business, which is to bring some entertainment to the community, which will also enhance the experience of going to the Lost Saint Brewery.

“We have some original live music here, featuring artists from the area, around the state and even some national musicians,” Lahti says. “We have also had some comedians perform. And we have some other events like trivia contests.”

There have also been some meetings and events held by others at the brewery. For instance, the Blue Earth Kiwanis Club held a Meet and Greet event there, Southern Minnesota Initiative Foundation (SMIF) board members visited the brewery and last week the Faribault County Economic Development Authority (EDA) held their monthly meeting there.

Lahti will receive his Rising Star award during the annual Blue Earth Chamber of Commerce Banquet that will be held on Monday night, Feb. 3, at the Riverside Town and Country Golf Club.