Picture this story as a modern-day treasure map of sorts – an atlas for lovers of ales, lagers and stouts. The content will quench your thirst for knowledge, and a proverbial dotted line will direct you between key destinations in southwest Michigan for beer consumption and purchase – from Kalamazoo to Holland and points between.
And because August blesses Lake Michigan with warmth enough to swim, this treasure map also denotes the best beaches in which to bathe and repose – or dig for a steamer trunk of gold coins if that’s your fancy.
Start (and End) Here: Kalamazoo
Your beer hunt will start and end in Kalamazoo, and aptly so. This modest-sized town courageously supports a total of four microbreweries and brewpubs (you’ll visit two), and thus deserves ample time for your palate to experience their abounding selection.
At Olde Peninsula Brewpub and Restaurant (ph. 269-343-2739) on East Michigan Avenue in the heart downtown, count nine beers on tap, two of which are wheat beers. And since wheat beers signify everything summer, start sampling here. Summer Hefe-Weizen is light and happy, a Bavarian beer party for the tongue. Rockin’ Razberry Wheat, lightly hopped, hints perfectly of raspberry – running a close second to the once-coveted Celis Raspberry.
The master behind the seven-barrel production at Olde Peninsula is Dan Kiplinger. With a brewer’s build and a six-inch goatee, he doesn’t want to make beers that are a “chore to drink.” If you’re a beer aficionado, don’t let that scare you off. Beers here are true to their style: easy going, but not dumbed down, with a respectable use, not abuse, of ingredients. The Double IPA is proof of that: strong, but smooth; punchy, not pushy.
As a bonus, the pub food is a notch up from typical, and seasonal menus rotate with two to four seasonal brews. Since Olde Peninsula is a brewpub, you need to sample its cache on site or purchase a growler or keg to go.
South Haven to Douglas
Depart Kalamazoo on M-43, with a coat of sunscreen and a shot of expresso from Water Street Coffee Joint. Just before Bangor, slide off the highway onto westbound 30th Avenue until you reach the Blue Star Memorial Highway (also 77th St. through this stretch). Head north and look for signs for Van Buren State Park day use area.
Van Buren State Park in South Haven boasts a mile-long stretch of deep, pretty beach with a backdrop of dense woods – a dandy place for daydreaming and ambling. Beach combers will admire the abundance of smooth, lake-weathered rocks and driftwood. In the morning, the shoreline is peaceful, other than the occasional squawking gull.
Caveat: keep your gaze tilted to the north to divert your eyes from Pallisades Nuclear Plant to the south.
From Van Buren State Park, head north on Blue Star Highway, breaking off at 70th St. to continue north, hugging the shoreline. You’ll soon land at West Side Park in Fennvillle, about four miles south of Douglas. This neighborhood beach only has 630 feet of shoreline, but don’t think its petite nature undercuts its aesthetics or picnicking potential. Access the waterfront from two dune stairways; pack light for the trek back up.
Back on Blue Star, head four miles north to Douglas, home of Saugatuck Brewing Company. Look for the brewery on the left, or rather what’s shaping up to be a 25,000-square foot brewery complex. Due to re-open in September at its new digs with ten times the original barrel capacity, Saugatuck Brewing Company will now encompass a brewery, beer hall, Irish pub and restaurant.
While brewmaster and president Barry Johnson doesn’t discount the “if I brew it, they will come” mentality, he has flipped the concept to “if you brew it, you will come.” Saugatuck Brewing Company offers a brew-your-own experience, where you concoct your own adult beverage on the premises and partake in everything from weighing the grain to adding the hops to bottling and labeling. More than 400 souls have been coached through the process.
If you’d rather buy your beer than stir it, the pickings here are many, with typically 12 selections on tap, from amber ales to stouts, lagers and pilsners. While you’ll find the popular Oval Beach Blonde Ale at many Saugatuck restaurants and bars, don’t shy away from experimenting with Johnson’s feistier concoctions, like Bamberg Rauschbeir, a German-style smoked lager. So decadent, it’ll make you wish for your La-Z-Boy recliner.
Come spring, you’ll find ingredients like spruce and maple syrup used in seasonal brews. Saugatuck Brewing growlers and kegs will be sold on site.
Once in Saugatuck, take your pick of two beaches: Oval Beach or Saugatuck Dunes State Park. If you want a jumping scene, choose Oval Beach, often touted the best Lake Michigan beach by Chicago media and vacationers. It has all the conveniences: close parking, snack bar, toilets and showers. But be warned: if you want to venture beyond the towel-to-towel sunbathers, loathsome “guards” patrol both ends of the public beach area, deterring visitors from lounging and walking in front of private residences.
Visit Saugatuck Dunes State Park for a more tranquil, untouched experience. The catch here: a 30-minute trek from the parking area to the beach. It’s tough going for families with small children, but translates to a quieter day at the lake. With or without a brood, packing light is a good idea (seasoned Dunes patrons haul stuff over the sandy trail on wheels). Warnings aside, the hike is really a bonus – a magical walk through a patch of Michigan hardwoods that will surely shift your state of mind. If hiking is your bag anyway, the park has 13 miles of trails.
Holland
From Saugatuck, head north on US-31, which turns into a divided highway with a series of stoplights as you enter Holland. Head west toward downtown on 8th St. At the intersection of College Ave., you’ll find New Holland Brewing, housed in a 1927 brick building that first served as a department store. Eighty years ago you could buy a pair of knickers here; today you can sample the creative results of six brewers, who are obviously having one hell of a time experimenting and perfecting the dozen or so brews on tap.
Beer snobs will not be bored, sampling New Holland’s High Gravity recipes (more grain per barrel and thus higher alcohol), a series of five eccentric beers, including the effervescent, slightly sweet, trippel ale Black Tulip. And if you’re stocking up on your wheat beers for the last stretch of summer, take home a six-pack of Zoomer. This wheat ale is fine with a wedge of lemon, complementing its lightly hopped, sweet flavor – and, it’s as pretty to look at as it is to taste.
Along with the beer, New Holland Brewing has food and a full bar with its own distilled spirits and hard cider. Growlers, cases, six-packs, kegs, 22-ounce bottles and t-shirts are available to go.
Leaving downtown Holland, cross the Macatawa River to locate Holland’s two beaches. From River Avenue, head west on Ottawa Beach Road to Holland State Park or take Lakewood Blvd. west to Lakeshore Drive south to Tunnel Park.
Holland State Park, with its landmark Big Red lighthouse, is perfect for both sun bathing and sunset gawking. Upon its football-field deep beach, you’ll easily find enough freedom from flying beach balls to read an Irving novel by day. At dusk, you can cuddle up in a blanket as the sun flashes her last wink.
A local favorite and no less spectacular, Holland’s Tunnel Park is so named for the dune tunnel that offers beach access without the brutal dune ascent (if your heart misses the scramble, there’s both a dune climb and a dune stairway). It’s a grand place for a douse and detox, or for simply admiring Lake Michigan’s immensity from the scenic overlook. Ottawa County and its responsible citizens keep the place well groomed and tidy, despite its busy summer traffic.
End Here: Kalamazoo
After your final dip or last snapshot, say goodbye to the big mishigami and circle back down to Kalamazoo, via M-40/89 to US-131 south, culminating your quest at one bang of a brewery: the well-loved and idolized Bell’s.
On the edge of downtown, next to the silos on Porter St. you’ll find Bell’s Eccentric Café and beer garden. In this Midwest-meets-Munich beer garden, you can lounge at picnic tables, surrounded by hop vines and hollyhocks, to savor this last stretch of summer with an Oberon Ale or one of Bell’s rarer tap selections. On weekends, live music has folks dancing on a brick patio, with sounds ranging from funk to bluegrass, jam or ska. Bands compete with the occasional freight train that bangs along the tracks parallel to the beer garden’s fence.
Bell’s also has a general store with beer and merchandise, a grand brick-walled tavern with a second floor loft and main floor pub, and an intriguing menu of eats.
Before you depart Bell’s Brewery, and in honor of the treasures you’ve found, tip a pint of Lakeview Bitter (one of the small batches of specialty brews not found in stores). It’s the ultimate booty and a fitting grand finale to your treasure hunt for sand and suds.
Melinda Clynes is a Detroit-area freelancer. Each month she offers up another unique take on Michigan travel. Her last travelMode article was Traverse City, Like A Local.
Photos:
Dunes State Park
Beer sampler at Olde Peninsula
Oval Beach umbrella
Oval Beach coastline
Exterior of New Holland Brewing
Tunnel Park in Holland
Bell's interior
Photographs by Melinda Clynes - All Rights Reserved
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