Drink Up

Aug 12, 2015 at 1:00 am

Ghettoblaster

4.2% ABV | 15 IBUs

Motor City Brewing Works is a labor of love for founder John Linardos, who credits his staunch "keep it local" business philosophy with his microbrewery's great success. MCBW was constructed in 1994 by local fabricators and craftsmen, who salvaged and repurposed scraps from the decaying industrial sites of Detroit's golden age. Linardos then set to work on perfecting the brewing process of five flagship beers, opened a tiny taproom off the side of the brewery, and the rest is history. Riding on the power of word-of-mouth and a great location in the heart of Midtown, MCBW has expanded its flagship collection to include six flagship beers, six seasonal beers, and a solid variety of ales, hard ciders, wines, and sodas.

Ghettoblaster beer is one of Linardo's original brews, and the most famous one at that. It's the Detroit take on a classic English style mild ale- tawny in color with a clean biscuit flavor. It has the aromas of toast, malt, earth, and hops with a very smooth, crisp mouthfeel and minimal bitterness on the finish. There are definitely lingering notes of caramel, brown bread, nuttiness, and some notes of herbs, apple, and pear. Overall, Ghettoblaster is a delicious mild ale that tastes even better knowing it's practically made in your backyard.

And as for the funky name of the "beer you can hear"? Ghettoblaster is a type of old-school stereo, an allusion that's not so obscure if you consider Detroit's deep roots in music history. Linardos, who is also an ambitious artist and musician, linked his Ghettoblaster beer to a two-volume series of playlists that went viral before that was even a thing, and featured Detroit bands like the Dirtbombs, the Witches and the Hentchmen. It's pretty easy to love this beer because it clearly loves its city right back. Ghettoblaster is now available, for the first time ever, in cans — really good news for the rest of your summer.