New Yankton brewery to distribute in Sioux Falls

A new brewery in Yankton plans to start distributing its beer in Sioux Falls in January.

Ben’s Brewing Co. launched Oct. 28 with five craft beers. It’s owned by Ben Hanten, who has operated a bar in downtown Yankton for 12 years.

“We did it because customers kept looking for what’s new and what’s interesting,” Hanten said. “It’s hard to have something that’s always new and fresh, so we figured the best way to do that was to brew our own.”

Ben Hanten and Perry Volden of Ben’s Brewing Co.

The brewery is in the basement of the bar, which has been renamed Ben’s Brewing Co. The brewer is Perry Volden, the former brewmaster at Gandy Dancer Brew Works.

Ben’s Brewing Co. will make its Sioux Falls debut Jan. 27 at the Sioux Empire on Tap festival with two beers. Those same offerings — possibly a Scotch ale and the hop-forward IPA West Side Park — will be on tap starting that night at Monk’s House of Ale Repute, Hanten said.

His distributor, Dakota Beverage, is looking for other locations in the city to carry the beers.

Ben’s Brewing is making six beers now and plans to add more. In addition to West Side Park, the brewery offers Skijoring Winter, My Lawyer Made Me, Sabbatical Oatmeal Stout, Hoppy Saison and Mrs. Foerster ESB. Eliza Foerster was one of Yankton’s earliest brewery owners and may have been the only woman to operate a brewery in the U.S. at the time, Hanten said.

The brewery also is planning a one-off collaboration with the newest brewer in Sioux Falls, Remedy Brewing Co. They’ll make the creation, a milkshake IPA, in Yankton, Hanten said.

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New Yankton brewery to distribute in Sioux Falls

Ben’s Brewing Co. launched Oct. 28 in the basement of Ben Hanten’s bar in downtown Yankton.

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