[HOT LIST] Detroit Beer Week

At the Jolly Pumpkin Brewery on Old Mission. Photo by Nicole Rupersburg.

The 2011 Detroit Beer Week starts in 3 days, 5 hours and counting (seriously, check the website, there's a counter). This is the third year of this annual event that celebrates and promotes Detroit's craft beer culture; if you want to learn more about the genesis of DBW, oh hey look I already wrote about that!

Detroit Beer Week brings us 11 days of local beer, presented by Jon Piepenbrok of Liquid Table. This year's DBW has more than three dozen different venues presenting nearly 50 official Detroit Beer Week events in both the city and nearby suburbs - and all of it a grassroots effort spearheaded by Piepenbrok and his many industry friends. From the press release: “We started it small on purpose,” states Piepenbrok. “It’s still small, compared to other Beer Weeks like Philly or San Diego, but those are huge efforts funded by distributors and large regional breweries. This is me and a few close industry friends making a lot of noise without a lot of money.”

Below are some of our choice selections from this year's Detroit Beer Week events, all culminating in the Michigan Brewers Guild Fall Beer Festival on October 22; check their Facebook page and website for more complete events listings and further details as they are published.

#1 10/13 TapDetroit DBW Launch Party, Fountain Bistro (Detroit)
This is the ceremonial keg-tapping to kick off the DBW festivities, and this one's extra special: new this year, Detroit Beer Week has its very own official beer - 313ale, an American wheat/extra pale/saison hybrid. 313ale is a collaboration beer brewed by the Detroit Beer Barons, a clandestine group of beer professionals in metro Detroit. It is the first commercially-brewed beer made entirely with Michigan ingredients, including hops from St. Clair Shores. The first keg of 313ale will be tapped at the Point of Origin at 5:01pm on October 13 - because Detroit was founded in the year 1701, 5:01pm is 17:01 Military Time, and the keg will be tapped at the Point of Origin of the City of Detroit (where Fountain Bistro is located).

#2 10/17 History of German Beer at Jacoby's German Biergarten (Detroit)
They'll be walking you through the history of German beer as well as its influence on American brewing at Jacoby's German Biergarten, Detroit's original biergarten.

#3 10/18 Collabo-beer Dinner at Cliff Bell's (Detroit)
Both hailing from the surprising beer mecca that is Warren, Dragonmead Microbrewery and Kuhnhenn Brewing Company will be hosting a collaboration beer dinner at Detroit's most impressive supper club and jazz lounge, Cliff Bell's.

#4 10/19 Beer vs. Wine Cheese Pairing at Motor City Wine (Detroit)
Exactly what it says, in Detroit's edgy wine bar and live music venue located upstairs from Foran's Grand Trunk Pub.

#5 10/20 Craft Beer Dinner featuring Bell's at the Rattlesnake Club (Detroit)
Five courses and five beers, featuring the inventive fall fare of the Rattlesnake's culinary team. 6:30p.m., $50 per person (excluding tax and gratuity).

Bubbling under 10/17 Happy hour takeover featuring Dark Horse Brewing Co. and MillKing It Productions at Foran's Grand Trunk Pub; 10/18 Arcadia Ales Happy Hour on the Patio at Slows Bar BQ; 10/19 Red Smoke Beer Dinner featuring New Holland Brewing Co. at Red Smoke Barbecue; 10/20 New Holland Brewing Co. Vintage High Gravity Tasting at Foran's Grand Trunk Pub