Florian East, Hamtramck’s First Microbrewery, Opens Labor Day Weekend | Eater Detroit

"After six years and more than 1,000 shoe boxes, Hamtramck’s first microbrewery opened on August 29 in a former shoe store at 9530 Jos Campau Avenue, where the team cleared out thousands of shoes and framed a few uniquely designed boxes above long wooden benches. I learned the space is 1,500 square feet including the brewhouse, seats 94, and feels airy thanks to large, rounded-top windows that greet visitors in six languages (one inscription even appears in Aramaic/Chaldean), while a rose motif discovered behind plaster inspired the logo and decor. The owners — Shang Kong, Milo Madole, Chris Burtley, John Abbo, and head brewer Will Mundel (formerly of Eastern Market Brewing Company) — represent Hamtramck’s Iraqi American, Chinese American, and Black communities and aimed to create a welcoming atmosphere with offerings for both drinkers and non-drinkers. The brewery serves rotating drafts, three hand pumps dedicated to cask, hand pulls, draft mocktails, and Cosmcks (cocktail-inspired seltzers made in-house), plus a range of nonalcoholic options; beer styles include a dry-hopped golden ale, many low-ABV beers such as European-style lagers and hoppy American ales, and a goal in year one to use 100 percent Michigan-grown hops (malt sourced from Sugar Creek, Indiana). I saw that the brew tanks were stored in Mundel’s backyard during the build-out and moved in by crane, the tap handles are backed by Polish pottery from the Polish Art Center, custom benches were made by neighborhood Woodward Throwbacks, and the space will host local pop-ups and food trucks and screen Premier League matches on weekend mornings while serving only nonalcoholic beverages; collaborations already on or coming to tap include Urbanrest’s Grodziskie, Watermark’s sage wheat beer (with sage from Mundel’s garden), and a session cold IPA with Batch Brewing. Hours are 2 p.m.–10 p.m., Wednesday through Sunday." - Courtney Burk