Michigan Breweries

Welcome to Michigan, Doc. We're proud to say that we have some great breweries here too, and the obvious answer to your query is Bell's and Founders to start the naming process. Short's is also highly regarded. But those places are not in SE Michigan and don't directly answer your question, and I'm not in tune with breweries over there.

Here is a link to a Places search of the BA database of all breweries in Michigan. I sorted it by the place rating, but you can click on the column header for beer ratings and view the list that way too. Enjoy.

https://www.beeradvocate.com/place/list/?start=0&s_id=MI&brewery=Y&sort=avg

 

HOMES should be at the top of your list - they are in Ann Arbor. I would check out Ascension as well.

 

Welcome to MIchigan!

HOMES in Ann Arbor

Witches Hat in South Lyon

Drafting Table in Wixom

Ascension in Novi

Urbanrest in Ferndale

Ferndale Project in Ferndale

Eastern Market in downtown Detroit

Copper Hop in Saint Clair Shores

Baffin in Saint Clair Shores


Griffin Claw in Birmingham is OK.

If you ever make it out to Lansing then Ellison is a must stop.

 

Don’t forget Jolly Pumpkin in multiple locations.

 

Witch's Hat - South Lyon. Haven't left there disappointed yet.

Griffin Claw - Birmingham. good beer and food

Founders - check out the Detroit location; it gives you a micro idea of what the Grand Rapids location is like. (and have a Castro sandwich)

HopCat - not a brewery but usually have a decent variety of Michigan brews on tap. Several locations. Speaking of which....

Ashley's Ann Arbor - where I began my micro brew journey. Love the food, over 100 tap and bottle selection. Michigan (and Belgian!) focus.

Farmington Brewing Co. Great neighborhood pub. Brews are in the good category, with a couple greats, and a few eh. But it's an awesome place to kill an evening.

Dragonmead, Warren. European styles ales done right. Hell yeah.

Kuhnhenn, Warren. Lots of folks like them. I think they're overpriced, but I may be in the minority.

Jolly Pumpkin - Royal Oak. They have locations in Ann Arbor and Detroit, too, but visit this one. Food is awesome, plus they have North Peak brews for folks who don't enjoy sours and Bastone brews for a Belgian kick.

Roak - Royal Oak. Solid, down the middle brews. You'll find at least one or two there that do it for you. Plus, the brewpub is absolutely beautiful. They also own Dark Horse now.

One Under - Livonia. Always something awesome on tap, mostly Michigan brews.

Definitely take the two and half hour trip out to Grand Rapids. I will never pass up the chance to go.

 

If people are throwing out bars I have to shout out one eyed Betty's in royal.oak. their bottle cap.mural wasn't done last time I was there but their tap list is on point and they know how to do Brussels sprouts

 

Oh man! Ashley's was one of the first places I visited in MI. I lost track of how much time I spent there...and at Arbor Brewing Co...and Good Time Charley's, Brown Jug, Dominick's, One-Eyed Moose, Leopold Bros (before they moved away and became a distillery), and Connor O'Neill's. My friends and I frequently ended the night drinking $1 bottles of Black Label at the 8ball Saloon before hitting up the Fleetwood Diner. Those were such good times.

To be of some use to the OP, I was going to post a link to the MI Brewer's Guild but their website is a PITA for finding breweries now.

 

Hippy hash with gyro meat. That good life. Ann Arbor was a fun town to live in

 

DrBrewski, SE Michigan is a pretty big area. What city/township will you be living?

If you like mead, Schramm's is as good as it gets. They're pricey but damn good.

 

Give us a more specific area...SE Michigan is HUGE. I’m in Royal Oak and regularly visit Griffin Claw, Urbanrest, Ferndale Project, Founders Detroit, Eastern Market, Kuhnhenn. Holiday Market in Royal Oak and 8Degrees Plato are my go to shops too. Welcome to Michigan, you’ll find many great breweries in the state!

 

This pretty much wraps the thread. There are others, but this canvases SE MI very well and is a great starter list. And every take above is spot on.

Bonus points for mentioning One Under because it's in my backyard AND it's a super sneaky spot. You'd never guess a glorified sports / karaoke bar on a golf course would have such an elite tap list.

 

Two that I enjoy in my area.

River's Edge in Milford. 4 GABF/WBC awards.

Brewery Becker in Brighton. Good traditional beers. Also specializes in northern Europe obscure wheat beers, and beers from the research of Ron Pattinson.

 

Ale Mary’s in Royal Oak is a solid beer hall as well. Sedona Tavern in Troy usually has some good taps but the food is pricey.

 

Don't wanna hi-jack but I'll be on the lake in a month... What are the best beer bars/breweries by New Buffalo?

 

The only one I know out that way is Greenbush. Love Brother Benjamin and Closure, with Traktor, Dunegras, and Anger hitting the spot as well. Also, Distorter.

 

One of Michigan's more underrated breweries. Cool space too

 

Tapestry and Transient in Bridgman. Haymarket has a production brewery there too.

Never been to those, but I've had their beers.

 

New Buffalo has two breweries, Beer Church and Ghost Isle. Both places have beer that is okay but nothing exciting that I tried. Food is available at both, but I had only an app to eat at Beer Church and it was good. Food at Ghost Isle was good too. There is a nice outdoor area at Beer Church, but is in high demand on nice days. Chost Isle also has outdoor seating. You can read my BA review on each place.

Towns around the area for other breweries: Bridgman was mentioned above, and besides Tapestry and Transient Artisan Ales plus Haymarket is also there. Greenbush in Sawyer was also mentioned above. All are good visits. Buchanan has two breweries, and you can read my review for River Saint Joe Brewery which just opened several weeks ago. Stevensville has Watermark Brewing, and Baroda has Round Barn Brewing (its also a distillery and winery).

Here's a link to a search for the Places in New Buffalo: https://www.beeradvocate.com/place/...e=&city=New+Buffalo&s_id=&c_id=&submit=Search

A different source on another website also shows Black Dragon Meadery & Brewpub in New Buffalo but I don't know anything about it.

Happy visiting. Spend lotsa' money!

 

Came here to rec the same. Tapestry is a great area stop. Haymarket in Chicago was a cool place. I've not been to the MI location yet but I'm sure it's solid.

 

I liked Beer Church, but didn’t care for Ghost Isle. Neither has great beer, but Beer Church got the leg up for me overall due to atmosphere and food.

Greenbush is always a solid option - I’m actually not crazy about their beer, but I like the vibe.

Tapistry is just ok IMO - I went years ago and haven’t felt the need to return. Transient probably makes the best beers in the area but the taproom is a bit boring IMO. Haymarket has a great atmosphere and outdoor seating, with ok beers.

I really dig Watermark’s vibe and outdoor area, and their beers have improved quite a bit in the past couple years. Only downside is they don’t have food, but you can order from the food truck there or Woodies just down the street.