Good company, good food and quality craft beer from hundreds of vendors across Michigan will be offered at the twenty fourth annual Michigan Summer Beer Festival at Riverside Park on July 21 and 22.
Scott Graham, Executive Director of the Michigan Brewers Guild said, “I think Michigan has a great reputation for its beer [and] for its breweries. And certainly the Michigan [Summer] Beer Festival has a great showcase of that.”
Graham said there will be people from the breweries present that are happy to talk about their beer.
“We really do have world class breweries and beer throughout the state,” Graham said. “Its’ fun for tourists who discover that, but we get locals who know and want to be part of it.”
The Michigan Brewers Guild is a network of over 400 independent breweries from across Michigan.
Originally an event in Livonia, the festival quickly moved to Ypsilanti.
Graham said it was in Frog Island Park for three years but they moved to Riverside because they needed more space.
The festival will be open from 5-9 p.m. on Friday, and 1-6 p.m. on Saturday.
Ypsilanti Downtown Development Authority Director Elize Jekabson said, “It’s become an expected staple at Riverside Park. I know a lot of people who visit the city are able to visit our restaurants and stores before and after.”
You will have be 21 or older to get in. The cost of getting in depends on how quickly you get tickets. You can get in for $50 if you pay in advance via the Guild’s website, but it can be as high as $65 to get in if you pay the day of.
Once inside you will have full access to the event and 15 free drink samples. You can purchase extra tokens afterwards.
Designated drivers get a special discount for forgoing drinking. They will be able to get in for as low as $10.
“The upcoming Michigan Summer Beer Festival is the oldest of the Michigan Brewers Guild’s five annual festivals, and we’re thrilled that the event will take place in Ypsilanti’s beautiful Riverside Park,” Destination Ann Arbor’s Director of Communications and Community Engagement Amy Karbo said via email. “This is one of our area’s premier events, and we’re a proud sponsor, too. We welcome visitors and residents alike, and hope everyone enjoys a weekend of fun and camaraderie, experiencing the best that Michigan brewers – and the Ypsilanti area – has to offer.”
Food vendors will accompany the beers. Some of the food will be available for purchase from the vendors themselves and some will be other outside vendors. There will be no ATMs within festival grounds, but port-o-johns will be available. The Guild recommends bringing cash.
Drew Saunders is a freelance business and environmental journalist who grew up just outside of Ann Arbor. He covers local business developments, embraces his foodie side with reviews restaurants, obsesses over Michigan's environmental state, loves movies, and feels spoiled by the music he gets to review for Ann Arbor!
