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Coming Soon! New Short’s 6 Packs for October

Bloody Beer: Modeled after the 2007 award winning Imperial version, the Bloody Beer is one of many to be duplicated from our outstanding Imperial Beer Series. Our plans to bottle this beer were well under way when we won a silver medal for it in the experimental category at the 2009 GABF, but a little extra publicity never hurts. Made w/ hundreds of pounds of fresh Roma tomatoes, and then spiced w/ dill, celery seed, peppercorns, and horseradish this beer was a brewing challenge every step of the way. We encourage proper decanting practices, and a slightly warmer drinking temperature, in order to taste all of the flavor complexities added from the non traditional brewing ingredients. The tomato flavor up front is astounding and even picked up in the nose, along w/ all of the other spices. The finish lingers w/ each additional flavor taking it’s turn to resonate on your palate, all individually distinguishable and yet uniform as they would be in a real bloody Mary.

Black Cherry Porter: One of our biggest beers offered, the Black Cherry Porter is a full flavored strong porter brewed with sweet black cherries. The formula consists of several different malts, lending deep opaque color with purple lace from the fresh fruit it’s fermented with. Nearly 4 lbs. of fresh sweet black cherries go into each gallon of brew. A flavor of deep lustrous malt complexity and fullness, yet smooth with soft hints of toasted chocolate and pleasurable black cherry flavors. This beer has become one of our most sought after seasonal selections. People have lined up to drink nothing but Black Cherry Porter when brought to beer festivals and other off premise events. Now we bring it to you, enjoy.

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Return of Funkin Punkin

It must be the return of the fall season in Northern Michigan – and not just because it’s October now. We know this around these parts because it’s the return of Funkin Punkin! You can find this delicious ale now on tap at our pub in Bellaire. To see the rest of our offerings on tap, click here.

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Noble Chaos Hits Shelves Across the State

Noble Chaos is classified as an “Oktoberfest” or American Style Amber Lager. In the spirit of Oktoberfest, the German Style Marzen is brewed in March (Marzen) and then lagered (cold aged) in caves until released at the end of the summer for “Oktoberfest”. This year’s batch at the plant was brewed with that in mind. We made this beer back in March and had it shipped to a cold storage facility until it was released just recently. The intention was for the release to occur in early September, but we lost our spot in the cooler a month early.  The pub in Bellaire will stick to plan, and officially release the Noble Chaos on September 9th. Basically, Short’s made our own version of the a German Style Marzen or “Oktoberfest” and here is the rest of the story………

The Story of Noble Chaos:

The original name of this beer started as Northern Michigan Pride. It was batch number 115, brewed 8.4.05, back in the day when Leah and I had a secret summer love affair.  It was a spur of the moment recipe. I decided to do something completely different from the norm. A specialty lager. And so it began, a bag of this a bag of that and the brew was on. Or so I thought. Back in the olden days of SBC, system failures were a daily occurrence.

This particular day was exceptional.Bridezilla: The Pub was raging busy and probably understaffed and the first issue was an irate lady getting married who supposedly ordered kegs for her wedding that day. The keg order fell through the cracks somewhere and was never seen or processed in the brewery. So here we have a lady about to get married, completely pissed off and threatening to go to north Peak or something to get her wedding beer. After apologizing over and over and assuring her we could produce these kegs faster than going to North peak, and even deliver them if necessary to ensure her special day was in fact going to be that “special day”.

So while managing this first specialty lager brew and my composure, I had pulled apart 3 – 1/6th barrels, cleaned them and filled them the “old school way” and fortunately did not have to deliver them. Crisis Averted.Bellaire Brown Lady: So then there came this lady to fill up her growler of Bellaire Brown. We were out of brown. No other beer would suffice and she had traveled some distance for this beer and was not going to leave without it. So keeping it cool with pissed off person no. 2……… Eureka!! The Bellaire Bar was serving Bellaire Brown at the time. After some pleading with the bar, I managed to talk them into selling me a growler of brown. I paid for the growler and ran back to the pub in my knee highs in time to appease the lady and get back to the brew. Maintain composure, invest in the consumer, crisis averted…Forgotten Keg order no. 2: Oh, yeah, not once but twice, keg order protocol failure….. Not only was I out of kegs but out of tappers. So again, my dedication to invest in the consumer, sell the beer and make beer was still a viable option.

The MacGyver in me was able to materialize 3 Cornie kegs, and fabricate dispensing rigs from a handful of “parts bins” for each vessel for these ladies. Again, crisis averted. (probably why I’m still a pack rat)These were the most memorable obstacles that stick out in while trying to make this new beer I started the day so inspired to make. After much neglect from the brewers hand this brew still turned out to be awesome. The intense dealings with people, and broken systems of that day I had considered a noble effort along with the chaos coupled with it…… hence – Noble Chaos was born. Supposedly that’s the day Leah claims I stole her heart. So it’s even extra special. Leah can probably add a bit more to the story’s intensity. This is what I have for you for now.

Cheers!

Joe Short

Please check out the following link to see where Noble Chaos can be purchased in stores throughout the state..

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Beers on Tap

Just a reminder that you can always find out what we currently have on tap at our Bellaire Pub by going to this page:

http://www.shortsbrewing.com/beer/on-tap/

We’ll update it anytime we have a change in our offerings.

Right now we’re serving:

Huma Lupa Licious
Magician
Agave Peach Wheat
Nicie Spicie
Mango Pale Ale
Chocolate Wheat
Strawberry Shorts Cake
Village Reserve
Pontius Road Pilsner
Bellaire Brown
Stellar Ale
Soft Parade
Locals Light
Pandemonium
Bourbon Barrel Sustenance
Key Lime Pie
Beach Wheat
Woodmaster
Black Cherry Porter
Ale La Reverend

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Hangin Frank 6-Packs Coming Soon!

Rejoice Short’s IPA lovers! Our second most popular local IPA (next to Huma of course) will be hitting the shelves soon to a Michigan retailer near you!

Here’s the inside scoop on this fan favorite:

(SOURCE – Petoskey News) City Park Grill
It is said that the ghost of Frank Fochtman, former owner of the City Park Grill in Petoskey, haunts the establishment today.
Manager Jason Septic said it is rumored that Fochtman hung himself in the basement, when it was named Grill Cafe. “I know many people who’ve just had a weird sensation or feeling that there’s someone else down there,” he said, adding that his hair has stood up on the back of his neck on occasion when down in the basement.

The ghost has on occasion been blamed for broken glasses, when they would just snap as they sat on the table. “They seemed to, when just sitting on the table, break where the stem meets the glass,” Septic recalled. However, despite some broken stemware, Fochtman — commonly just called Frank by the staff — does not seem to have a mean or negative presence. “My personal feeling is that he’d be here, just watching over the place,” Septic said.

For more information, visit the City Park Grill Website.

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Coming Soon! New Short’s 6-Packs in June/July

Coming soon in June! Rich’s Rye – A super hopped golden rye beer and Spruce Pilsner – an imperial pilsner brewed with Northern Michigan spring blue spruce tips and healthy doses of high alpha hops!

The wait is over!!!

Nicie Spicie 6 Packs hit shelves sometime in July!!! Short’s summer seasonal American wheat ale spiced with fresh citrus, coriander and freshly ground peppercorns.

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Imperials Selling Out

We’re stating to sell out of our Imperial Beers of 2007. While we still have some of the 750 ML bottles left for sale, these are currently sold out:

Publican Porter
Peaches and Cream
Black Cherry Porter
Bloody Beer
Woodmaster

Stop by the pub in Bellaire and get the rest while you can!

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Short’s Is Hiring!

Short’s Brewing Co. in Bellaire

Now hiring kitchen staff, experience a plus.

FT/PT Positions available

Must have a positive work attitude and an ability to work well with others in a fast paced, customer oriented environment.

Please pick up an application in person at 121 N. Bridge St. Belllaire, MI 49615 or email us your resume to employment [at] shortsbrewing [dot] com.

No phone calls accepted for this position please!

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Short’s to Short’s 2010 Pre-Paddle Report

UPDATE: Please note that some details of the S2S 2010 have changed. Okay, this year’s pre paddle went pretty well.  Everyone was in the water by 8:20 a.m. The morning…

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Short’s is going to Chicago!

April 7th to April 10th The Sheraton Chicago Hotel and Towers will be hosting the Craft Brewers Conference. Short’s is sending a truckload of beer to the windy city to select establishments especially for this occasion. Check out Sheffields website for our brief features.

Here is a list of where to find Short’s in Chi-Town:

  • Brixie’s
  • Villains Bar & Grill
  • Vas Foremost
  • Binnys
  • Archer Liquors
  • Clark Street Ale House
  • Armanettis
  • West Lakeview Liquors
  • Map Room
  • Sheffields
  • Hopleaf
  • Whole Foods (30 W. Huron)
  • Drinks Over Deerborn
  • Warehouse Liquors
  • Jerry’s Sandwiches
  • Paramount Room
  • Local Option
  • The Publican
  • Cafe Bionda
  • Small Bar

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Magician now in stores!

Hey there Short’s fans. We’re proud to announce that our much anticipated release of our seasonal brew, The Magician is now available in bottles at select locations across the state where fine Short’s Beer is found.

If you store doesn’t have it, ask them to carry it!

Leave us a comment on our website at the Magician page, or leave us a comment on our Facebook fan page, and let us know what you think.

If you store doesn’t have it, ask them to carry it!

Leave us a comment on our website at the Magician page, or leave us a comment on our Facebook fan page, and let us know what you think.

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2010 Short’s to Short’s Paddle Announcement

Hey Short’s fans! We have a few announcements we’d like to announce, with more information to come soon:

Announcing the 2010 Short’s to Short’s paddle April 30th. Registration and details coming soon. For now, please enjoy our video from last year’s pre-paddle and a note from Joe Short from last year’s event:

The official Short’s 2 Short’s pre paddle report

Yesterday (4.19.09) Leah, Monica, Ryan, Woj and I paddled kayaks from Short’s Brewing Company in Bellaire to Short’s Brewing Company in Elk Rapids. My alarm did not go off; as I had it set incorrectly. We started the day with a late start. Our goal was to be on the water by 6:30 a.m. We were all in the water by 7:47 a.m. We launched our vessels at the Intermediate River Boat launch behind Fisher Insurance. We had lunches, water and coffee, and extra warm gear packed on our boats in waterproof containers. All of us except Monica had kayak skirts. I managed to go most of the day without mine, as it reduced your ability to access beer.

The Intermediate stretch to Lake Bellaire and Lake Bellaire to Grass River took a casual 50 minutes. There was a little chop on Bellaire and with wet hands became cold (bring warm stuff). Once entering Grass River, we enjoyed the leasurly ride to Clam Lake, which took just about an hour. We rested at the clam lake boat launch for about 20 minutes and proceeded to head down the lake toward the Dockside where we had the safety boat parked and Captain Curt waiting for us. Once we got to the Dockside, Woj rolled his kayak and we had to break so he could change into dry close (note: back up gear). It took another hour to get from Clam Lake to Torch Lake after the whole Woj incident. There we offloaded some of our gear with Captain Crut and the Ski Nautique and began our paddle to the south end of Torch at 11:10 a.m. Torch was calm and it was sprinkling a little bit. Since the water was flat, we decided to skip out on the Alden drop point and make the long diagonal paddle toward the river to save time. Shortly after we made this call the wind picked up and to our benefit was blowing south west. It likely helped the speed, but maybe canceled out due to the heavy chop. I’d say at least a foot to 18” at times. I speed up my, as I wanted to be out of the rough water as soon as possible. I arrived at Torch River at 1:10 p.m. and waited for the rest of the crew to roll in. We broke for lunch at the mouth of the river and resumed our kayak trip at 2:10 p.m.

Torch River started with a little head wind and it began to die down and change direction as we wound about and into more covered areas. The river ride took under an hour and the wind was heavy at our backs once in Lake Skegemog, with rollers trying to get into the boats. I clocked a video documentation at 3:10 p.m. at Skegemog. In Skegemong to Elk Lake was mostly riding the rollers in and having a few beers. The group was scattered all over the lake and Captain Crut continued to make the rounds. When we hit Elk Lake the chop seemed to die down a little until we reached the east arm and the wind picked up. These were pretty intense waters and still no time was recorded. The chop and wind began to die as we entered the mouth of Elk River. Leah decided she wanted a couple of short tows from the safety boat through part of Elk Lake. Being towed behind the boat in a kayak looked pretty fun.

Paddling became easier in Elk River and a great way to wind down the paddle to the finish. We landed at the Elk River Boat Launch at 5:00 p.m. on the dot. The safety boat and the rest of the paddlers tricked in shortly after. I can’t wait to do it again!

-Joe Short

Some of you may want to arrive in this fashion:

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