Harvest Festival this weekend in Eastern Market

This weekend we find ourselves at the end of the Michigan Brewers Guild sponsored festivals. It has been a great year for the guild, which expanded their festival efforts by 50%. This year we saw the addition of the UPtoberfest, and the Harvest Festival. The latter is what will be concluded this Saturday in Eastern Market.

The cost is $35 in advance here or $40 at the gate. Dont let that cost detour you however, each ticket comes with 12 drink tokens good for samples of anything your heart adores, which usually come in 4-6 ounce range. As the day draws to an end, the breweries get a bit more generous with the samples. Participating breweries include:

Arbor Brewing Co.
Arcadia Brewing Co.
Atwater Block Brewery
Bastone
Big Rock Chop and Brewhouse
Black Lotus Brewing Co.
Blue Tractor BBQ & Brewery
Copper Canyon Brewery
Dark Horse Brewing Co.
Detroit Beer Co.
Dragonmead Microbrewery
Fort Street Brewery
Founders Brewing Co.
Frankenmuth Brewing Co.
Great Baraboo Brewing Co.
Grizzly Peak Brewing Co.
Hopcat
Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales
Keweenaw Brewing Co.
Kuhnhenn Brewing Co.
Liberty Street Brewing Co.
The Livery
Motor City Brewing Works
New Holland Brewing Co.
Northern United Brewing Co.
Original Gravity Brewing Co.
Redwood Brewing Co.
Right Brain Brewery
Rochester Mills Beer Co.
Royal Oak Brewery
Saugatuck Brewing Co.
Sherwood Brewing Co.
Short’s Brewing Co.
Traffic Jam & Snug
Woodward Avenue Brewers

Help eliminate the monster

My largest intended purpose of this blog is to help keep the public informed, educated, and interested in the achievements and production of Michigan craft beer. There are 49 other states within this great country as well, and if there is just one brewery within those states that produces great beer, and truly loves their contribution and effort to do so, then that state, produces great beer.

In the past few days we have seen an explosion of injustice within the craft beer movement. A small brewet in Vermont, called Rock Art is being challenged by Monster energy drinks to cease and desist all marketing of its ale title "The Vermonster". Monster energy claims the two names could confuse customers. Here we have a corporation worth many millions taking on a self employed brewer, employer of 6, father of 2, and apparently the courts regarding trademark infringement say, if you dont fight, you lose.

Please take a look at this video, then visit the links below to learn how you can make a difference in this insanity.



outube Video "Matt & 'The Monster:'"
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kbG_woqXTeg

WCAX Channel 3 News. Video Included:
http://www.wcax.com/global/story.asp?s=11291060

Fox News 44. Video and Article:
http://www.fox44now.com/global/category.asp?C=108942

AP Article (Featured on NY Times, MSNBC.com, etc.)
http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/10/12/us/AP-US-Monster-Drink-Fight.html?_r=2
http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/33282954/ns/business-small_business/

Seven Days Article
http://www.7dvt.com/2009monster-mash

Stowe Today Article
http://www.stowetoday.com/articles/2009/10/07/stowe_reporter/news/local_news/doc4ac49c78bab8a795365935.txt

Beer Advocate Discussion
http://beeradvocate.com/forum/read/2319476
http://beeradvocate.com/forum/read/2329283

Boston Globe Article:
http://www.boston.com/news/local/vermont/articles/2009/10/12/vermont_brewery_told_to_change_beer_name/

Rutland Herald Article:
http://www.rutlandherald.com/article/20091012/NEWS04/910120351

Burlington Free Press:
http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=200991012018

Wallet Pop Article:
http://www.walletpop.com/blog/2009/10/12/a-monster-lawyer-comes-knocking-at-a-small-brewery/

NECN News Story (Video included):
http://www.necn.com/Boston/Business/2009/10/14/Vermont-brewery-dealing-with/1255565091.html

The Consumerist:
http://consumerist.com/5381528/brewer-sued-by-monster-energy-drink-asks-america-for-help

2nd Seven Days Article "Rock Art Redux:"
http://www.7dvt.com/2009rock-art-redux

Seattle Beer News:
http://seattlebeernews.com/?p=902

Beer Wars post:
http://beerwarsmovie.com/2009/10/14/the-latest-david-and-goliath-saga-in-the-beer-wars/

Washington City Paper:
http://www.washingtoncitypaper.com/blogs/youngandhungry/2009/10/15/a-true-monster-attacks-rock-art-brewery-can-twitter-and-facebook-help/

The Giant Pumpkin!

Welcome to October! Golden copper leaves, indian corn, football, sweaters and toasty beverages. Many say this is their favorite time of year and to live in Michigan it almost has to be, because what proceeds these beautiful transitions is sometimes unbearable and menacing. This time of year brings about some great seasonal delights from local breweries, octoberfest, fall ambers, and of course, pumpkin (and spice!). Pumpkin beers can very greatly between flavor profiles, some a rich as a muffin and others as light as a seed. Spice profile can be abundant as well, with obvious hints of vanilla, nutmeg, cinnamon, and ginger. Below is a list of some pumpkin specialties available within the southeast, some are bottled, while others are tap only. Enjoy one with a giant piece of pie!

New Holland Brewery - Ichabod (bottled)

Arcadia Ales - Jawjacker (bottled)

Michigan Brewing Company - Screamin' Pumpkin Spiced Ale (bottled)

Dragonmead - Lil's Grumplin Pumpkin

Bastone Brewery - Belgian Pumpkin Porter (my personal favorite)

Woodward Avenue Brewery - Pumpkin Ale

Sherwood Brewery - Smoked Pumpkin Porter (excited to try!)

Kuhnhenn Brewery - Natural Pumpkin Ale

Motor City Brew Werks - Pumpkin Ale (excited to try!)

...

Bell"s Best Brown Bubba

Poised in time with the turning of weather and leaves, Bell's has released one of its coveted seasonals, Best Brown Ale. And, excitedly, it is available for a limited time in the popular bubba keg fashion. I have only seen this at one location thus far, Champanes on Van Dyke and 13 mile, but it is sure to be at many locations soon. Prices are sure to vary, and it may be safe to say Champanes will have the best, at $16.99.

Bell's Brewery is poised to make another bottled addition to their family soon. Oarsmen ale, available on tap only is set to flow into bottles soon. It is a light wheat ale, good for the session drinker has some medium sweetness. Look for it soon.

Octoberfest in MIchigan

Octoberfest is a 200 year old tradition that is celebrated well, in October, or is it? Technically it is a sixteen day festival originated in Germany that begins in late September and runs through the first Sunday in October. A tad bit misleading, since the rest of October is hung out to dry, but easily forgotten when you have a perfectly crafted Marzen/Octoberfest beer in your hands.

Marzen began as a brewing tradition, where brewers were only allowed to brew between late September and late April. The reason was that summer months were too hot for intense brewing, risking fire to communities and infection to the beer. Thus, these "March" beers had to be stored. With a little ingenuity, brewers used caves or crafted cellars, sometimes placing blocks of ice from nearby frozen ponds or lakes. What they had was basically a walk in cooler that kept temperatures cool enough during lagering. Whenever they needed to restock, they just simply had to remove a few large boulders or unearth the door. When summer ceased (late September), the remaining beer was recovered and properly consumed....heavily. Marzen itself is a heavier beer, either with alcohol content or hop content to aide in its survival of storage.

Octoberfest-like celebrations certainly have existed for centuries, but the official "Octoberfest" popularized by Germany, as stated above, is only dated back to 1812, where a festival of sorts to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig (later King Ludwig I) and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen of Bavaria. The celebration was so popular, residents decided to repeat the tradition every year, and so, tradition began. Here in Michigan there are several events occuring at local breweries and brewpubs for you to enjoy, some are listed below.

Fort Street Brewery - Harvest Festival 9/23 - 27, new beers are being tapped every day in this celebration

Rochester MIll - Occurring this weekend outdoors complete with special beer, music, dancing, German foods (with a sauerkraut eating contest), children's activities, games, zoo, and more. $6 entry fee benefits the Make a Wish Foundation and YMCA North Oakland Swim Club. Inside tap room and restaurant has no cover.

Uptoberfest 10/10, Sponsored by the Michigan Brewers Guild, Upp-ers wont have to travel far to have a festival in their own backyard which will be held in Escanaba. 17 breweries are already attending, from all over the world.

Kuhnhenn Brewery Octoberfest 10/17

Michigan Brewers Guild Harvest Brewers Festival - 10/24, This is also a first for the MBG, in an expansion of events beyond the popular Summer and Winter Festivals, this event will be held at the historic Eastern Market in Detroit.

Dakota inn - Events throughout October.

...

DIY Ferndale Street Fair this weekend

Since summer took a few months detour, arriving this past week, here is a great event to get outside this weekend and enjoy some great Michigan beer, food, art, entertainment and whatever else you may find. Breweries listed to participate are:

Arcadia Ales
B.Nectar Meadery
Black Lotus
Dark Horse
Dragonmead
Founders
Jolly Pumpkin
Kuhnhenn Brewery
Motor City Brew Works
New Holland
Short's
Sherwood Brewery
Woodward Avenue Brewery

http://diystreetfair.com/