MUSKEGON, MI -- A beer release meant to support Michigan Gov. Gretchen Whitmer and some of her tough decisions during the Covid-19 pandemic sold out Tuesday night in a matter of minutes.
The Rake Beer Project in Muskegon sold out pre-orders online of “Big Gretch: The Return,” a petite sour saison, which was a follow up to a hard seltzer it released in May.
“Wow!” said brewery owner Josh Rake in a text to MLive on Tuesday evening.
“All 40 cases were gone in 9 minutes. (It’s) the largest release we have ever done,” which is impressive since they brewed 15 barrels of the beer, three times more as the hard seltzer, to meet anticipated demands.
Rake said this morning that he is “incredibly grateful” to customers.
“We’re blown away by all of the positive support that we have received for this beer,” he said.
“It is truly amazing to see the support that people are putting behind small business at this time and we encourage folks to flock to their other favorite local small businesses the way they did to us yesterday.”
On Instagram he addressed those who were not able to get it.
“To those of you who were unable to get some, we apologize deeply. We intentionally made such a large amount this time around to try to ensure that each and every person that wanted some was able to get some. We will take this as a learning experience going forward.”
In an earlier interview, Rake said he would make “Big Gretch: The Return” available in his taproom this weekend, and possibly in distribution at some key accounts across the state, if the beer had not sold out.
The beer won’t be available in the taproom, but he will still distribute about 10 cases to key accounts next week in Ann Arbor, Detroit and St. Joseph. These are accounts “that have supported us from the beginning,” he said.
The three places: Lambrecht’s Liquor in St. Joe, The Produce Station in Ann Arbor and Detroit Fleat in Detroit.
“We do some very limited self distribution to our favorite craft beer purveyors, and ask that any retailers that would like to carry our beer in the future reach out to us,” he said. “We are always looking to get our beer on the right shelves.”
Only open since September of 2019, we featured Rake Beer Project in a recent story on small breweries making great beer. They brew on a 10-barrel system they purchased from their friends at Transient Artisan Ales and produced about 250 barrels in their first year.
RELATED: 12 small breweries in Michigan making tasty beer
Rake said Gov. Whitmer purchased the hard seltzer in May and even called him to say thank you.
“(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 in a earlier interview. “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.”
RELATED: ‘Big Gretch’ beer returns to this West Michigan brewery
Rake said they have plenty of other beer available, both on their website and in person, for pick-up on Friday and Saturday. His current favorites: Wandering Apiarist, a pastry wild saison conditioned on local honey, cinnamon and vanilla, as well as Laughing at Tyrants, and their popular Raw Double Dry Hopped IPA with Sabro hops and pineapple.
IF YOU GO
Rake Beer Project
794 Pine St, Muskegon, MI 49442
Hours: Carryout only. Pre-orders online at rakebeerproject.com. Pick up hours are 4-7 p.m. Friday and noon-6 p.m. Saturday.
December 02, 2020 at 09:46PM
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‘Big Gretch’ beer sells out in 9 minutes - MLive.com
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