By K.D. Norris
The days are getting longer but we are still in the dark days of winter, despite Valentine’s Day looming. But there are plenty of events on tap on the local beer scene, including some tasty dark brews being poured all over the greater Grand Rapids area.
Starting with the next installment of the Grand Rapids Public Museum’s Beer Explorers program, this time partnering with Brewery Vivant and Pilot Malt House, on Thursday, Feb. 8, when beer fans can take a closer look at malts, and how malt variations affect the flavors of beer.
Pilot Malt House is an artisan craft malt house who produces and supplies malts to local craft breweries and distilleries, including Brewery Vivant. (FYI: Malt is beer’s main fermentable ingredient, providing the sugars that yeast use to create alcohol and carbonation. Malt is converted barley or other grains that have been steeped, germinated, heated, kilned, cooled, dried and then rested. So we are told in supplied information.)
The Beer Explorers class begins at 6:30 p.m. and will be held on the first floor of the museum. Admission to class includes three beer samples, as well as access to the museum’s first two floors. A cash bar will be available; doors open at 6 p.m.
Tickets for the event are $10 for members and $20 for non-members. Participants must be 21 and older. For tickets and more information visit grpm.org/calendar .
Dark days, dark brews before and after Valentine’s Day
Brewery Vivant will celebrate Valentine’s Day (Feb. 14, for those of you not married/dating/smart) with the release of its Fat Packzi beer on Tuesday, Feb. 13, at the brewery in East Town area. This beer is available only for a limited time, according to the brewery. Also on tap is the return of Love Shadow, Brewery Vivant’s bourbon barrel aged Imperial stout — just in time for Valentine’s Day.
For more information visit breweryvivant.com .
And speaking of dark days … B.O.B.’s Brewery downtown will host its Dark Days events during Grand Rapids Beer Week highlighted by a Stout Out on Friday, Feb. 16, featuring 12 Michigan-made stouts on tap, including The B.O.B.’s own Tiramisu Stout, Founders Canadian Breakfast Stout and New Holland’s Dragons Milk Mexican Spice Cake — me, I’d go for Dark Horse Brewing’s Plead The 5th, before and after the dark day.
The Stout Out will include live music and smoked meats in addition to a tap takeover of the Michigan-made stouts. Beer sample tickets are $3 each, with $1 of each ticket sold being donated to Grand Rapids White Water.
For more information, visit thebobsbrewery.thebob.com .
And for those of you needing to make up for a bad Valentine’s Day …
Ann Arbor’s Wolverine State Brewing will be the featured beer selections at a special beer dinner at Blue Water Grill, located on Northland Drive, on Tuesday, Feb. 20.
The four-course dinner, with each course paired with a beer, includes: first two courses paired with Wolverine’s Pastoral Winter Lager and Tundra King West Coast IPL, a main course paired with a brew called Massacre 2015, and a desert course of an espresso chocolate torte paired with a brew called, of course, Barista.
The cost of the beer dinner is $45 per person.
For more information on the dinner and Blue Water Grill, visit thegilmorecollection.com .
For more information on Wolverine State Brewing, visit wolverinebeer.com .
