I thought I knew nothing about Michigan Breweries. But one of the nice things about being in Ontario is that is practically stretches from Vermont to the Dakotas leaving lots of opportunity for me and my pals to zip across and then barter their bottles. That is what happened the other week when I was able to snag a selection from Bells. I suppose I have also grabbed, somewhere along the way, that Jolly Pumpkin that sits in the stash as well as an Arcadia, the Celis or two or three that Michigan Breweries brew and, all in all, a few more ales from the Mitten State. My life apparently includes Michigan. And I was especially happy when the Amazon package delivered this 2006 publication, realizing now that my in-laws live only a little more than an hour from Port Huron, Mich. giving me an excuse for international travel when I find myself facing...err...a reunion. It is all about preparation, folks.

Anyway, this book is published by Stackpole Books and follows the series format set so admirably by Lew Bryson in his three books about New York and Pennsylvania as well as the mid-Atlantic States of Virginia, Maryland and Delaware. You get the breweries and brewpubs arranged by region with a report on a visit as well as vital statistics for every spot in the state. You usually get a bit of an interview with the brewer or owner, too. Then you also get back ground information, some discussion of the law, some cultural tidbits, a bit of history a bit of travel guide and a bunch of maps. Best of all, you get an honest review. Not that anyone is out to butcher the hard working folk that make craft beer, but when you read the piece as a whole, you get a clear sense of where your priorities should be. The series forms a contextual guide that really needs to be extended every state in the nation as well as the regions of Canada.

It is crazy that I cannot get my hands on New Holland brews in the north-east USA - let alone here in Ontario - and that I only only see the odd Jolly Pumpkin [Ed.: craft brew in-joke] from time to time. But this book will give anyone the knowledge they need to get their hands on the good stuff. I just wish Ruschmann and Nasiatka would also follow Bryson's lead and keep updating the text on-line as he has for his trio. It is a great way to avoid rapid obsolescence of some really good specific research presented in a useful way.