The inspiration for this book comes from my youngest brother Steve, who is more commonly known as Munchkin. Munchkin is a guy who would happily crawl from Plymouth to Grand Rapids just to have a Backwoods Bastard in the Founders taproom.
A few years ago, I traveled extensively throughout Michigan while researching a book on invasive species in the Great Lakes. I like beer, and everywhere I went I made a point of stopping by the local brewery for a glass, viewing it as an opportunity to torment Munchkin. I would take a photo of the beer and send it to him by text.
Hey, it’s what brothers do.
But one day shortly after completing the invasive species book, I got a surprising reply from Munchkin. Instead of the usual angry eye roll expressed in words, he sent a suggestion: “Your next book should be on Michigan beer.”
Little did I know that, at the same time, Wayne State University Press was looking for an author to write a book about Michigan beer that would be a rough sequel to Brewed in Detroit, a history of brewing in southeastern Michigan written by former Stroh Brewing Company executive Peter H. Blum.
Kismet. Thank you, Munchkin! I guess I owe you more than a photo of a beer.
In the eighteen months I spent researching this book, I met a lot of people who were willing to share their knowledge and thoughts about why Michigan makes great beer. Two of them are Rex Halfpenny and Bill Wamby. They helped me understand the finer points of beer and always let me know in no uncertain terms if I was wandering off in the wrong direction. A special thank-you also goes to Jack Archiable, the “brewstorian” and jack-of-all-trades at Short’s Brewing Company for sharing his sense of humor, knowledge, and perspective.
Thank you also to Kathy Wildfong and the staff at Wayne State University Press for their enthusiastic support for this project.
Thanks, of course, to Maggie and Julia for putting up with their dad’s dinnertime beer stories even though they were underage. Ladies, if you take anything from your father’s adventure, I hope you have learned that beer and other forms of alcohol are to be treated with respect.
Of course, the biggest thank-you goes to The Lovely Joann, who has now allowed me to write three books. Each project has given me great satisfaction—even if it did not necessarily enrich the family bank account. Joann, everything good in this book is because of you.
Finally, an extra special thank-you to my liver. For eighteen months I have abused you, and yet you continued to come to work every day and never once complained. I’m so proud of you!