Two days (36 hours actually), 11 breweries (originally planned on 9 breweries with one other stop at a craft beer establishment), 627 miles, 11+ hours of driving. That’s the quick rundown of my weekend, but it doesn’t even begin to describe what my trip was about. When I first came up with the idea, I never thought it was impossible to do. Actually, I thought it was very doable, but I knew it was kind of a wild idea; one man on a trip across the Great Beer State, visiting multiple breweries along the way, and sleeping in his car, in less than two days?

The Itinerary

I had two days to get to all my locations. So, what did my trip itinerary look like?

Friday

Frankenmuth, MI Frankenmuth Brewery

Traverse City, MI North Peak Brewing Co. Right Brain Brewery Rare Bird Brewpub



Saturday

Grand Rapids, MI Brewery Vivant Elk Brewing Founders Brewing Co.

Holland, MI New Holland Brewing Co. Our Brewing Co.

Kalamazoo, MI Bell’s Eccentric Cafe Kalamazoo Beer Exchange (didn’t make it to this stop) Arcadia Ales (stopped here instead of going to Battle Creek location)



The Lodging

I’ll keep this short. Most people I told about sleeping in my car thought I was crazy; my dad, my wife, random people I met on the trip. But I thought it would 1. Make the story of the trip better, 2. Make things easier for getting around and on the road in a timely manner, and 3. It was a lot cheaper than getting a hotel room. It was actually pretty comfortable. I stacked about five thick blankets for the “mattress” and used an heavy-duty sleeping bag to cover up. I, however, did not anticipate Traverse City being as cold as it was. Leaving the Detroit area at 55 degrees and then experiencing 25 degrees on Friday night was not expected. I tried to just sleep under the sleeping bag to keep the heat in, but that didn’t work for very long. After about two hours of on and off sleep, I decided I needed to turn on the heat. Once I did that, I got 6 hours of straight sleep. It was glorious.

The Breweries and Beers

I was treated very well by all brewery staff, met some pretty cool people along the way, and learned a great deal about the craft beer industry in Michigan. I am very thankful for the hospitality I was shown while on my trip. At every single location, the service was excellent, the employees were nice, people I sat next to at the bar were great, except for two guys at New Holland, they were ridiculous, but I’ll leave it at that.

I’m not very picky when it comes to beer. Except for sours, I don’t have a taste for those… yet. Like IPAs when I first started venturing into the craft beer world, the sour just doesn’t sit very well with me. However, I’m not one to say no to a beer when someone offers to let me taste one I’ve never had. That’s what happened with IPAs. I developed a taste for them. So, hopefully the same happens with sours. On this trip I was able to enjoy 12 different beers. The only location I had two beers was Bell’s Eccentric Cafe, and that’s because I only had two 5oz pours. Below is my rundown of experiences at each place I stopped.

Day 1 – Friday, April 3

Frankenmuth Brewery – http://www.frankenmuthbrewery.com/

I was welcomed by Ryan (manager), Joe (server), and Steve Buszka (Brewmaster). I sat with Steve for about 45min and learned a great deal about the brewing process; how certain flavors are added during the process, why certain ingredients are added at the beginning, middle, and end of the process, what happens to certain ingredients when they are left in too long. We also chatted about the state of craft beer and where we see it going in the next five years. We both agreed that it isn’t going anywhere. I shared a flight of most of the beers on tap with Steve . I wanted to get the imperial, but for obvious reasons I did not. I grabbed some Buffalo Chicken Rolls for my northern trek to Traverse City, and I was on the road. I want to give a big thanks to Ryan, Joe, Steve, and Chuck Osberger for their hospitality. I’ve always been treated well in that establishment. Prost!

North Peak Brewing Co. – http://www.northpeak.net/np.html

When I finally arrived in Traverse City, I was ready to get into North Peak. I haven’t had a beer of theirs I didn’t enjoy. One of my all-time favorites is Diabolical. So, when I approached the bar, I ordered, what else, a Diabolical from the tap. This is one of my favorite things to do with beers I enjoy. Whenever there is a chance to get a delicious beer I’ve had in a bottle, from the tap, at the brewery that makes said beer, I take that opportunity. I don’t remember my bartenders name, I wasn’t there long enough to make friends. However, he was a nice dude and treated me well for the 30min I was there. I did notice there was some live music coming from the basement. I wanted to venture down there, but I would have probably gotten sucked in and missed my opportunity to get to Right Brain Before they closed.

Right Brain Brewery – http://www.rightbrainbrewery.com/gateway.php

When you think of things being right-brained, you think of off the wall, creative, sometimes goofy shit. Well, that’s exactly what the Right Brain Brewpub is. I loved every inch of that place. I walked up to the bar to see what I should order. I’ve always had a thing for red/amber beers. So, of course, I went with their Irish Goodbye. I love the name, just because I’m a fan of the exit strategy. If you don’t know what an Irish Goodbye (the exit strategy) is, you should probably look it up. I took my pint for a stroll around the space to look at all of the artwork, murals, posters, and video games they had there. As I walked around the corner I spotted it; Off *fucking* Road! What an amazingly awesome video game! I was Yellow if you were curious. I was able to spend about an hour and a half there talking with the bartenders (Blair) about what craft beer establishments were open later; it was 12:00 a.m.). Blair directed me to Rare Bird. So, I took off. Buuuuut… I took off without my credit card. I called the brewpub, panicked that I wouldn’t be able to get my card back until noon the next day, which would have set me back on my loose time table I set. “You forgot your card, dude.” Blair said when he answered. “Are you headed to Rare Bird?” My answer was, “Yes.” Blair replied with “OK, cool. I’ll meet you there.”

Rare Bird – http://rarebirdbrewpub.com/

This place had a great vibe. It was one of those dark, cozy places you want to be when it’s cold as shit outside; and it was. I perused the menu and decided to go with their Okarito Brown. It was dark and roasty with a nice smooth flavor and finish. Instead of sitting at the bar here, I paired myself on one of the comfy couches they had near the bar. Around 12:45 a.m. Blair walked in, and we had a nice chat about pairing beer with food and food events over our beers. The Manglalista Pig Porter and porchetta event with Right Brain and Lockhart’s BBQ came up. From here I took the Honda Hotel over to Walmart and parked it to turn in for the night!

Day 2 – Saturday, April 4

Brewery Vivant – http://www.breweryvivant.com/

This was one of my must visit breweries on the list. Every beer I’ve had from this place has been delicious. So, getting one on tap at the mothership was non-negotiable. And there was no one on the trip to argue with, so, there I was. I sat at the bar and admired the ambiance of the brewpub. Think of what you would see in an old French cathedral from the 17th century. Makes since because the brewery is in an old church and their name, style, and beer “came out of a trip to the French speaking Belgian countryside visiting small farmhouse breweries,” according to their website. I think they nailed it! A mix of music from 17th century lute music to Muse played through the pub. I sat next to Tim and Janet, two people on a short jaunt to a couple breweries in the area. Tim told me a great story of how the first time he was there, he ended up without any underwear. Sounds like a successful brewery visit to me! I decided on Undertaker, a Belgian-Style Dark Ale. It was between that and Big Red Coq. I went with Undertaker because I haven’t had many dark Belgian style beers. From here, I was planning on going to Founders, but made an unexpected stop at Elk brewing, thanks to Tim’s recommendation.

Elk Brewing – http://elkbrewing.com/

Open for just over a year, Elk Brewing sported an impressive tap list, a great atmosphere, and great people. I sat at the bar here next to a couple guys who happened to be members of a Grand Rapids homebrewing club. They began talking to me as soon as I walked up to order my first beer (a smoked porter); very good! The bartender was extremely nice as well. I chatted with them on the great places in Grand Rapids to grab a beer. If there was more time I could have spent a whole day just in GR. They asked me if I was going to Founders, and my response was, “Absolutely!”

Founders – http://foundersbrewing.com/

My first impression of driving up to Founders was, “Holy shit this place is massive!” Then I started to drive around the perimeter of the brewery and thought, “Ho-ly shit, this place is HUGE!!” I finally found a spot a couple blocks away and walked to the taproom. The patio was a great spot to have a beer, but I obviously had to go inside. The entire place was full of life and beer. A wide open space with an extremely long bar. The skylight was a great way to make the place feel even more wide open. Against the ceiling to floor windows showcasing the brewing equipment was a a stage (VooDoo Glow Skulls will be there June 14th). Around the corner to the right of the entrance was a smaller bar and their store. In the store you’re able to buy Founders merch and beer. I finally made my way to the bar to order my beer. My choice was going to be something I wasn’t able to get anywhere else; I settled on the Nitro Frangelic Stout. The first stout on the entire trip, but it had to be done. Sooth head with great flavor. I honestly didn’t want to leave here, but I had to get on the road to head to Holland for my next two stops.

New Holland – http://newhollandbrew.com/

I’ve been here once. Only the second brewery on the entire trip I’ve visited (the other was Frankenmuth). I stopped here for a couple reasons. The first was because my wife and I stopped here on our way home from our honeymoon; it was nice to think back to that trip. The second is because I’ve never had a beer from New Holland that I didn’t like. Again, I decided to sit at the bar. I had two of the most obnoxious guys who came to sit next to me while they waited for their carryout. The types of guys who give the most hardcore beer snobs a bad name. It was actually quite comical. I laughed out loud more than a few times. They probably thought I was crazy. Here I decided to go with my favorite New Holland brew; The Poet. As I’ve mentioned before, nothing pleases me more than to have a favorite beer on tap. Naturally, The Poet didn’t let me down. It was hard to leave the game, but it was time to walk a couple doors down to the next spot; Our Brewing Co.

Our Brewing Co. – http://ourbrewingcompany.com/

When my wife and I visited Holland on the magical trip, Our Brewing Co. was not open yet. The official opening was happening a couple weeks after we were there. So, I made it a point to visit this time. I’m very glad I did. It had a great design to it. The added He-Man display. Instantly, I knew that was Castle Grayskull of Enternia. The Mug Club mugs were displayed on the wall behind the bar, they had a great location and added to the design of the brewery. I was in a great mood when I got there, so, of course I had to order the beer with the name that stuck out the most to me. I went with the Low Life Lager. One thing I learned from Steve Buszka of Frankenmuth Brewery during our chat was, he always orders the lightest beer on a brewery’s menu that he hasn’t visited. He does this because a brewery’s light beers will tell you a lot about the quality of brewing and is usually a telltale sign of the quality of the rest of the brewery’s beers. If Steve’s words are true, and there’s no reason they shouldn’t be, Our Brewing Co has some pretty delicious beer. I’d definitely head back. After about 10 minutes into the Michigan Stave/Duke game, I took off for Kalamazoo.

Bell’s (Eccentric Cafe) – http://bellsbeer.com/

Bell’s Eccentric Cafe was one of my top destinations and another spot I was not going to miss, and I’m glad I didn’t. A bit smaller than what I expected, but it wasn’t a bad thing. I was immediately drawn to the bar. Not because of the beer, but for the masks behind the bar. Behind the bar were a number of African masks on the wall behind it. Although, there was one in particular that did not seem to be from African origin, but that of Seuss origin. It was a taxidermy mount of a Blue Green Abalard; A nice touch to the wall. This was another location that I wanted to order a beer not obtainable outside of a brewery’s taproom. However, the first beer I ordered (5oz pour) was the most recent (at the time) Planet Series beer; Jupiter. I really like this one. I hadn’t had this one yet, and I thought it was a good idea to try it here. Now, the next beer was something I had to order. It was the Mango Habanero Oberon. I mean, when would I ever get to try this again? After the first sip, well, wow… talk about hot! I’ve always found hot pepper beers like this to be interesting, and this one was definitely interesting. I needed to take long breaks in between each sip. If I didn’t have to head to Arcadia, I would have stayed for the band.

Arcadia Ales (Kalamazoo) – http://www.arcadiaales.com/

I debated before I left, which location I was going to visit of Arcadia Ales, the Kalamazoo location or the Battle Creek location. However, everyone I spoke to on the trip told me I should check out the Kalamazoo location, the newer location of the two. So, that’s where I headed. Not far at all from Bell’s Eccentric Cafe. Another large complex, the new Arcadia spot was impressive. Another wide open space in the taproom. The ceiling was very high with great artwork of their beer labels all around. I took a quick walk around and found that they had a separate food area in the back of the room, but you knew they had delicious food here as soon as you walked in the door. The menu had a number of smoked meats and great BBQ items. I didn’t order anything right away, but I’d be back. The bar was long with a nice curve to it. It also had a lot of space behind it; more than any other bar I’ve seen. I ordered the Cheap Date (American Pale Ale). The flavor was crisp and enticed me to go back to the BBQ counter and order the Porchetta. A great pairing with the hops balancing out the herbs in the porchetta. I finished my beer and porchetta and headed back to the car. At this point I needed to make a decision; get on the road and head home now, or find the next Walmart and sleep. I chose to get on the road.

When I think back to the trip, it went by fast, but I had a great time. I learned a lot, met some very cool people in the process, and tasted a lot of great beer. The Brewers Association lists Michigan as the state with the 5th most breweries in the country with 131 (2013 numbers). Although, I’m certain there are much more since the 2013 numbers came out. With the Craft Brewers Conference happening in Portland, Oregon, the 2014 numbers should be coming out soon. My point is, there are many more breweries that we can visit on the next Good Pour Road Trip!

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