Pure Michigan Pints

Rockford Brewing Company

Rockford, Michigan

This is another brewery I haven’t visit since before COVID—probably at least six years, if not eight, years ago. When I visited previously, they didn’t even have a food menu. I was curious to see what this time around would bring and how the brewery evolved.

To start, I want to say, I love their logo. It’s catchy. I made my way to Rockford on a rainy Friday in early March (2024).

Beer Selection

Rockford Brewing offered a total of 13 beers on draft. I tried a total of eight of them. These beers ranged in styles and hit all the basics from a black IPA (looks like this style is coming back), to regular IPAs, to a stout, a red, a brown, more lagerish beers, etc.

It really felt like all the basics were covered and there were options for any beer drinker when it came to style. There weren’t any crazy experimental beers, but I appreciated the offerings they had.

Vibe

The building is a bit small on the inside. I’d recommend going up top if possible—this room seems a bit more spacious. But down below it does feel slightly cramped. This, of course, isn’t completely their fault; you have to work with what you have. However, if there’s any possible way they could open it up, it’d be an improvement.

The upstairs is by far the superior seating area.

Service

The bartender was attentive—from greeting us with a round of waters to start, patiently waiting for our flight selection to inquiring about food—and it went a long way. We weren’t abandoned and he kept tabs on us throughout our visit, perfectly timing his rounds.

Beer Quality

Out of trying all eight beers, there wasn’t a single bad beer. All eight were good (which is hard to do). Of course, some proved to be better offerings than others. Their Saison and red were good beers overall. The red surprised me, as that’s not typically a style I go for unless there’s a unique twist.

Dark is where they owned. The three best beers (in my opinion) were the brown ale, the milk stout, and the black IPA. Blackfin, the black IPA, was my personal favorite—it’s not an easy style to perfect either. But they definitely have one of the best in the West Michigan area (that I’ve drank so far).

Food

Judging a place on their food can be difficult—especially when you only get one chance at it—but I did try their tacos and crab Rangoon’s. The later are friggen huge! The biggest ones I’ve seen. I appreciated the novelty of them and the dipping sauce added a bit of heat and more flavor. However, I must admit I prefer smaller Rangoons because these bigger ones were missing the crunch compared to smaller ones.

The tacos on the other hand, were great. The braised beef taco was tender and perfectly paired with a cheese sauce and fried onions. The pork belly was a good offering as well. The surprise of the three were the veggie tacos (I’m not a vegetarian), of roasted sweet potatoes and trumpet mushrooms. They hit the mark.

Overall—Recommend

This is a great brewery and should not be overlooked. I’d definitely return for another visit. If you’re in Rockford, I recommend checking out both of their breweries—after all, they’re less than two miles apart. Rockford Brewing has been around for a while, and it’s very evident the brewer has perfected his craft.

Total—15/20