The Michigan Brewers Guild’s popular Winter Beer Festival will once again take place at LMCU Ballpark (home of the West Michigan Whitecaps) in Comstock Park on Saturday, February 24 (1-6pm). Tickets are $60 each in advance at MiBeer.com ($70 the day of) and include 15 three-ounce sample tokens. This year’s event features 121 breweries that collectively offer more than 670 beers (and more than 80 distinct styles)—the list is available here: Michigan Winter Beer Festival Brewery & Beer List.
Enthusiast Members of the Guild are admitted one hour early and those interested in becoming a member can join for $35. In addition to early admission for every MBG festival, Enthusiast Members are given an opportunity to purchase tickets two days ahead of the general public.
Musical entertainment for this year's Winter Beer Festival includes Steve Leaf (1:30-3pm) and Roosevelt Diggs (4-5:30pm). The singing of the Michigan Great Beer State Fight Song, Welcome Toast and Tapping of the Firkin will take place between sets. Plus, the Great Lakes Brass band will be roaming inside the festival site. A variety of food is also available for purchase, provided by the Whitecaps concessions.
As with all MBG festivals, this is an outside event and attendees are encouraged to dress for the weather. Fire pits will be set up around the festival site. The event will be held snow, rain or shine, and refunds will not be issued. Attendees must be 21 to enter, with a valid ID required.
The first Michigan Winter Beer Festival was held on February 25, 2006, on Tuner Street at Grand River in Old Town Lansing with just 40 breweries participating. As attendance (breweries and festivalgoers) grew, the Guild soon moved west and since 2008 has been held at the ballpark just north of downtown.
The MBG 2024 festival schedule includes:
- Michigan Summer Beer Festival - Friday, July 26 & Saturday, July 27 @ Riverside Park in Ypsilanti
- U.P. Fall Beer Festival - Saturday, September 7 @ Mattson Lower Harbor Park in Marquette
- Detroit Fall Beer Festival - Saturday, October 19 @ Eastern Market in Detroit
For more on each festival, visit MiBeer.com/events.
The Michigan Brewers Guild was formed in 1997 and held its first festival in July 1998. Today, the Guild hosts four festivals dedicated exclusively to Michigan beer produced by its nearly 300 member breweries.
The Michigan Brewers Guild is the network of innovative and passionate brewers that serves as the recognized advocate for the Michigan craft beer industry. The mission of the Michigan Brewers Guild is to promote and protect the Michigan craft beer industry with an overarching goal to help craft beer acquire 20% of the market by 2025.
Michigan’s thriving brewing industry contributes more than 17,000 full-time jobs and $700 million in labor income / wages, with a total economic impact of over $2.4 billion. In terms of overall number of breweries, microbreweries and brewpubs, Michigan ranks #6 in the nation—supporting its title as “The Great Beer State.”