This past weekend for Father’s Day, Crystal and I traveled to Flint to go and have dinner with her brother and sister-in-law and spend some time with 7 of our nieces and nephews. That was not a typo, they have 7 kids. Yes, they are a handful at times but we love them all. Of course we didn’t travel up to Flint without hitting some breweries along the way.
Our first stop on this trip was to Holly, Michigan to pay another visit to Battle Alley Brewing Company. Battle Alley opened up in the year 2022 and this was my third trip to their brewery, where they have been serving up excellent products for the past 3 years. Prior to being Battle Alley, this building used to house Northern Oak Brewing Company. I used to stop at Northern Oak when I was in the area for a previous job, usually to have some lunch and get a growler or two filled. Since I was a driver, I couldn’t really drink on my visits to Northern Oak. On my visits to Battle Alley though, I have enjoyed multiple beers on every visit.
One of the owners of Battle Alley, Dave Elliott, is a consistent follower of the page. So much so that when I announced my plans to visit the brewery on Sunday, he reached out about 10 minutes after the post went live and said that he would keep the beer cold for me until I arrived. When I entered the brewery, Dave greeted Crystal and I immediately and told us to make ourselves at home. He offered us a tour of the facility which we of course took him up on that offer.
As promised, Dave not only kept the beer cold for us, but he kept the hospitality nice and warm for us also. I don’t think that this was just because he knew who I was though, in the hour and a half we spent at the brewery, Dave was the hardest working owner I had ever seen at a brewery. He was everywhere all at once, helping customers, staff, changing kegs and running food. Dave was on top of everything and I believe everyone gets the same effort and attention from Dave when they are in the building whether they run a beer page or not. I saw this happen with my own eyes on my visit. Cheers to you Dave!
I could gush on and on about how awesome Dave Elliott was during our visit and get a whole article or maybe even a two parter out of it, but I think Dave would appreciate it even more if I spend some time talking about the brewery itself.
When it comes to the brewery, when you enter the building, the first thing that you will notice is the plethora of space that the brewery has to offer. The bar is a very nice, wooden, U-shaped bar that seats approximately 15 to 20 craft beer aficionados. In addition to the bar area there are another 15 tables placed strategically around the space for your drinking and dining needs. If you enjoy sitting outside and drinking a few beers while catching some sun rays, Battle Alley has you covered. There is a smaller seating area in front of the brewery with 2 picnic tables and a few four seater tables for your enjoyment.
If you arrived at the brewery with an appetite to go with your raging thirst, you are in luck, Battle Alley does offer a full kitchen on site. Their kitchen produces high quality food items such as appetizers, soups, salads, create your own bowl options, burgers, sandwiches, various sides and dessert options. Even though we were meeting for dinner in just a few hours, we procured an order of their brisket nachos to nibble on while we enjoyed our beers. The nachos were delectable and were swimming in one of the best tasting homemade quesos I have ever tasted at a brewery.
Battle Alley does host a few events at the brewery on occasion such as an open mic night, silent book clubs and many other events. Check their social media or give them a call to see if they are hosting an event during your next trip to Holly. In addition to brewery events, they do offer the option of renting out their space for private events. If you are looking to host an event in the Holly area, I highly recommend that you reach out to Battle Alley and inquire about hosting it at the taproom.
Before we get to talking about the beer at Battle Alley, for those in your gang that don’t drink beer, Battle Alley does have various alcoholic options such as Seltzer, Wine and Cider for you to partake in. For the little ones and the non-drinkers, they offer a few soda options for your enjoyment.
First thing is first when it comes to the beer, Battle Alley will have a beer option for every taste on tap when you visit. This becomes very obvious when you notice that they have a capacity of 24 taps, with most of them having something pouring out of them at all times. Not only do they have 24 taps, but the taps are all filled with quality beer. Some of the beers that I have enjoyed on my visits to Battle Alley include Suspicious Alibi- Oatmeal Stout, Take the Biscuit- English Brown, Helles-D- Helles Lager, Celtic Craic- Double Irish Red, Copperline- Amber Ale, Bevins Coast- American IPA, 1865- American Porter, and Root Down Sour Peach. The Root Down was Crystal’s favorite from this trip.
My personal favorite that I have tried over the years was actually on Sunday’s visit to the brewery, The Night Drifter. This is an Imperial Stout that checks in at 10.3% ABV. Enjoy this one very cautiously, it will catch up on you in a hurry if you aren’t paying attention. Upon first taste you get a roasty, creamy Stout with a very nice chocolate presence that despite its high octane nature finishes so smooth that it should be considered illegal. Then for a pro tip, I suggest letting the Stout warm up a little bit before finishing it. This allows a little more of a dried, stone fruit flavor to show up to the party. Either way you drink it, you will be enjoying one of the nicer Imperial Stouts that has hit my taste buds in a long while.
Now if you are driving through the Holly area and you are looking to enjoy a few high-quality beers in an awesome setting, I highly recommend that you stop off and pay Dave Elliott and Battle Alley Brewing Company a visit. I would even recommend making a trip just to drink at the brewery. If you don’t stop, that is on you, this place is absolutely awesome and not stopping off for a beer is your loss. Cheers!
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