Ever since Arcadia Ales packed up their operation and left town, the city of Battle Creek was waiting patiently for a new brewery to open. Enter Handmap Brewing Company, they began operations in 2019, but their grand opening was delayed until 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Handmap has been cranking out high quality beers since day one.
Handmap is located in the Record Box building in Downtown Battle Creek. The building was built in 1902, but was unoccupied for 20 years before Handmap took up their residency in the space. It is a three-story building overlooking Battle Creek.
Once inside the brewery, they have a massive bar area with plenty of seating available at it. There are also quite a few tables throughout the brewery for privacy or bigger groups of people. In addition they have quite a few tables outside if you want to enjoy a few pints while looking out at Battle Creek.
Handmap hosts live music weekly and they have a stage area dedicated to musical performances and various other activities. They also promote vinyl night, where people can come and buy/sell/trade vinyl with other vinyl fanatics. Check their website before your visit to see what events they offer and when.
Handmap Brewing Company does have a kitchen and offers food on site. Their menu consists of mostly pizza related products, pizzas, and cheese breads. They do offer a few non-pizza related items but they are all appetizers or desserts. Alas, I did not eat while I was here, I was in a bit of a time crunch to hit a few places that evening, but everything looked and smelled great.
They offer quite a few beers on tap, they had 16 on tap when I went. They also offer wine for the non-beer drinker. Funny story about their beer, the first time I ever tried their beer was at the Great American Beer Festival in Denver in 2022 (More to come on that trip in the future), but their taproom is only an hour and a half from my house.
I got my usual flight while I was here and it consisted of Ruairi- Irish Red, Stout N Stuff- Oatmeal Stout, Balloon Ride- Hazy IPA, and my personal favorite of my flight was the MoFo Porter- American Porter. Which was a dark, smooth, roasty Porter that was very easy-drinking and at an ABV of 5.6%, a great candidate for a nice sessionable Porter during a nice fall or winter evening. Hell it was June when I went, and I could have drank it all day. I am not in the camp of there being a Porter/Stout season, everyday is Porter/Stout season in my opinion.
On your next trip to the Kellogg’s cereal factory, head on over to Handmap Brewing Company and grab yourself a pint or two of some of the best beer that you will find in Battle Creek, Michigan. You may even be able to try a beer that they add 15 pounds of Fruit Loops to. Cheers!
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