So this past weekend I accompanied my wife to Grand Rapids, MI for her national cheerleading competition (she's a coach). She coaches little girls, anywhere from age 5 or 6 up to 14 or 15 years old.
I knew Western Michigan had a lot of good micro-breweries so I decided to turn the trip into my own little beer adventure.
On the way up to GR, we stopped in Kalamazoo and visited
Bell's Brewery, one of my favorite breweries.
Very cool place with an "eccentric cafe". While I love Bell's, I was slightly disappointed with their tap selection. I ended up having two Kalazmazoo IPA's, which were excellent, although probably a notch below their Two Hearted Ale. I was hoping they would have their Expedition Stout on tap, but they didn't. I knew they woldn't have my all-time favorite beer in Hopslam because it's only released in the winter. I left with a Bells pint glass and a long sleeve Hopslam shirt.
The next day we drove about 40 minutes west to Holland, MI and visited the
New Holland Brewing Company.
Again, another great brewery with a very cool bar/restaurant. I ate a burger and tried their cask conditioned Oak Aged Hatter. If I could only drink one style of beer for the rest of my life, it would be IPA's, and this was another excellent one. I could definitely taste the oak that the beer had been aged in and it added another level to the beer.
My second beer at New Holland was their Dragon's Milk, a strong ale aged in oak barrels with a 10% abv, part of their high gravity series. This ale has the look of a stout, it's very creamy and has wonderful vanilla tones. The rich malts are balanced nicely by the hops. Great beer.
My third stop was back in Grand Rapids, at the Grand Rapids Brewing Company. The only beer I tried their was their cask conditioned IPA, which left a little to be desired. While it was better than any major American lager style beer, it was probably the most disappointing beer of my trip.
The next day I headed to downtown GR and the
Founders Brewing Co.. This was my favorite stop on the trip. The taproom was great. The wood floors and huge bar were awesome. The beer was phenomal. I freaked out when I saw they had their Devil Dancer beer on tap. It is a Triple IPA with a robust 12% abv. The hops jump out at you and smack you in the face when you swirl the glass and take a whiff. The massive malt is balanced perfectly by the HUGE hops. It has an incredible 112 IBU's. It is dry hopped with ten hop varieties. My tongue was sore from all the hops and while I could taste the warmth of the alchohol on the way down, it wasn't overwhelming.
My second beer was their Firkin IPA, a cask conditioned ale. Again, just an excellent crafted beer. I wanted to also try their Imperial Stout they had on tap, but after my first two beers, I was feeling pretty good and decided to leave it at that. I did get an order of their beer cheese dip served with chips and crustinis that was amazing.
My final stop wasn't a brewery but the best beer bar I have ever been to,
HopCat. They probably had 50 beers on tap with about 200 different bottled selections.
I first tried New Holland's Imperial Hatter, a Double IPA, which I couldn't get at New Holland Brewing because they were out of it the day I was there. This was an excellent Imperial IPA, with 9.4% abv, and bigtime grapefruit and citrus notes, a characteristic of most IPA's and Imperial IPA's.
My second beer and my second favorite of the trip was the Great Divide Oak Aged Yeti, an Imperial Stout with 9.5% abv, big hops, vanilla, roasted coffee, and chocolate flavor. This was truly a wonderfully crafted Imperial Stout. Perfect in every way.
If you are ever in the Western part of Michigan, do yourself a favor and visit some of these places. There were a lot more micro-breweries that I couldn't get to and will the next time I get up there.
Tonight I had a Lagunitas Hop Stoopid, poured into a pint glass out of a 22oz bomber. This is a great beer, quickly becoming one of my favorites.
Also, for those in the Dayton area, Belmont Party Supply is hands down one of the best beer stores in the entire Midwest. It ain't much on the outside, but once inside, you will be amazed at their selection of American craft beers and imports with a HUGE selection of single bottles.
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