Atwater Brewery

New morning, and everything’s colorful & bright. It’s like a big ol’ do over. Now comfortably settled in in the last of the 6 cities on this 4 state beer & baseball trip. Post just the right amount of small Detroit pie squares from Pie Sci for the base with which to put a beers on, we opted to drive out and start here. Large corner joint a few blocks off the river, sufficient for keeping an eye on shady Canada across the way. Oh yeah, it’s game day…

In and to the rear. The bar pretty much running the length; boomerang shaped with another bend on one end, light colored wood topped with a dark squared inlay, and a well & wide lip. Light wood base and a concrete foot box. Seating for 18 on etched logo’d wood chairs. Black barback wall with sets of tall vertical windows offering brew room views; tanks and pallets of cans. 20 logo handles on a stainless row tower fronting, another tower of 10 alongside, & a few standups. Crated growlers and booze to both sides. Digital tap board above (beer, style, ABV, IBU, & pricing for serving sizes as applicable. That’s mostly pint & 20oz pours, but there are a few 10oz servings up there). Flights, ciders, and cocktails listed up there, too. Flats to both sides and in the far corner.

It’s a decently sized space. Block b/w tiling around the bar; concrete slab floorings & slat wood floorings otherwise + a logo tile & steel runner piece off the entrance. Black painted ceiling with drop disc lamps tracing the bar, wide pan lamps across the middle, and sunken spots throughout, spinnys, & ductwork. A row of windows forward, brick wall sections, others done in painted play, and some of that over pallet lowers. light art here & there, framed beer house prints, & bright local art. Far corner kitchen there (me, pointing), and merch to one side of the entrance.

9 hightops around the bar area, some in pairs, and 10 tables forward long low & hightop in the windows. Event room at the far end of the room behind glass. 7 picnics penned out front for the sitting at, and a stairwell there to the rooftop deck, which holds a small 9 seat ‘C’ shaped bar, 7 tables, and some bar counter space. I also spied another bar with cushies in the corner of the building that may be another event space. It’s hard to tell because Atwater’s website is non-existent, probably owing to it being under Tilray’s arm.

17 beers up at current (Dirty Blonde, American Wheat Ale, 4.5%; Strawberry Dirty Blonde, American Wheat Ale w/Strawberry, 4%; Tropical Dirty Blonde, American Wheat Ale w/Pineapple & Kiwi, 4%; Peach Dirty Blonde, American Wheat Ale w/Peach, 4%; D-Light, Light Lager, 4.1%; Purple Gang Pilsner, German Pilsner, 4.8%; Bloktoberfest, German style Marzen, 6.1%; Detroit Pale Ale, Pale Ale, 5.5%; Atwater IPA, Midwest style IPA, 6.5%; Detroit City Juice, NE IPA, 6.3%; POG-O-Licous IPA, Tropical IPA, 6.5%; Tangerine Breeze IPA, American IPA w/Tangerines, 7%; Detroit Hustles Harder, DIPA, 9.2%; Atwater Brown, American Brown Ale, 5.3%; Vanilla Java Porter, Porter w/Vanilla & Coffee, 4.5%: Saison De Peche, Saison, 7.5%; Pumpkin Spice Latte, Spiced Ale, 6%), + 3 ciders & 8 cocktails. it’s a pretty good mix of easy, Lager, Hop, Malt, & more.

Got into a few as I do (Atwater Brown, a bit of roast, it’s a goddamn delight; Detroit Hustles Harder, DIPA, west coast dank, maybe, and dry as actual fuck, this was very good; Bloktoberfest, malty, nutty, bready, sweety, solid; Purple Gang Pilsner, mild hop, pleasant, albeit a bit fruity; Atwater IPA, it’s a sweet tart, piney, not what I expected, didn’t suck. Atwater Brown, Detroit Hustles Harder DIPA, & Bloktoberfest for the wins).

Chill house, things started filling in around us nicely this Friday early afternoon. Healthy selection, some good beers here. Nice start to the day.

 

 

I visited Atwater while in Detroit earlier this week. They had 19 beers on tap with an eclectic mix of styles: fruit beers, a dubbel, and a doppelbock, among the more typical browns and stouts and IPAs. They also have some ciders and cocktails. The beers I had were overall pretty good; nothing outstanding, but nothing bad either.

Build out is a big open space with an industrial vibe and a couple of TVs. There are windows behind the bar looking into the brewing facility, which is a touch I always enjoy. The bar service is okay, but nothing special. Only pints or 20oz pours, which is a little disappointing if you want to try a few things without getting loaded, but there you go.

 

 

 

 

I've never been a big fan of the beer for this brewery. I couldn't help myself and had to see if it wasn't any better fresh. Turns out it is. By a big margin. I really enjoyed the two IPA's and thought the overall taproom experience was pretty good. Don't pass this place up if you're in town, even if you don't love the beer. Try something fresh, even if you've had it before. You might be pleasantly surprised.

 

Came here for the Hightail to Ale event. Its a walking/running race followed by a party at the brewery.

Well run event overall. Plenty to eat with the food trucks and fast beer lines for the basic staple beers.

They also have a bar inside the brewing/fermentation room that serves the special beers. This room is neat to see. The lines were pretty bad, maybe 15 minutes to get a beer. Granted this was due to the special event, so this probably doesn't happen all the time.

Atwater gets a pretty bad rap in the metro Detroit area for pretty bad beers. While I was there I had a nitro vanilla java porter. It was fresh, creamy, and delicious. Would love to drink this a few more times. Freshness was definitely a factor. The basic staple beers such as Dirty Blonde I got at the outdoor tent were just fine, but nothing special.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

The new menu is great! This place has the best beer and most of all the best security! I feel comfortable knowing my vehicle is safe as its being watched by security that is there 24/7!

 

 

I love the area in Detroit that the Brewery is located. I have a few Atwater beers that I love but not a huge fan of all of their selection. + on the fact that you can drink pints in the actual Vat house where everything is fermenting and being produced. Very Cool!

 

Whether you enjoy a visit to Atwater or not really depends on what you're looking for. Personally, I really enjoy the warehouse atmosphere, and I like their selection of beers. They don't have food but you can bring your own. My recommendation is parking near the Ren Cen and taking a bike ride down the river walk to Atwater. You can bring you bike in and not have to worry about it while you enjoy some beers. My favorite of their beers is the Blocktoberfest.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

love that the tap room is in the warehouse. not sure if is still is.