The first brewery that I will be highlighting is my favorite brewery in Grand Rapids, and that is Brewery Vivant! If you follow along on instagram you will see in the stories that my husband and I go here quite a bit! There is so much that we love about this place and I will count the ways for you!
But FIRST, some fun history/facts about this cool Eastown brewery! Vivant is the world’s first LEED certified microbrewery housed in a refurbished historic funeral home! Which is crazy cool, but I’ll be honest a little creepy too! Despite it’s morbid origin the inside reminds me more of a beautiful church! Unfortunately, the main dining area is closed right now but there you will find the most beautiful stained glass window right above the bar and gorgeous wood beams on the ceiling!
Another reason to try Vivant is that supporting them means supporting other local businesses! They’re devoted to sourcing most of they’re products from within the community! They also just opened a second location but that place is called Broad Leaf, and even though they are operated by the same overall they are different and will have their own post as well!
It might sound crazy but Brewery Vivant is like a second home for me and my Husband! We became monk club (mug club but they call it monk club) members and that led to more visits to enjoy. Throughout our visits we have become friends with the hosts, servers, and mostly the bartenders! So now it’s more going to hang out and talking to them than it is getting beers even though their beer is amazing! So that is why it is like a second home because the staff is so welcoming and nice and just fun to hang out with, it makes for a great atmosphere!
Now for the good part – food and BEER! I will start with food because just thinking about it makes my mouth water. Normally when we go we get their big juicy burger! I honestly don’t think I’ve had a better burger in Grand Rapids! They are extremely tender, always cooked right, flavorful, and huge! We normally share one and are stuffed afterwards!
I think their most popular item on the menu would be their duck nachos though, that’s right duck nachos! You’ll see almost every table with an order of them. Another popular table shared item is their soft pretzels with beer cheese. This is one of my favorite items if I’m not hungry enough for the burger, it is the perfect snack to go with my beer!
Speaking of beers, Vivant has a great selection for everyone’s taste buds! My summer go to beers at the moment are Tropical Saison and Beach Patrol. Tropical Saison is a pineapple and mango Ale, super smooth and refreshing for the summer time. Beach Patrol is a Summer Wheat Ale with lime and sea salt, it makes me feel like I’m at the beach listening to the waves with every sip!
I tend to stick to the beers with more fruity flavors in them, which is why I have been branching out to more Sours, which Vivant has been creating a lot of options for. The one I just tried was Sour Lake: Watermelon Lime Sour and that was super tasty! It wasn’t a pucker your lips type of sour like some are but more of a subtle sour with a smooth finish and great flavors. Some watermelon flavors can be too sweet but I did not get that from this beer, which was a bonus for me!! My absolute favorite beer that Brewery Vivant makes though is………… Wizard Burial Ground! This is a Bourbon Barrel Aged Quadrupel and it is hands down number one on my beer list! It is a beer that comes out in, I believe the end of November, and only lasts as long as supply does and they don’t make more until the next year. We tend to go a lot when they have this beer on tap. They’ve been experimenting with variations of this beer making for some added fun to our visits when this time comes! When the time gets closer I will for sure talk more about my favorite beer!
As you can tell I can talk about this place forever and could go on and on about how great it is here but please take my word and check it out for yourself! I am happy to give out beer recommendations as well! Wine is available for those who aren’t interested in craft beers providing something for everyone to enjoy! Check them out and tag me in your photos to let me know what you think!
Cheers!
