How to Enjoy The Detroit Fall Beer Festival 2022

Who Doesn’t Love a Fall Beer Festival?

My visit to the Michigan Brewers Guild Detroit Fall Beer Festival in Detroit’s Eastern Market was quite an experience.

Beer enthusiasts came from all over to sample the talents of our Breweries from Michigan.

I am not one of their normal patrons as you see I don’t drink beer. However, I love someone who loves Michigan craft beer so here I am! 

You Won’t Believe What I Heard in the Long Line

When we first arrived I was not surprised to see the long, long lines to get into the Detroit Fall Beer Festival. It was wrapped around three sides of the block. 

I heard someone asking “Why do I need tokens, I bought a ticket?” Well, I imagine, if all beer was free, everyone would be passed out before the event was over.

I bought a DD (Designated Driver) ticket to the event since I wouldn’t be drinking anything and because someone needed to drive home!

They stamped both of my hands with a big black DD that was so thick and wet that it took some time to dry. By the way, it took me about 3 washes and a special stone to get it off later that night. 

Once inside I found out there were 111 Breweries that carried 619 unique beers in 88 different styles. That is a lot of beer (and a lot of beer drinkers!!

With their handful of tokens, my tasters were ready and waiting to deposit one token for each and every sample. Let the tasting begin!

Eastern Market Beer Fest Patrons are Enthusiastic

I quickly realized that these ‘Enthusiasts’ came to party. Many of them were dressed in colorful costumes and outfits. Some even in kilts. We all cracked up at some of the T-shirt sayings. They were mostly inappropriate.

Everyone enjoyed the music filtering through the crowd from local musicians while sipping beer.

The funniest thing I came across was all of the necklaces made with pretzels, cheese, crackers, and a host of other items for patrons snacking pleasure between drinks of beer.

Even at the Detroit Fall Beer Festival, I Don’t Drink Beer

As I said before, I don’t drink beer but I do know quite a bit about beer being married to a beer enthusiast. 

We once went to a blind beer tasting and I tied for first place without ever tasting one beer (I have quite a nose). 

Still, this event would be a challenge for me so I brought along a few beer connoisseurs to do my tasting. They were ready for the challenge. 

Frankenmuth Brewery – Christmas Town Ale

What better to try from our own Little Bavaria in Frankenmuth than Christmas Town Ale with a  6% ABV. It is after all the most wonderful beer of the year (according to them). 

This Ale is true to form with a very Festive taste of the Holidays. Our tasters noted cinnamon, clove, and ginger and said they would likely add this to their wintertime purchases.

Tenacity Brewing Company – Smoked Urbock

We have enjoyed this Brewery in Flint Michigan multiple times. The Smoked Urbock was the beer of choice for today at this booth. It boasts a 5.6% ABV. What we noticed is that it was medium to dark, smokey, and crisp. I was given a thumbs-up for this tasty brew.

Mothfire Brewing Company – Lolo Lit Haze DDH IPA

This was our favorite presentation winner with beautifully decorated cans. We chose Lolo Lit Haze DDH IPA with a 6.5% ABV. This one was a team favorite of ours. 

It was bright, crisp, and juicy with subtle fruit and citrus notes. We are excited to find out that they will be opening up a location in Ann Arbor soon. 

New Holland Brewing Company – Dragon’s Milk Reserve: S’Mores

New Holland Brewing Company has a long-standing brewing history that dates back to 1996. We purchase and enjoy their products frequently always looking for their new releases.

This was by far my favorite booth because Noah (the gentleman who served us and is in the photo) was so enthusiastic about the beer and our choice was delicious!

We chose Dragon’s Milk Reserve: S’mores. It is their Fall Release. This was a 90-day bourbon barrel-aged stout with a well-stocked 11% ABV. It has marshmallows, graham crackers, and chocolate.

One of my testers said she could really taste the chocolate and it was delicious but also was able to get a hint of marshmallow. They all loved it. This will be a winner at our lakeside campfire this fall. 

We will be heading out to Holland Michigan very soon for another visit to this wonderful Brewery!

Perrin Brewing Company – Side Hustle Series #4 Pineapple Upside Down IPA

Perrin Brewing Company from Comstock Park, Michigan was our next stop. 

Side Hustle Series #4 Pineapple Upside Down IPA was chosen for us by Jay Green. It has a 7%ABV. This recipe actually has real pineapple, wheat, lactose, and vanilla to give it that authentic taste. 

I was witness to the delight of those around me at the taste of this IPA. It was even suggested they got the taste of coconut in there. This was a real taste bud pleaser.

Unruly Brewing Company – One Pride

If you remember I told you about some people in kilts. Well, The guys from Unruly Brewing Company from Muskegon Michigan were some of them. We had to venture over to their booth to check out their beer!

The beer chosen for us by one of those kilted devils was One Pride which was a Belgian Tripel with a 10% ABV. This is a traditional Belgian-style beer. 

You get notes of banana, clove, and coriander that is from the traditional Belgian yeast that is used. This beer is a very light, crisp, and refreshing beer for all seasons. 

Brewery Becker – Can’t Choose Just One!

We were surprised to find out we were at Brewery Becker just the night before. Scott and I stopped by to grab a drink before our reservation at a nearby restaurant in Brighton Michigan. 

We didn’t get to try anything the night before as they were very busy and we didn’t get waited on so we had to leave. 

It was a happy coincidence that we stopped by their booth today and he was able to try a few of their beers. I am pleased to report that we will be trying out their Brewery again soon!

Try This One – 1905 Amsdell IPA

Our choice has a very interesting history. The 1905 Amsdell IPA with 8.5%ABV. This is a pre-prohibition American IPA. The recipe came out of a historical book from Amsdell Brewery from upstate New York. 

It tasted like a cream ale and was delicious.

Or, Try This One – Fruit Braggot

We were intrigued by the Fruit Braggot so we had to try it. This Braggot is a mixture of Kolsch which is a beer hybrid that is 11% ABV. 

They then add honey which brings it to 19% ABV. Next 700 pounds of raspberries and cherries are added to the mixture. 

This tasty beverage has a thick fruity forward and a dry finish but this packs a powerful punch at 17% ABV. It was given five stars by our tasters!

Atwater Brewery – Pog-O-Licious IPA

We were encouraged to try the Pog-O-Licious IPA which is a fruit beer with a 6.5% ABV. It is said to have the taste of Hawaii. 

This IPA blends the taste of orange, passion fruit, and guava for a delicious fruity flavor. One of the tasters proclaimed “This is delicious and tastes like Fruity Pebbles”!

Burzurk Brewing Company – Wicked Smaht

Our next stop was Burzurk Brewing Company from Grand Haven Michigan. The beer we chose was Wicked Smaht New England Double IPA with a 9.1% ABV. 

This booth caught our attention because when we saw the beer Wicked Smaht we could actually hear our friend from Maine, Joe’s voice saying it. My husband had to order it. 

The first thing everyone noticed was that it was not hazy. There were tastes of mango and citrus but we were told that it also boasts stone fruit as well. 

Blackrocks Brewery – MyKiss IPA

By now our testers were feeling friendly so we hopped right up to Blackrocks Brewery from Marquette Michigan to sample MyKiss IPA. It is an American IPA that boasts a 7.5% ABV. 

We were told MyKIss is very fruit-forward with a juicy hop profile. This was all very true but it also had a very clean taste. 

The Livery Microbrewery – Silver Queen

We had quite an interesting conversation at this booth. You could see the passion from the staff.

We found out the Livery from Benton Harbor Michigan has been in business for 17 years. It is housed in one of the oldest buildings in the city where they used to house horses. 

The beer chosen for us was the Silver Queen Hellis Lager with a 5.1% ABV. This was a German-style lager with slightly sweet malt with floral notes. Our testers found it delicious. 

I feel the desire to visit this place very soon!

Beer Tasting is Finished – Who Want’s a Burger?

Once my crew sampled all they could sample (and still remain upright). We decided to walk over to a place Scott and I visited some years back because they were noted to have had one of the top 10 hamburgers in the state of Michigan. 

This little place called Cutters Bar and Grill in Detroit Michigan could be called a dive bar but it is so much more. When we walked up to the building our friends looked a little concerned. No windows and just a simple door. 

Once inside we found seats and were promptly waited on by one of the servers dressed in a Pilot uniform. 

Finally, I got to have a drink so I ordered a Cosmo (which was absolutely delicious by the way). We all ordered burgers and didn’t have to wait very long for them to be delivered. 

The burgers at Cutter’s tasted as good as we remembered and I would suggest you try this hidden gem out anytime you are near The Eastern Market Detroit area!

While Leaving the Historic Eastern Market

Once we walked back to our car I (of course) drove home. The ride was silent as my husband promptly dozed off. I used the silence to gather my thoughts for this article. 

It was such a wonderful sunny fall day filled with lots of people out for a delightful time and that is exactly what we all got.

Craft beer won’t be written about very often as this is truly not my area of expertise but it was made more enjoyable with my talented taste testers. 

I look forward to visiting many microbreweries and brewpubs in the future with my crew. I am sure I will write about beer again, someday! I also want to give a big shout-out to Scott, Tim, and Kelli for their support and taste buds!

One Last Note

As I told you at the beginning, I am not a beer drinker. I can tell you, I have tried many beer varieties and it has never worked. 

Is there a beer you think would convince me to become a beer drinker? Comment below with your suggestion and I will give it a try!