Summit has been busy brewing some exciting news this week. First, tickets are now on sale for the St. Paul brewery's 26th anniversary party. The Summit Backyard Bash — held at the brewery on Sept. 8 — will be headlined by hip-hop juggernaut Doomtree and include a full day of live bands, food trucks and beer. This is good news for Doomtree fans who were hoping to see the Minneapolis collective this weekend at the now cancelled Soundtown festival in Somerset. Also performing at the brewery: Now Now, Halloween Alaska, Heartbeats, Caroline Smith and the Goodnight Sleeps and Hotpants DJs. The Current's Mark Wheat will host. Tickets for the Backyard Bash are $14 (or $20 at the door). For more info and tickets, go here.

The second announcement has been a longtime coming: Summit will finally open a taproom in mid- to late- September. In actuality, the brewery has always had what most would consider a taproom, but it's been used primarily to dole out beer samples during tours. Summit will now use this event space to sell pints on site, starting one day a week (Fridays from 3-8 p.m.). Why didn't the brewery jump on the taproom bandwagon sooner? On Summit's website, founder Mark Stutrud said he wanted to "take the time to really evaluate the reality of operating a taproom." He also said he wanted to "respect our retail customers." Some bar owners have been leery of brewery taprooms, which sometimes offer rare batches not available in the greater bar scene. Summit seems to be taking the diplomatic route by only offering a single day for pint sales (to start with, at least). Like other breweries, Summit will be inviting food trucks to its taproom on Fridays this fall.

The last bit of Summit news concerns the debut of a new beer in the popular Unchained Series. The tenth entry in this limited edition series is brewer Nate Siats' version of a Belgian dubbel. There are three release parties on Friday for Unchained: Belgian Style Abbey Ale. Siats is expected to make an appearance at each. Grumpy's in Roseville will have a cask of the new brew from 4-6 p.m. You can "bocce with the brewer" from 6-8 p.m. at Village Pub in St. Anthony. Finish the night at the 331 Club, where Siats will present another cask of this small batch beer.

More info: www.summitbrewing.com.