Weekend Beer Events - June 30-July 3rd

No plans yet for the upcoming holiday weekend?  Well, look no further because there are plenty of Michigan Beer events going on throughout the state:

Cask conditioned ale tapping at Fort Street Brewery
Time:  8:00 pm to 2:00 am
Cost:  Varies depending on the beer
Venue:  Fort Street Brewery
Address:  1660 Fort St., Lincoln Park, MI 
Details:  A new cask is tapped every Thursday.  For more information, call 313-389-9620

Friday, July 1st:
(The first day of Michigan Craft Beer Month!)

New Holland Brewing Co. Backyard Beer-B-Q
Time:  5:00 pm to 8:00 pm
Cost:  No cover charge
Venue:  New Holland Brewing Co.
Address:  66 East 8th St., Holland, MI
Details: "Our Backyard Beer-B-Q Series 2011 has begun! Every Friday we’ll be grillin’ on our back patio starting at 5pm. Each week we’ll have a different recipe using a New Holland beer. Grab your favorite NHB brew and rock out to the classics by your buds, Formerly Hip!" 

Free Mead Tasting at B. Nektar Meadery
Time: 5:30 pm to 10:00 pm
Cost: Free
Venue: B. Nektar Meadery
Address:  1505 Jarvis, Suite B, Ferndale, MI 48220
Details: "Mead is one of the oldest forms of fermented beverages.  At it’s most basic, mead is a simple wine fermented from honey, water and yeast.  B. Nektar’s award-winning meads start with good quality raw honey and then improvise from there.
        On the first and 3rd Friday of every month, B. Nektar opens its doors to the public.  Taste a wide selection of the meads, talk to our meadmakers about what we do, meet other mead enthusiasts and homebrewers, and see where the magic happens- all for absolutely free.  It’s a great time- all that’s missing is you
       Our next tasting is this Friday, June 3rd starting at 5:30 pm.  It is completely free.  We hope to see you there!
http://www.bnektar.com"

Saturday, July 2nd:

Brewery Vivant Tours
Time:  12:00 pm and 2:00 pm
Cost:  $5 and includes beer samples
Venue:  Brewery Vivant
Address:  925 Cherry Street Southest, Grand Rapids, MI
Details:  "Want to learn about what makes Brewery Vivant beer so special? There is no better way than to learn from the very people whose passion put that beer in your glass. Tours are also a lot of fun. Impress your out-of-town guests by bringing them down to see how your local beer is made.
           Official Brewery tours are given every Saturday at noon and 2:00. No reservations needed, just show up. Must be 21 years or older to take the tour.  Cost of the tour is $5 and includes beer samples.  All tour attendees get 10% off coupon from the company store.  Use it for shirts, hats, beer glasses, or take a 4 pk or case of beer home with you."

Up North Fourth at Short's
Time:  All day
Cost:  General admission tickets $10 in advance, $15 at the door.  Kids 5 and under free.  Short's Brewery Experience tickets $20 additional (includes commemorative pint glass and 5 7-oz pours, with extra tokens available for purchase).
Venue:  East Park
Address:  107 West Antrim, Charlevoix, MI 49720
Details:  "Short's will be offering "the Short's Experience" at Up North Fourth on July 2 at East Park in Charlevoix, MI! We'll have 10 beers on draft and our brewers will be bringing our festival setup. What a great way to enjoy northern Michigan on Fourth of July weekend!"

Sunday, July 3rd:

Microbrew Tastings with The Traverse City Tall Ship Co.
Time:  All day
Cost:  $50 per person
Venue:  Traverse City Tall Ship Co.
Address:  13390 S.W. Bay Shore Dr., Traverse City, MI 49684
Details:  "Join us on Sunday evenings aboard the tall ship Manitou (mid-June through Labor Day) for a sampling of superb local beer from Short’s Brewing Company , paired with Traverse City’s own Crusted Creations pizza.  For more information please call 231-941-2000 or 800-678-0383. "

FUNKTION live at Short's Brewing Company
Time:  8:30 pm to 11:30 pm
Cost:  $5 suggested donation
Venue:  Short's Brewing Company
Address:  121 N Bridge St, Bellaire, MI 49615-9509
Details:  "Our good friends Funktion are back to rock the up north holiday weekend scene and will be making a stop at our Bellarie brew pub on Sunday, July 3rd. We teamed up w/ this Kalamazoo based funk-rock-R&B-soul sound machine over two years ago when they played at one of our Brewski Bash celebrations. They brought a sound so tight and rocked all of those in attendance that we had to have them back to see if they could do it again. Another successful Brewski Bash later we decided that a summer time celebration was in order. Show will start between 8:30-9:00pm, but we recommed getting there early, because the house will be packed. An "honor cover" charge of $5 will be greatly appreciated and can be donated in a designated area located at the front of the stage. The band will also have CD's and merchandise for sale. "

Open Jazz Jam Session at HopCat
Time:  7:00 pm to 10:00 pm
Cost:  No cover
Venue:  HopCat
Address:  25 Ionia SW, Grand Rapids, MI 49503
Details:  "Every Sunday night West Michigan's jazz artists and jazz fans will have a place to relax and hang and get together for an 'old skool' jam session at HopCat in downtown Grand Rapids. After the first set, competent musicians and serious jazz students will be invited to join the trio hosted by drummer Randy Marsh. There may be an occasional Organissimo sighting when Jim Alfredson is home off the road."


Rather stay closer to home this weekend?  What better way to celebrate Independence Day than by planning a cookout, picnic, or party at home!   Tomorrow I will be posting some recipes I developed (all with Michigan beer, of course) that will surely fit the bill no matter what kind of celebration you are having.Thursday, June 30th: