Here are 10 of the best Michigan craft beers to try this fall

It's been fall for more than a month, and the autumn beer season is really getting into swing.

As always this time of year, Michigan craft beer is getting bigger, bolder and darker. But there are some interesting wrinkles, from old favorites making a comeback to year-round beers getting a special edition that's worth trying.

Here are a few beers to scope out at your local beer stores and taps through the second half of fall. After all, you've got some holidays coming up to plan for. (As always, please drink responsibly.)

Six Sprocket Black Ale

6% alcohol by volume, Blackrocks Brewery

First, the bad news: Coconut Brown, Blackrocks' seasonal brown ale, is out of commission. The good news, however, is the Marquette-based brewery replaced it with Six Sprocket, a bright and roasty black ale with dark chocolate notes and bitterness. It's quite smooth, with a dry finish, and at 6% ABV, it's a relatively sessionable dark beer that's sure to be a hit at holiday parties.

Norm's Night Owl Winter IPA

7.1% ABV, Griffin Claw Brewing Co.

It's true that many flagship IPAs out there now also have a dark counterpart (Black-Hearted Ale, anyone?), but Norm's IPA, formerly known as Norm's Raggedy Ass IPA, is one of the better offerings out there, whether on tap or in cans, and Norm's Night Owl is true to form in being a darker, roastier version of it. Dark, toasty malts balance out the floral and piney hops, followed by a pleasant, bitter finish.

Coffee Cake Brown Ale

7% ABV, Pigeon Hill Brewing Co.

If you don't mind a sweeter beer, consider this latest offering from Muskegon-based Pigeon Hill; it's a traditional brown ale infused with coffee, cinnamon, vanilla and brown sugar notes, to mimic the flavor profile of a coffee cake. It's a solid dessert beer, much like Donut Stop Believin', and a little bit on the lighter side for a 7% brew, so it doesn't feel like too much. Pigeon Hill also released Holiday Cookie blonde ale into distribution, if you're fancying something lighter.

Grapefruit B-43 Brut IPA

7% ABV, Old Nation Brewing Co.

The B-43 remains one of my favorite staple beers because of its clean, dry, hoppy character while coming in at just 3 grams of carbs, perfect for calorie-conscious drinkers. Williamston-based Old Nation is now doing what it did with fellow IPA favorites M-43 and Boss Tweed and released a special edition, Grapefruit B-43, that maintains the same hop recipe but is infused with grapefruit. As Old Nation's website notes, it may be low carbs, but it's full of flavor.

Wizard Burial Ground Belgian Quadrupel Ale

13.8% ABV, Brewery Vivant

It's time to get into the barrel-aged goodness. Wizard Burial Ground is an annual release from Brewery Vivant, based in an old Grand Rapids funeral home, but the 2023 release is quite special; this year's blend was aged a year and a half in Buffalo Trace barrels, adding boozy whiskey heat to an already sweet, Belgiany brew with caramel, toffee, dried fruit and vanilla notes. I recommend letting this one warm up a little bit before tasting and, if you get a 4-pack, Vivant suggests aging a couple for a few years.

Mad Hatter Midwest IPA

7% ABV, New Holland Brewing Co.

New Holland, Michigan's largest independent brewery, brought back its flagship Mad Hatter IPA after four years out of commission. This bright, hoppy IPA is brewed with Centennial, Citra and Michigan-grown Cascade hops and is bursting with citrus, pine and earthy notes. Mad Hatter is one of those Michigan beers that was long dependable, whether packaged or on tap, before it left shelves in 2019, so it's good to see it back in the fold.

Peanut Butter Birch Bark Porter

6.1% ABV, Kickstand Brewing Co.

As a peanut butter porter enthusiast, I wasn't about to write this list without featuring one. Peanut Butter Birch Bark Porter is, as advertised, the peanut butter variant of Kickstand's flagship Birch Bark Porter, and it's rich with peanut butter and chocolate notes while remaining on the slightly lighter side at 6.1% ABV, with a smooth, sweet finish. It's another solid dessert beer and, if you're ever near the Commerce Township area in metro Detroit, Kickstand's brewpub is worth checking out for a pint this holiday season.

Fresh Hop Farmhouse Ale

5.4% ABV, Farm Club

You've seen me write about Farm Club in this space in the past, and there's a reason I continue to bring it up: Farm Club continues to crank out clean, delicious beers using local ingredients, and Fresh Hop Farmhouse is no different. It's brewed with wild yeast and hopped with MI Comet and MI Centennial hops from Michigan's Hop Alliance Farm, producing a funky but pleasant flavor profile featuring lemon zest, bubblegum and citrus notes.

Krumpusbock German-style Bock Lager

7.2% ABV, Odd Side Ales

As always, Grand Haven-based Odd Side has a wide slate of holiday releases worth trying, including After Dinner Mint - one of my favorite beers from Detroit's Fall Beer Festival - and the ever-popular Hazel's Nuts. But I wanted to shine light on Krumpusbock, which was a brewpub favorite for the past couple years and is now finally in distribution. As Odd Side puts it, it's "a dark, strong, malty German lager that emphasizes the malty-rich and somewhat toasty qualities of continental malts without being sweet in the finish." I love a good bock this time of year and, if you're like me, this is sure to be satisfying.

Canadian Breakfast Stout

11.7% ABV, Founders Brewing Co.

Yes, it's true: After a four-year hiatus, CBS will return to shelves in late November. Founders mentioned in 2019 that it had no plans to release new batches of CBS but, given its notoriety as one of America's best craft beers, it was only a matter of time before the Grand Rapids beer giant busted it back out. For those new to the CBS experience, it's an imperial stout featuring coffee and chocolate notes, aged in bourbon barrels that previously held maple syrup. Expect it back in bottles and on taps by the end of the month.

Brian Manzullo covers craft alcohol for the Free Press. Contact him: bmanzullo@freepress.com and on Untappd, bmanzullo and Twitter, @BrianManzullo and @SpiritsofDET.

This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Michigan craft beer: Top 10 beers to try for fall 2023