First brewery that I checked out was Rockford Brewing Company in Rockford, MI. It's located northeast of Grand Rapids and Google Maps had me turn the wrong way but after asking people on the street I located it. They had about a dozen beers on tap there. Some of the beers I sampled were: Hoplust IPA, Sheehan's Stout, Michigan Empire and Apple Haus. All the beers were pretty average in my opinion and none really knocked my socks off.
Fifteen minutes later and I was in Comstock Park, MI and sampling beer at Perrin Brewing Company. Oh yeah this place was so awesome and the hospitality was outstanding. I'll for sure go back and visit whenever I am in the Grand Rapids area again. I sampled about 6 of their beers and had I not been driving then I would of sampled all the rest they had on tap. I don't drink lagers much but their Rye of the Liger was good. Love them rye beers which is why I had to try it out. Next was their Grapefruit IPA and being one that doesn't eat grapefruit I was intrigued on how this would be. Actually it was quite good. I love west coast styles IPA's and so when I sampled their IPA next I really enjoyed it very much. Great hop aromas and great taste. The raspberries taste like raspberries, the snozberries taste like snozberries. Had their Razzberry Blonde next and it was quite refreshing. Great beer to drink in the summertime. Last beer I sampled was their Hopwood. They take their Imperial IPA and then age it oak barrels giving it quite a complex flavor to it. Hints of wood and passion fruit and hoppy. Would of loved to have sampled some of their other higher gravity beers they have but I was driving so I had to stick to the lower ABV beers.
Alright well so many beers and breweries and so little time. A short drive away and I was at The Mitten Brewing Company. The cool thing about the Mitten is that it is located in an historic brick firehouse. However, the bad thing is there isn't much parking space in the lot and ya have to park on the street. The small brewery was crowded on the Saturday afternoon that I was there. After getting a beer from them, their Country Strong IPA, I sat down at a table with some other guys that were there since the bar was full. Even though they were all Red Wings fans we all could agree on one thing and that craft beer is the best beer to drink. I swear one of the guys looked familiar like I had seen him before somewhere else. Anyways had a nice time hanging out there. I only tried their IPA so if I go back I'll have to try some of their other beers.
Back on the road again and check into my hotel room before going to more breweries. I was gonna cab it into downtown GR but then the guy at the hotel desk said there was the shuttle, The Hopper and it would be cheaper so okay I got on the Hopper and got dropped off at Founders. But they never said where in downtown they make stops at and then later in the night my cellphone died so I couldn't even call them up and wound up cabbing it back to my room.
Founders Brewing is one of the best breweries in the country and so it was great to have finally made it there. I know I probably should of gone a week earlier to get some of their highly sought after KBS. Ah but there is always next year. Next time I'll do a tour of the brewery too. The place was big and impressive and crowded on a late Saturday afternoon. Since, I have already had quite a few of their beers before, I sampled some that are only available at the brewery instead. The Barrel Aged Spite had a bit of a kick to it cause of the Hungarian wax peppers they use in it. The Melon on Melon was good too. My favorite though is the All Day IPA.
Took a taxi over to Brewery Vivant. I probably could of walked there, anyways I got there and the place was packed but managed to get a spot at the bar. The thing about Brewery Vivant that is interesting is it is located in a former funeral home chapel. All of their beers that they brew are of the Belgian styles. That's a nice change of pace since it seems like everyone out there is making IPA's and pale ales. However they do make a Belgian style IPA called Triomphe and that is what I had based on a recommendation from one of the locals. I'm glad I had it cause it was quite good, the Belgian yeast they used gives it a different characteristic compared to a regular American IPA.
Just a short walk down the street is Harmony Brewing Company. They make some good pizzas from what I had heard but it was late in the night and I wasn't hungry, I was there for the beer. It's a smaller brewery and the bar wasn't very big and they only had maybe half a dozen beers on tap. I love rye beers so the first one I had was their Crossroads, a rye pale ale. They are a small brewpub in the community putting out some good beer in small batches. The Crossroads was good. Then I tried their Grapefruit Moon and I did not care for it at all. No wonder why I didn't like it since it is more of a shandy. They poured grapefruit juice right into it after pouring the beer, yuck! Had the bartender order me a taxi to get back into downtown GR but after waiting almost an hour I just gave up and walked back to downtown.
After the couple mile walk back to downtown GR, I wound up at Grand Rapids Brewing Company. They are the first certified organic brewery in the state of Michigan. Had a few samples of their brews on tap and really liked their stout that they had there. Had a creamy head and good mouthfeel to it, dark and malty.
Well, it is getting late now and wow look at this, taxi cabs in downtown were plentiful and had no problem getting a ride back to the hotel. Next time I'm in GR I have to get to B.O.B.'s Brewery, The Hideout, and Schmohz Brewery besides going back to Brewery Vivant, Founders and Perrin. Was a great beercation for a one day trip. Cheers!
