I decided that every now and then I will do a Throwback Thursday, where we will review a brewery that sadly has left us over the years. Some breweries close for multiple different reasons over the years. Some were run poorly, some were affected by COVID, some got in way over their heads, and some just didn’t make great beer. I don’t know exactly why most of them closed, but in most cases I have a pretty good idea why.
The first brewery that I will review in this segment, is the one that I was saddest to see go, and that is Olde Peninsula Brewing Company. Olde Peninsula was in Downtown Kalamazoo, Michigan. The company opened on St. Patrick’s day in 1996, and continued their operation in the same building until July of 2021. That is 25 years of brewing in the same location. The location is now occupied by Saugatuck Brewing Company.
I am going to guess that Olde Peninsula was a casualty of COVID restrictions because this place was awesome. I used to look forward to trips to Kalamazoo just because I knew that at some point, I would be walking into Olde Peninsula to enjoy the best burger in Kalamazoo and a couple of pints of their Stout Chocula. As you can guess it was a dark, sweet stout that tastes exactly like a liquid version of Count Chocula.
They also used to always have a beer on Nitro, or if you were really lucky when you stopped in they would have a beer on cask. All of their beers were generally delicious every time we went. The only time I remember not really enjoying a beer here was one time we ordered a Pumpkin Ale on Nitro. I did not care for that one, but when it comes to seasonal beers, Pumpkin is my least favorite. Those of you who chose Pumpkin beers during the fall, you can enjoy them all you want, I will stick to my Fest Biers and Marzens.
The set-up is generally the same now as Saugatuck Brewing as it was when it was Olde Peninsula. They have probably close to 100 or so capacity, it is a big area. They have assorted games throughout the bar, video and bar type games. But I really do miss it being Olde Peninsula, it is still cool as a Saugatuck location, but there was something just a little bit cooler about it being Olde Peninsula. (Hey Saugatuck, if you see this, maybe you could honor Olde Peninsula by brewing some of their old recipes in house, just a suggestion.)
So sadly Olde Peninsula Brewing Company did leave us, but as long as we continue to remember the places that have left, they will never be forgotten. Places like Olde Peninsula helped shape the great industry that we have in the State of Michigan now, so cheers to Olde Peninsula and your over 25 years of contributions to the craft beer world.
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