New breweries continue to open in Grand Rapids
GRAND RAPIDS, MICH. - Grand Rapids continues to get more places to drink.
Every year, Beer City USA opens more and more micro brews and in 2016, between six and 10 are planned.
"That number changes everyday," says MLive reporter Amy Sherman, a beer expert in Grand Rapids. She starts our brewery tour at Creston Brewery on Plainfield in the Creston Neighborhood.
Scott Schultz and Molly Bouwsma-Schultz are there to tell us about it: "It is special to us because we have a lot of Grand Rapids history here," Schultz said. "This is a former furniture showroom and they use to make furniture here and display it here, and now we are going to be making beer."
We stand in the middle of the main tasting room. The building is abuzz with construction workers at this point it is too early to tell what the theme is. Schultz says that the plan is to have a lot of art and plants around the space.
But for any brewery, it is all about the beer.
"We are not really brewing to styles here," Bouwsma-Schultz said. "We are trying to go for crush ability, freshness, something aromatic that you can drink. "
They hope to open in late spring.
Our next stop is a big building under construction on Bridge Street.
"This is the biggest of the big," explains Sherman. "This is the new New Holland facility here in Grand Rapids."
Rockford Construction has been working diligently to get the space open by this years ArtPrize.
"This is going to be pretty awesome with over 400 seats," Sherman said. "They are going to have cocktails, as well as beer. "
We head to Alpine Avenue where a small grey nondescript building still doesn't have a sign telling people what it is.
"It is called Greyline Brewering," Sherman said. "It is kind of a mystery."
Right now we know that there is a crack team of brewers creating unique beers. We know they will have about 55 seats in their tap room, but for now, that's all we know.
The last person we meet with has a beer, but doesn't have a building.
Mitch Ermatinger of Speciation Artisan Ales meets us at Harmony Hall: "I don't have a brewery right now, but harmony has hired me to start a sour program," Ermatinger said.
Sour beer is beer that has an intentional tart, sour, or acidic taste.
"It tastes like lemons and sometimes wheat and sometimes vinegar. All kinds of different flavors in play," Ermatigner said.
The plan is to find a building and open this year.
(© 2016 WZZM)
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