Gravel Bottom Craft Brewery and Supply is owned by Matt Michiels. Growing up near Battle Creek, the decision to build the business in Ada is a no brainer. Matt Michiels and his wife Erica, who is a local physician live in Ada. According to him, the village had a small-town feel and a great neighborhood. He knows the area has a good business community and being able to ride his bike to get to work was an additional perk to Matt. The name Gravel Bottom came from Ada’s history of gravel mining and is an ode to an area up north that Matt Michiels often visits.
The West Michigan side has a few great breweries, but what if the visitor also wants to buy some supplies as well? It is important to consult an expert before purchasing any brewing equipment. This challenged Matt to solve the gap in the industry. Gravel Bottom Craft Brewery and Supply aims to serve Ada by providing the community great tasting craft brews and by providing the necessary equipment a budding home brewer might need. We all know that the brewing industry is incredibly supportive of each other, and in this way, people who are interested in home brewing wouldn’t have to travel far in search of brewing equipment starter kit. It’s like hitting two birds with one stone, you get your supplies to make beer, and you get to sit down and grab a beer.
Go all out, be a beer geek, and have a chat with the staff at the bar. The business aims to develop close ties with the community by being the goto place for anything related to brewing beers, and if you need education, tips, or just casual advice, the staff at Gravel Bottom will be there to help you.
According to Matt Michiels, who is a sole investor and owner of Gravel Bottom, the idea of owning a brewery and adding equipment for beer-making has been lingering for a few years. They started by featuring a couple of employees, each of them must have brewing experience, and has to have knowledge about the process, in short, they have to be a brewer of some sort so they can help the customers if ever they have questions.
The brewery started without a kitchen, visitors can bring outside food or have them delivered at Gravel Bottom, thus helping neighboring businesses. The brewery is located in 418 Ada Drive in Ada Village, it has a 1200 square foot brewery side is a three-barrel system that has a capacity to make 100 gallon batch. The store side has 800 square foot space and brewers can buy 7- to 80 types of bulk grain, kits for extract brewing, and other essential brewing equipment and supplies.
One unique fact about Gravel Bottom is that they open the recipes to customers and give it to them so they can adjust the flavors to their liking. This one of the reasons why Matt hired people who have knowledge about brewing. By providing alternatives and other options to suit the customer’s preference, the people who visit their brewery are encouraged to make their own brew of beer by using Gravel Bottom’s recipe and supplies.
To name a few of their popular beer currently being served on tap are Ram Jam, a sweet blackberry cider with a 6.5% ABV. Country Girl is a light, clean, and refreshing blonde ale added with oats that gives that distinct nuttiness to the malt flavor. The finish is a subtle honey like sweetness and has a 4.7% ABV. NY Hopsolution, a Black IPA, Cascadian Dark Ale that is a doubled version of the classic Bucketfoot. Dark, thick, and hoppy. Bucketfoot, also a Black IPA, Cascadian Dark Ale. This mainstay has a careful balance between the bitterness of the hops and the intense specialty malts. The satisfying black IPA has notes of chocolate and coffee. Migratory Coconut is an American Brown ale that is biscuity, malty coconut taste. Little Buster is an oatmeal stout that is creamy, toasty, and has a soft malt sweetness. Detour is a malty brown ale that uses whole bean Honduras coffee from Jam N Bean Coffee Co. Skullduggery is an American IPA that has a medium body with a slight caramel sweetness to balance out fruity and piney hops. Dam God is an American IPA that has a light body with bold flavors. This quickly became one of Gravel Bottom’s most popular beers that was developed for Ada’s Beers at the Bridge event. Big Winner is a German style lager, brewed with traditional ingredients to achieve that crisp, malty flavor.
In May 11 of 2018, after a year of construction, Gravel Bottom Craft Brewery and Supply moved to a bigger location, but still in its hometown, in the village of Ada. It relocated to a new building next to the new Kingma’s Market near the corner of Ada Drive and Fulton Street. The brewery in 452 Ada Drive features a bigger taproom compared to their previous location. They also expanded their tap offerings, food, and extensive on-site brewery capacity. The taproom has a capacity to seat 75 people indoors and the outdoor patio can seat up to 50 people. Gravel Bottom also upgraded their brewing equipment and the craft beer choices that are offered were expanded. The new location of the brewery has a small kitchen that allowed them to whip up food that goes best with the beer of choice to enhance the craft beer experience. According to the team that oversaw the new taproom’s look, Matt liked the design of the existing space and he was looking forward to recreating the same look and feel. R.O.I Design nailed it, from the warm color palette for the paint, industrial warehouse inspired lights, reclaimed wood, and vintage looking brick completed the whole design that Matt was aiming for. Finally, the amazing concrete bar top was added to the new bar, achieving that familiar, cozy feel that the brewery has been known for.