HopCat @ Grand Rapids, Michigan
So I need to start this post off with a full disclosure. I know this site is supposed to be about the Asheville beer scene, but a few weeks ago, my mom (who lives in Michigan) had to have some crazy stomach surgery. This afforded me the grand opportunity to fly up to Michigan for a "family visit." Less than an hour after my plane landed, I was plotting a course, hopefully for excellent craft beer. I was even able to bring my mom, who was recovering well, and wife along to enjoy the adventure. Let me tell you about it...
You might remember that Grand Rapids, MI, has been named Beer City, USA in the past. It's got a ton of great places to try some fantastic local beers. I got to try out HopCat and was really glad that I did. The entrance is inviting, the music was a great mix of hits from the '90s, the appetizers were great, and the incredibly large beer selection was even better. We ordered some of their famous Crack Fries to start with, and let me tell you, it was amazing! Eating these delicious fries with a beer cheese dip, at a brewpub, with a beer in hand, might have been the best thing that happened to me on the entire trip!
HopCat has approximately 50 beers on tap. Several of them are made by HopCat or are collaboration beers. I was privileged to try one called "High Class Gentlemen." This was a collaboration between HopCat and High Five Co-op Brewery. A beautiful Scotch ale/wee heavy that was aged on scotch-soaked Spanish cedar blocks from Montecristo cigar boxes. High Class Gentlemen had a malty body with great wood tones from the cedar and hinted of vanilla and cherry. A high class beer for a fine gentleman or lovely lady like you or me! I would definitely like to have this one again. The second beer I imbibed was called Unicorn On Acid. It was an American Wild Ale with a hazy copper color, an elegant white head with nice lacing. It had a nice tart flavor from the yeast and probably acid malt. It tasted good, but if I'm having a sour beer, I want it to be really sour and attack my taste buds, which just didn't happen with this one. In all fairness, though, it was an American Wild and not technically a sour, I suppose. So it did not win any awards in my book, but I never regret trying a local beer that I've never had before.
We especially enjoyed their Loaded Crack Fries. There's a double meaning there! As in they use their signature cracked black pepper seasoning and they are so addictive and tasty it's like crack. Not that I would know. These babies were loaded with good stuff! Hickory smoked bacon, red onion, and pickled jalapeño, and then the piece de resistance - they are smothered in warm cheese sauce. This is not your average cheese sauce from a can. It was a homemade beer-flavored white cheese sauce that melts in your mouth and makes you think you've gone to cheese heaven. (Trust me, I have some experience with this. I'm originally from Wisconsin, the cheese capital of the States.) They're so good that Food Network Magazine named HopCat's Crack Fries among America's 10 Best French Fries.
One other nice thing about HopCat is that they have several locations from Grand Rapids, MI to Chicago, IL, Madison, WI to Detroit, MI, and Lexington, KY to Kalamazoo, MI, just to list a few.
Bottom line:
If you ever get a chance, GO TO HOPCAT!!! You won't regret it!
