Michigan Beer Festival Greatest Hits of the First 60 Minutes

As a beer lover, the Michigan Brewers Guild's annual Summer Festival in Ypsilanti is one of my favorite weekends of the year. In addition to all the fantastic Michigan-made beer, the people at this festival are as cool as can be. I can honestly say I never have been to another festival where people are so nice to one another. It's not a guarantee with alcohol involved - see the police blotter.

Anyway, I decided to do a quick greatest hits of the first 60 minutes, after which my ability to discern good beer from bad beer became mysteriously inhibited. These are 3-ounce samples, so don't think I am a total nut. Not to fear, I still was able to get a pretty good sampling. First off, my list is heavy on beer from Shorts, the Bellaire-based brewery. We met Joe Short and one of the other partners and talked for awhile and as a result, we got to cut in the line and drink all the good stuff!

1. Fenton Winery & Brewery

I only tried one beer from this brewery, the Staggering Bull Imperial Nut Brown Ale, and it was fantastic. It was rich, big bodied with a subtle chocolate flavor. I like English style ales anyway, and this was a good and strong one.

2. Shorts

The Bellaire-based brewery's Captain Fantasy Pear Saison was frickin' awesome. It had the characterstic Belgian taste, not too heavy and with a faint taste of pear. This was gone fast or I would have had seconds.

3. Founders

The Curmudgeon Old Ale is remarkably good. It has a good amber color and a very complex taste. There's a bit of molasses in there along with some chocolate flavor but not nearly as rich as the nut brown. It also isn't that hoppy, as some Founder's beers are.

4. Shorts

The Freedom '78 IPA with Guava Nectar stood tall among a sea of hoppy beers. Microbreweries have a fetish for hoppy beers, but this one had a nice spice and tang without puckering my mouth.

5. Arbor Brewing Co.

The Buzzsaw IPA was smooooth with a strong aroma without being too bitter to drink. I also had to rank it high because Rene and Matt Greff, the brewery founders, are so awesomely cool. They talked to me and my friend Scott for 20 minutes about the solar array they are building at their brewery.

6. Kuhnhenn Brewery

The Play in the Hay would be the winner of my contest if it were for effort. This "wild" amber colored beer used natural yeasts and fermented for seven months. It had a variety of fruity flavors that were produced by the yeast as byproducts, including hints of pineapples and cherries. It was more subtle than it sounds and didn't stand out as a truly amazing beer to me.