It is not uncommon for folks in this city to attend an event devoted to pitching an idea, whether it is a 5x5 Night or #100Ideas. But this week until March 19,
the Mitten Brewing Company welcomes back their second annual “Art of Pitching” series.
Unlike the startup variety, this local westside brewery with plenty of nods to baseball within its tasting room, will release six experimental brews culminating at a special event on March 19.
The Mitten Brewing Company, long a provider of unique brews to Grand Rapids’ Beer City brewscape, has built itself around showcasing the many and diverse worlds of craft beer with a nod to the popular national pastime of baseball.
When talking about baseball, the act of pitching refers to throwing the ball towards home plate to begin a play. However in brewing beer, when you “pitch,” it refers to the time in which one throws yeast into wort to start the fermentation process. The annual “Art of Pitching” series offers Mitten brewers an opportunity to test out new ingredients and techniques.
The 2018 “Pitching” series really kicks in on Monday, Mar. 19, when all six beers will be tapped at the popular pub. Monday is also The Mitten Brewing Company’s “Flight Night,” which offers flights at 25 percent off from 4 p.m. to close. Visitors are invited to purchase a flight of all six beers.
To vote on your favorite at the Art of Pitching, check out the brewery’s Facebook poll that will be open on that Monday only.
The event also provides an opportunity for a charitable component to the Mar. 19 event: from 5-8 p.m., a portion of the sales will be donated to the brewery’s spring and summer charity project, the “Ted Rasberry Gift.”
The money from this event will go to the Whitecaps Community Foundation to fund the Inner City Youth Baseball and Softball Program—a free program for inner-city youth ages 6 to14 that holds games at seven neighborhood parks, including Rasberry Field.
And who knows, maybe after all the dust settles on this series, a new popular brew will be born and a new reason to celebrate the craft of brewing and the creative spirit devoted to this process will be born (again).
The styles on tap this year include an India Pale Lager, Blackberry Black Gose, Rye Stout with oak spirals, Imperial Roggenbier, Bohemian Pilsner, and the brewery’s first New England IPA — and all will have baseball-reflecting names.