Jolly Pumpkin Cafe & Brewery

Last week I visited the Jolly Pumpkin Cafe & Brewery located on South Main Street in downtown Ann Arbor.

Walking in I had high hopes, the Jolly Pumpkin Restaurant in Traverse City is one of my favorites - the food there is amazing and the beer selection features brews from North Peak and Jolly Pumpkin. The Ann Arbor Jolly Pumpkin left much to be desired. It was the first stop of many on our Michigan brewery vacation, and I can't imagine we'll go back.

Being a dark beer fan, I strayed from the Jolly Pumpkin sours and ordered a Tortuga chocolate stout (made with real chocolate). I ordered a half pint as this was our first stop, and I'm glad I did. The beer was horribly bitter, and was served warm (perhaps it cask, but wasn't advertised as such). Chocolate stouts are one of my favorites, but I did not like this one at all. (Note: JP Bam Biere on left, Tortuga on right).

We ordered lunch, we split a cobb salad and pizza. The salad was good, and the restaurant gave us two small plates instead of making us eat off the same large plate. We ordered the Carnivores pizza (i.e. meat lovers), it was somewhat greasy.

While the decor inside Jolly Pumpkin Cafe & Brewery was fun, overall it was a disappointing experience. We'll save ourselves for the Traverse City location.

http://www.jollypumpkin.com/annarbor/Default.htm

Happy Bierthday!

I celebrated my birthday last week, and what is a better gift for me than a Mugless Club membership to my favorite brewery, Sherwood?

My actual birthday happened to fall on BYOM (bring your own mug) day, where members can bring in their own mug up to 30 oz and have them filled at menu price. This mug was crazy heavy, and bigger than my head (and filled with Ray's amazing Smoked Pumpkin Porter).

Another birthday gift was a long weekend visiting the breweries in western Michigan. We took three days and visited twelve breweries including but not limited to Jolly Pumpkin (Ann Arbor), Dark Horse, Arcadia, Bells, Olde Peninsula, Hopcat, Founders, New Holland, and Michigan Brewing Company. We mapped out the trip using Rex Halfpenny's Michigan Beer Guide, which can be found for free at many breweries and the better beer stores.

Come back and read my brewery specific posts, which I hope to finish in the next week!

Bastone Belgian Brewery Review

I decided to take advantage of the Living Social deal a few weeks ago and purchased a Lifetime Beer Club Membership to Bastone brewery in Royal Oak. I visited Bastone on a Friday night, which can be a nightmare in Royal Oak, but I found parking within a city walking block. The host told us we would have a 45-60 minute wait, and we could order beers at a discount downstairs at Commune while we waited. We immediately went downstairs and our buzzer went off before the bartender could even finish our drink order.

Bastone is a Belgian style brewery located at the corner of 5th and Main in downtown Royal Oak. Connected to different destinations, Bastone is above Commune (a dance club), next to Vinotecca (a wine bar) and in front of Cafe Habana (a Cuban restaurant).

I ordered a Harvest Ale, a brown ale which had hints of pumpkin. It was good, but I have had better pumpkin beers. Someone else in my party ordered the Witface, a white beer brewed with orange, lemon and coriander, which was also good.

While the beer at Bastone was good, the food is overpriced and the atmosphere lacked the community feel of most other breweries I have visited. The crowd seemed like a meat market at a dance club, and soon after we arrived we had to yell over the thumping from Commune. Even the t-shirts for mug club members were only available in men's sizes and fits (mine went straight into the rag bin).

I had heard good things and had high hopes for Bastone, and I was disappointed. I don't plan to go back on a weekend evening, but may give it a second chance on a weekday mug club night.

http://bastone.net/br/bastone-brewery

Complex Beers Course at Kuhnhenn

Today's Living Social deal for Detroit features the Complex Beer Course from I Wish Lessons for $20 (regularly $40). This course will be held at Kuhnhenn's, an awesome brewery near 13 Mile and Mound Road in Warren.

According to Living Social "Complex Beers goes beyond your typical domestic draft and teaches the creation process, history, economics, and etiquette of beer. A far cry from Home Economics, this deal will put you at the head of the class -- or the beer in your glass."

I signed up for this course when it was held at the WAB in Ferndale, it was very interesting. We were given beer samples and the instructor talked about the different flavors and possible food pairings. It's a great way for beginners to learn more about beer and which ones appeal to their palate.

And if you like this course you can sign up for the more advanced course, Beer and Bacon.

Happy beering!

http://livingsocial.com/cities/852/deals/133431

Grand Trunk Pub

A few nights ago I had the fortune of attending an event at the Grand Trunk Pub on Woodward Avenue in downtown Detroit.  Located near Campus Martius Park, this is pub a gem for Detroiters wanting to get their local brew on.

From the moment I saw the door, I knew I was among friends. I told the waitress my taste preferences (a porter or stout, sweet versus dry), who recommended the Coal Stoker's Blackberry Ale from the Mt. Pleasant Brewing Company. It was love at first sip; a combination of their raspberry wheat with their stout. The result was sweet, the flavor from the blackberries and raspberries reminded me of a berry cobbler.

And check out that lacing:

I moved onto my second beer from Mt. Pleasant, their Gambler's Golden Ale. While I did not love it as much as the Coal Stoker's, it was still very good. According to Mt. Pleasant, this beer pairs well with spicy food, so if you have something hot on the menu you may want to check it out.

Grand Trunk Pub will be on my list of places to visit again. I did not order off the menu, but the food coming from the kitchen looked delicious. And the beer menu was amazing, from Atwater to Founders to Shorts to Jolly Pumpkin, this pub had it all.

 

http://www.grandtrunkpub.com/

Sherwood Brewing Company

If you find yourself near Shelby Township, Michigan, you must stop by Sherwood Brewing Company. Located in a nondescript strip mall off Hayes just west of Hall Road, Sherwood has THE best beer and food in the area.

During my first visit at Sherwood I knew this brewery was special. There is a funky attitude to Sherwood, the brewery is a blast and the people here are like a big family. Everything I have ordered off the menu is delicious, I highly recommend the pizza with spicy beer sauce and the S'n'M burger with season fries. I try to get to Sherwood once a week.

As a coffee lover, I am a huge fan of the dark beers (porters and stouts). Sherwood is where I fell in love with beer, their Hazelnut Coffee Stout is amazing. Ray and Lisa are the owners, and they are always doing something new and different; for the Detroit Beer Festival they had their Jamocha Cocoa Coffee Stout, which was also delicious. Pictured above is their beer released on October 28, the Smoked Pumpkin Porter (along with favorite 1492 IPA). I really enjoyed the Smoked Pumpkin Porter, sometimes smoked flavor can overwhelm beer but this one has just enough. And it was balanced perfectly with the Pumpkin.

Sherwood is always hosting fun activities and daily specials, from Mugless Club Mondays, Trivia Tuesdays, Blues 'n Brews Wednesdays, and Ladies Nights on Thursdays. Fan them on facebook to know what their happenings are, and be sure to check out their website for the latest brewery news.


http://www.sherwoodbrewing.com/

Bastone Belgian Brewery Deal

Bastone Belgian Brewery, located at the corner of 5th and Main in downtown Royal Oak, is offering their lifetime beer club membership for $25 today only on LivingSocial.com. This membership is regularly $50; benefits include 22 oz. beers for the price of a pint, $2 pints on Tuesdays, a beer club t-shirt, 25% off retail merchandise and to go beer, and admission to special events.

I called Bastone to see if there is a catch (seeing the fine print noted beer club member benefits and fees are subject to change, paid value expires November 1, 2016, promotional value expires March 3, 2012). They noted the brewery occasionally offers their lifetime membership at a reduced rate and today is one of those times. As far as I can tell, the only catch will be potential changes to their overall membership program and this deal is legitimate.

I'm not going to lie - I've only been to Bastone a couple times due to parking issues in Royal Oak, but I may make an exception for this deal. Those who frequent it claim the beer and food are great. What do you think - what are your favorites from Bastone?

https://livingsocial.com/deals/142283?ref=conf-jp&rpi=34029489