Spinnaker Lounge + Schmohz Beer Pairing Dinner

The Michigan Beer Blog had the privilege of attending a beer and food pairing dinner last night hosted by the Spinnaker Lounge. This beer-infused culinary experience was presented by Spinnaker’s head chef Bill Read and Schmohz Brewing’s Chas Thompson.  Both Spinnaker and Schmohz have featured events and products at this week's Grand Rapids Wine, Beer, and Food Festival, and you surely won't want to miss out on this pairing dinner.  FIRST COURSE  “Beer” Beets & Blue CheeseRoasted Red & Yellow Beets, Vertical Paradise Farms Greens, Reny Picot Blue Cheese and Crispy Shallots with a Pilsner...

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6th Annual UP Fall Beer Fest

In ways that no other state has, Michiganders have the privilege of traveling to a completely different environment without ever leaving their own state.  The upper Peninsula is as fierce and rugged as the people are polite and generous, with a culture and climate wholly different than the lower peninsula. That culture was fully on display during the Fall UP Beer Fest, where the wealth of Upper Peninsula Michigan Beers showed off their wares alongside the southern breweries willing to make the trip to Marquette. Like the expansive sky smiling down on the Lake Superior Town, the mood was light and airy.  People...

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Children’s Leukemia Foundation of Michigan Hosts Fourth Annual BRU Fest Fundraiser in Royal Oak

The fourth annual BRU FEST Michigan fundraiser will pair local craft beer with delicious food and entertainment with proceeds to benefit the Children’s Leukemia Foundation of Michigan. The event will take place on Saturday, June 14 from 7 p.m. to 11p.m. at the Royal Oak Farmer’s Market. General admission tickets are $39, and VIP tickets are $60. VIP tickets include 6 p.m. early entrance, private beer tapings with exclusive food pairings, a larger mug and more. With each ticket purchase, attendees receive 10 tokens for one half-pour of beer each and four tickets for burgers and wings. Tokens...

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The Black Heron

Our posts have dwindled slightly in the last three months.  While it’s true that we haven’t been able to travel to as many Michigan breweries as we would like, our time has not been spent in vain.  The truth is that the pair that runs the Michigan Beer Blog – Laura and Seth Porter – are opening a kitchen and bar dedicated celebrating Michigan’s vast array of food and beverages! The Black Heron will provide: ·        Rare and popular beer from all over the state ·        an unprecedented gluten free cider collection ·        the...

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The Mitten Brewing Company

The Michigan Beer Blog has had the privilege of traveling the state visiting breweries, but we have a special place in our heart for our city and our neighborhood.  As proud West Siders, it’s with no small joy that we can write about a brewery that’s in our own neighborhood. Indeed, the Mitten is our neighborhood bar. Built inside a Fire House that dates back to 1891, the Mitten has tried at every turn to be a great fit with the existing community while simultaneously bringing their passion for beer and baseball to a local and dedicated audience.  The renovations to the interior keep the firehouse look while adding baseball...

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The Myth of Craft Beer Saturation

Despite craft beer’s sustained, double digit annual growth, people love to bring up the possibility that the craft beer market teeters on the brink of outgrowing itself. I hear many people use the word “saturation” as they sagely nurse their third beer. “There’s too many breweries in Michigan,” they say.  “No market can sustain double digit growth forever.  At some point, these little start-ups will begin cannibalizing their own market.”  Then these people – who I assume mean well – go back to the beer that didn’t exist six months ago because the brewery wasn’t even built yet. The myth of the saturated market has been around...

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Ninth Annual Winter Beer Fest

Here we are, folks.  After months of preparation, anticipation, pre-emptive celebration, and – yes, some controversy -- the Michigan Brewer’s Guild has delivered yet another spectacular living monument to the Michigan Beer movement. February 22nd began with an abrupt change to this winter’s overall oppressively monochrome look.  Yes, the mountains of dirty snow remained, as did the temperature, which hovered in the low twenties for the entire day.  But the sun, which had been missing for so long that this felt like a Westeros winter, finally made a triumphant appearance.  Michiganders cannot be bothered by 20 degree...

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Winter Beer Fest Cheat Sheet: Ten Most Anticipated Beers

This Saturday marks the most breweries and most beers of any Winter Beer Fest ever: 17 more breweries than last year, with an astounding 792 beers to sample in one day. At this point only the most delusional of imbiber would even consider trying all of them, so it behooves us all to nail down a plan. Based on the list released by the always fantastic Mash, these are samples the Michigan Beer Blog is most excited to try: (a note -- we realize a few of these are beers that can be had at the taproom of their respective establishment; in those cases, distance became a factor in our decision) Brewery Ferment – Salted Caramel Stout We wanted to put a list together that carried the best and brightest ideas without saddling anyone with too many high abv beers. Salted Caramel...

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Four Witches Beef Jerky

I made beef jerky for the first time this weekend.  It probably won't come as a surprise to anyone that when I was deciding how I wanted to flavor the meat, the first ingredient that came to mind was beer.   Since this was my first time making jerky, I decided to experiment with two different cuts of beef.  I used flank steak and top round (Seth and I preferred the flank steak version, pictured on the left above), but you could use any other lean cut of beef that you would like, such as sirloin or eye round, or even turkey or venison instead of beef.   This is one of those recipes that is really...

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Ore Dock Brewing Company

Michigan’s brewers have peppered the landscape with dozens of different types of buildings, filled with hundreds of different types of beer.  These buildings take on the personality of the owner, the brewer, and the staff.  Take, for example, Founder’s Brewing Company, which – despite its multiple expansions and vast production capacity, remains strongly tied to its mantra of making beer the owners would enjoy, with a flavor of live music and a strong commitment to Michigan sporting –specifically kayaking. The Ore Dock is no exception, with a personality all its own.  Located in...

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