One Well Brewing – Kalamazoo, MI
When we headed to Kalamazoo a few weeks ago to catch a Gaslight Anthem concert at District Square, we knew we wanted to stop in at a brewery before the show started. The things we had heard about One Well Brewing quickly moved it to the top of our list, and we stopped by to try out the Sweet Water Street imperial porter (made with Sweetwater’s donut holes and Water St. coffee) and check out everything else this fairly new brewery had to offer.
One Well is located on Portage St. just north of I-94 in a somewhat unassuming strip mall style complex (it’s right next door to a gym). We were very impressed with how big it was inside, with a bar that could fit about 20 people and booths and tables that could easily accommodate another 75-100. There was also a small outdoor seating area, but we elected to sit at the bar and ordered up a flight of all 10 beers that were on the board for the day.
We found Opener (a blonde ale) and Bad Adz (and English brown ale) enjoyable, then found ourselves incredibly impressed by Whoppy – a hoppy wheat ale. I really enjoyed the piney notes of SimcoeRillo (IPA), while we both enjoyed Don’t! (porter). That was it for our first flight, and the great beers were just starting to head our way.
The second flight led off with Xalapa, a version of Opener that has been infused with jalapenos. We’ve had a handful of chili/pepper beers in the last year, but this was the first time we came across one that we felt we could drink more than a sample glass of and still enjoy it. Next up was the Sweet Water Street, and it was every bit as delicious as we had hoped. Professor Nutbutter’s (House of Treats) was a fantastic golden ale with a great peanut butter flavor – something rarely done with lighter beers and more often done with porters and stouts. We also tried the cider (rotates frequently) and the Deal Gone Down double IPA
Regular events at One Well include Wednesday’s Board Games With the Brewer night, and a Thursday Dart Night. They may be closed on Monday and Tuesday, but they make up for it with a very fun and welcoming atmosphere the rest of the week.
There is a decent small plate food menu at One Well, and I grabbed the Child’s Play macaroni and cheese while Allison ordered the Grilled Cheese Incident – a naan bread sandwich with five different kinds of cheese, spinach, artichoke and bacon or chicken. Other food options include appetizers and pizzas.
One Well Brewing contact information:
4213 Portage St., Kalamazoo MI
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