USA, MI: Handmap Brewing preparing for soft opening in Battle Creek

Chris McCleary is paying homage to his hometown of Battle Creek, the Battle Creek Enquirer reported on June 5.

The co-owner and head brewer of Handmap Brewing previously worked at Chicago's Goose Island Brewery, where he came up with a process for flavoring a beer with Froot Loops.

"I told the guys I could do that. And there's brewer's code: you don't just make beer out of everything, or you'll be kind of laughed at a little bit," McCleary recalled. "I said, 'You can only get away with that if you are from Battle Creek. I can do whatever I want when it comes to cereal.'"

When Handmap Brewing introduced five barrels of the beer flavored by the Kellogg Co. cereal in May, "Two Can Mash" were packaged in four-pack of 16 oz cans at a cost of $22.

They sold out within 20 minutes.

"It was a little fun thing when we started out, but you don't know everybody is going to dig that beer," McCleary said. "That's one of the most asked for beers that we make. I don't know if that's because we're in Battle Creek or because the beer is good."

The next batch of Two Can Mash was being kegged on Thursday. It is expected to be on tap when Handmap Brewing opens its doors to the public at 15 Carlyle St. in downtown Battle Creek at the newly renovated Record Box building.

After Michigan reached phase four of Gov. Gretchen Whitmer's Safe Start plan, breweries are permitted to open at half capacity on Monday.

But McCleary and co-owner Jennifer Brown say they will first have a soft opening for friends and select members of their mug club. They are currently looking to add staff and prepare the brewery for better social distancing, and plan to announce their official open for the public date through the Handmap Brewery Facebook page.

"We'll do some soft openings for the next week or so to get used to our procedures with all the new rules with COVID," Brown said. "Work on the spacing and then put a date out for public opening as soon as we can and know for sure, which is hopefully in the next few weeks. We want to be safe."

In 2019, Farnham Ale & Lager brewery in Quebec sold a limited edition ‘Froot Loop’ IPA beer, before Kellogg Co. sent it a cease and desist letter for using the Froot Loop trademark as well as its can design depicting a toucan.

McCleary said he uses 15 pounds of Froot Loops as an ingredient in each 5-barrel batch. It's one of nine beers on the menu, which also includes a cider. Most of them are currently available for curbside pickup or carryout.

"The beer doesn't taste like you are eating a bowl of Froot Loops in a sense, but it does have a Froot Loop component to it if you smell the beer," he said. "It's paying respect. It's where we came from and I ate a ton of cereal as a kid. There was a box of cereal all over the house. Kellogg is right there, so it's even better. Hopefully they bring some folks over and try it."

When Handmap Brewing does open for the public, it will be at half of its 185-person capacity and patrons will be required to wear masks to enter.

Brown said it's not how the couple envisioned opening their startup, which was slated to have a soft opening on St. Patrick's Day, followed by a grand opening weekend on March 27.

"That way we have a couple weeks to staff up and work out the kinks, that's kind where we are at now," Brown said. "But everybody has been waiting so long and that they are really anxious to get in, but we are just not quite ready. We're anxious to get open as soon as we can."

While McCleary and Brown appreciate the community's support throughout the pandemic via curbside pickup, they say they are eager to eventually see their brewery as they had originally envisioned.

"The whole beer scene, it's our responsibility to make a good product to consume, but the experience is also special every place you go," McCleary said. "It's all about the people you are with and the social experience. I'm hoping we can have that again, because it's hard to imagine this business without being social."

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