Celebrate the Holidays Michigan Craft-Brew Style

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The holidays invoke a bounty of seasonal things, especially including food and drinks, and Michigan craft breweries have gotten into the spirit as well. Many Michigan breweries are offering cool things like beer Advent calendars and awesome variety packs that can make your holiday party planning nice and easy. I’ve rounded up a few options for you to seek out this season. As a child, I always got super excited for December first, when I could finally push open that little cardboard door on my Advent calendar and reveal that precious little shaped chocolate. Out it would pop, and you could enjoy it safe in the knowledge that tomorrow, and the day after that, and oh my gosh the pretty much the whole entire month, you got to have a piece of candy each day. In the morning, before school. A wonderful prospect at the start of dark and dreary December.

BY Amy Sherman FOR MiBrew Trail

Celebrate the holidays Michigan craft-brew style

MIBREW TRAIL MAGAZINE

WINTER 2022

Bell's has a limited edition Advent calendar this year, that you can only pick up at the General Store at Bell's in Kalamazoo. Bell's Brewery/Courtesy Photo

Now I’ll admit that these are both extremely limited, so it's very likely you won’t get one. But that doesn’t mean a girl can’t dream, right? I look at this as an early reminder to plan ahead for next year, with our collective fingers crossed that these will be offered next year. Maybe we’ll find that there will be a few more calendar options out there from our beloved breweries in 2022. Even if you can’t get your hands on one of these beauties, you can gather quite a variety of beers on your own. This holiday season there are quite a few options for fun beer variety packs, some with holiday themes, and some just loaded up with beer-y goodness. Grabbing a few of these is an easy way to pack your fridge for a party, you’ll be sure to have a little something for every guest. These packs also make a great gift for any beer lover in your life, whether they are new to the craft beer lifestyle, or have been enjoying Michigan beer for a long time. You’ll find both old and new favorites in these packs. A newcomer might get introduced to a whole variety of styles from a brewery, while a seasoned veteran might get to remind themselves why they loved a brewery in the first place.

That is until your little brother and sister got their hands on that special thin little box and started stealing candies from December 25 on up. The outrage was always palpable, but what could my mother do? There was only one box for each of us, and once they were gone, they were gone. Adult Advent calendars appeal to me greatly, just like my chocolate-filled ones of yore. It’s something about the surprise, about not quite knowing what you are going to get, and the constant hope for potential greatness, that sets these seasonal offerings apart. Lucky for us here in Michigan, two breweries are offering beer Advent calendars, where behind each wrapped bottle there is a wonderful liquid surprise. Bell’s Brewery and Founders Brewery each produced a limited number of special versions of Advent calendars, and they each contain brews you might not be able to find anywhere else. “The team worked really hard hand-packing this release with a variety of Bell's beers,” said Josh Smith, communications manager for Bell’s Brewery. “There is something for everyone to enjoy this holiday season.”

Austin Brothers has a special holiday variety pack out for the season. Austin Brothers/Courtesy Photo

No matter what holidays you are celebrating this season, it’s always great to raise a toast to and with a Michigan beer. Alpena-based Austin Brothers has a holiday 15 pack called Austin-Tacious that will be out in distribution in the beginning of December. The pack features 5 different beers to enjoy and enjoy them you will. They all come in at over 10% ABV, for a pack that packs a punch. Sumo Sumatra Imperial Stout gets the addition of vanilla beans, cocoa nibs, and Sumatra coffee beans for a deep and dark brew. Triple IPA Hoplock is made with Citra and Mosaic hops in the West Coast style. Coo Coo Cocoa is a massive 15% ABV, and gets brewed with a wacky concoction of everything from cocoa nibs to breakfast cereal, chocolate donuts, chocolate syrup and even chocolate ice cream. Sir Murkleton, named after a beloved, very big dog, is a triple London style IPA brewed with Cryo, Citra and Galaxy hops. A fruity option comes in the form of Blueberry Acai Triple Sourbet, a funky imperial kettle sour enhanced with a fruity sweetness in a tart base.

The Founders/GVSU partnership allowed design thinking students to interact in an authentic learning experience with a client to meet real world needs. Almost all of the students who participated in the partnership found working with Founders to be a positive experience and were excited to design an actual product. The project is a great example of how partnerships can be developed between the business community and higher education to engage in practical experiences that can help students prepare for future careers and creative endeavors. If Founders decides to implement any of the ideas or not, at the end of the project, GVSU design thinking students got to brew their own beer and "chase the what if."

BY Amy Sherman FOR MiBrew Trail

Bell's has a limited edition Advent calendar this year, that you can only pick up at the General Store at Bell's in Kalamazoo. Bell's Brewery/Courtesy Photo

Check out Hearst’s newest brand showcasing Michigan Breweries at MiBrewTrail.com.