17 Best Michigan Craft Beers, Ranked

We always love when American craft breweries experiment with less popular Belgian styles. We've noticed that Belgian craft beer styles have seen a drop in production popularity in the states in recent years (although with how the pendulum swings, we wouldn't be shocked if that changed). But for fans of Belgian beers, this Quad beer is well worth sampling and can go toe-to-toe with most other craft breweries in the U.S. making Belgian beer.

Wizard Burial Ground just barely missed out on tipping the scales as the highest ABV beer on the list, as it clocks in at 14.3% ABV. Now, this particular number might change, as every year there is a slightly different release of the beer. But don't worry, if you are fans of higher ABVs, the Grand Rapids brewery tends to keep the alcohol content right around the same thing with each annual release (although the 2022 release did push that ABV to the highest level ever, so there is no telling what the 2023 release will have in store).

If you are ever up around Traverse City for holiday, take the short drive out to Short's Brewing Company. There are some fine beers produced by this brewery, which, in terms of quality, can compete with any other brewery in the state, but the Imperial Soft Parade is up there for us.

Soft Parade is one of Short's fruit-infused rye ales. It is not a sour, nor is it a lambic, but instead it is a high gravity ale that takes advantage of raspberries and strawberries, to give a traditional imperial ale a softer (pun intended), flavorful taste. It almost tastes like one of those raspberry wheat beers from 15 to 20 years ago, but it has a higher ABV of 7.5%, and a lower IBU at 15. We like it enough to include it on this list but aren't quite enamored with it (yet).

Aged in bourbon barrels along with maple, coffee, bacon, and syrup, Hipster Brunch Stout has all the breakfast pick-me-up you might want. We wouldn't say you should start your day off with it... but we're not telling you to either (perhaps pairing it with maple-cinnamon bacon would work).

Whatever time of day you decide to check this beer out, it does come with a robust 11% ABV. Are you more of a fan of the oak-aged beers populating store shelves these days? There's a Double Oaked Hipster Brunch Stout that adds a smokey, roasted taste with hints of vanilla on top of the non-oak beer offers, at the same 11% ABV. Still not your thing? Why not consider the Molasses Rum Hipster Brunch, which uses the same base Hipster Brunch beer, but ages it in a rum barrel with hints of molasses? This makes it a sweeter variation of the three beer offerings (with both the maple and the molasses hitting your taste buds at different points of the drinking process). And yet, somehow it finds a way to keep it at an 11% ABV.

No Rules is a 15% ABV imperial Vietnamese porter that gives you the familiar, barrel-aged taste mixed with hints of coconut. There's a nice, unique sweetness in this very strong Michigan beer you're not going to find elsewhere. The beer is absolutely the highest ABV on this list at 55, as it easily surpasses that of many wines out there. We're also giving this beer bonus points thanks to its nice name and label nod to Walter Sobchak of "The Big Lebowski."

Unlike other robust beers on this list, it is a porter and not a stout. It has a very strong, rich, and yet surprisingly smooth chocolate taste to it. And we do mean surprisingly because you don't expect a beer with this kind of ABV to have this kind of silky feel to it. And, thanks to the bourbon aging, it brings flavors like vanilla, cinnamon, and even coconut to the fold. Over the line.

Unless you're in the state of Michigan, you've likely missed out on this gem of an IPA. Named after Michigan state highway 43, it is one of the best "new age" IPAs to be brewed in the state. This particular IPA comes with a 6.8% ABV, as well as a 65 IBU. It very much is a cloudy mass of beer after you pour it, looking like thick apple cider (which, if you haven't had fresh Michigan apple cider before, you owe it to yourself to try should you visit during the autumn months).

If you know your hops, you can usually craft somewhat of a flavor profile for an IPA. And if not, that's okay, because that is part of the fun of experimenting. For this particular New England IPA, Old Nation Brewing Company uses Simcoe, Calypso, Citra, and Amarillo hops. And, on a side note, Old Nation Brewing Company still puts out one of our favorite styles of unpopular beers, the brut IPA, which is like an IPA with hints of wine. So if you want to take in a brut version of the M-43, make sure to grab the company's B-43.

Visit Saugatuck in the summer for the amazing beach-town vibes, and stay for the Imperial Neapolitan Milk Stout. Barrel aged, as is just about everything these days (noticing a trend?), this is a sweet milk stout, so there will be a hint of sweetened lactose in this 6% ABV beer.

This particular beer is designed to give you the same flavor experience you received as a kid when you dug into the Neapolitan ice cream box. However, unlike that box where two of the three flavors were almost always consumed first, you will experience all three flavors at the same time. Thankfully, the strawberry, chocolate, and vanilla blend amazingly well. In fact, it has taken home several awards, including most recently the 2017 Silver Medal at the Dublin Craft Beer Cup in Ireland. The beer is available year-round and has a 37 IBU rating.

A variation of the company's Dirty Bastard brew, this is a scotch ale with a higher 11% ABV. It is hard to rank a variant of an original beer higher than the original beer, but in this instance, Backwoods Bastard absolutely is a fine example (fine enough to make the top five of our list here). It's basically the Godfather 2 to Dirty Bastard's Godfather. It is mad year-round, so you're always able to grab this bourbon barrel-aged scotch ale, which is music to our ears.

Of course, we probably could have included Dirty Bastard on this list of top Michigan beers as well, but we don't want the entire list to be swamped with Founders and Bells beers, so we capped it at a maximum of two per brewery. That way, you could discover top beers from some of the other breweries in the state; some of which you sadly may not have been familiar with (at least until now).

Not to be confused with the comic book company, Dark Horse produces some pretty hefty beers, including Please the 5th. This Russian Imperial Stout has a solid 11% ABV. There is plenty of complex mouthfeel going on with this beer, and the 41 IBU will give you a malty hoppiness that rubs along the side of your tongue like a burnt biscuit coated in caramel molasses.

This is one of those beers that doesn't hide its true-tasting colors. You can smell what it is all about as soon as you put your nose to the lip of the glass. Sometimes, beers have a way of hiding their aroma almost completely. Not Plead the 5th Bourbon Barrel-Aged stout out of Dark Horse Brewing Company. If you want a beer that swings for the fences and makes sure you know exactly what kind of beer you're drinking from the moment it is poured, grab yourself one of these Russian imperial stouts.

This beer is one that helped launch the bourbon-aging frenzy currently running rampant through the American craft beer scene. It also has a near-wine ABV of 12%. KBS for short (that is generally what it goes by now), the beer is produced throughout the year, so you don't have to worry about missing it during a small release window. There is a nice malty bitterness, and IBU levels hit 45. This beer is also pumped full of flavor, as it is produced with both large quantities of coffee but also chocolate, before being finished off in bourbon barrels.

Basically, if you ever had a Guinness (or a personal favorite of ours, Young's Double Chocolate Stout), and decided you liked the beer, but wished it would "grow up," this is absolutely that beer for you. It is full of flavor, and it is one of those beers that will taste a little different with every sip as it warms. Of course, with its higher alcohol content, this is a beer you absolutely will take your time drinking.