Detroit Fall Beer Fest 2026

The Motor City becomes a beer city with a harvest of Michigan beers converging under golden sunshine at Eastern Market for the 17th Annual Detroit Fall Beer Festival.

Detroit Fall Beer Festival 2026

As with any beer festival in Michigan, the weather can make or break it. This year’s run of fantastic weather for beer fests continued last Saturday with plenty of sunshine, mild temperatures, and no wind tunnel around Shed 5 as we made our way to Eastern Market for the 17th Annual Detroit Fall Beer Festival.

Michigan Brewers Guild festivals have become wrapped in tradition for us, and Detroit is no exception. Once again, we met up with our longtime friends and fellow Michigan beer enthusiasts, Jeff and Angie, for breakfast at Vivio’s in Eastern Market. It’s a great way to load up on some great food and wash it down with one of their famous Bloody Marys before heading down to the festival.

With Victor retired and Anthony off, we missed the traditional megaphone countdown to beer. But fear not, friends, as our pal Jeff took up the mantle and shouted the final ten-second countdown. As we all know, traditions are important.

Once inside, we picked a base camp for our chairs and headed for the all-important first beer of the festival.

Cheers For Michigan Beers

Short’s Brewing

Traditionally, Short’s Brewing is the first stop at the Detroit Fall Beer Fest. Come to think of it, Short’s is typically the first stop at every beer festival. With tradition in mind, we headed to Short’s.

At the end of September this year, Short’s released their excellent Kind Ale, a wet-hopped harvest pale ale. For 2026, Short’s honored our friend and Michigan Hop Alliance main man, Brian Tennis, while raising awareness for organ donation, as Brian is still kicking ass and taking names thanks to a recent kidney donation.

This year’s Kind Ale, brewed with fresh Chinook and Cascade hops from Top Hops Farm, is a dandy with a touch of pleasant piney goodness in the nose and on the palate.

Full Measure Brewing

I mentioned to someone (Jake? Kevin? Andy?) that my go-to at the Detroit Fall Beer Fest is typical Oktoberfest or Festbier. It seems to be the perfect time to enjoy a balanced celebratory beer. Anyway, this someone (damn, wish I could remember who) said: “Oh man, you’ve got to try the smoked Märzen at Full Measure.” So I did, and it was fantastic.

Drei Freunde was listed as a rauchbier in the program. There was a hint of smoked malt, but it was very subtle. The end result was a delicious, balanced brew with a touch of fireside heaven.

Stiggs Brewing

We chatted with Mike and David from Stiggs Brewing. They recently opened up their new production facility, which includes a small taproom and three-season patio where you can get their fabulous beer and BBQ. With the new production space, they are working on distributing their beers. Right now, distribution is limited to taps in the Boyne area, but that should expand with time.

We’re planning another batch of Camping With Uncle Charlie sweet stout in early 2027 as part of Stiggs’ 10-year anniversary. Be on the lookout for a “Save The Date” coming soon.

After gabbing with those guys a bit, I developed a thirst. Luckily, I grabbed a sampler of their Screaming Tree pale ale. It was a delightful pale and the perfect remedy for my parched throat.

Hear.Say Brewing

Wayne Burns (head brewer – Hear.Say Brewing) may be some sort of wizard. All of the beers he has been brewing at Hear.Say since starting there over the summer are superb. As my quest for festbiers and Märzens continued, I sampled their polka.face festbier. It was picture-perfect for this sunny festival day.

Lake Time Brewing

A new brewery for me was Lake Time Brewing and Spirits (Bridgman, MI). Apparently, they have taken over the old Tapistry Brewing space. They didn’t have a festbier, so I went with the next best thing, a Belgian pale. It was an excellent full-bodied beer with hints of fruit and a smooth, dry finish. Jeff tried their double IPA, Girl Krush, and reported back that it was phenomenal.

Mothfire Brewing

One of the best beers I enjoyed at this year’s Detroit Fall Beer Festival was Fest by Mothfire Brewing. My lord, what a fabulous beverage. Super clean, refreshing—cripes, I’d like another one right now!

Big Lake Brewing

I went off script somewhat and ventured over to the dark side, Dark Side of the Lake Schwarzbier from Big Lake Brewing, that is. For some reason, I relegate dark beers to the fall and winter, but this beer could really be enjoyed all year long. As the name suggests, this black lager has a dab of roasted malt taste with a clean, refreshing finish. 

Six Spoke Brewing

Tradition dictates that about midway through each festival, we gather for the singing of the Michigan Brewers Guild fight song and tapping of the firkin. Longtime volunteer Mike did the honors of tapping a keg of Six Spoke BBA 1st Anniversary Scotch Ale. A bit of a boozy brew that folks were eager to experience.

Entertainment Extravaganza

While the beers are the stars of the show at the Detroit Fall Beer Festival, Michigan Brewers Guild event director Dave Cicotte lined up a stacked deck of entertainment to accompany our celebration of Michigan beer. Along with the traditionally great local music, you could get ringside for International Bigtime Wrestling.

Theo Gridiron and Friends

Cooking up some classic funk and R&B was the sensational sound of Theo Gridiron and Friends. The band played Motown hits by Stevie Wonder along with Ohio’s own Wild Cherry classic “Play That Funky Music” and plenty more groove line favorites.

Konrad Lee – Lounge Singer Extraordinaire

Tucked in the corner of Shed 5, Konrad Lee, Lounge Singer Extraordinaire, had people swinging to sassy covers that would have made Bill Murray proud.

Audrey Ray

Playing a fantastic set of original country music with some dandy covers was Audrey Ray. She’s got the old-school vibes reminiscent of the greats such as Dolly Parton, Reba McEntire, and Tanya Tucker.

International Bigtime Wrestling

Throughout the afternoon, you could hear the roar of the crowd and the boom of the mat as the bodies flew through the air and off the ropes at the International Bigtime Wrestling ring. Sure, it’s corny as hell, but you’ve got to admit that it’s a lot of fun too.

Food

The food options at the Detroit Fall Beer Festival were outstanding. Jeff and Angie reported back that the BBQ at Yellow Dog Craft BBQ was the best they have ever had. It should be noted, we’ve been with them for some outstanding BBQ in Austin, TX, so this is saying something.

If BBQ isn’t your thing, the festival had authentic Mexican at Señor, pizza from Guy’s Pizza, paella from Fire & Rice, and pierogies by Pietrzyk Pierogi.

Beer Family

What makes the Michigan Brewers Guild festivals special are the people. Thanks to all the folks behind the scenes putting on the Detroit Fall Beer Festival and to all the Michigan beer enthusiasts who showed up for the fun.

Photos

Hit up our gallery for even more photos from the Detroit Fall Beer Festival at Eastern Market.

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