Strange
Brew

Grizzly Peak
Brewing Co.
will quench Ann
Arbor's thirst for
home-brewed
beers.

LESLEY PEARL STAFF WRITER
DAN LIPPITT PHOTOGRAPHY

Grizzly Peak Brewing
Co. has not yet opened,
but its owners Barry
Seifer and Jennifer
Kirscht already have a
following.
The bar and restau-
rant, to be located at the
site of the former
Cracked Crab on
Washington Street in
Ann Arbor, will be one of
Michigan's first brew-
pubs — producing and
selling its own ales, pil-
sners and stouts.
At 4 p.m. June 5, Mr.

Barry Seller and Jennifer Kirscht hope to open Grizzly Peak Brewing Co. in June.

Seifer and Ms. Kirscht
acquired the building at
112 W. Washington. Mr.
Seifer made arrange-
ments for a keg of Old
Detroit Ale to be waiting
at the site when he, his
wife and two investors
arrived.
"The four of us sat
down at barstools in
front of the window and
started celebrating," Mr.
Seifer said. "Everything
had been left as it was
the day the Cracked
Crab closed. We had no

heat, no electricity. Just
a keg of beer on ice and
all the glasses we could
steal.
"By the end of the
night 50 people were
there. Strangers stopped
in and we invited them
to stay. I got all their
cards and invited them
back two weeks later."
"This room has some
magic in it," Mr. Seifer
said.
Mr. Seifer and Ms.
Kirscht hope to open their
doors officially this June.

However, getting cus-
tomers into Grizzly Peak
may prove easier than
getting the legislation
passed that will make
the brewpub a reality.
Former liquor control
laws in Michigan sepa-
rated the retailer from
the manufacturer. Gov .
John Engler signed the
bill that changed that in
December. The new law
allows Michigan beer-
makers to jump on the
microbrewery bandwag-
on, serving pilsners and
porters made on the
premises. However,
unlike some states,
Michigan will not allow
brewers to keg and bottle
their libations for sale
off-site.
The efforts of Kevin
McKinney, the lobbyist
Mr. Seifer and Ms.
Kirscht hired to help
change Michigan'g laws,
will not go unnoticed.
McKinney's Irish
Stout will hold a
permanent
spot on the
beer menu
at Grizzly
Peak.
Grizzly
Peak, the
name of a
street in Berke-
ley, Calif., where
Mr. Seifer used to ride
his bike, will host on a
regular basis seven ales,
one rotating pilsner and
various specialty beers
like Bock and October-
fest brews. In addition,
Grizzly Peak will serve
up both typical bar fare,
ribs and burgers, and
upscale, finer dining
items. Grizzly Peak will
have a full bar.
While Mr. Seifer works