Grand Rapids: A Midwestern Beer Mecca

Grand Rapids is experiencing a mini-renaissance relatively unknown to the outsider. A veritable explosion of education and industry has led to vibrant, varied city life, and best of all, an astounding range of craft breweries.

The 40+ brewing and drinking establishments in and around the city are enough to keep a dedicated drinker busy for weeks, and while the breweries and their owners are kaleidoscopic in personality, they are unified in the mission to make Grand Rapids an epicenter for craft beer. It seems that the city has achieved its goal, beating out powerhouse cities like Denver, Portland and Asheville in numerous national polls for the title of “Best Beer Scene” in America.

Perhaps it’s the Midwestern spirit, or simply that the fraternal nature of beer has seeped into society at large, but Grand Rapids seems to function as one big friendly, beercentric ecosystem in a manner that seems uniquely brotherly.

“The brewers in the area are always communicating, working with each other, and offering technical support and advice,” says The Mitten Brewing Company’s Robert “Wob” Wanhatalo. “That sense of community keeps us all moving forward for the greater cause that is the Grand Rapids brewing scene.”

Sure there’s competition, but it’s friendly, with the goal of raising the bar for quality and consistency. While I couldn’t visit them all, every brewery I managed to visit in 48 hours demonstrated a high level of technical proficiency and the willingness to experiment. Grand Rapids is alive with the glory of beer.

The Mitten – My journey began at The Mitten, a delightfully cozy baseball-themed brewery built in 2012 in what was once Grand Rapids’ “Firehouse No. 9.” Much of the 120-year old edifice was preserved, including original brick walls, firemen’s lockers and part of the fire pole. While no longer available for rapid inter-floor transit, the pole remains quite danceable. The urge to do so became more tempting as head brewer Robert “Wob” Wanhatalo walked me through beer and pizza flights which were highly appealing in both flavor and nomenclature.

The Mitten also scores points for having the most collectable business cards in beer.

I felt compelled to start with the Put Me In, Kolsch!, due to its unabashed use of wordplay. It was perfectly representative of the style and The Mitten’s intersecting passions of beer and baseball, and paired beautifully with their Westerdog, a pizza made with all-beef franks, bean chili, and other ballpark staples.

Wob and his fellow brewers are humble, but their ability to pull off a wide range of unforgiving styles (their Marzen-style lager, cream ale and Wee Heavy come to mind) speaks for itself. The taproom was packed, and with their new 20-bbl production facility, there are talks of canning and having Mitten Milk Stout on tap at Comerica Park (home of the Tigers). It seems The Mitten’s future is in good, gloved hands.

Brewery Vivant – Stained glass behind the bar casts a heavenly glow upon the taproom, and a feeling of reverence permeates the air, partially due to its location in what used to be a funeral chapel. But what once used to draw mourners now attracts those celebrating life with finely tuned Belgo-American brews. Given the brewing style, the beer often gains second life as well, with many brews bottle-conditioned, and a firkin on tap.

“Our brewing inspiration comes from the family breweries dotting the French and Belgian countryside. Rustic biere de gardes, saisons, farmhouse ales – these are what excite our palates,” said Kate Avery, Brewery Vivant’s “Abbess of Beer.”

The earthy focus extends to the 20-barrel brewery’s design, as it holds the title for the world’s first LEED Certified microbrewery (Leadership in Environmental Efficiency and Design), which will soon be able to put out up to 8000 bbls a year.

Standouts from the flight included the thunderously dank Treebucket Belgian-style DIPA, Peruvious, a pale ale with pink peppercorns for a zesty finish, and Fussy Dutchman, a slightly soured Brett Beer aged in red wine barrels. An honorable mention goes out to the malty “Big Red Coq,” which pours a ruby hue and contains a surprising amount of Citra hops.

“Brewery Vivant promotes living the good life by brewing farmhouse-inspired beer, serving a from-scratch menu and building a sustainable community one beer at a time,” said Avery. “Relaxing at a table with friends, old and new, over a beer and a good meal – that’s the Belgian Tradition. We’re focused on that experience.”

(Middle photo courtesy Experience Grand Rapids, bottom courtesy Brewery Vivant)

Harmony Brewing Company and Harmony Hall – Jackson van Dyke, who founded the award-winning Harmony Brewing Company along with siblings Barry and Heather, was kind enough to meet me at his newly built Harmony Hall location, which has the communal feel of a traditional German beer hall suffused with a calming, wholesome vibe.

“We tried to do a unique take on a beer hall with elements of fancifulness and whimsy,” said owner Jackson van Dyke.

While walking me through a handpicked flight from the 25 beers they have on tap, I felt progressively more at home, despite being far from it. No doubt the beer helped, but the building itself had a unique charm.

“The words that we kept repeating when we were building the space were celebratory and mystical realism, while also are taking cues from the history of the building itself,” Van Dyke told me. “Harmony Hall was originally built as the Rauser Sausage Factory in 1908,” he said, “so we used that to inform our menu.”

Both tap and food menus are diverse, and often complement each other, as was the case with my classically inspired Hopwurst, described as a “cheddar brat made with our Fiddlestix IPA – creamy and cheesy with subtle citrus and hop flavor – topped with house-made bourbon bacon jam and red cabbage slaw.” It was beyond expectation, pairing as well with 100% Michigan-hopped Fiddlestix and whimsically named Starstuff IPAs as with their Black Squirrel, a smoked and peated porter.

After the meal, Jackson showed me around their new 10-bbl system which will triple total capacity of the two brewpubs. The entire operation is imbued with life, and keeping with the theme of the city, the passion for quality is evident in every sip.

Grand Rapids Brewing Company – The all-organic Grand Rapids Brewing Company is the product of BarFly Ventures owner Mark Sellers, creator of HopCat, which was founded in Grand Rapids and has since spread to over 30 locations. If you were looking to dress up and drink, this would be your go-to. Though not averse to the casual drinker, this brewery has a bit more of an upscale, formal feel, and would make a good date spot before hitting the town due to its central location. It’s also a short walk away from Van Andel Arena, home of the American Hockey League’s Grand Rapids Griffins, as are three or four other breweries and brewpubs.

ELK Brewing Co. – The fledgling ELK was founded in 2014 by Eric and Lisa Karns, whose initials inspired the name. I was one of the first ones in early Saturday afternoon, and thus had a seat directly in front of the taps. Bartender Kate was extremely helpful, and started me with their Rowster’s Coffee Porter, supplying the right amount of roast to start the day. It’s got a great “neighborhood bar” feel, as many of the patrons were on a first-name basis with Kate, and larger family parties filed in as the day wore on.

(All photos courtesy Experience Grand Rapids except for Harmony Hall Tap Photo, courtesy Steph Harding)

B.O.B.’s Brewery – Ensconced in another historic building, B.O.B.’s Brewery lies on the first floor of a three-tiered labyrinth of food and drink. The brews are on tap upstairs as well, but head downstairs for the full taproom feel, as well as the cheap all-you-can-eat peanuts or popcorn.

I opted to let the bartender choose my flight and plopped down next to two recently retired couples, who had obviously quite enjoyed the brewery’s offerings and were eager to share their knowledge of the area. They had moved to Grand Rapids over a decade ago and had been coming to B.O.B.’s ever since – displaying their beer-soaked lifetime membership cards for proof.

B.O.B’s head brewer John Svoboda is undoubtedly a rock ‘n roll fan.

Listening as I worked through the flight, I was surprised at how willing to share Grand Rapidsians (or the locals) were. Although their city and its surrounding area might be considered of America’s best kept secrets (the beaches of Lake Michigan were voted the country’s best, and the streets were some of the cleanest and most traffic-free I’d seen), they urged me to see it all without any hint of the “locals only” attitude one would find in a comparatively hip city.

Beer highlights included Black Zeppelin – an aromatic Black IPA tempered with rye for a nice balance of roast and toast, Full On IPA – its American IPA brother-in-arms, and the rich Kit-Kat-esque Peanut Butter Porter, all created by experienced head brewer John Svoboda.

Founders – Sidling in on a snowy Saturday afternoon, Founders loomed monolithic with its brown brick in sharp relief against the billowing drifts of snow. It couldn’t have been a more welcome sight, and the interior was a drinker’s dream, packed to the gills with an armada of food and drink at the ready. Despite the chill, the crowd had spilled onto the patio, warmed by strategically placed heat pylons, and an array of beers beyond their expansive distribution footprint. Employees in the dozens worked at a feverish clip in an attempt to keep pint glasses full, and after I put in my time in line I received a Frangelic Stout, light in body but full in roasty hazelnut flavor. Winding my way through the crowd, I found a vantage point from which to sip while I drank in the scene – the embodiment of a German beer hall in spirit, but wholeheartedly American.

It wouldn’t have been a complete journey without seeing this Beer Mecca, but it’s worth noting that every other brewery upheld the level of quality in both food and drink, despite being dwarfed in comparison (Founders is the 20^th largest brewer in America, including macro).

Grand Rapids is among the proud few cities that can justify a trip on beer alone. You could set out in any cardinal direction and find quality beer in the city, on the outskirts, or in towns adjacent. Kalamazoo, home of Bell’s Brewery, is less than an hour south, and Holland, home of New Holland Brewing Co., is practically a sister town, just half an hour away on the shores of Lake Michigan.

There are dozens of other equally worthy stops – Hideout, Oddside, Perrin, White Flame… The list goes on. And there’s plenty more to come. New Holland is preparing to open another brewery and distillery in the center of town, and in the few weeks since I visited, the city added another brewery – Greyline Brewing Company.

The breweries are very centralized, and once you’ve had your fill they’ll urge you to stroll down the street to the next one, but not before getting your “Brewsader Passport” stamped (get eight stamps for a t-shirt). This initiative by Experience Grand Rapids, which works closely with the city and brewing community, is just another demonstration of how beer-focused Grand Rapids has become. Aside from the sheer number of beer establishments the city hosts, the very culture of the city has become imbued with beer. Local colleges are offering hands-on brewing programs, and its “KBS Week” is something of an unofficial holiday, as would-be whale hunters follow delivery trucks from the brewery to their destinations. The level of the brewing community’s integration into city life represents the best of craft beer – molding passion with positive growth – and it all feeds into one another, a perfect cycle of boozy bliss.

A true “Brewsader” never leaves home without an elk horn-handle stein.

(Photos courtesy B.O.B’s Brewery, Experience Grand Rapids)