I've only been drinking craft beer for a couple months now, but after last weekend, I think it's safe to say that I am truly obsessed. Why? Because I went to the Michigan Brewers Guild Michigan Summer Beer Festival... IN THE MIDDLE OF A TORNADO WARNING.
Ignore the not-so-lovely wet hair and take a look at that beautiful beer! Dark Horse Brewing Co. Double Crooked Tree DIPA, my fav of the fest! <3
The weather has been really strange this summer, going from 95 degrees one day to thunderstorms and tornados the next. I think there have been at least 3 that have touched down in Monroe so far, and last weekend, we had yet another warning.
I was determined to experience my first festival though, so I braved the storm and trudged through 6 inch deep mud, along with thousands of other crazy, drunk beer fanatics.
It made it a lot harder to stick to my original drinking plan because
1. we had to run from tent to tent
2. we pretty much just grabbed whatever we found first
3. my lovely list got all smudged in the rain
4. I couldn't exactly whip out my pen and paper to take notes
5. we didn't get out there until 7pm, so instead of having 4 hours, I only had 2 hours to drink 45 oz of beer (and might I remind you that many of my beloved DIPA's get up into the double digit abv's!)
I did manage to tweet everything, but I found that it was difficult to keep up since I was drinkin em a lot faster than I could tweet em!
Overall, the festival was a wonderful experience. I had so much fun getting to try a lot of really unique beers and further define and refine my taste. I'm sure I'll be making appearances at many more festivals to come!
And now, I give you my list, and some pretty hazy reviews. Cheers!
1. Liberty Street Brewing Co. - Siamese Dream Double IPA
They say to start light and progress to dark at beer fests, and originally I was going to try the Clementine Lemon Thyme first. But alas, one of the men working the next booth over suggested this one, and so we said to hell with the rules! Besides, we were already soaking wet and standing in mud puddles up to our ankles... 9.3% ABV would do us some good! By the end of the fest, I would actually find that this was one of my fav brews. A very drinkable DIPA.
2. Arbor Brewing Co. - Buzzsaw IPA
We really wanted to try the Buzzsaw Massacre multiple dry-hopped IPA, but it was being served on Saturday. This regular IPA turned out to be just fine though. Very hoppy with a strong grapefruit flavor, which I happen to like!
3. B.O.B.’s Brewery - Orange Lotus Hopsun Wit
This beer is supposed to be an Oberon killer, but no way! It was pretty terrible actually. We dumped it.
4. B.O.B.’s Brewery - Mango Chipotle Ale
I was really excited to try this one because it sounded so exotic. At first the flavor was okay, but as soon as I swallowed it, my throat was on fire! Spicy beers might not be my thing, but I'd be willing to try another one if it was milder. Also dumped this one.
5. Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales (Dexter) - Weizen Bam with Lemongrass
Lemongrass is one of my favorite herbs, so this beer sounded really good to me. I guess lemongrass when used in beer really just gives off a lemon flavor, and not necessarily a lemongrass flavor. It tasted a lot like a shandy, actually.
6. Founders Brewing Co. - Dirty Bastard
I went to this tent to get Devil Dancer, and I was SUPER dissappointed when I found out they were out! So much so that I don't really remember how I felt about this beer. I think it was pretty decent though.
7. Atwater Block Brewery - Dirty Blonde Ale
I think I just stole a sip of this from my festival buddy because I'm pretty sure I've actually had this one before in one of my samplers at Old Chicago. It's also decent.
8. Dark Horse Brewing Co. - Double Crooked Tree DIPA
Next to Devil Dancer, I was most excited for this beer. I had heard a lot of good things about it, and, it's 12% abv. One sip and I was in LOVE! I could've sat there in the mud and drank it the rest of the night and have been completely satisfied. I don't know what it is about these big crazy beers that I like so much. I felt like a badass when I asked for it though. Oh, and the guy that served it was a total babe!
***Note to any ladies reading this: THERE WERE QUITE A FEW GOOD LOOKING GUYS THERE.
Just one more reason to drink craft beer ;)
9. Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales (Dexter) - Bamagranite
Nothing was going to match the previous beer, but I had to move on anyways. I went for another beer from these guys because they are just so cool! This one was straight deliciousness, and I'm sure that even my non-beer drinking girls would like it too.
10. New Holland Brewing Co. - Brother Jacob Dubbel
I wanted to try their Black Tulip Trippel, but again, there was none to be had. I opted for this one because the description sounded pretty good. It was alright. I think I ended up dumping some though because we were running out of time.
11. Bell’s Brewery - Two Hearted Ale
Total classic, but I hadn't tried it for myself yet. Yep, delicious.
12. Hopcat - Sage Against the Machine
Another one of my top beers I wanted to try. And again, pretty good looking guy serving. Taste was awesome - hoppy, citrusy, and sagey. Definitely could drink a lot of this.
13. Dragonmead Microbrewery - Final Absolution Belgian Trippel
Badass name, pretty good beer. I think. We were running everywhere at this point.
14. Liberty Street Brewing Co. - Clementine Lemon Thyme (Wheat beer)
"Clementyme lime time... errr lemon clemen..." Yeah, I was drunk, but I finally got to go back and try it. Not as good as I hoped. Can't remember the specifics.
15. Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales (Dexter) - Blanca with Hibiscus
Grabbed one more from these guys and told them how much I loved their brews. Also very tastey, but the festival was closing.
16. Founders Brewing Co. - Curmudgeon Old Ale
Last one! Grabbed it as I was walking towards the exit and it was raining again. I liked it a lot. 9.8% abv but I remember it having a sugary finish in my throat like their Amber Ale. Need to try it again when I'm not so drunk.
