Pure Michigan Pints

Comstock Park, Michigan —February 2024

Going to breweries is one of my biggest passions in life; I love exploring new places—it’s literally the adult version of Geocaching but with liquid beer rewards at the end. Seeking these places out provides its own adventure. However, as every beer snob knows, it’s hard to hit all the breweries you want to in one day.

This is where beer festivals come into play.

They provide their own beer adventures. Many times, they’ll host 60-100 breweries at a time. All of them set up tents and provide their best offerings in the form of small tasting pours. While you don’t have the thrill of a new place with each brewery (which admittedly can be fun too), you get to experience the beer. And this is where it’s at and what it’s about:

The beer.

I went to the Winter Beer Festival in Comstock Park last February (2024). Within the last 12 months, I’ve been to three beer festivals— a record for me—and I’ve enjoyed every single one of them.

Not a Review: Unlike my “brewery reviews,” this is not a review; it’d be unfair to review a beer festival. Normally, there are literally hundreds of beers to try from hundreds of breweries—this means each person’s experience at the festival is somewhat subjective when it comes to beers they try; it’s a pick-your-own-beer-adventure type of thing in beer flavor-land. Sometimes, we pick well. Other times we don’t. I’m not going to hold anybody else accountable for my beer choices. Instead, I’m going to explore my own personal observations and experiences at the festival.

A Winter Festival?

If you’ve lived in Michigan, you know nothing will keep us inside. Throughout the year—rain, shine, or blizzard—we’ll bust out those winter coats and engage in outside activities (some as crazy as swimming in freezing water) such as ice fishing, sledding, and snowmobiling. Since I don’t enjoy many winter sports (with the exception of hiking), I will still bundle for one of my favorite activities in life: drinking beer with friends.

Comstock Park

First thing: me and a buddy checked into a hotel nearby within walking distance. If there’s one thing I don’t need as a result of a beer festival, it’s a DUI. Being in walking distance (or getting a ride) makes it so I won’t have to restrict myself in the beers I try. With it being a winter beer festival, there were plenty of heavy stouts and barrel aged beers I wanted to try.

Not sure how everybody does it, but I generally choose to create a list of beers I want to try (assuming the beer festival releases a list of breweries and beers—not a given these days); on this list, I’ll look up new breweries, breweries I wanted to try but haven’t gotten the chance to, breweries that sound interesting that I’m not willing to make the solo trip for (Reed City comes to mind). Last, I put beers on my list that sound interesting—whether they’re pushing new boundaries, or just sound delicious.

I notice breweries tend to go all out when it comes to festivals; they’ll brew a crazy beer that they’ve never brewed before. 

Winter Beer Festivals Are Special

To me, winter beer festivals always hold a special place in my heart and on my to do list because:

1. I don’t do much in the winter. I’m guilty of vegging out, watching movies, playing video games, sipping a stout and just watching the snow fall outside. This breaks up that monotony.
2. It gets me outside. I don’t snowboard, ski, or sled. Winter sports have never been my forte.
3. There’s nothing more #PureMichigan than drinking beer outside with snow falling down around you.

First Time at Comstock/Waiting in Line

It was my first time at Comstock Park, held in the parking lot—not the actual arena as I originally thought—where the Grand Rapids Whitecaps play baseball. Before it all began, people lined up ready to drink beer (a common occurrence at beer festivals).

I brought a beer-drinking companion who is a craft beer advocate as well, and, in fact, is one of first people to introduced me to craft beer—Mad Hatter (original recipe) from New Holland; he got me going on IPAs. This was his first beer festival.

Naturally, he asked me questions about how it goes. I said they would give us a wrist band (I was wrong; it was a stamp that said, “Stout.”). He asked if they’d give us tickets. (They did even better: tokens.) This just goes to show you, beer festivals are all similar in a way but all different.

Noteworthy Beers

Sumo Sutra Imperial Stout, 11.4% abv—Austin Brothers

The second beer I sipped on was Suma Sutra from Austin Brothers Brewery in Alpena, Michigan. From my first sip, I recognized, “This one is going to be hard to beat.” This proved to be true. This imperial coffee stout was big in all the right ways and rich in flavor.

Crème Brulee Java Stout,5.8%—Kuhnkenn Brewing

True to the title, this tasted like a crème brule in beer form. They absolutely nailed this beer.

Heritage, 6.9%, Barrel & Beam

While not a stout—unlike most of my list—this beer was a Saison from Barrel & Beam (located in Marquette, Michigan, a brewery I’ve yet to visit) did a really great job creating a nice Saison. It’s absolutely true to form and style.

Cotton Candy Brandy, 6.2%ish?, Stiggs Brewing Company

This was not on my list of beers to try, but it was great. The best cotton candy beer I’ve ever had (even beating out the one from Big Lake). Very fruity and straight up delicious. Not the beer I set out to drink but a pleasant discovery.

WINTER FESTIVALS ROCK

Winter beer festivals will always hold a special place in my heart. It got me and a friend out on an adventure. Sure, there’s a certain appeal with summer festivals when the weather is nice out, but as someone who likes going to the beach and getting out in general, this is less novel.

You can’t say you’re a true Michigander unless you’ve been to at least one winter beer festival.