Ore Dock Brewing Company
The Ore Dock Brewing Company is a craft brewery in Marquette, Michigan, that opened in May 2012.[1] It takes its name from the ore docks in the city, used to load iron ore pellets onto lake freighters.[2] Historian Russell Magnaghi has written that in the years since its founding, the brewery has "become a Marquette focal point and tourist destination."[3]
Beer
Ore Dock's beer is based on traditional Belgian and American styles. Their most popular beers are the "Reclamation" IPA and "Dream Weaver," a Belgian ale with citrus and chamomile.[3] Reclamation, which news sources have described as Ore Dock's flagship beer,[4] is named for recycled material that was reused in constructing the brewery.[3][5] The beer, described by Ore Dock's head brewer as a "mid-coast" IPA that "not as hop-forward as its west coast counterparts, nor is it as malty as what you often find out east," won the 2014 Beverage Tasting Institute World Beer Championships Gold Medal.[6][7]
Ore Dock began bottling its beer in 2014,[8] and selling it outside of Marquette County in 2015. At this time, the brewery had enough capacity to brew 2,500 barrels per year—having expanded shortly before that from 850 barrels.[3][9] In 2018, Ore Dock sold 1,631 barrels of beer within Michigan, making it the forty-first largest brewer in the state. This total was down from 1,754 in 2017,[10] but up from 1,566 in 2016.[11]
Location
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Virtual tour of the brewery |
The brewery is located in a former automobile repair shop and the second floor of an adjoining building, which functions as a community and event space.[4][12] Described as "a loft space full of reclaimed barn wood,"[13] the spaces include material from the auto garage that inhabited the spaces before the brewery moved in.[3] The upstairs community space, charged with putting on events that emphasize visual arts and musical acts, hosts fundraisers, lectures, weddings, private parties, and musical acts.[4][14][15][16]
Recognition
In 2013, Ore Dock was ranked by MLive as one of the best new breweries in the state of Michigan.[17] One year later, it was the only brewery from the Upper Peninsula mentioned by Thrillist in a ranking of every state by its beer.[18] In 2017, it was recommended in The New York Times travel section.[19]
Endnotes
- Eggleston, Sam (July 11, 2012). "Ore Dock Brewery opens its doors in Marquette". Upper Peninsula Second Wave. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Counts, Jeff (2014). Explorer's Guide Michigan. The Countryman Press. ISBN 1581576951.
- Magnaghi (2015), p. 96.
- Klug, Fritz (September 13, 2013). "Michigan's Best Brewery: Ore Dock Brewing Co. offers community space, reintroduction to Belgian and American-style beer". MLive. Booth Newspapers. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Orttenburger, Marie (May 1, 2014). "Ore Dock Strives to ReInvigorate Marquette History". Mitten Brew. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- "Brewery Awarded Gold Medals at 2014 World Beer Championships". Marquette Downtown Development Authority. January 25, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- "Ore Dock Brewing Co. brings home gold". Ishpeming, MI: WBUP-TV. December 23, 2014. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- "Ore Dock plans to distribute its ales in bottles". Mining Journal. June 22, 2014. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Cabell, Brian (October 5, 2015). "Ore Dock Expansion, L'Attitude Delay, New ABC 10 Newscast, Online Newspapers, Shakespeare, and Phil's 550". Word on the Street. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Mack, Julie (September 19, 2019). "Michigan's top 50 beer brewers, based on 2018 in-state sales". MLive.
- Mack, Julie (July 12, 2018). "Michigan's top 50 beer brewers, based on 2017 in-state sales". MLive.
- Hough, Lucy (November 8, 2012). "Ore Dock Brewery Brings Marquette Together". Awesome Mitten. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Shefchik, Claire (March 2, 2017). "Midwest Traveler: A new era in Marquette, Mich". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- McMillan, Erica (October 1, 2015). "The Brewing Stylings of Nick VanCourt". Marquette Magazine. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Cabell, Brian (February 17, 2016). "Wind Turbines in the UP, VAST Insurance in a Partnership, TV 6 on Facebook, Darwin and Beer, and a Street Party in the Snow". Word on the Street. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Magnaghi (2015), pp. 96–97.
- Gonzalez, John (September 24, 2013). "Michigan's Best Brewery: Our Top 10 list, plus the best newcomers, and more". MLive. Booth Newspapers. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Lynch, Matt; Robinson, Ben; Kryza, Andy (August 24, 2014). "Every State in the USA, Ranked By its Beer". Thrillist. Archived from the original on June 2, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
- Reddicliffe, Steve (July 27, 2017). "36 Hours in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan". The New York Times.
References
- Magnaghi, Russell (2015). Upper Peninsula Beer: A History of Brewing Above the Bridge. Charleston, SC: American Palate/The History Press. ISBN 978-1-62619-568-4.