BOTL Info

BOTL is a club that was founded as a means for our members to educate themselves and others about brewing beer, ciders and meads. We are all in this hobby as like minded individuals that have a thirst for knowledge and an appetite for an enjoyable time. Most of us are from Holland, MI and the surrounding communities.
We are accepting new members at this time.
For more information about our fine organization please email us at brewersonthelake@gmail.com


Styles of each month:
January - Cider, Meads, Barleywine and Strong Ales
February - Belgian & French Ales, Lambics and funky stuff
March - English Ales, Milds and Scottish Ales
April -Alts, Kolsch, Hybrids and Lagers
May - Pale Ale, IPA and Ryes
## BREAK ##
September - Wheat, Weizens and Fest Beers
October - Ambers, Reds, Pumpkin and Spiced Ales
November – Browns, Porters and Stouts
December - Xmas Party Potluck. Your best beers.

Sunday, October 23, 2011

New microbrewery on tap for Comstock Park

The Michigan microbrewery market will be getting another player next year when Perrin Brewing Co. opens the doors of its Alpine Township facility, which owners expect to heavily emphasize public tours and tasting.
 Perrin’s site plans and rezoning request got a nod from the Planning Commission on Thursday and the facility should be open in March, said co-owner Jarred Sper, assuming everything passes muster with the Township Board in the next two months.  The 12,000-square-foot brewery will be located at 5910 Comstock Park Drive NW, on seven acres alongside Mill Creek. They are planning to produce 2,500 to 3,500 barrels the first year with plenty of space and equipment to accommodate future expansion, said Sper.  “We want to take the public — and especially the home brewer — and really engage them with the equipment,” said Sper, a 34-year-old former U.S. Marine sergeant and 1995 graduate of Lowell High School.
 Sper and fellow owner Randy Perrin of Perrin Properties LLC won a recommendation from planners to rezone the site from industrial to planned unit commercial, which will allow for tours and tasting, as well as on-site retail sales of growlers and six-packs.  The company plans to host a handful of invite-only outdoor events with beer, food and live music, and the daily public tours are a big part of making the brewery a unique and educational destination, said Sper.  “There are no secrets — we’ll give people the recipes.”
 Perrin will be distributing their compliment of year-round beers in 12 and 16 oz cans. Styles planned include a “wit,” or white, a porter, India Pale Ale and American Strong Ale. A handful of seasonal styles will be available at the brewery. Retail prices are yet to be determined.  Sper did not reveal the name of the company’s brewer, who will be guiding tours, but said the man has previously worked for Lagunitas, Goose Island and Harpoon brewing companies.  Sper said Perrin is in the middle of “serious talks” with distributors, but initially are planning to focus on serving the local market. “We want to focus on Michigan,” he said.
  The venture’s initial name was to be Silver Jack’s Brewing Company, but Sper said they chose to go with the Perrin name based on the positive reputation the Perrins have in the Comstock Park area.   The company plans to draw water from a well on site, and Sper assured planners and several nearby neighbors at Thursday’s meeting that state regulators had determined there to be a sufficiently large aquifer to accommodate everyone in the vicinity.  A few neighbors expressed concern about odors from the plant, as well as impact on land value of neighboring homes. Sper said the twice daily 90-minute brewing process gives off a sweet, caramel-like smell akin to “baking bread in a kitchen.”  He expressed a commitment to ensure minimal impact on surrounding homes and addressed concerns about on-site drinking by saying “it’s not a bar.” 
“We want to make it a place families will feel comfortable,” he said. There will be picnic tables and pre-packaged snacks, and possibly catered events, but the microbrewery license does not permit an on-site kitchen and restaurant.
 Tasting hours would be daily from 4 to 11 p.m. Samples will be given in four -to -six ounce cups.
“It’s not a place to come, drink and get loaded,” he said. “It’s a place of business. If you like our beer, buy a growler and come back the next day.”
The Township Board, which created an industrial development district on Monday to precede an expected request for a tax abatement, will decide final approval of rezoning and site plans later this fall.

Thursday, October 6, 2011

Founders new brewhouse now in production!

 Oct.6- Founders new brewhouse is cranking out it's very first batch of Dirty Bastard.  The brewhouse will continue to be utilized to brew specialty batches and taproom-only beers. This means that, in total, their brewing capacity has increased from 30bbl to 115bbl per turn. Awesome!

Congrats Michigan breweries at GABF!

GABF 2011 Winners

The winners have been released for the Great American Beer Fest. Click here for the entire list of medals. Listed below are the Michigan medalist.

Category: 14 Experimental Beer – 83 Entries
Gold: Mangalitsa Pig Porter, Right Brain Brewery, Traverse City, MI
Silver: Petit Obscura, Telegraph Brewing Co., Santa Barbara, CA
Bronze: Belgorado, Wynkoop Brewing Co., Denver, CO

Category: 24 Aged Beer – 36 Entries
Gold: Expedition Stout, Bell’s Brewery, Galesburg, MI
Silver: Release the Hounds, Bull & Bush Brewery, Denver, CO
Bronze: 2004 Triple Exultation, Eel River Brewing Co., Fortuna, CA

Category: 69 Belgian- and French-Style Ale – 56 Entries
Gold: California Ale, Telegraph Brewing Co., Santa Barbara, CA
Silver: TAPS Biere de Garde, TAPS Fish House & Brewery (Corona, CA), Brea, CA
Bronze: Pin-Up Blonde, Bastone Brewery, Royal Oak, MI

Category: 70 Belgian-Style Lambic or Sour Ale – 51 Entries
Gold: Fifth Element 2008, Squatters Pub Brewery, Salt Lake City, UT
Silver: Blue Sunday, New Holland Brewing Co., Holland, MI
Bronze: Barton Kriek, North by Northwest, Austin, TX

Category: 78 Sweet Stout – 19 Entries
Gold: Steel Toe Stout, Ska Brewing Co., Durango, CO
Silver: Cream Stout, Redwood Brewing Co., Flint, MI
Bronze: Outlaw Oatmeal Stout, Great Basin Brewing Co., Sparks, NV