Get To Know Us

The Beardly Origins

207A Howard St--Original Pub 1.0

brew room

Click to view tour of original 207A Pub location.

Beards Brewery was founded in 2012 by two Petoskey locals who had a common passion: craft. Armed with determined intent, Ben Slocum and Peter Manthei began a home brewing partnership, which, fueled by demand, led them to take the plunge into commercial brewing. In between finishing college degrees, both brainstormed and built the beginnings of the small but mighty brewery that opened on Howard Street in the heart of downtown Petoskey.

In those first few years at Beards Brewery, from August 2012 to April 2017 to be exact, we created over 100 delicious recipes inspired by local, seasonal products as well as outdoor activities and our beautiful surrounding area of Northern Michigan. Veteran beers like Serendipity Porter, Luna, and Oh! The Citranity! were born here. Our original pub featured 10 taps, countless board games, local art, a well-used record player, unique community events (we hosted a Dinosaur Dig & Back to the Future parties!) and a cozy space for small groups of family and friends to meet, catch-up, and enjoy a good brew.

215 E Lake St.--Home is Where the Heart is

Bar1

In April 2017, we walked down our hallway atrium one last time and finally closed our doors on Howard St. But we didn’t go far! Just a couple of blocks away on Lake Street we opened our doors to our new home, right on the edge of downtown Petoskey overlooking Little Traverse Bay. Where Howard Street was the beginning of our adventure, Lake Street is going to be another huge part, and these newer digs have definitely allowed us a stronger foundation to grow our Beards family and brand altogether, offering more space for local art, game and trivia nights, community events (we built a Halloween maze and had a 15 foot Christmas tree party already!), concert series for local musicians, and much more. We also have a huge outdoor patio overlooking the bay, complete with a firepit, plenty of seating, and direct access to the bar.

Our new home has allowed us to increase to 24 taps, which means our brew team and collective imaginations have been churning out even more delicious recipes! Definitely check out our Pub Tap releases on social media for the newest brews to get tapped alongside some of our veteran beers. 

To take that next step in our craft game, Beards is super stoked to be able to offer a full, locally-inspired food menu with pub favorites such as pizzas, sandwiches, and wings. We also feature a very approachable kids menu as well as specials depending on the week and our consumers’ appetites. Beards crafts our food and beer to be paired together for an even more unique, Northern Michigan experience. Be sure to ask any of us for pairing suggestions and favorites!

As tradition since 2012, we also still brew on-site at our Petoskey Pub location. In our basement we house our original Howard Street 1BBL system as well as our newer 3BBL system. This allows us to continue to experiment and bring you new recipes and beverages like Honeydew Seltzer and Pink Suburban Shandy. 

The Beards Mission

patio staff shot

Here at Beards we embrace quality and balance in all of our practices where it all started with brewing beer. We extend that belief to all things craft—whether it’s music, food, or art—we are always open and enthusiastic to new collaborations and opportunities. 

We embrace our community here in NoMi and participate in authentic causes that not only offer us the opportunity to grow as a company, but also allow us to help. 

It’s still early in our story, but armed with a great team and community support, we are off to a fantastic and adventurous start. At Beards we work hard at offering you a genuine up north experience, focusing on quality, creativity, and community. Stop in to check out our beautiful views, and enjoy a pint or two, and food!

Check out inside our original 207A Howard home (we’ve moved to 215 East Lake Street)!

Click the arrows to venture inside.