Saturday 14th of July 2012 12:03:05 PM

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I was in northern MI visiting family, and finally had the opportunity to visit Short's that I'd been wanting. Bellaire seems in the middle of nowhere, until you're there, then suddenly there's more going on than you would guess. Short's is unobtrusive from the street, and you'll probably have to park in the back. The back door to the pub still says "Hardware" from the previous shop, so that's a little confusing.
Once inside you'll see all of the elbow grease that Joe Short has used to convert salvaged barn lumber into a very modern yet historic flavored BP. Two dining rooms available, with a small stage at the rear of the far one. Reclaimed bricks from Boyne MI line the stage- cool for a history junkie and junk junkie like me.
Previous reviews mentioned few menu items; this has obviously changed a lot in the last year or two. Two to ten choices in each category of appet, soup, salad, entree, etc. I had the Sketches of Winkle sandwich, and it was very good. I had a long drive ahead of me, so I didn't want to 'load up' on beer, but since I live so far away, I really wanted to try them all. I asked a server if I could have a half sample of all of the beers, and the staff was happy to comply, without any trace of "wow is
this guys a pain in our a$$es". At the risk of starting an unwanted trend, they brought out one each of their 18 draft beers. Wow. A very diverse selection, each one made VERY well- NO observable flaws in ANY of them. How rare is that? No DMS,
no diacetyl, no oxidation, no nothing. A TINY bit (to such a small degree it was still WELL within the enjoyable range of astringency in the Chocolate Wheat- and it was one of my favorites! The service was attentive and sincere without hovering.
The pub was busy enough to show their popularity, without the service suffering for it.
A brief rundown of the beers on 7-12-2012:

Alter Spalter: SO close to the perfect session beer I've searched for for years.
GRAIN FLAVOR. Kinda like how awesome raw grain tastes when you're brewing your own.

Wizard: BIG, carmelly, sweet, bourbon, vanilla. And still TOTALLY drinkable, DL's baby brother.

MI Brewer's Guild 15th Anniv ale: same recipe that's being made all over MI now. I had another BP's version, and Short's TROUNCED it. Same recipe, same ingredients, different brewer, technique, skills, etc. Not too anything, just a damn good beer!

Rye Not: I'm not a big fan of rye, not a big hop-head, but wow, what an enjoyable beer! Maybe if you ARE both of the previous, you won't like it. Go there and find out!

Pontius Road Pilsner: Again, not a big pilsner lover. A great beer, and an INCREDIBLE pilsner, IMHO. Very pale, with a much bigger beer's nose. Very balanced, not weak or bitter.

(Pretty much ALL of their beers are very well balanced. I don't have Unbalanced in my notes anywhere. And no, I don't work for Short's!)

Spruce Pilsner: Spruce aroma, and very present flavor, but not over the top-I'm-gonna-hurl present). Light, crisp, sweet, almost reminiscent of craft root beer. Sort of medicinal, but not chlorophenol, just herbal.

Bellaire Brown: If you love a brown ale, GO to Short's. It's everything you've been looking for in a brown ale. I've had their Brown in bottles before, and I bought a six of it this time, but the bottled version does NOT compare to the draft. Kinda like seeing a video of your favorite singer, compared to standing 10 rows back at a concert.

Local's light: Yeah, their beer with training wheels. BUT, it's one of the best light beers you'll try. NOT weak, watery, bland; none of the stereotypes. A hint of lemon, with a sweet aroma. I would order this over a Sam Adam's any day.

Pandemonium Pale: Probably the most IPA-y beer they have, with a delicious grain flavor and a dry finish.

Strawberry Short's Cake: Wow. It is what it says, really. Real strawberries give their best in flavor and color (rosy pink). This isn't your girlfriend's "chick beer"... but it will be! There is also milk sugar in there, which lends it a creamy
sweetness, and the grain steps up with a biscuity finish, so it ends up actually tasting like a Strawberry cream cobbler. I usually dismiss fruit beers, but this one earns its keep.

Ok, I know by now you don't believe I'm not a shill, but this visit really made an impression on me. Bigger than my first visit to Founder's or Bell's. I'm really not coming up with a BP that I can recommend more. None of their beers were SUPER outlandish, just very well made beers, using well designed recipes, with a thorough understanding of good brewing practices.

My biggest complaint would have to be that the bottled versions don't share the same magic of the draft versions. Fix that, and they could give the bigger breweries a scare.

Thursday 12th of November 2009 11:57:39 AM

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Amazing place. Joe remodeled himself from an old hardware store. It's a pretty impressive building. It was pretty crowded but we were lucky enough to get a seat at the bar.

There are 16 taps of great beer, I'd move to Bellaire just to be closer to this place. Some of the highlights are Cup-A-Joe, Bellaire Brown, Uber Goober, Black Cherry Porter and my favorite The Stellar Ale. Everything served in a 16 or 20 ounce pour.

The staff is amazing, they some of the friendliest people. Leah was awesome and Jon gave us an outstanding tour earlier in the day. Scott is super friendly.

The pizza was good and filling. The Salsa is fresh and spicy.

Wednesday 5th of August 2009 02:47:31 PM

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This was easily the best brewpub I visited in Northern Michigan. It was even recommended by all the breweries and bars I visited earlier. It had the best atmosphere. It is located in Bellaire, Michigan. I do not remember the price of the sampler. All the beers were very tasty. My favorite was a brown ale. I even bought a growler to take home. I was able to peak in the brewery. The one problem is they don't have a broad variety of beers. No stouts were available. They did have lots of beer on taps, around 15 maybe. That would include a wheat beer or a IPA, but three or four different variances of them. Which is fine to compare them. The sandwich I had was also excellent.

Monday 9th of June 2008 05:49:04 PM

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Short's is a highlight in an area not filled with much. Unfortunately for me it opened when I left town, but I try to stop by when ever I am visiting that area.

The best thing about the beer is that they are very creative. With that I have had some great interesting beers, such as Smugglin Plums, but I have also had some were a little too much. They also have a large selection (about 15+ beers on tap) and a wide range of style.

Their food is good, but they currently do not have a large selection. They also have a lot of live music.

My recommendations are the Bellaire Brown or Ubber Guber

Saturday 12th of April 2008 10:05:41 AM

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Shorts is in the middle of nowhere which is part of the charm. Visiting it is an experience often accompanied on a weekend trip. The menu of beers has the staples but also has one or two special pours that are short term releases. The food is excellent although when it gets busy things can be a bit slow coming. Live music seems to play most weekends and some days during the week. SOme awesome beers to go are availalble also.

Wednesday 30th of May 2007 04:17:45 PM

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Short's is a little brewery in the middle of nowhere. It's not really on the way to anywhere, so you'll be taking a little trek to get to Bellaire. Is it worth going out of your way for? Yes, yes it is.

They have about fifteen beers on tap, ranging from very sessionable pilsners to high octane fireside sippers. The atmosphere is laid back, neo-hippie/woodsy. Service was friendly and helpful, but it wasn't super quick. The food was made to order. (a big part of the service speed) This is a place worth the extra drive.

Menu details (update): Deli sandwiches, pizza, and salads.

9.29.08
I've upgraded my service score. I made three trips to Short's this summer and was treated terrificly. Get thee to Short's!

5.5.09
The more I go, the more I love it.

6.1.10
More taps!

7.11.11
1st visit since remodeling. New, nicer bathrooms. Bigger kitchen, a few new touches, yet still keeps the same comfortable vibe. 20 Taps! Subtle changes, but enough that I gave my score a bump up.