You may remember when I posted back about the 9th Annual Detroit Fall Beer Festival tickets going on sale.  Well I’ve got some more news about the event, and it looks to be a very exciting festival.

This year, the festival has had nearly 120 Michigan breweries signed on to appear.  you can find the complete list so far here, and I think that with this lineup, you are guaranteed to find something that you will like.  I’m always excited to see what kind of new and exclusive brews I can find from the likes Shorts, Vivant, and Jolly Pumpkin.  And I really want to see what Old Nation has brewing since I have totally fallen in love with M-34.  There are plenty of breweries on this list that I have never had a single beer from, and I bet many of you are in the same boat.  So it is probably a great idea to get adventurous and find something new.

There is more information in the Press Release that I have included below.

PRESS RELEASE FOLLOWS

Nearly 120 Michigan Craft Breweries to Participate in 9^th Annual Detroit Fall Beer Festival

The Michigan Brewers Guild’s 9^th Annual Detroit Fall Beer Festival (Friday, October 27 and Saturday, October 28 at Eastern Market in Detroit) promises to be bigger and better than ever before—with nearly 120 Michigan craft breweries signed up to participate. Now in its 20^thyear, the Michigan Brewers Guild prides itself as hosting the oldest, largest and original craft beer festivals by the brewers, about the brewers and for the brewers.

The Motor City has a long-standing brewing history and in recent years it has been revitalized thanks to a growing interest in the craft beer movement. Established in 1891, the current Eastern Market is one of the nation’s oldest farm markets and the area is rife with brewing history. In its heyday, there were more than 40 breweries in the Detroit area and malt silos still stand as a testament to the rich brewing history – making it the perfect backdrop for the Detroit Fall Beer Festival.

Tickets for Friday are $40 in advance (and $45 at the gate, if any remain available); Saturday tickets are $45 in advance. Admission includes 15 tasting tokens, each good for a three-ounce sample. Additional tokens are 50-cents each. Designated Drivers are encouraged and DD tickets are for $5 each. Designated Drivers must be 21 with a valid photo ID and are not permitted to drink any beer during the event.

The festival is held, rain or shine. Festival attendees must be 21 years of age or older and have valid photo ID to enter. Active Enthusiast Members ($55 annual fee) are admitted 1 hour prior to the general admission. The list of breweries, beers and entertainment will be posted in early October on The Mashblog.

The Michigan Brewers Guild is the network of innovative and passionate brewers that serves as the recognized advocate for the Michigan craft beer industry. The mission of the Michigan Brewers Guild is to promote and protect the Michigan craft beer industry with an overarching goal to help craft beer acquire 20% of the market by 2025.

Michigan’s thriving brewing industry conservatively contributes more than $144 million in wages with a total economic contribution of more than $600 million. In terms of overall number breweries, microbreweries and brewpubs, Michigan ranks #6 in the nation – thus supporting its claim as “The Great Beer State.”

Press Release Follows

North Peak Collaborates with Busch’s Fresh Food Market for Special Beer Release: Newfangled Pale Ale

 

(Dexter City, MI) — If you live in the Southeast Michigan, you know that Busch’s Fresh Food Markets and North Peak Brewing Company are both businesses focused on serving their local community – so why not do a collaboration? Great brewery with a solid line-up of craft beers meets great Food Market with a rather impressive selection of craft beer. This can only end well!

 

Busch’s Fresh Food Markets and North Peak Brewing Company have partnered together to release their first ever craft beer collaboration. Newfangled Pale Ale is a beer that celebrates the two brands commitment to the craft industry and local business. With a shared emphasis on freshness, consistency and quality of their products, these two brands have created a top-notch beer specifically crafted for our local region. With its Michigan-grown ingredients, Newfangled delivers a fresh, exceptional taste to our community from our community.

 

“At Busch’s Fresh Food Market, we strive to promote and sell locally produced food and beverages,” says Marty Phelan, Category Manager for Busch’s.  “Our ‘Brewed for Busch’s’ program allows us to partner with high-quality local breweries, like North Peak, to create unique beers for our guests to enjoy.”

 

Beginning in March, Busch’s Fresh Food Markets will exclusively offer this 5.5% ABV Newfangled Pale Ale, brimming with Citra, Cascade and Michigan Cascade/Chinook hops at its 16 stores throughout Michigan in Ann Arbor, Clinton, Carleton, Dexter, Farmington Hills, Livonia, Novi, Pinckney, Plymouth-Northville, Rochester Hills, Saline, South Lyon, Tecumseh, West Bloomfield and now in Canton.

 

North Peak is part of Northern United Brewing Co. NUBC’s philosophy focuses on a dedication to conservation, inspiration and locally-sustainable practices. Find NUBC products at stores, restaurants and bars all throughout Michigan, including: North Peak Brewing Company, Mission Table and Jolly Pumpkin, in Traverse City; Jolly Pumpkin and Grizzly Peak, in Ann Arbor and Jolly Pumpkin in Detroit. North Peak can also be found outside of Michigan, in select markets.

PRESS RELEASE FOLLOWS

(Dexter City, MI)— New Year, New Beer. Headed your way this month is a new style of IPA for North Peak, an East Coast IPA called Stormy.

The brewery staff boasts this beer quickly became a favorite among them. “It’s a perfect beer for the wintery stormy weather we get here in Michigan,” says Northern United Brewing Company Production Manager Sean Brennen. “The malty, oat backbone balances the assertiveness of the six hop varietals leaving you with a fresh, hazy beer we all can’t get enough of.”

Coming in at 6.7% ABV and 35 IBU, Stormy Oat IPA is full of haziness along with dry/late hop additions to create a juicy mouth feel with citrus, piney notes unlike any other IPA. Stormy is now available in draft and North Peak’s signature stubby bottle 6-packs.

All North Peak beers are represented by a character and accompanying folklore tale (most famously Diabolical and the jackalope). Stormy is depicted by an underwater panther deep in the Great Lakes.

In the deepest depths of Lake Superior lives the most powerful being in the underwater world. The murky, dark, churning waters of its surroundings inspired our unfiltered IPA, Stormy. A mysterious creature with a body of a wild feline, horns of a deer, a scaled back and a tail so long it wraps around its body ending with a fish tail. With a warning hiss like the sound of rushing water, the underwater panther lives as protector of the vast amounts of copper in the Great Lakes. It’s been said that anyone who tries to steal copper from the lakes has grave misfortune befall them. Strangely, the metal has been found on numerous Great Lakes shipwrecks. Perhaps a mere coincidence, but it might behoove you to carry nothing of copper aboard your ship when crossing the Great Lakes.

North Peak is part of Northern United Brewing Co. NUBC’s philosophy focuses on a dedication to conservation, inspiration and locally sustainable practices.

Find NUBC products at stores, restaurants and bars all throughout Michigan, including: North Peak Brewing Company, Mission Table and Jolly Pumpkin, in Traverse City; Jolly Pumpkin and Grizzly Peak, in Ann Arbor and Jolly Pumpkin in Detroit. North Peak can also be found outside of Michigan, in select markets.

Traverse Tall Ship Company Offers Multi-Day Autumn Excursions Aboard the Schooner Manitou

(TRAVERSE CITY, Mich) — Pure Michigan is blessed with the Great Lakes—the largest bodies of fresh water in the world. You’re invited to turn off your cell phone, set your email on autoreply and set sail on the inland seas for one of the multi-day excursions aboard the Schooner Manitou. 

The Traverse Tall Ship Company is once again offering a series of educational, entertaining and relaxing multi-day cruises throughout the fall color tour months of September and October. During these trips, guests enjoy a stress-free get-away, while visiting quaint coastal villages and soaking up the panoramic views of the northern Michigan shoreline. Leave your busy schedules and the daily grind in the wind as you head out on the freshwaters of Grand Traverse Bay for an experience like no other.

Excursions with remaining availability for this fall include:

6-Day Explorer Cruise (September 7-13, 2016) – Cost: $939 per person.
Join us on a longer cruise and fully embrace the rhythm of wind, wave, and shipboard life. This one books quickly!

4-Day Michigan Craft Beer Cruise (September 15-19, 2016) – Cost: $769 per person.
Michigan has made a name for itself as one of the premier craft brew states in the country, and considers itself the “Great Beer State” with more than 200 breweries throughout two peninsulas. What better way to partake of these fine beverages than from the deck of a beautiful vessel resting in a peaceful harbor!

Chef and craft beer aficionado Amy Sherman will serve as host and guide as we enjoy tastings with hors d’oeuvres, followed by specifically designed food pairings with dinner. After graduating from Aquinas College, Amy Sherman found her true calling in the kitchen. A 20-year restaurant veteran, she’s held every job possible, from ravioli runner, prep chef, book keeper, waitress, to manager, sous chef and pastry chef.  She has taught cooking classes throughout West Michigan, runs a catering company called Two Chicks and an Oven, and with her husband runs the local food company, Farmlink. As the host of the Great American Brew Trail, she drank her way across Michigan, one pint at a time. She currently hosts a podcast called “Behind the Mitten” with MLive’s John Gonzalez and was recently added to the Mlive “Best Of…” Team. She also leads culinary adventures here in the states and Europe.  Her main job, however, is being mom to three ruffians in Grand Rapids.

4-Day Star Gazer Cruise (September 22-26, 2016) – Cost: $769 per person.
We’re excited to be joined by Mary Stewart Adams, director of theHeadlands International Dark Sky Park, who will guide us through a journey of the night sky. Mary is a star lore historian, storyteller and author who has been immersed in the history of star knowledge for nearly 30 years. She led the initiative that resulted in International Dark Sky Park designation for the Headlands property in Emmet County, MI, which later resulted in the State of Michigan passing legislation to protect the night sky over an additional 23,000 acres of state park and forest land.

Mary writes and speaks extensively to local, national and international audiences on our relationship to the night sky and its cultural consequences, and has received numerous honors for her work. In addition, she is a member of the International Dark Sky Places Committee of the International Dark Sky Association, protecting and designating dark sky sites around the world. Mary’s weekly radio program “The Storyteller’s Guide to the Night Sky” airs during Morning Edition on Interlochen Public Radio every Monday. Mary makes her home under the starry skies of Harbor Springs, MI.

4-Day Explorer Cruise (September 29-October 3, 2016) – Cost: $749 per person.
A shorter version of our season starter cruise, this trip should also offer up a bit of fall color along the shoreline.

As one of the largest sailing ships on the Great Lakes, the Manitou is a replica of an 1800s “coasting” cargo schooner. A traditional two-masted, gaff rigged, topsail schooner, Manitou measures 114 feet in length with more than 3000 square feet of sail.

There is plenty of space for sitting and moving around the decks while under sail. While aboard the Manitou, passengers are free to leave the sailing to the experienced crew or lend a hand and learn the arts of the sailor. An excursion aboard the Manitou allows you to remove yourself from the trappings of modern life: no TV, phone (cell phones are discouraged), internet, email and definitely, no itinerary.

Trips are limited to 22 individuals, with accommodations provided in 11 double-bunk cabins. Fare includes lodging, all meals and sailing activities.

To make reservations for any of the 2016 Manitou sailing adventures, call toll free 800-678-0383 or order tickets online. Gift certificates are also available. For additional information about the Manitou, including its corporate charters, log on to www.TallShipSailing.com.

Traverse Tall Ship Company is located at 13258 S.W. Bay Shore Drive (M22) in Traverse City and shares a dock with the fleet from the Maritime Heritage Alliance, creating a unique nautical experience for the area.