Behind the Mitten

On this episode you'll learn about fall events from Jeremy Witt at WMTA.org, including haunted attractions such as the Niles Scream Park, and Kelly Yauk of Grand Traverse Resort & Spa, including The Great Beerd Run on Nov. 11.

Plus, we spend some time with Jason Spaulding at Brewery Vivant in Grand Rapids. He tells us about "Hop Field," a new beer with brewer Joshua A. Chilcote.

This weekend, John Gonzalez and Amy Sherman explore the White Pine Trail in West Michigan, a biking trail that stretches 93 miles from Comstock Park (near Grand Rapids) all the way to Cadillac. On this weekend's show, they stop at some of the breweries you can explore along the way. And they reveal 4 Beers of the Week. This episode aired Sept. 29-30, 2017.

Segment 1: John and Amy stop at Perrin Brewery in Comstock Park, which is a few miles off the trail, but very supportive of the biking community. Just recently, Perrin announced a partnership with the West Michigan Mountain Bike Alliance (WMMBA) to create Flow Trails located throughout Wahfield Park, located near the brewery. John and Amy talk to Kevin Allen of WMMBA, Bill Parker, the trail coordinator at Wahfield Park, and Lindsey VanDenBoom of Perrin.

#1 BEER of the WEEK: Blackberry IPA, a seasonal brew that combines the tart sweetness of ripened Blackberries along with an aromatic floral bouquet of fresh Michigan bittering hops.

Learn more about Perrin at https://www.facebook.com/perrinbrewing/

Segment 2 (Listen at 10:09): John and Amy stop at Rockford Brewing Company, which is located right on the White Pine Trail and even has bike racks for those who want to stop in for a pint, lunch or dinner. They interview RBC manager Chris Holt.

#2 BEER of the WEEK: Chinook Harvest Ale, which features fresh hops from Hop Yards of Kent.

Learn more about RBC at https://www.facebook.com/RockfordBrewingCompany/

Segment 3 (Listen at 19:13): Next they stop at Cellar Brewing Company in Sparta, which is off M-37 and only a few miles north from Perrin Brewing Company. It is 5-6 miles west from the White Pine Trail. It's a beautiful, new brewery that is know for as many as 20 beers on tap, and great chicken wings. They interview owner/brewer Chuck Brown.

#3 BEER of the WEEK: Harvest Ale, which is made with Triple Perle hops (from West Michigan Hopyards), a new hop that is punchy with a juicy/fruity aroma.

Learn more about Cellar Brewing Co. at https://www.facebook.com/CellarBrewingCompany/

Segment 4 (Listen at 29:05): The last stop is at Cedar Springs Brewing Company, which is also next to the White Trail. (It is located 7.4 miles north of Rockford Brewing Co., and 17 miles north of Grand Rapids.) John and Amy talk to Cedar Springs Brewery owner Dave Ringler about the White Pine Trail, as well as his award-winning, Bavarian-style beers and tasty food menu. (We visited for MLive's Best Fried Chicken.) They have been open since 2015. They were selected as one of MLive's Best New Breweries in 2016.

#4 BEER of the WEEK: Red Flannel Ale, a classic amber ale that is perfect for fall. It will be served Oct. 6-7 at the brewery's Festival Celebration Beer Tent, which coincides with Cedar Springs' Red Flannel Festival.

Learn more about Cedar Springs Brewing Co. at https://www.facebook.com/CedarSpringsBrew/

White Pine Trail Map at http://www.whitepinetrail.com/map

Learn more about BTM at https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/

On this episode of Behind the Mitten, John Gonzalez and Amy Sherman spend time in Traverse City. They talk fall fun, and more. (This episode aired Sept. 23-24, 2017.)

Segment 1: Trevor Tkach and Jenny Jenness of the Traverse City Tourism Bureau talk about fall fun!
https://www.traversecity.com/hotels/packages/fab-fall-packages/?utm_source=fabfall.com&utm_medium=redirect&utm_campaign=fab%20fall

Segment 2 (Listen at 10:30): Traverse City Author Doug Stanton talks about his new book, "The Odyssey of Echo Company," which is about the Vietnam War.
http://dougstanton.com/

Segment 3 (Listen at 20:20): Marie-Chantal Dalese of Chateau Chantal on the Old Mission Peninsula talks about the busy fall season, as well as special dinners and tastings.
http://www.chateauchantal.com/

Segment 4 (Listen at 30:25): Beer of the Week (from Rare Bird Brewpub), as well as statewide events.
https://www.facebook.com/rarebirdbrewpub/

More info on BTM: https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/

Rare Bird Brewpub co-owner and head brewer Tina Schuett picks BEER of the WEEK (Sept. 24, 2017) for Behind the Mitten.

It's El Freserino, a wet-hopped IPA with Centennial hops from MI Local Hops.

It will only be on tap for a short period of time, so get it asap.

Rare Bird is located at 229 Lake Ave, Traverse City, MI 49684, and in the Midtown area of TC.

More info at https://www.facebook.com/rarebirdbrewpub/

More info BTM, a show co-hosted by Amy Sherman and John Gonzalez: https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/

More on MI Local Hops at https://www.facebook.com/milocalhops/

John Gonzalez of MLive and "Behind the Mitten" interviews Brian Behler, the general manager at the J.W. Marriott in downtown Grand Rapids. The luxury hotel is celebrating 10 years of "welcoming people from all over the country and all over the world." To celebrate ArtPrize, the hotel is hosting 23 artists, as well as a laser light show (Starfall) over the Grand River Wednesdays-Saturdays. It is a public evening event at 8:45 p.m. and viewable from all of the downtown bridges. "We love the vibe of what (ArtPrize) does for our hotel and the entire city. ...Every day is a great day."

Learn more about the JW Marriott at http://ilovethejw.com/

Learn more about ArtPrize at http://www.artprize.org/

Learn more about ArtPrize through MLive at http://www.mlive.com/artprize/

Learn more about Behind the Mitten at https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/

John Gonzalez and Amy Sherman travel to Mackinac City to learn more about Mackinac State Historic Parks, as well as Fort Michilimackinac.

They do Beer of the Week from Biere de Mac Brew Works, a brewery that opened earlier this year.

More on the state's parks: http://www.mackinacparks.com/parks-and-attractions/colonial-michilimackinac/

More on Biere de Mac Brew Works: https://www.facebook.com/macbrewery/

More on BTM: https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/

John Gonzalez and Amy Sherman broadcast from Grand Rapids, which is getting ready for ArtPrize 2017.

ArtPrize is Sept. 20-Oct. 8, 2017.
More info at http://www.artprize.org/

Sundance Grill hosts 10 artists and is planning a big Street Party on Oct. 1.
More info: https://www.facebook.com/Sundancegrillandbar/

More info on BTM:
https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/

On this weekend's show from Detroit, John Gonzalez and Amy Sherman talk Lions football, as well as the new food menu at Ford Field for the 2017-2018 season. They meet up with friends at Bobcat Bonnie's, and they talk to Detroit native Frank Beckmann of WJR-AM. Oh, you know they do BEER of the WEEK, too! (This episode aired Sept. 2-3, 2017.)

Segment 1: Matthew Buskard of Bobcat Bonnie's, a popular restaurant in Detroit's Corktown neighborhood, and Tim Ziegler of Inlaws Hospitality in Detroit.

Segment 2 (Listen at 10:11): Kyle Meinke, the Detroit Lions beat reporter for MLive, talks about the new season and the new food menu.
Follow Kyle and the Detroit Lions on MLive at http://www.mlive.com/lions/

Segment 3 (Listen at 19:11): Detroit radio legend Frank Beckmann of WJR talks about what he loves about Detroit. They also talk about Michigan's Best Chicken Wings, too.
More on Frank Beckmann at http://www.wjr.com/frankbeckmann/

Segment 4 (Listen at 29:00): Matthew Buskard of Bobcat Bonnie's and Tim Ziegler of Inlaws Hospitality return to talk more about their restaurants. Inlaws owns and operates Green Dot Stables, which is known for its sliders, as well as Johnny Noodle King and the Huron Room in Southwest Michigan.
They also select BEER of the WEEK:
This week it's Atwater Brewery's Better Life Choices, a malty IPA with strong hops aroma and a beautiful burnt orange color, Matt said. "It's a phenomenal, easy-drinking IPA," he added.

More info on Inlaws Hospitality at http://www.inlawshospitality.com/

More info on Bobcat Bonnie's at https://www.facebook.com/bobcatbonnies/

More info on Behind the Mitten at https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/

On Thursday, Aug. 31, 2017, John Gonzalez and Amy Sherman made an appearance on West Michigan Live with Justin Barclay on WOOD Radio (1300AM/106.9FM).

They talked about Labor Day Weekend events, plus the upcoming Paw Paw Wine and Harvest Festival (Sept. 8-10) with special guest Marilyn Clear.

Learn more about the Paw Paw Wine & Harvest Festival at http://www.wineandharvestfestival.com/

Learn more about Justin Barclay at https://www.facebook.com/JustinSBarclay

Learn more about Behind the Mitten at https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/

On this episode, John and Amy spend some time in Rockford and the Traverse City area. They talk chicken wings, distilleries and more!

Segment 1: John and Amy talk to Richard Andersen of Iron Fish Distillery in Thompsonville, which is about to celebrate its first anniversary over Labor Day.
More info at https://www.facebook.com/ironfishdistillery/

Segment 2 (Listen at 10:31): John and Amy head to the Rockford Brewing Company, where they talk to reps from The Corner Bar, an iconic hot dog restaurant that recently suffered a total loss due to a fire. They talked about how they will rebuild and how the community has come together.
More info at https://www.facebook.com/rockfordcornerbar/

Segment 3 (Listen at 19:19): Michigan author Doug Stanton is in the news lately because the USS Indianapolis, the topic of his 2002 book, "In Harm's Way," was discovered. Doug is also the co-founder of the National Writers Series in Traverse City.
More info on Doug Stanton at http://dougstanton.com/
More info on National Writers Series at http://nationalwritersseries.org/
John's MLive story http://www.mlive.com/entertainment/index.ssf/2017/08/discovery_of_uss_indianpolis_w.html

Segment 4 (Listen at 29:10): Seth Rivard and Chris Holt of Rockford Brewing Company welcome back John and Amy; they talk about upcoming events, as well as BEER of the WEEK. The beer is the Hoplust IPA, which is RBC's most popular beer. It its an American-style IPA with a lot of hops on the nose, but not overly bitter on the taste. It is being released in bottles.
More on RBC at https://www.facebook.com/RockfordBrewingCompany/

More info on Behind the Mitten at https://www.facebook.com/behindthemitten/