The name of the brewery is a nod to wanderlust, or the penchant to travel.
Move over, wine and cheese — a new perfect food and beverage pairing is making its way to Troy this spring. Stumblebum Beer Co. is set to open its doors at Maple and Crooks with a variety of unique beer and charcuterie pairings.
As the brainchild of Jewish proprietor and brewer Eli Green, a Metro Detroit native who was involved with Jewish Ensemble Theatre, the new brewery is set to add Troy to a very short list of breweries nationwide that specialize in the trifecta of beer, meat and cheese.
While living in New York City to pursue an acting career, Green found inspiration in Brooklyn’s Museum of Food and Drink, where he attended a lecture on pairing beer and cheese. He learned, surprisingly, that beer and cheese was "superior" to wine and cheese, and it ignited a passion in Green to learn more about this seemingly perfect combo.
To do so, Green often visited a brewery down the street from his New York City home that specialized in charcuterie, eventually taking his now-wife Liz Karg on their first date there.
When the couple moved back to Michigan in 2017, where they now live in Ferndale, Green began toying with the idea of bringing a similar concept to Metro Detroit.
A Timeless Design
Despite an explosion of small breweries that opened between 2015 and 2018, the COVID-19 pandemic saw many businesses eventually shutter, meaning the market was once again open following a return to normal life as COVID-19 restrictions eased.
"COVID-19 accelerated the idea," Green, 39, explains. He was hired at a brewery during the pandemic and received the hands-on experience he needed to run his own operation.
Ready to get the idea off the ground, he partnered with Shari Stein, owner andprincipal interior designer of Birmingham-based design firm DesignTeam Plus, to bring the vision of Stumblebum Beer Co. to life. The goal: to blend wanderlust, warmth and hygge, or the Danish concept of comfort, into one unique atmosphere and brewery.
"Eli had a great story and a very specific vision of a place in time and anaesthetic which we brought to life in our design," Stein says. "Using his adjectives to describe his brewery — hygge, mysterious and familiar — DesignTeam Plus created a one-of-a-kind brewery with a nod to traveling and wanderlust."
Inside the new Troy brewery are warm wood tones, a reclaimed wooden box carface that serves as the bar and timeless bronze pendant light fixtures. The name of the brewery, meanwhile, Stumblebum, is a nod to wanderlust, or the penchant to travel.
Clever Pairings
As for the food and beverage choices themselves, patrons will find a variety to choose from. In addition to plenty of craft beer, Stumblebum Beer Co. will serve up housemade sodas, french fry flights with different seasonings and dips (such as parmesan garlic and truffle aioli), warm paninis and, of course, its housestaple of meat and cheese.
Stumblebum Beer Co. will also offer a Chef’s Choice recommended food and beverage pairing that includes three cheeses, two meats and four beers in a flight.
"Hopefully this recommended pairing gets people used to tasting what it is that makes beer and cheese special," Green says. "I think this is going to be unique,and over time, people will start to embrace the idea of exploring beer and cheese."
Craft beer aficionados can also take advantage of Stumblebum Beer Co.’s MugClub, a soon-to-be-rolled-out annual or lifetime membership that allows special pre-orders and perks at the brewery.
A grand opening is planned for June 15. Green is thrilled to add the brewery to Troy’s roster of food and beverage options, and to bring Metro Detroit into the small community of breweries across the country that specialize in beer, meat and cheese.
The reason behind the perfect pairing is simple, Green says: "It’s the protein content and hops acidity."
Visit stumblebumbeer.com for more information.
