Bell's Brewery, Inc. formerly Kalamazoo Brewing Company, founded by Larry
Bell as a home-brewing supply shop in 1983, sold its first beer in 1985.
Originally brewing in a 15-gallon soup kettle, the company has grown remarkably
from its production of 135 barrels (1 bbl = 31 gal.) in 1986 to over 90,000
barrels in 2007. Bell's Brewery has grown from a tiny operation renting part of
a former plumbing supply warehouse to a bustling, regional craft brewery. Over
twenty years of brewing, Bell's Brewery has built a nationwide reputation as a
creative and talented brewery, playing a significant role in changing the
beerscape of the nation.
Although the "microbrewery" revolution began on the West Coast in the 1970s, the
Midwest saw this brewing development much later. Bell's Brewery stands as the
oldest craft-brewer east of Boulder, Colorado. Originally self-distributed,
Larry and crew brewed, bottled and delivered all of the beer to market for the
company's first four years. By 1989, Bell's was shipping over 500 barrels
annually and assigned its first wholesaler to further establish itself across
the State of Michigan. After struggling several years to produce and sell
robust, full-bodied ales against a tide of a mass-market domestic beer, Bell's
began to see the demand for craft beer grow dramatically. Bell's soon ventured
outside Michigan, continuing its solid growth and developing a reputation across
the Midwest for the unique style and flavor of its Bell's brands. The brewery
currently sells its beer across a fifteen-state area, through a network of over
fifty quality wholesalers.
In 2003, Bell's proudly opened a new production brewery in nearby Comstock,
Michigan. The new brewery has now seen three major additions and encompasses
60,000 square feet of building on a 24 acre site The Quality Assurance
department has thrived in the new facilities, implementing procedures and
techniques that assure that Bell's is consistently putting out the very best
beer possible. Total brewing capacity now stands at 140,000 bbls. At the
Kalamazoo Avenue location, an historical rehabilitation has brought about a
pleasant architectural change to the city landscape.
Bells Beers
Third Coast Beer
Amber Ale Amber ale
Oberon Wheat Ale
Pale Ale
Two Hearted Ale India Pale ale
Porter
Kalamazoo Stout Stout
Best Brown Ale
Winter White Ale
Bell's Special Double Cream Stout
Cherry Stout
Java Stout
Third Coast Old Ale
Expedition Stout Imperial stout
Bell's Beer
Consecrator Doppelbock
Sparkling Ale
Twentieth Anniversary Ale
Batch 7,000 Ale
Batch 8,000 Ale
Lager Beer ("Lager of the Lakes") Lager
Hopslam Ale
Hell Hath No Fury ... Ale
Octoberfest Beer
Christmas Ale