John Liberty, Michigan Beer Tours Erik Holladay
Beer Tour participants enjoy a beer at the Tap House Erik Holladay
Jamie Dobleski serves beer at the Tap House Erik Holladay
Bob Lane, left, and Frank Tangney on a Beer Tour Erik Holladay
Central City Tap House Erik Holladay
Karen Rollins enjoys a beer at the Tap House Erik Holladay
Michigan Beer Tour Bus Erik Holladay
Kalamazoo Beer Week was introduced in 2010 as a way to promote the local craft beer industry and to take a few days to celebrate all of the wonderful things area brewers had accomplished.
With Southwest Michigan now tallying 15 breweries, and fans of high-quality craft beer beginning to see the area as a destination for unique libations, it's no wonder the fourth installment of the event is nearly double the size of 2013's.
The 11-day spectacle began Jan. 10 with a screening of Rhino Media’s Michigan Beer Film at Greenbush Brewery and a pre-beer week tasting at Bell’s. It concludes Jan. 20 with 21 separate events.
In total, this year's Kalamazoo Beer Week encompasses nearly 200 events at 46 area locations and features beer from 53 breweries, the majority of which come from the state of Michigan.
There’s a mighty good reason Kalamazoo Beer Week is able to attract crowds from near and far as well as elicit interest from brewers as large as Boston’s Samuel Adams, the title sponsor for the KBW kick-off pub crawl that took place on Saturday Jan. 11.
The reason is simple: The Kalamazoo area makes some pretty darn good beer. Beer that a large community of people want to celebrate. But it takes far more than just good beer to create that community. It also takes the dedication and vision of countless local people and businesses that exist on the periphery but work in conjunction with all of the area's brewers to help make Kalamazoo such a vibrant and exciting place to grab a drink.
Which is why Kalamazoo Beer Week toasts far more than just the beer itself, it also recognizes all of the people and small business that work tirelessly to make sure the craft beer industry in Kalamazoo is able to continue to prosper and grow.
Business like Kalamazoo’s Rhino Media, who's Michigan Beer Film tells the story of local craft beer, how it got its start, and what it means to the people who make it and drink it.
"For us, events (like this) in Kalamazoo are about an influx of people learning about beer and seeing Kalamazoo as the hub of this flow of information," says Kevin Romeo, owner of Rhino Media Productions.
Though thousands of people will spend untold hours this week learning about beer, many of them will also spend time to learning about the business that help support the local industry. Businesses that by nature have a symbiotic relationship with the Kalamazoo craft beer scene.
One of those startups is West Michigan Beer Tours, which conducts public and private tours of local breweries, beer bars and other craft beer hot spots.
Since starting last summer, the company has aimed to mix equal doses of education, entertainment, and responsibility all while showing off and supporting the growing craft beer industry.
The 2014 Beer Week is an important event for West Michigan Beer Tours as it was tabbed as the official shuttle company for the opening pub crawl.
"To be able to interact with thousands of craft beer lovers throughout the week is fantastic for us," says Aric Faber, company co-founder. "It raises our profile. I think that goes for all the other business too, there are a ton of restaurants and bars and party stores that support craft beer and especially Michigan craft beer."
And those businesses also support each other. Besides the week-opening pub crawl, West Michigan Beer Tours will also be taking two busloads of patrons around Kalamazoo to a series of brewery tastings and food and beer pairings, all of which will be at local bars and restaurants as opposed to breweries.
"Kalamazoo Beer Week is all about celebrating craft beer, but also the non-brewery places that support it," Faber says.
Drake Party Store on the corner of Drake and KL on the city’s Westside has been a center for craft beer promotion for quite some time.
The store, which receives twice per week shipments of craft beer both local and not local, prides itself on carrying beer from established breweries as well as up-and-comers on the craft beer scene.
"For us the impact is after Kalamazoo Beer Week. The more people can get out and enjoy craft beer, taste things they have not tasted before, then they’re going to need a place to buy it," says Andrea Sanada, Operations Manager for Drake Party Store. "We hope to enjoy the benefits of Kalamazoo Beer Week later on."
Drake Party Store is just one of a number of beer stores and retailers across the area that have bought heavily into promoting Michigan craft beer by carrying a wide selection of locally made and micro brewed options.
Other establishments such as Tiffany’s, Mega Bev, Beer and Skittles and Bacchus will also take part in Kalamazoo Beer Week by hosting tastings, meet the brewer nights, and similar events.
"Craft Beer is a community; everyone wants everyone else involved to be successful," Sanada says.
The idea of camaraderie, even among competing businesses is a trait in the craft beer world that is rarely seen in other segments of the economy, but is one of the primary reasons Kalamazoo is able to host successful events such as Kalamazoo Beer Week.
"We want Michigan craft beer to thrive because it's good for everyone," Romeo says.
For craft beer to maintain its growth in the Kalamazoo area, the industry will need the continued support of other businesses, and people who are as dedicated to the cause as the brewers themselves.For information on lodging, events, transportation and other Kalamazoo Beer Week news please visit kalamazoobeerweek.com
"In order to be a craft beer destination you need the local business to support it." Faber says. "If people just come here to go to Bell’s and if that’s the only place they can get it (craft beer), if they can’t get it at a restaurant or at a hotel then I don’t think that says a lot of positive things about the area. But if you have everyone in the community supporting it, and you can get a craft beer at many different locations, most restaurants, most bars, most convenience stores, that not only helps the breweries but it helps the area as a craft beer destination."
Jeremy Martin is the craft brew writer for Southwest Michigan's Second Wave.
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