To use the word survive when it comes to Michigan summer beer festivals might be a little excessive, but after several years of attending these events, we have come up with some tips to make your experience more enjoyable. Whether you’re attending the Michigan Brewers Guild Summer Beer Festival or our very own Michigan Bier Celebration, follow these hints to make it safely through the sweat-filled days and Michigan beer-fueled nights.

When it comes to Michigan summer beer festivals, these events are all about tasting as many beers as possible. So, why would you want to endanger your tastebuds before you even reach the festival gates? Skip the coffee and avoid other hot items that could possibly scorch your tastebuds. Instead, get a jump start on hydrating yourself by drinking all the h2o you can en route to the summer beer festivals. After all, the more water consumed, the less dehydrated you will be and the more sober you will remain throughout the day.

While on the topic of sobriety, if you haven’t already considered having a friend act as a designated driver for your trips to summer beer festivals, it’s important to find one now. Craft beer drinkers are smart individuals, both when it comes to selecting beer and drinking responsibly. Yet, the sun can do strange things and make you feel less inebriated than you actually are. Having the safety net of a best friend that is your designated driver will keep you and others safe and able to go to summer beer festivals for years to come.

Once you have finally arrived at one of the summer beer festivals you will be attending, take stock of the event’s layout, where the breweries are located and figure out how you want to attack the grounds. Focus on new breweries and the Michigan beer you haven’t tasted yet, as trying new things near the end of the day may garner less than satisfying results. After all, even when drinking water and cleaning your palette after each beer, a day of drinking can take its toll on your senses. Our suggestion? Revisit all of your old favorites near the end of the day.

Michigan beer lovers and craft beer enthusiasts love to ask questions about the sudsy stuff. Feel free to ask the brewers at summer beer festivals all the things you’ve ever wanted to know about their brand of beer. The purpose of summer beer festivals is to gain knowledge, and since most brewmasters attend the event, it’s a perfect way to engage and learn from your favorite Michigan breweries. Also, don’t be afraid to ask if a brewery has brought something special to the event that they aren’t promoting. Often breweries bring new products to the festival and only give samples to those that ask for special treats.

Frankenmuth Brewery hopes to see you out on the road in the coming months while you’re checking out many of Michigan’s popular summer beer festivals. Follow the aforementioned tips, consume craft beer safely and, most of all have, have fun enjoying and all that great Michigan beer. Nothing can beat the feeling of being in a group of beer lovers, trying new things and experiencing all that is great about summer.

Yes! School is out for summer! No more pencils, no more books, no more teachers dirty looks and, even if you’ve already been out of school forever, Frankenmuth Brewery has the cure for any summertime blues that may befall you. With only a few key ingredients and a bag of ice, our brand new beer slush is the easiest way to beat the heat in the dog days of summer.

What makes our new beer slush recipe so special is the premium taste that comes from the ingredients inside, which includes our Hefeweizen Michigan beer. Not only is it the perfect drink for cooling you off, but it features all of the season’s best flavors from the citrus and banana packed punch of our Michigan beer to the strong taste of ripe mandarin oranges. Let this Hefeweizen powered drink keep you going whether you’re lounging in a lawn chair in your backyard, hanging at the beach or watching a baseball game in the comfort of your air conditioned man cave. No matter where you’re drinking it, this beer slush will be the highlight of your summer.

The ingredients for the beer slush are simple; a bottle of Frankenmuth Brewery Hefeweizen Michigan beer, a few cups of ice, homemade lemonade, a mandarin orange and a bottle of citrus liqueur. Once you have gathered these ingredients, there are two methods for creating the slush effect. One way to achieve beer slush fun is to fill a food processer up with ice (use more for a thicker slush and less for thinner) and blend with the Hefeweizen poured inside. Add lemonade, the mandarin orange and citrus liqueur to fit your own tastes after the initial blending. Frankenmuth Brewery prefers to focus on the beer so we limit the amount of these ingredients to just mere background flavors.

The second method of creating beer slush stays in line with the snowcones you may have had as a kid. Well, with alcohol inside that is. Pour your Michigan beer into a small baking dish and place it in the freezer. Let the freezer do its magic for about 30 minutes and then simply score the top of the beer ice with a fork. By repeating this step four times over, you will be able to recreate the snowcone effect and have light, fluffy beer flavored ice flakes that you can then top with lemonade, citrus liqueur and cut up mandarin orange to your own taste preferences.

No matter which method you decide to use to create it, Frankenmuth Brewery’s beer slush recipe will be a winner amongst your friends and loved ones. Head up on over to the brewery and pick up some Hefeweizen to make this simple delicacy in the comfort of your own home and enjoy the cool and refreshing taste of a Michigan beer.

The annual 16-day long drinking festival held in Munich, Germany known as Oktoberfest has not only engaged the hearts of American drinkers, but it has also influenced the brewers of some Michigan breweries like Frankenmuth Brewery. With this in mind, we have assembled the best of Oktoberfest styled beers made in the Mitten State for a beer festival called the Michigan Bier Celebration. Held on July 21 in Heritage Park (which happens to be located right behind our Michigan brewery) the Michigan Bier Celebration will offer patrons a chance to try up to 30 different Oktoberfest beers from breweries across the state.

So, you know what Oktoberfest is, but what exactly is an Oktoberfest beer? Funny online videos and tales of insane amounts of beer being consumed may have made you think otherwise, but Oktoberfest beer is not just regular swill lager. Created with love by brewers around the world, but traditionally brewed in Munich, the Oktoberfest beer is signified by its ABV percentage of right around 6% with amber meets copper color and mildly malty flavor. With the Michigan Bier Celebration, Frankenmuth Brewery hopes to bring the best of Oktoberfest from Michigan breweries into an enjoyable atmosphere for all.

The lager-styled Oktoberfest beer is synonymous with the area for it comes from, but the science behind the brewing process is even more interesting. The term “lagering,” which is the process of leaving a beer to brew in a cold place with a temperature of 32 to 40 degrees, dates all the way back to the 1400s. Left to let the bottom creeping yeasts create the lager style beer, brewers of this time used caves as their cooling systems as the advent of refrigeration had not happened yet. While none of the Oktoberfest beer at the Michigan Bier Celebration will come from caves, the Michigan breweries behind the beers still have kept an eye on the rest of the traditional ingredients used in the brewing process.

Celebrating both the beer itself and the culture surrounding it, the Michigan Bier Celebration will not only offer Michigan beer a showcase, but the proceeds will benefit a number of Michigan charities. For the basic ticket price of $10, Michigan Bier Celebration patrons will be able to get a collectible plastic boot for taste testing beers and gain admission to the festival. VIP ticket holders ($25 in advance) will also receive an Oktoberfest boot, food vouchers and eight tickets redeemable for beer. No matter which ticket you decide to buy, you will get the chance to try some of the best Oktoberfest beers and also be donating to some amazing charities.

In case you haven’t noticed, it’s extremely hot outside in Michigan. With the temperature pushing at least the mid 90s, we’ve been spending most of this week hanging anywhere we can find a cool spot to rest our sweaty bodies. Kicking back with a beer from our Michigan brewery in hand, the Frankenmuth Brewery blog team has once again found itself scouring the internet looking for interesting beer videos. Hey, it beats looking at cat videos all day. Unless they are drinking beer, because then that’s another story all together.

So what have we found this time? What’s new in the world of beer outside the humble doors of our Michigan brewery? Lots! From a beer bottle loving inventor and a new spin on the foam head to a classic baseball vendor and two bros who just want a beer passed to them, everyone knows one thing is for sure about summer. If you don’t have a cold beer from our Michigan brewery, it could be just plain dreadful. Happy beer video watching!

Hey, Pass Me A Beer!

What happens when you get two friends and one of them is without beer? Well, with these two Milwaukee born-and-bred chaps anything is possible. With the simple utterance of their catchphrase, “Hey, pass me a beer!” ringing out of their thirsty lungs, these two lovable bros are getting a beer to each other by any means necessary. Laugh along with this beer video featuring well-timed precision, both of the comedic nature and hand-eye coordination variety.

Frozen Head For Beer

We don’t know where they got the idea, but this beer video from Kirin brewers in Japan is making us think differently about ice cream and Michigan beer. Ok, it’s not ice cream exactly, but this frozen foam that keeps your beer cold could certainly have a huge impact in Michigan with this week’s weather. We’ll look into it for the sake of Michigan beer everywhere.

Kinkajou Bottle Cutter

If you’re looking for a new hobby, this beer video of the Kinkajou bottle cutter is almost certain to spark off some creativity in that noggin of yours. Join the Kickstarter effort to get the vision of Patrick Lehoux made into a tangible product for all brew consumers to use to turn their bottles into interesting glassware. Whether selling glasses made from your unique bottle collection or just for your house, the Kinkajou is certainly an interesting invention that we think most beer lovers would love to try.

Ice… Cold… BEEEER

While it’s the shortest beer video on our list by far, this video of a Toronto stadium employee doing his patented beer pitch may yield the most laughs per second. The idiot who shouts out “Beer” can’t even break the anticipation garnered by each passing word from this vendor’s mouth. Either way, Wayne “Ice Cold Beer” McMahon is the star of this beer video and will forever have us saying, “ICE… COLD… BEER!”

We hope you manage to beat the heat while watching these carefully selected, soon-to-be YouTube beer classics. Whether you come by our Michigan brewery or head to your local beer store, grab some Frankenmuth Brewery beer and settle in for one long, hot summer. After all, it’s only the second day today!

Day by day, mile by mile and beer by beer, Frankenmuth Brewery has been staking out a summer tour of brewing hotbeds and planning a complete takeover with each new beer tasting in Michigan. As sure as the sun rises everyday, you can bet that our road team is easing past the stream of white lines on the highway and on to the next event. No matter where you live in our fair state, there is a Michigan beer from Frankenmuth Brewery heading your way.

The team’s travels this week find them with Kalamazoo in their cross-hairs. The Michigan west coast brewing capital was recently proclaimed to be one of the “top ten beer cities in the country” and Frankenmuth Brewery thought it would be appropriate time to hold a beer dinner to strut our stuff. Setting up shop at the Main St. Pub, we will be holding this full dinner and beer tasting in Michigan on June 27.

With Head Chef Michael Moore at the helm of the meal, the Main St. Pub food guru will be pairing our Michigan beer with the restaurant’s delicious sandwiches, gourmet burgers and traditional American dishes. For $20, beer enthusiasts will be able to enjoy the five-course meal along with Frankenmuth Brewery staples including our Pilsener, Batch 69 IPA, Red Sky Ale, Hefeweizen Ale and Munich Dunkel.

Then, on July 13, the Frankenmuth Brewery team will head back to the Detroit area on I-94 for an event at The Rattlesnake Club on the banks of the Detroit River. The event, the Sip of Michigan Three is a toast to Michigan beer, wine and liquor, offering a chance to taste test products while also raising money for a local charity. For $50, event patrons will experience a beer tasting in Michigan like never before. Receiving 35 drink tickets (one ticket per two oz. sample/three tickets for full drink), appetizers and live entertainment, patrons will get to experience a plethora of brews including Frankenmuth Brewery’s Hefeweizen, Dunkel, Batch 69 IPA and Pilsener.

Whether you’re on the state’s scenic west coast or hanging at the riverfront in downtown Detroit, Frankenmuth Brewery intends to bring a beer tasting in Michigan to you. If you don’t have a chance to get out to either dinner or beer tasting, fret not. The Frankenmuth Brewery will be coming to deliver quality Michigan beer to your neck of the woods before long.

When inspiration strikes for Frankenmuth Brewery brewmaster Jeff Coon, family is often near, and such was this case when he created a new lager style beer for the brewery. “This is a beer I made with my daughter back in January. We made this beer for her birthday,” Coon said of the brewery’s brand new Michigan beer.

Dubbed the Twisted Hellas, it was Coon’s daughter who influenced her father on the direction of Frankenmuth’s latest Michigan beer. “It was my daughter’s idea to add the lemon and orange zest. It gives it a very subtle citrus taste on the backend of the beer,” Brewmaster Coon said when describing the lager style beer. The name Twisted Hellas plays on the fact that traditional German hellas wouldn’t use these extra ingredients. “It wouldn’t exactly be kosher with German brewing laws,” Coon adds.

Combining the traditional German lager style beer and the taste of a summer shandy, the Twisted Hellas is the perfect brew for a hot summer day. “It’s basically a German shandy,” Frankenmuth Brewery Wholesale Marketing Coordinator Charles Osberger says. “It’s not the usual 50/50 split of beer and lemonade. In fact, there is no lemonade in it at all.” Instead of mixing the Michigan beer with lemonade, like a typical shandy, the beer follows closely in line with German tradition, but Coon lets the natural orange and lemon flavors do some of the talking on the back end.

With only ten barrels of this lager style beer made to last all summer, the supply is short and should be sold out quickly. Available both in a glass at the brewery or in a growler for take home purposes, the Twisted Hellas is perfect for hot weather and pairing with seafood and chicken. “It would go great with a nice light salad with a light vinaigrette, maybe with chicken or salmon on it.” In fact, Coon also divulged that the brewery is in the midst of planning a seafood boil based around the beer.

Whether you are looking to do you own seafood boil or just want to drink in the perfect summer time beer, the new lager style beer from Frankenmuth Brewery named the Twisted Hellas will be sure to excite your tastebuds. Come visit Frankenmuth Brewery today and pick up this limited Michigan beer while supplies last.

Whether for a birthday or just any old time you want one, cupcakes reign supreme when it comes to the sweet treats of today. Yet, when you add a Michigan beer from Frankenmuth Brewery into the mix and create a beer cupcake hybrid, well, you might have just found heaven. Buckle up because the Frankenmuth Brewery blog test kitchen has created another tasty treat with a new beer cupcake recipe.

When it comes to cupcakes, the worst possible outcome is a stale cake that tastes like spongy cardboard. How can you avoid this dilemma and reach a delicious conclusion? The inclusion of the Frankenmuth Brewery Munich Style Dunkel Lager in a beer cupcake recipe will make for a cake that has more moisture and a softer texture. In addition, while the beer may not add much in terms of beer taste, the Dunkel will bring out more of the chocolate flavor in the cupcake.

With the purchase of a few simple ingredients, a six-pack of Dunkel Lager from our Michigan brewery and some things you may already have in the pantry, it’s easy to create delicious treats from this beer cupcake recipe. Follow our simple directions and you be smashing a tasty frosted cupcake into your face in no time. Let’s go!

Michigan Beer Cupcake Recipe

Frosting:
8 ounces of softened cream cheese
4 cups powdered sugar
1/3 cup of heavy cream

Cupcake:
1 bottle of Frankenmuth Brewery Dunkel
1/2 cup of whole milk
1/2 cup of vegetable oil
1 tablespoon vanilla extract
3 large eggs
3/4 cup of sour cream
2 1/2 cups of all-purpose flour
2 cups granulated sugar
3/4 cup natural unsweetened cocoa powder
2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon fine salt

Frosting Recipe:
1. Take the softened cream cheese, place in the mixer and beat until the cream cheese is light and airy. Gradually mix in heavy cream until the substance is smooth.
2. Using a spatula, remove frosting mixture from the side of the bowl, turn the mixer on and slowly add the powdered sugar to the mix.

Beer Cupcake Recipe:
1. Pre-heat the oven to 350 degrees. Mix together vegetable oil, milk, the Dunkel beer from our Michigan brewery and vanilla extract in one bowl. Next, beat the eggs into the mix with a whisk until completely incorporated and then add in the sour cream.
2. Whisk all dry ingredients (sugar, flour, cocoa powder, baking soda and salt) into a bowl. Slowly add the mixture of wet ingredients into the dry mix by folding it in with spatula.
3. Insert cupcake liners into cupcake pans and coat the insides with melted butter. Pour batter into the wells and make sure that the batter is evenly distributed amongst each well to ensure all are baked the same way.
4. Put cupcake pans in oven and let bake form 25 minutes. Let the cupcakes cool before frosting.
5. Last step! Frost the final product and enjoy this beer cupcake recipe.

Move over Bejeweled and other more boring, column-style games because Frankenmuth Brewery is now the star of a new beer caps game. Free in the iPhone app store, the Michigan Micro Caps game features the caps of Frankenmuth Brewery and nearly 100 other Michigan breweries in an insanely addictive puzzle game. Trust us, give us a six pack of Michigan beer and this game and we have a night’s worth of entertainment.

But the Michigan beer fun doesn’t simply stop at the inclusion of Michigan breweries in the game. The new beer caps game opens a gateway to information on each Michigan brewery when selecting that brewhouses cap in the game. Instantly linking game players to the brewery’s website, as well as Twitter and Facebook profiles, the Michigan Micro Caps game also will give you directions to your new favorite Michigan brewery via Google Maps.

The Frankenmuth Brewery blog always loves to see technology veer closer to beer and this new beer caps game is a great meeting point. Not only does it feature addictive gameplay, but Michigan Micro Caps acts as an essential road guide to Michigan breweries while you are traveling around our fair state this summer. Still unsure? Head over to the iPhone App store, download the free game and follow our easy how-to guide to discover both fun and information through the beer caps game:

1. Start the beer caps game on your phone and select the beer icon to scroll through a list of Michigan breweries. If you want to access any of the brewery information, like that of Frankenmuth Brewery, this is the easiest way to find it.

2. To play the game, simply click the “Play” button on the games homepage and you will be brought the first level of the game.

3. Select matching caps to remove them from the board, while at the same time trying to keep in mind that you have to clear the whole board. Be strategic about when you delete certain caps.

4. If you get into trouble, select the magnet in the upper right hand corner of the beer caps game to select one cap to remove from the game at a time. As you progress, you will be rewarded more magnets as prizes.

5. If you see the cap of a Michigan brewery that you would like more info on, click on the bottle cap and select the arrow in the lower right hand corner of the screen. This will take you to a screen with links to Facebook, Twitter, Google Maps and the brewery’s website.

Check out the Michigan Micro Cap, follow the Google Map directions to Frankenmuth Brewery and come by for a quality Michigan beer. Tell us if the beer caps game sent you and we promise we won’t think you’re insane. We know you’re just insane about beer.

A few weeks ago, the Frankenmuth Brewery blog chimed in on the age-old question of what to get dad for Father’s Day. We know you may still be rushing around trying to find tie themed cakes and overpriced putters for June 17. But rush not. Sure, dads love golf balls, power ties and tools. But just because dads like them doesn’t mean you have to buy the same thing for every Father’s Day.

With that, the Frankenmuth Brewery blog has set out again to suggest what to get dad for Father’s Day. So without further ado, Michigan’s oldest brewery presents more ideas for what to get dad for Father’s Day:

33 Bottles of Beer Journal
Is your dad a beer snob? Does he love comparing the notes in certain brews? Whether your dad is a beer journalist, or maybe you’re just sick of hearing him talk about beer all the time, give your father the 33 Bottles of Beer Journal. Let him keep track of his favorite brews and treat him to a case of the best beer in Michigan from Frankenmuth Brewery. A case will be a great start to his journal and his Father’s Day.


















Mr. Beer Home Brew Kit
Frankenmuth Brewery is glad to have you as a patron (and we don’t want to steer you away from frequenting the brewery), but if you’re asking what to get dad for Father’s Day for a dad interested in brew science may we suggest a Mr. Brew Home Brew Kit. Part of enjoying beer is knowing how different ingredients and brewing processes influence the taste of beer. With this kit, your dad will be able to watch the whole process unfold and, in two weeks, have his own batch of Father’s Day beer.













Black Leather Beer Holster
Offering your dad the best way to keep his hands free and his beer close, this leather beer holster from Home Wet Bar is perfect for any guy who likes to multitask. He can simply fasten the clip to his belt, holster his beer and play catch with Billy or entertain guests without having to worry about spilling some of the best beer in Michigan from Frankenmuth Brewery. The holster also has a nifty pocket on the back of it to keep money and other valuables safe.













Beer Wars DVD
For the dad who loves a good brew and a great story, the Beer Wars film delves into the ins and outs of the American brewing industry. This documentary covers several types of beer, how they are made and the intense competition between breweries. If you’re stumped on what to get Dad for Father’s Day, but know he is a history buff, then a copy of Beer Wars on DVD is the perfect gift.

No matter what you decide to get dad for June 17, remember to take the extra step and go out of your way to find something special for him. Whether it’s some of the best beer in Michigan from Frankenmuth Brewery or one of the aforementioned gifts that we’ve suggested, take the time you would have used to decide on what to get dad for Father’s Day at the mall and find a gift that suits him perfectly. One that will remind him how much you love him and how much he loves beer.

As the weather forecast keeps getting warmer, summer is close at hand. While we spend most of our time like you, trying to beat the heat, Frankenmuth Brewery recently learned a killer party trick to make ice cold beer fast. Never drink a warm Michigan beer from Frankenmuth Brewery again with this super simple method.

The predicament is always the same. You pick up a bunch of Michigan beer for a group of friends on a Friday night, but before you know it, the brews are warm. While coolers are great for keeping beer cold over a period of time, waiting for the warm beers to cool down takes way too long. Be proactive! Take the next step to cold comfort.

In order to make ice cold beer fast and accelerate the process, simply grab a large container, washing bin or cooler. Put the Michigan beer in the bottom of the cooler and completely cover every bottle with ice. Yes, we know this is how most people cool down beer, but here comes the special trick. Find the hose or, if you’re in the house, use the faucet to fill the container to the top with cold water.

Adding cold water alone will make ice cold beer quickly, but there is one last step to the brew cooling mayhem. Take a large saltshaker and douse the water in salt. By adding the salt to the water, the temperature of the water will dip down below the customary freezing level of 32 degrees Fahrenheit without turning into ice. Since liquid can envelop an object better than another solid, the ice-cold water will cover the beer and cool it extremely quickly.

Moral of the warm Michigan beer story? Invest in some ice, keep the hose unraveled and keep lots of salt on hand and you will always be able to make ice cold beer fast. Here’s to hoping for a beautiful summer filled with extremely hot days and thirst quenching, cold brews from Frankenmuth Brewery.

Bonus: Check out this How-To footage from our friends over at Food Mob on how to make ice cold beer fast.