Pure Michigan Pints

Fresh Coast Beer Works

Traverse City, Michigan

I stumbled upon this brewery by accident. At the time, I’d purposely gone to browse shops downtown, and did a tasting at Grand Traverse Distillery outlet (the barrel-aged gin proved to be amazing).

Naturally, when you see an unplanned brewery, it’s a moment of excitement. Why haven’t I seen that one before?

Instinctively, this means it’s time to check it out.

Beer Selection

The brewery had quite a bit of selection, which is always nice. Did they make interesting tasty brews? (That’s another question all together, which I’ll get into in a bit here.) Most spectrums of beer were covered—providing a hopeful outlook for the experience to come.

Vibe

The place feels cozy, like a tavern. I think that’s the best word you can use to describe it. The bar is the standard wooden bar—which I am in favor of. The twist: the music being played brought me back to middle school (we’re talking Green Day, Blink-182, etc.), but I heard they play other varities of music as well—my parents ventured back at a different time and said they played classic rock.

I’d say the music was a good attribute and made the place memorable.

The other novelty that still stands out in my mind: the brewery sold brewing equipment. We’re talking grains, etc. I’ve never see this combination before. An individual far more competent than myself might be able to make use of some of this equipment.

Service

The bartender was nice enough and gladly provided info about the beers. It helped they were completely dead (although, to be fair, it was in the middle of the day). She provided complimentary tastes after the flight expired, was attentive enough and not overbearing, and gladly explained the brewery’s history. (Most of which, I must admit, I forgot.)

Beer Quality

Here is where I felt the letdown. I didn’t care for any of their beers and none of the beers were memorable. I don’t expect every beer to hit, but I’d like to find at least one beer I can (preferably) like and think, That was a good beer. If this fails, I want to at least think, That was a decent beer. Not a bad beer to drink. At worst, I want to think, That beer was tolerable. I could finish the sampler.

On the last, Fresh Coast Beer Works succeeded and all of their beers were drinkable—desirable? Not necessarily—and I did manage to finish the flight.

Food—???

It appears they have a small selection of paninis. I did not try any of them.

Overall—Don’t Recommend

“Unimpressive” would probably be the word I’d use the most when describing this brewery. I honestly don’t recommend checking it out. Would I give it another chance if I was back in the area? Absolutely. I’m all about second chances and giving places (and people) the opportunity to evolve and change. But I wouldn’t recommend putting it on anybody’s list of “must stop” breweries.

And as tastes vary, maybe others feel differently about this brewery?

Total—14/20