Rat Fest 2012 Showcases Efforts of Amateur Brewers, Professional Drinkers

Note: A version of this story was also published on MittenBrew.com.

More than 400 thirsty souls crowded into the Corner Brewery Saturday for Rat Fest 2012, where they sampled from nearly three dozen beers created by members of six different homebrewing clubs on the brewery’s 10-gallon “Rat Pad” system.

The event, now in its third year, continues to grow, with attendance virtually doubled over 2011 (official ticket sales count: 375) and a beer lineup expanded to 33 brews versus last year’s 23. Participating groups included the Brighton Home Brew Club, Motor City Mashers, Sons of Liberty (Plymouth), the Ugly Mug Cafe & Roastery (Ypsilanti), Muskrat Mashers (Monroe), and the Ann Arbor Brewers Guild (AABG), whose members contributed 12 of the available beers.

Semifinals Set for Ashley's Brewery Throwdown

The first round of the bracketed Brewery Throwdown at Ashley's Westland ended Wednesday night with Michigan Brewing's victory over, um, Victory Brewing to set up the semifinal matchups of Short's vs. Saugatuck (February 22) and Wolverine vs. Michigan (March 7).

Here Cameron, sales rep for Pennsylvania-based Victory, discusses Hop Devil IPA, Headwaters Pale Ale, Prima Pils, and Yakima Glory Dark IPA.



Here, Joe of Michigan Brewing talks about Sunset Amber Ale, High Seas IPA, Starboard Stout, and Wheatland Wheat Ale.



For the semifinals, each brewery will bring six beers to compete for a spot in the championship. Should be some good competition!

The Week in Beer: Rat Fest Only One of the Great Local Events This Week

The sold-out Rat Fest homebrew beer festival returns to the Corner Brewery, 720 Norris, Ypsilanti, this Saturday from 2-5 p.m.

Beer classes, tastings, food pairings, releases, even a festival — there’s so much great stuff to tell you about this Week in Beer I can’t even stand to spend another second writing this silly introduction. Let’s get on with it, then, shall we?

Lineup for Saturday's Rat Fest Released

The full beer list for this Saturday's Rat Fest at the Corner Brewery has been released, and as expected there are plenty of interesting sounding brews on the docket. Altogether, there are 33 (not 32) small-batch homebrews from clubs including the Ann Arbor Brewers Guild, Sons of Liberty, and Motor City Mashers. Take a look after the jump.

The Week in Beer: Good Brews Abound in Any Season

THE BELGIANS ARE COMING! Enjoy a wide variety of Belgian ales at Ashley's Ann Arbor through Sunday and an even wider variety at Ashley's Westland at the Feb. 9-19
Belgian Beer Festival.

Is it winter? Is it spring? Did that old groundhog wake up early just to play tricks on us, laughing his furry butt off down in his little groundhog warren? Who knows? Either way, snow or rain, freeze or thaw, the fun of our local beer scene awaits you.

You Say You Want a Lager Revolution?

Matt Roy, E.T. Crowe, and Oliver Roberts of Wolverine celebrate a year of beer.

The latest news out of Wolverine State Brewing Co. just hit my inbox, and I had a feeling readers of this blog just might be interested:

WOLVERINE STATE BREWING CO. DECLARES A LAGER REVOLUTION

After a successful first year of business, The Wolverine State Brewing Company declares 2012 the Year of the Lager Revolution.

As many people already know, Wolverine is the only microbrewery in the nation focused only on making lager beers for beer lovers of all kinds. Concentrating on the lager niche gives the company a distinct message and a focused goal: blowing people’s minds by doing things with lager styles that have never been done before. The company launched the revolution with a series of premium lagers that appeal to a wide spectrum of beer drinkers. In 2012 Wolverine will ramp up the revolution as it rolls out an expanding array of creative, experimental, and extreme lagers.

Saugatuck Defeats Arcadia to Advance in Brewery Throwdown

I paid a visit last night to Ashley's in Westland for the second matchup in their ongoing Brewery Throwdown, pitting Saugatuck Brewing Co. vs. Arcadia Ales. Saugatuck emerged as the victor when sales were tallied at midnight, but no matter which beers you tried, you were a winner. Here's Ashley's co-owner Roy More talking with Arcadia's Casey Baxter about B-Craft Double Black IPA, Nut Brown Ale, Hopmouth Double IPA, and Rapunzel Wheat IPA.



Here, some handsome fellow chats with Scott Farney of Saugatuck Brewing about Singapore IPA, ESB Amber, Oval Beach Blonde Ale, and Black Pale Ale, making its first appearance outside the brewery in Douglas.



The next showdown is January 18 between Frankenmuth Brewery and Ann Arbor's own Wolverine State Brewing. Who else will advance to the semifinals? Come by beginning at 6 p.m. and cast your vote by buying a beer!

The Week in Beer: 2012 Already a Good Year for Great Beer

Witch's Hat Brewing in South Lyon is off to a busy start, working to keep up with high demand.

A new year of great beer is off to a rollicking start with a January packed full of new releases and fun events, and with the recent “heat wave” we’ve been having, what excuse do you have for not getting up and going out? Resolve to try some new beers, visit a new bar or brewery (or haunt an old favorite), and otherwise help support your local beer scene! The gym will still be there after happy hour ends.

Get Ready for Ashley's Belgian Beer Week

So... you like beer, too?

It's Belgian time again at Ashley's in Ann Arbor January 17-22, and that means a delicious menu of cuisine and a full complement of drafts and bottles from the land of Jean-Claude Van Damme. Consider it a prelude (which it is) to the bigger, badder second annual Belgian Beer Festival at Ashley's in Westland from February 9-19 (about which more in another post).

Many craft beer nerds are enthralled with the unique brews of this non-nation, and with good reason. There's a great variety of sweet, sour, and WTF? ales to please the sophisticated beer palate, and Ashley's offers plenty of options.

Short's Wins First Round of Brewery Throwdown

Did you miss the first round of the Brewery Throwdown at Ashley's Westland on January 4? Unfortunately, I did, as I had some of that stuff to do... forget what it's called. Oh yeah, writing!

Short's Brewing took on Dark Horse Brewing and emerged victorious when the sales totals were tallied for the evening. In this video, Ashley's co-owner Roy More interviews Jon Wojtowicz of Short's on the winning beers:



UPDATE: Roy also interviewed Mike Earnheart of Dark Horse:



The next round of the bracketed competition takes place at Ashley's in Westland Wednesday, January 11, and features the beers of Saugatuck Brewing up against the ales of Arcadia. Festivities commence at 6 p.m.

The Week in Beer: Brew Year Resolution

Are you ready for some Hopslam? Ashley's taps the first keg of 2012 on January 9.
Photo: Flickr user Edwin Bautista.

Meet the new year, same as the old year. Or is it? This week there are a couple of tried-and-true regular local events, but coming up are several groovy happenings you’ll want to be a part of. Hold on to your resolutions and take a trip through your first full 2012 Week in Beer, straight ahead.

Bell's Hopslam Coming to Ashley's

Eager hopheads have been chomping at the bit for the 2012 release of Bell's Hopslam Double IPA, the date of which, owing to ongoing expansion work at the brewery, has been somewhat unclear. Well, I'm happy to report that Ashley's in Ann Arbor will be hosting an exclusive tapping of Hopslam on Monday, January 9, at 4:30 p.m. For the unitiated, Hopslam is a massive 10% ABV bomb of hops, malt, and honey whose following grows year by year. Here's the official description:

Starting with six different hop varietals added to the brew kettle & culminating with a massive dry-hop addition of Simcoe hops, Bell's Hopslam Ale possesses the most complex hopping schedule in the Bell's repetoire. Selected specifically because of their aromatic qualities, these Pacific Northwest varieties contribute a pungent blend of grapefruit, stone fruit, and floral notes. A generous malt bill and a solid dollop of honey provide just enough body to keep the balance in check, resulting in a remarkably drinkable rendition of the Double India Pale Ale style.

Bell's rep David Munro will, of course, be manning a barstool to clink glasses, wax poetic on the joys of beer, and pass out groovy Hopslam t-shirts and other cool swag. Boo-yah.

UPDATE 1/5/12: How are your mad poetry skillz? Bring your best poem or haiku about Hopslam with you, and if it's selected as Most Awesome, you win the first pour of Hopslam plus other fabulous Bell's prizes.

Sugar Bowl "Indoor Tailgate" at Wolverine State Brewing

The college football bowl season is winding down, and that means we've gotten past all those "classic" and "traditional" games like the Beef O'Brady's Bowl, the Kraft Fight Hunger (with Oreos?) Bowl, and the Billy Joe Jim Bob's Weed 'n' Feed & Marriage Counseling Bowl into the (theoretically) more interesting BCS matchups... like Michigan vs. Virginia Tech in the Sugar Bowl™®©!

Your correspondent loves him some New Orleans and, if he weren't completely broke, would be down there whooping it up on behalf of the Wolverines. Alas, I can't afford the trip, but there's a great alternative for people like me: The "indoor tailgate" at Wolverine State Brewing, beginning about an hour before kickoff, or around 7:30 p.m. Rotating beer specials will be the order of the day along with several different types of (free) chili. And as if that weren't cool enough, World's End English IPA returns to the taps as well.

Who likes beer specials, English IPAs, and free chili? This guy! If you haven't made plans yet for Michigan's first BCS game since 2007, you could do worse than making the Wolverine tap room your bowl headquarters.

I'll let Nina sing me out: