I must have been feeling my German roots because the favorite of the day was Territorial Brewing Company’s, Hey Guys Its Doin It, with its deep copper color, malty flavor, and crisp finish this hit all my favorite flavor notes. We were glad that co-owner Charles Grantier had a few minutes to talk to us amid a bustling crowd of thirsty patrons. Territorial Brewing is in Battle Creek, and they specialize in German styles of beer and food. He told us the U.P. Beer Fest is, “the best one we’ve been at all year,” which was a sentiment we heard from many over the course of the day. I was excited to hear they specialize in traditional German food with a few Americanized items. Nothing reminds me of fall and home more than the smell of sauerkraut and kielbasa on the stove. After a promise to stop by the brewery sometime soon we moved on to find our next favorite.
Next on the list was Vander Mill’s Totally Roasted Hard Cider. This libation has cinnamon, pecan and vanilla notes. While drinking this we pictured an after dinner drink, in front of the fire place with snow falling on the ski slopes as we girls talked about the day. Its a beautiful visual to go with a great tasting cider. I bet this would also be delicious warm with two ounces of Tuaca (a vanilla-citrus liqueur) served in a warm glass for a Pecan pie flavor for when you first come inside this winter.
Finally, after many more stops along the way and a break for lunch we made it to our hometown favorite Sleepwalker Spirits and Ale. We caught up with co-owner, Matt Jason and his crazy crew of helpers where we talked beer and what we enjoyed about the festival so far. Matt reiterated everyone else’s sentiment that this was his “favorite festival of the year” and that he was really loving the laid back vibe of the festival. Their Coffeeweizen made our final spot of the day and we were not the only ones. While we talked, there were half a dozen or more people who used most, if not all, of their tokens on either the Coffeeweizen or the Sorachi Ace IPA. There were many other great offerings from Jolly Pumpkin, Ore Dock Brewing, Our Brewing, Blue Tractor, and others.
Walking among a crowd of 5,000 plus people on the beautiful shores of Lake Superior was a pretty spectacular feeling. To see the water sparking like diamonds in the sun, while enjoying the lush greenery of Northern Michigan in the background was a sight I will never forget. To be able to spend the day among friends was just foam on the beer, I can see why everyone said this was “their favorite beer festival.”
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Amazing Crowd Amazing Crowd
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Beautiful view of Lake Superior Beautiful view of Lake Superior
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#thatsweird #thatsweird
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Delicious Delicious
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Enjoying our day Enjoying our day
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everyone had great smiles everyone had great smiles
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Charles from Territorial took the time for a candid picture Charles from Territorial took the time for a candid picture
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Great Shot of the beer and a random lady Great Shot of the beer and a random lady
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Heading up the hill after a long day Heading up the hill after a long day
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Hey Guys It's Doin' It Hey Guys It's Doin' It
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Always time for giant jenga Always time for giant jenga
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Lined up Outside Lined up Outside
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Look at the crowd Look at the crowd
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Look who I found in line Look who I found in line
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oktoberfest oktoberfest
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Our last lucky token Our last lucky token
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Outside the Fest Outside the Fest
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People Had A Great Time People Had A Great Time
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Time for a food break Time for a food break
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Shantana really like this one too Shantana really like this one too
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Shantana had a great time Shantana had a great time
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This group kept coming back for more Sleepwalker This group kept coming back for more Sleepwalker
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Can't go wrong with Sleepwalker Can't go wrong with Sleepwalker
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Thanks Dark Horse for serving excellent beers Thanks Dark Horse for serving excellent beers
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Everyone was in a great mood Everyone was in a great mood
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The crowd entering The crowd entering