Stu's email address is stumail@earthlink.net.

 

"In Search of Good Craft Beer!" is the second column in a series on the six brewpubs of the Upper Peninsula: Lake Superior Brewing Co., Grand Marais; Tahquamenon Falls Brewery & Pub, near Paradise; The Vierling Restaurant & Marquette Harbor Brewery, Marquette; Jasper Ridge Brewery, Ishpeming; Library Bar & Restaurant, Houghton; and Hereford and Hops, Escanaba. As we listened to the waitress describe the three craft beers on tap that day, the most amazing thing happened. She described the lager as tasting like "Budweiser." Now, this alone might be enough to send some craft beer connoisseurs packing. In fact, it startled my girlfriend, who I had to reassure that the lager didn't really taste like Bud, but was only a clever marketing device to comfort the unenlightened into trying one of their craft beers. After I explained this to my girlfriend, the waitress looked around, then knowingly concurred. How pathetic is some of the beer drinking population in Michigan when a brewpub has to resort to this kind of marketing just to get certain people to even try a craft beer?--Well, you be the judge. The point is, these purveyors of fine craft beer are making a concerted effort to expose folks to some fine craft beer and I say whatever it takes to do this, then so be it--Even if you have to tell Joe Six-Pack that it tastes like the largest selling mass-produced beer in the world. Welcome to the Tahquamenon Falls Brewery & Pub at Camp 33, located at the Upper Tahquamenon Falls near Paradise, Mich. Surrounded by state park and one of the few stands of virgin timber in Michigan Tahquamenon was one of the first brewpubs in the U.P., established in 1996. With it's friendly staff, high cathedral ceiling, hardwood maple bar, and towering copper and stainless steel brewery, it's a welcome site in the wilderness of the U.P. If you are looking for a scenic destination with good food and beer, look no further. This place meets all three requirements. And being only about an hour north of the Mackinac Bridge, this is an easy day trip for many parts of the Eastern U.P. Don't speed, though; let's just say the county sheriff is very active. The Pub typically serves four yummy styles of craft beer: Jack Pine Porter, Lumberjack Lager (a blonde lager), Cherry Wheat Ale, and False Tannin American Red Ale. They also have some other delicious seasonal brews, such as their famous Blueberry Ale served mid August during the Paradise Blueberry Festival. "The inspiration behind everything we do is my grandfather," says Lark Carlyle Ludlow, owner/brewmaster. Lark's grandfather, Jack Barrett, was in the lumber and gas and oil distribution business until his death in 1959. He along with his wife, Mimi, gifted the land around the Falls to the Dept. of Natural Resources to be used as a state park. A restriction in the deed stipulated the parking lot be no closer than 3/4 mi. from the Falls to prompt people to walk through the beautiful virgin forest on the way to the Falls. Kind of like saying a fine craft beer tastes like Bud; sometimes you just have to do things for people's own good. They'll thank you later. Lark's partner and brother, Barrett Ludlow, runs the retail end of the business at the Camp 33 compound, which features a large gift shop with something for everyone: Hats, T-shirts, post cards. No one walks away empty-handed. If you can't find something you like to buy, you're just not looking hard enough. Camp 33, is situated on two acres of land that Jack Barret had set aside for himself when he deeded the land to the State in the late 1940's. There in 1950, he built the tasteful replica of a 19th century logging camp to serve the public as an eating and resting place. His vision was to make the Falls and surrounding forest available to the public without it becoming overly commercialized. Up to this point, the Falls were only accessible by boat. Jack and Mimi used to canoe the amber colored Tahquamenon River from their home in Newberry, portaging and camping all the way to the Falls. It was their love for for this area that lead to their purchase of the land around the Falls. Lark describes her grandfather as a diverse businessman and philanthropist. "He was a very generous person..." and ..."would love this (brewpub) because he was a beer drinker." When Mimi died in 1989, her two grandchildren took ownership and created the new Camp 33 in 1990 followed by the Tahquamenon Falls Brewery & Pub in 1996. "It's a very isolated lifestyle," says Lark. The Pub is open all year long except for the month of April and November through mid december. Being on the trail from Newberry to Paradise, snowmobilers keep them busy most of the winter. "I run the restaurant and brewery at the same time," says Lark, adding, "It's very hard and demanding." Lark left Upstate New York and a 20-year career in corporate human resources to pursue this life of hard work and isolation in the U.P. She says never in one hundred years did she picture herself here, but yet, due to her connection to this historical and scenic land, she finds herself immersed in this new lifestyle. Clearly, her grandparents, would be proud of her and her brother and their continuation of their vision to share this wonderful part of the world with others, and of course brew thirst-quenching craft beer. And if it helps you feel better, "It tastes like Budweiser." Cheers!