Grand Rapids Brewery Named Best Sour In Michigan

It's awards season for everyone and that includes craft beer. While these awards don't have John Cena in the nude, it does have our own "Oppenheimer" with this local brewery getting a clean sweep in one category.

Untappd Awards

Untappd is an app that lets users rate and share what beers they are drinking, eventually resulting in an overall score. Each year they host the Untappd Awards, which analyzes the topped-rated beers in each type of beer in a region. The Untappd Awards FAQ states that "beers were ranked according to their average rating from check-ins with ratings in the calendar year 2023."

Speciation Artesian Ales

This family-owned brewery is located at 928 Wealthy Street SE, Grand Rapids, MI 49506, Speciation Artesian Ales has been in business since 2016. Speciation has a rotating lineup of beer, cider, seltzers, and wine. This rotating lineup is where Speciation found success in the Untappd awards, winning a total of 7 awards. Their crowning achievement comes in the Wild Ale - American category where Speciation swept the category, having the three top-ranked Sour beers in the state. 

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We reached out to Mitch, President of Speciation Artisan Ales, for a comment and he had this to say about the rewards:

The team at Speciation is incredibly stoked about the success of our beer in the Untappd Awards this year. Untappd is the main way that craft beer fans rate and rank their favorite beers, so it's really an honor to see beer fans voting for us with such enthusiasm. We are especially excited to see one of our clean, non-sour beers winning a silver medal for our Vienna Lager OktoBirdFest. We don't just make sours anymore, and this proves it! Sweeping the Wild Ale category was also an unexpected thrill. Credit should go to our Head Brewer Luis Espinosa! He has worked so hard to learn the ins and outs of our unique production methods, and it's great to see that pay off. Luis started his career at GRCC's brewing certificate program, and he joined us as an intern in 2018. Since then he has slowly worked his way up into the position of head brewer.

Their other winning brews include Farmhouse Ale - Other (1st), Farmhouse Ale -  Saison (2nd), Lager - Vienna (2nd), and Sour - Other (2nd). Speciation was started by Mitch and Whitney Ermatinger and is known for its weekly community events like "Geeks Who Drink" and "Free Show Friday", a weekly free concert on their back deck.