Kalamazoo Beer Week offers 108 events in seven days

In most cities around the country the first few weeks of the new year are a time to recoup from a month or so of eating, drinking, and general revelry. 
 

But in Southwest Michigan we have Kalamazoo Beer Week--seven extra days to mingle with friends, grab a few drinks, and continue putting off new year's resolutions.

 

Of course, the third annual beer week, which begins this Saturday, Jan. 12, and runs until Jan. 18 is also a great way to stay up-to-date on the world of craft beer, and to learn about all the cool things that breweries are doing for Michigan.

 

Beginning on Jan. 12, bars, restaurants and stores across Kalamazoo will host tastings, demos, Q&A sessions, and other entertaining and educational events in conjunction with craft breweries both big and small.

 

There will be opportunities to try limited edition and small batch releases as well as chances to purchase hard-to-find and vintage bottles.

 

For beer drinkers seeking a casual or romantic night out, several restaurants will be hosting fixe prix beer dinners and food pairings.

 

Or if you're looking for something a bit more strenuous, check out the Bell's Brewery snow jog adventure race taking place from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday. Teams of two will traverse a potentially snowy (though temps could hit as high as 50 this weekend) downtown race course that calls for them to stop to complete challenges at various area bars.

 

Though the real challenge for the week may be getting to every planned event, all 108 of them.

 

A complete listing of events, locations and participating breweries can be found at the event's website and check out @secondwavebeer on Twitter for on-site coverage during the week.