Oktoberfest Dinner & Brew Cruise on MI Princess

Unruly Brewing Co. has teamed up with Rebel Pies to make breakfast pizza and beer available every Friday in downtown Muskegon opening at the third-shifter friendly hour of 7 AM. Rebel Pies breakfast pizzas feature an egg and three cheese blend with several varieties featured including a Denver Omelette pizza, Morning Wood with sausage gravy, bacon, and Lil Smokies, and Huevos Rancheros which includes poblano pepper, black beans and a chili lime sour cream finish.

Unruly Brewing Co. in Muskegon celebrated St. Patrick’s Day weekend once again in style for 2015 with new beer releases accompanied with Irish-themed music and food options. The Tosspints from Saginaw returned again on Friday to perform their intoxicating brand of Irish Punk Rock and this year also featured an opening set of folk punk from the band Whiskey Drunk of Grand Rapids. I was fortunate to be able to join some friends and enjoy the performances from Unruly’s VIP section at stage side.

This year for New Year’s Eve, Unruly Brewing Company threw an amazing 80’s-themed party complete with a hair metal tribute band, barrel aged beers and drink specials, and a two-story barrel drop at midnight to celebrate the new year. DJ Old School Spencer set the tone for the inaugural event spinning records of 80’s pop and rock classics prior to the opening set of 80’s metal hits from tribute band GlamHammer based out of Lansing. Unruly also held some contests in between sets including best costume and a breakdancing challenge with several local businesses providing prizes for the winning contestants.

Opening their doors at 9 AM, Odd Side Ales has been encouraging patrons to wear the PJs and bring their breakfast on Black Friday, treating them to bottle and draft release of their popular coffee-infused Morningwood Stout for the last several years. For 2014, not only has Odd Side Ales introduced another new bottle/draft release, the Hipster Brunch coffee maple bacon stout, but in addition the emerging lakeshore brewery scene has some new players. Muskegon’s Unruly and Pigeon Hill Brewing Co.’s each introduced their own barrel-aged bottle releases and offered up their own Black Friday themed breakfast and beer celebrations, the occasion representing the first bottled beer brewed in Muskegon since 1957.

Fetch Brewing Company is now open in downtown Whitehall being the third brewery to open in Muskegon County in less than a year’s time. Fetch was preceded by Unruly and Pigeon Hill Brewing Companies both located in downtown Muskegon whereas Fetch is the first brewery to open in the White Lake area. Fetch is located in the former State Bank Building on Colby St. and has been renovated to incorporate elements of the historic location such as the bank vault and elevator shaft into the design of the brewery.

Brew House is located at 255 Seminole Dr. in the City of Norton Shores in Muskegon County conveniently right off the Seaway Drive / Business 31 on the way into town. The business was previously a coffee house but has been relaunched under new ownership and has recently expanded beyond traditional coffee drinks with the addition of a full bar with an emphasis on Michigan craft beer, wine, and spirits.

Muskegon Bike Time is a festival transforming downtown’s Western Ave into “Steel Horse Alley” for four days of bands, beer, and food for the tens of thousands of motorcyclists visiting from all over the United States and even internationally. New to bikers this year along this stretch of Western is the addition of Muskegon’s two new breweries Pigeon Hill and Unruly bringing in both their busiest 4-day stretch since their respective openings. Additionally, Unruly used the festival as an incentive to launch their brand new outdoor beer garden in the space directly outside their home in the Russell Block Building, something that has been a focus of theirs since first choosing the location and opening late last year.

Muskegon’s Unruly Brewing chose St. Patrick’s Day Weekend as a release party for their first ever barrel-aged beers. The all-day celebration included Irish-themed bands, food, and an impressive 12 taps including hard ciders from Vander Mill. The brewery opened early at 10 AM as the 3rd annual Muskegon St. Patrick’s Day Parade was preparing it’s morning trek down nearby Clay Avenue in plain view of the Russell Block building which Unruly Brewing and coffee house Drip Drop Drink call home.

This year’s Winter Beer Festival at Fifth Third Ballpark in Comstock Park was another one for the record books. A record number of breweries, a record number of beers, and of course, once again selling out in a record time of just a few hours. For an epic drinking excursion of this magnitude, a degree of pre-fest sustenance is desirable, and I found mine to be had at Brewery Vivant’s Brewer’s Big Breakfast. Menu items ranging from Chicken & Waffles, PB&J Crepe Cake, or signature Duck Nachos were paired up with Monk-Mosa’s (OJ & Farmhand,) plus all of Vivant’s speciality beer fest beers including the Love Shadow barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout made for a great head start for the big event.

Unruly Brewing Company held their first ever public opening on Wednesday, November 27th, one night prior to Thanksgiving, on the busiest bar night of the year.