Harmony Brewing Company opens in Eastown

For the past several years, the city of Grand Rapids has been garnering attention for its numerous and popular micro-breweries. The newest addition is Harmony Brewing Company, located at Lake Drive and Wealthy Street. The establishment is owned by Heather VanDyke-Titus and her two brothers, Barry and Jackson VanDyke. Harmony is not only the name of the brewery, but also the theme of the selection of beers brewed there.

Harmony Brewing Company has five beers intended for a variety of beer drinkers. There is the Black Squirrel, a smokey peated porter; the Star Stuff, a Belgian dubbel; the Golden Lion Tamarin, a pale mild; the Brownson Pinchot, an American brown; and the Crossroads, a rye pale ale. All five beers are traditional flavors but each one stands out with its own unique taste. If you consider yourself a beer snob, try the Black Squirrel or the Crossroads. The Black Squirrel is the signature beer and boasts a peaty scotch-like flavor with a smokey aftertaste. The taste is very unique and is likely to be different than anything you have ever tried before. If you appreciate IPAs, have the Crossroads. If you are looking for hops, this will not disappoint. For those who are beer shy, choose the Golden Lion, which is a traditional pale and mild beer that is easy to drink. Luckily, all of these beers are available in a sampler, so you can try them all for yourself.

If beer is not your drink of choice, Harmony offers a variety of wines. I recommend the Avia, a Sauvignon Blanc, and the Umani Ranchi, a Montepulciano. The Avia has a sweet, light aftertaste with bubbly characteristics and the Umani Ranchi has an upfront tartness that goes down smooth with a very clean aftertaste. Or you can try the wine flight, which offers three wines of your choosing. Harmony Brewing Company also offers specialty cocktails, liquors, and cordials.

If you are hungry, consider trying one of the brewery's 12” thin crust, wood fired pizzas. You can order a specialty pizza or build your own. I suggest ordering the Good Earth or the Eastown Folk Funk. The Good Earth has fresh spinach, mushrooms, caramelized onions, Jarlsberg cheese and fresh basil. Try this if you enjoy thin and crispy onions on your pizza. The Eastown Folk Funk has fresh spinach, kalamata olives, and goat cheese. This pizza boasts generous portions of goat cheese and a crust that soaks up the juice from the olives. If neither of these spark your interest, just look to the menu, which boasts nontraditional pizza combinations with delicious toppings like prosciutto, sausage, pork, fresh mozzarella, artichokes, or charred pineapple.

Heather VanDyke-Titus, one of the owners, mentioned that the West Michigan brewery community was very generous in helping Harmony Brewing Company get off the ground. Saugatuck Brewing Company, HopCat, and Brewery Vivant were all contributors to the evolution and development of the brewery by educating the owners on brewing equipment and all necessary paperwork that goes with opening and operating a brewery. Harmony, in turn, plans on assisting another brewery in the area, Elk Brewery, with the opening of their brewery.

Future plans for Harmony Brewing Company include becoming more involved with the West Michigan Co Op and West Michigan Farm Link to serve fresh, local food and to open Black Squirrel University, a speaker series that will feature special guests who share their passions.

Harmony Brewing Company opens February 1st and you can find more information on their Facebook page.

Special thank you to Ross Hunter for his help in taste testing the beers and pizzas.