This past weekend the Drink Michigan crew road tripped out to Grand Rapids to attend the 2012 Michigan Winter Beer Festival. This has to be by far my favorite of all the Michigan Brewers Guild‘s Festivals. Even with the two hour drive from Detroit, sub-freezing temperatures, and long lines, there’s just something special when you get 7,000+ people together, roaming around in snow pants and other crazy get-ups, chanting “social” at the top of their lungs, and raising a glass to all that’s great in Michigan.
Every year the festival gets bigger and better, this year was no exception. 5,600 tickets sold out in a record breaking three weeks, and crowds of more than 7,500 were expected with industry and volunteers. There were 61 Michigan breweries present, pouring over 450 different Michigan craft beers for lucky attendees to sample. Many of the breweries planned special releases through out the day, causing tasters to herd from booth to booth for a chance to taste the rare brews that are often hard to find at local retailers. Founders Brewery tapped their famous KBS at 2pm, causing one of the biggest pile ups of the day, followed by Bell’s Black Note – which was deemed the people’s favorite.
My favorites were the Maple Dobblebock from HopCat, the Peanut Butter Porter from The B.O.B., the Bourbon Barrel 666 from Dark Horse, and Mr. Hyde Sumatran Coffee Cream Stout from Greenbush. Trisha raved about Bell’s Black Note, Brother Benjamin Imperial IPA from Greenbush, and Mocha Java Porter from Jamesport Brewing.
Thanks to the Michigan Brewers Guild, all the breweries, and the amazing staff that helped make this year’s Michigan Winter Beer Festival a fantastic hit! Next year’s festival is set for February 23rd, 2013 – don’t forget – its sells out FAST!
To see some of the fun real time escapades of the event, check out the #MIWBF hash tag on twitter.
What was your favorite part of the this year’s event? We’d love to hear from everyone on what they enjoyed! Cheers!
