Sela Link: ’Big Gretch’ beer returns to this West Michigan brewery

sela.indah.link

MUSKEGON, MI -- One Michigan brewery is putting its support for Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer right on their cans.

Muskegon’s Rake Beer Project this week is releasing “Big Gretch: The Return,” a petite sour saison, which is a follow up to a hard seltzer it released in May in support of the governor’s stay at home order.

Encouraging Michigan residents to keep following health guidelines during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, owner and brewmaster Josh Rake said he wanted to do his part to support efforts to protect Michiganders.

Like other restaurants and breweries, he is only allowed to offer carryout and outdoor service under the new health order to stop dine-in service. Some restaurants have decided to defy the order.

“(We’re supporting) the fact that she is making the tough decision to do this when there is so much pressure on her to not take any action,” Rake said. “Until this pandemic is brought under control, and we can put this thing behind us, being open is not the answer, for me at least. Even if we’re open at 50 percent, it’s not a long-term, viable thing.”

He said he has heard from a lot of Muskegon business owners who say: “Let’s do the right thing, let’s shut this down and take care of it, and then we can get back to normal sooner.”

Rake said he talked to Whitmer after the hard seltzer was released in late May.

“(She) called me on the phone personally while cracking her first one,” said Rake, a former political science major who worked as a page on the Michigan Senate floor at the same time Whitmer was State Democratic Leader.

Rake said the seltzer was a big hit with customers.

“We were really amazed by the response to the first drop of Big Gretch,” he said. “(It) kind of blew up and took on a life of its own. We sold out of the entire batch in just minutes.”

He still receives multiple messages a week asking for the beer, “or even just an empty can or label to keep as a memento of these crazy times,” he added.

Small Craft Brewery - Michigan — The Rake Beer Project in Muskegon, Michigan is owned by Josh Rake. It opened on Sept. 12, 2019.Rake Beer Project

For “Big Gretch: The Return,” Rake said the new beer better reflects his farmhouse brewing style. It is brewed with oats and wheat, fermented with a “unique blend of saison yeasts, and conditioned with a light dry hop and fresh mango. It is light, crisp, fruity, and absolutely crushable,” he said.

It will retail for $18 a four-pack (16 oz. cans). The beer has an ABV of 4.4%. He brewed 15 barrels, three times more than the seltzer.

It is available for online pre-orders beginning at 6 p.m. on Dec. 1. Typically online sales begin at 5 p.m., but Rake said he wanted to give customers an extra hour if they’re arriving late from work.

Pickups are available from noon to 7 p.m. Dec. 4 and 5 at the Muskegon taproom, 794 Pine St.

If he doesn’t sell out his pre-orders, he will have beer available at the taproom for sale. He may even send some beer to a few retailers.

The beer uses the same meme-inspired label of Whitmer wearing Buffs and a gold chain of Michigan’s Mitten and Muskegon’s 231 area code around her neck. Rake said he was inspired to make the beer when he heard Detroit rapper Gmac Cash turn the ”Big Gretch” phrase into a song.

For more information, and to order the beer, go to rakebeerproject.com.

IF YOU GO

Rake Beer Project

794 Pine St., Muskegon, MI 49442

rakebeerproject.com

Facebook