Ore Dock Brewing Company

The Ore Dock Brewing Company is a craft brewery in Marquette, Michigan, that opened in 2012. It takes its name from the ore docks in the city, used to load iron ore pellets onto lake freighters.[1] Historian Russell Magnaghi has written that in the years since its founding, the brewery has "become a Marquette focal point and tourist destination."[2]

Lower tap room, with railroad spike tap handles
Upper community space
Reclamation IPA, Ore Dock's flagship beer

History

Ore Dock opened in May 2012.[3] It began bottling its beer in two years later,[4] and selling it outside of Marquette County in 2015. At this time, the brewery had enough capacity to brew 2,500 barrels per year—having expanded shortly before that from 850 barrels.[2][5] In 2018, Ore Dock sold 1,631 barrels of beer within Michigan, making it the forty-first largest brewer in the state. This total was down from 1,754 in 2017,[6] but up from 1,566 in 2016.[7] In 2021, the brewery received a $25,000 State of Michigan Match on Main Street grant.[8][9]

Beer

Ore Dock's beer is based on traditional Belgian and American styles. As of 2015, their most popular beers were the "Reclamation" IPA and "Dream Weaver," a Belgian ale with citrus and chamomile.[2] Reclamation, which news sources have described as Ore Dock's flagship beer,[10] is named for recycled material that was reused in constructing the brewery.[2][11] The beer, described by Ore Dock's head brewer as a "mid-coast" IPA that "not as hop-forward as its west coast counterparts, nor is it as malty as what you often find out east," won the 2014 Beverage Tasting Institute World Beer Championships Gold Medal.[12][13] In 2019, Ore Dock began selling hard seltzer, becoming the first Upper Peninsula brewery to offer the product.[14]

Location
External video
Virtual tour of the brewery

The brewery is located in a former automobile repair shop and the second floor of an adjoining building, which functions as a community and event space.[10][15] Described as "a loft space full of reclaimed barn wood,"[16] the spaces include material from the auto garage that inhabited the spaces before the brewery moved in.[2] The upstairs community space, charged with putting on events that emphasize visual arts and musical acts, hosts fundraisers, lectures, weddings, private parties, and musical acts.[10][17][18][19] In 2022, the brewing purchased an adjoining building at 214 S. Front St. with the intent to demolish and create a beer garden in its place. They also announced their intent to increase their size and brewing capacity. As of 2022, these projects will require a private investment estimated at $1.5 million.[20]

Recognition

In 2013, Ore Dock was ranked by MLive as one of the best new breweries in the state of Michigan.[21] One year later, it was the only brewery from the Upper Peninsula mentioned by Thrillist in a ranking of every state by its beer.[22] In 2017, it was recommended in The New York Times travel section.[23]

See also

Endnotes
  1. Counts, Jeff (2014). Explorer's Guide Michigan. The Countryman Press. ISBN 1581576951.
  2. Magnaghi (2015), p. 96.
  3. Eggleston, Sam (July 11, 2012). "Ore Dock Brewery opens its doors in Marquette". Upper Peninsula Second Wave. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  4. "Ore Dock plans to distribute its ales in bottles". Mining Journal. June 22, 2014. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  5. Cabell, Brian (October 5, 2015). "Ore Dock Expansion, L'Attitude Delay, New ABC 10 Newscast, Online Newspapers, Shakespeare, and Phil's 550". Word on the Street. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  6. Mack, Julie (September 19, 2019). "Michigan's top 50 beer brewers, based on 2018 in-state sales". MLive.
  7. Mack, Julie (July 12, 2018). "Michigan's top 50 beer brewers, based on 2017 in-state sales". MLive.
  8. Jaehnig, Graham. "Making use of new money: Houghton business one of 41 across Michigan to be awarded grant funding". Mining Gazette. Houghton, Michigan.
  9. "Gov. Whitmer Awards Funding to 41 Small Businesses in 28 Communities to Support 228 Jobs and Grow Michigan's Economy" (press release). State of Michigan. December 16, 2021. Retrieved March 11, 2022.
  10. Klug, Fritz (September 13, 2013). "Michigan's Best Brewery: Ore Dock Brewing Co. offers community space, reintroduction to Belgian and American-style beer". MLive. Booth Newspapers. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  11. Orttenburger, Marie (May 1, 2014). "Ore Dock Strives to ReInvigorate Marquette History". Mitten Brew. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  12. "Brewery Awarded Gold Medals at 2014 World Beer Championships". Marquette Downtown Development Authority. January 25, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  13. "Ore Dock Brewing Co. brings home gold". Ishpeming, MI: WBUP-TV. December 23, 2014. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  14. Sherman, Amy (September 6, 2019). "Why we won't apologize for drinking these Michigan-made hard seltzers". MLive. Retrieved October 22, 2021.
  15. Hough, Lucy (November 8, 2012). "Ore Dock Brewery Brings Marquette Together". Awesome Mitten. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  16. Shefchik, Claire (March 2, 2017). "Midwest Traveler: A new era in Marquette, Mich". Star Tribune. Minneapolis. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  17. McMillan, Erica (October 1, 2015). "The Brewing Stylings of Nick VanCourt". Marquette Magazine. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  18. Cabell, Brian (February 17, 2016). "Wind Turbines in the UP, VAST Insurance in a Partnership, TV 6 on Facebook, Darwin and Beer, and a Street Party in the Snow". Word on the Street. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  19. Magnaghi (2015), pp. 96–97.
  20. LaCombe, Andrew. "Ore Dock Beer Garden Brownfield Plan gets Marquette City Commission approval". Upper Michigan's Source. Negaunee, Michigan: WLUC-TV.
  21. Gonzalez, John (September 24, 2013). "Michigan's Best Brewery: Our Top 10 list, plus the best newcomers, and more". MLive. Booth Newspapers. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  22. Lynch, Matt; Robinson, Ben; Kryza, Andy (August 24, 2014). "Every State in the USA, Ranked By its Beer". Thrillist. Archived from the original on June 2, 2015. Retrieved June 5, 2017.
  23. Reddicliffe, Steve (July 27, 2017). "36 Hours in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan". The New York Times.

References
  • Magnaghi, Russell (2015). Upper Peninsula Beer: A History of Brewing Above the Bridge. Charleston, SC: American Palate/The History Press. ISBN 978-1-62619-568-4.
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