Old Nation Brewing Co. | Night Farmer Porter

Old Nation Brewing Co. made waves a few years ago for their highly drinkable take on the New England IPA: M-43. What followed was a “New Orthodox” IPA series that has kept the brewery on top of best-in-beer lists. But the brewery ain’t no one-trick pony. Their Electron Brown and Over Privileged Stout have both been hits with beer enthusiasts and are a far cry from the Hazy IPAs that put them on the map. In what seems like a pattern of success, they’ve managed to create another winner with their newest brew, a 6.5% ABV Porter called Night Farmer.

Read More

Women in Beer | The Women of Pink Barrel Cellars

There’s something about working alongside family that can make things a little easier. When you don’t have to put on a face, you can get things done, you can make things happen, and you can use that to be a success. Generations of farmers know this, embrace it, and pass it on to their children. And sometimes that can lead to new business, innovation and tasty beer. Or, maybe that’s just the case for Grand Rapids, Michigan-based farm brewery, Pink Barrel Cellars.

Read More

Ultimate 6er | A Toast to Historical Women of the 1920s

The 1920s was an important decade for women. The 19th Amendment gave us the right to vote in 1920, and what followed was a decade of strength and a search for equality that broke barriers and changed women forever. Women of the 1920s did everything men did, and sometimes they did it better.

Read More

PorchDrinking and Better on Draft Announce Partnership

Co-written by Jessica Spengler, PorchDrinking’s Michigan Regional Editor, and Edwin “Ed” Norton, Better on Draft’s Editor-in-Chief and Lead Writer.

(Michigan) – PorchDrinking and Better on Draft Media are proud to announce a collaborative partnership across both sites regarding coverage of the Michigan craft brewing industry as of March 1, 2021.

Read More

Outdoor Spaces During Covid-19 | Brass Ring Brewery

In 2020, we entered a new normal. When once we crowded hip-to-hip in breweries and barrooms, we now spread out six feet, stick to our tables, and wear masks whenever we move about. During summertime, since outdoor eating is a norm many people enjoy, it felt a little bit better, a bit less stifled. But in late fall, when cold weather set in and a surge in COVID-19 cases caused a new round of indoor dining closures throughout the country, breweries, bars and restaurants had to get creative. Plastic outdoor igloos began to show up, allowing a private space for groups to gather outside. Some establishments chose to keep their patios “as-is,” installing large space heaters to keep people warm and cozy. But others have gone a different route, to stand out due to cost issues — or because as the weather gets colder, even large space heaters don’t do the trick.

Here at Porchdrinking.com, we’ve decided to highlight the creativity of these establishments to keep their businesses open, even when indoor dining is an absolutely non-starter. Our first profile is Grand Rapids, Michigan’s Brass Ring Brewery, and their colorful ice shanties.

Read More

2020 Michigan Best in Beer Year-End Honors

Oh dear, oh dear, oh dear. What a year we’ve had in Michigan, eh? Nothing went the way anyone expected and for many, it went worse than they ever imagined. If you’re still standing, congratulations. However, one thing that definitely stayed as expected: Despite shutdowns and sickness and protests and kidnapping threats and endless elections, Michigan brewers once again made some of the best beer in the country in 2020. Which, of course, makes my job that much more difficult. I’m certainly not new to beer, but I am brand new to picking the Michigan Best in Beer Year-End Honors which, at 300+ breweries, is a daunting task, to say the least.

That being said, I still get the good news–and there certainly was plenty of it. So, I’ve compiled what I can of the best in Michigan. Here’s to an absolutely horrible, but completely wonderful, 2020.

Cheers!
~Jess, Michigan Editor at PorchDrinking.com

Read More

Brewery Vivant celebrates 10-year anniversary with release of J’aison Ale

Sunday, December 20, marks the 10-year anniversary for one of Grand Rapids, Michigan’s most celebrated breweries: Brewery Vivant. The brewery is the world’s first LEED certified commercial microbrewery and a Certified B Corporation. It is beloved among Michigan’s beer loving community for their Belgium-style brews, as well as their commitment to the local community. To celebrate 10 years, on December 17 the brewery released J’aison, a Petite Saison brewed with orange peel and Tellicherry black peppercorns. It is currently available on draft and in cans for sale at the brewpub.
Read More

Brewery Showcase | Waypost Brewing Company

One of the most wonderful things about Michigan, given its vicinity to the Great Lakes, is the multitude of mini climates that make the state ideal for growing grapes, hops, wheat and, of course, cherries. However, despite a great deal of hullaballoo over Michigan cherries, it is far from the only fruit grown in the Mitten State. Mirabelle plums, apples, pears and quince are also grown throughout Michigan’s western fruit belt, as well as the luscious and lovely blueberry. It stands to reason, then, that breweries throughout the fruit belt region embrace the blueberry and other fruits as a way to make authentically-Michigan, fruit-based beers from locally grown fruit. Few are more locally grown than Waypost Brewing Company, a farm brewery that prides itself on its ties to the land.

“We define Waypost as a farmhouse brewery, and our beers are created to reflect the place and the people who make it what it is. Whether that’s the water, the fruit or the feeling on the farm the day the beer was brewed, we want our product to be a reflection of this truly unique place,” said Waypost’s co-owner and brewer, Hannah Lee.

Read More

Indulgent Beer Series | New Holland Brewing Company Dragon Milk Solera

New Holland Brewing Company Dragon’s Milk is something of a legend. Not only was it one of the first Bourbon Barrel-Aged Stouts, but it has crushed the competition since it’s release, remaining the #1 best selling BBA in the United States. It was unsurprising, then, throughout the years, when the brewery released its Dragon’s Milk and Dragon’s Milk Reserve lines, all focusing on variations of the original stout. However, legends evolve, and often the result of that evolution is unexpected. The newest addition to the original line, Dragon’s Milk Solera, shows just that. Although it fits the high expectations of a Dragon’s Milk beer, it’s not a stout.

Read More

Bell’s Brewery | Juicy Gossip

Have you heard the Juicy Gossip? Turns out, Bell’s Brewery has a new beer just in time for the holidays. Nope, it’s not a coffee or dessert stout, or even a nice Christmas ale. In fact, the only thing Christmasy about this brew is the amount of tea you spill to your family members about how much you love this – pale ale? Yup. Juicy Gossip is just that – a juicy pale ale all ready to squeeze some good stuff out of your holidays.

Read More

Founders Brewing Brings Back KBS Espresso

Following its popularity as a member of Founders Brewing Company 2019’s Barrel-aged Series, Founders has seen fit to widely release a 2020 version of KBS Espresso.

A variant of the brewery’s wildly popular Kentucky Breakfast Stout, and an already fine example of how to use coffee in beer, KBS Espresso gets an extra shot of coffee flavor thanks to being aged on espresso beans after being removed from the barrel.

Read More

Bell’s Brewery | Light Hearted Ale

For many years, being a craft beer drinker often meant maintaining happy ignorance about how many calories you’ve consumed after a few pints at the brewery or while at home, relaxing at the end of the day. The only truly low-calorie beers were slapped with the names of macro brands – Michelob Ultra, Miller 64, Bud Select 55 – and tasted just the way one would expect. Over the past year or so, demand for lower-calorie brews has increased and the craft beer industry is listening. Now, there are plenty of low-cal offerings from some of the biggest names in the business including Dogfish Head, Deschutes, Lakefront Brewery, New Belgium and Ballast Point. Even among these myriad options, Bell’s Brewery’s Light Hearted Ale (a Lo-Cal IPA) stands out.

Read More

Breweries Continue to Honor Earth Day with Sustainability Initiatives

The first Earth Day, which was April 22, 1970, was a long time coming. For generations, industry and progress had pushed the population to accept polluted air, polluted water, and polluted lives. No laws regulated what could and could not be done to the Earth, and so, industry had free reign over the environment. Despite what should have been obvious, many people had not thought about the impact of continuous and unregulated pollution. Thankfully, there were still many who did.

Read More

Old Nation Brewing Company | Boss Tweed

I realize I always go on about how hard it is for breweries to stand out in Michigan because there are so many of them. But Michigan is fifth in the nation with more than 300 breweries, so it’s not hard to imagine how easy it is for a brewery to fall through the cracks. In 2015, this was likely on the minds of Travis Fritts and Nate Rykse when they founded Old Nation Brewing Company in Williamston, Michigan. As it turns out, they had absolutely nothing to worry about, even after a bit of a slow start.

Read More

New Holland Brewing | Dragon’s Milk Reserve Oatmeal Cookie

It’s that time of year again! The fall release of New Holland Brewing’s Dragon’s Milk Reserve is here! This time around the beer is a comforting treat with a warm, wholesome and tasty appeal: Oatmeal Cookie.

Read More

Perrin Brewing Company | Black Ale

Here in West Michigan and throughout the state, it’s hard to believe Perrin Brewing Company hasn’t reached the level of Bell’s or Founders. The quality of their beers, from the easy-drinking No Problems Session IPA to the renowned No Rules Porter, is only topped by the killer events and festivals they throw. Nowhere is their top-notch beer crafting more apparent than in their flagship brew, Perrin Black Ale.

Read More

Ultimate 6er | 4th of July Parade Pairings

Every 4th of July, citizens across the U.S. gather together to watch their local parade. Red, white and blue floats, outfits and decorations dominate the show, music fills the air, and kids wait in anticipation for candy. Some parades have tractors, some have two-story floats, and others have dancers and singers. While not everyone gets exactly the same show, there are a few parade commonalities across the country that spectators are guaranteed to see. For this special 4th of July edition of our Ultimate 6er, we bring you six of those common elements and the beers that go alongside them.

Read More

Ultimate 6er | Summer Adventures in Michigan

Michigan is one of those places that never stops. Despite jokes about two seasons (winter and road construction) the truth is, every season begins and ends and brings with it the sort of activities that seem as if they only happen in movies. There is skiing and snowmobiling in the winter, gardens of wildflowers and baby animals in spring, and hills and landscapes full of red, yellow and orange in the fall. It’s summer, however, when Michigan truly comes alive, mostly because the state is littered with natural and human-made beauties that couldn’t possibly be in one area of the world. It’s with this in mind that for this week’s Ultimate 6er, we have six Michigan summer adventures and the beers that will make them even better.

Read More

Bell’s Brewery | Song of Myself

Beer is poetry. It takes a great deal of understanding and thoughtfulness to make a beer that speaks to drinkers and keeps them coming back for more. Putting together a genuinely exquisite beer requires the consideration of each part individually, from the water to the hops, from the malt to the yeast. Over time, those elements become part of one, and sometimes, if we’re lucky, time will improve it even more. Poetry is much the same. With thorough understanding and thoughtfulness, a poem can last for generations, sitting on our tongues and inspiring whomever it touches. It was this inspiration that led Bell’s Brewery to honor one of Larry Bell’s favorite poets, Walt Whitman, with the launched of their Leaves of Grass series. The first release, Song of Myself, is a German-inspired American IPA. Its release in May 2019 coincided with Whitman’s 200th birthday.

Read More

Saugatuck Brewing Company | Dramanatrixxx

Spring is starting to creep back into our lives, blessing West Michigan with warm weather, green grass and lighter beers. However, it’s still just cold enough to warm up with a stout, and Saugatuck Brewing Company’s Bourbon Barrel Aged Dramanatrixxx is good enough to leave you wishing for one more snow day.

Read More