Tap Handle #769: Atwater Block (Atwater) Brewing

January 11, 2021

Tap Handle #769: Atwater Block (Atwater) Brewing - VooDoo Vator Doppelbock

Tap size: 13.25"

Rarity: fragile, special/seasonal

Mounting: custom 3/8" ferrule

This great tap first appeared around 2009 or 2010, at a time when the brewery was known as Atwater Block, before it was shortened to just Atwater. The base has decals with the name of the brewery and the word "Doppelbock" on it, but the most distinguishing feature is the skull on top of the base. The skull is wearing a black German-style hat with a decal of a feather and the name of the beer on it. By the way, "Vator" is German for "Father", so in English, the name of the beer would be "VooDoo Father". The custom ferrule is a unique touch. Made of ceramic, I have listed the tap as fragile because the hat chips easily under repeated use. It used to be easy to find these on the secondary market, but I don't think I've seen one for over a year and a half. When they did appear, prices were very reasonable but again you have to keep an eye out for chips and other damage.

Click through to read more about Atwater Brewing, their VooDoo Vator Doppelbock, and to see more photos of this tap...

The current iteration of Atwater Brewery was founded in 2005 in Detroit, Michigan by Mark Rieth. However, the brewery actually traces its roots back to 1997, when a group of investors purchased an old 18,000 square foot automotive warehouse built in 1919 that had been vacant since 1987 (and was said to be haunted). The new brewery, named Atwater Block, was located across the street from the former Stroh Brewing laboratory building. The owners wanted to bring back the old Bohemian-style brewing that Stroh was known for back in the mid 1800's, so they purchased a top of the line, 30,000 barrel per year system from Kasper Schulz in Germany, the oldest makers of brewing equipment in the world, at a trade show in 1996. They hired a brewmaster from Germany, as well as a German-trained brewing team. The brewery name came from the proximity to the Detroit River and to Atwater Street. The brewery began producing 4 beers in 1997, which won medals at the 1999 Great American Beer Festival.

Rieth was a graduate of Michigan State University who lived in Boston, Massachusetts in the late 1980’s. He was homebrewing his own version of Sam Adams Boston Lager in his basement and serving it to friends at parties. Working in the automotive industry, Rieth moved back to Detroit in 1997 with the intent to be a part of revitalizing the industry. He happened to stumble across Atwater and fell in love with the beers they were producing. The experience inspired him to seek out an opportunity in brewing while he continued to work in the automotive field.

Though Atwater Block had some success, the ownership group frequently disagreed about how to run the brewery. Unable to reach common ground, they decided to sell. A new owner purchased the brewery, renaming it Stoney Creek Brewing. Rieth, who spent a lot of time at the brewpub, saw an opportunity and became a minority investor. Initially Stoney Creek beers were contracted brewed by another brewer, but at some point beers were once again brewed on site. However, stagnant sales due to its local brand status, along with a small distribution footprint, resulted in the closure of the brewery in 2004. Rieth took out several business loans, divested from his automotive business, and took on a partner, Howard Hampton, and purchased the brewery. By 2005 Rieth and Hampton had re-opened the site, retaining part of the original name by christening it as Atwater Brewery. The plan was to continue making traditional German style lagers, while introducing unique boutique ales and expanding distribution.

Launching their beers with state-wide distribution, Atwater's Dirty Blonde and Vanilla Java Porter quickly jumped to the top of the Michigan market. In 2006 they produced 5,000 barrels in their first full year of production. The brewery offered 6 packs, growler fills, appetizers, burgers, salads, and German-style sausages. Distribution expanded into Illinois, Indiana, Ohio, Pennsylvania, and then the east coast. In 2010, Atwater closed their taproom. The production brewery had been in the back, with the tap room out front. After the taproom closed, a small selection of draft beers were available on top within the production brewery. In 2013, Atwater completed a $1 million upgrade to its facility, and production increased to 30,000 barrels per year. In 2014, the brewery opened Atwater in the Park in the former Grace United Church in Grosse Pointe Park. Atwater Brewery in the Park is a partnership between the Epicurean Group and Atwater; the Epicurean Group managed the restaurant side, while Atwater managed the beer, cider and spirits portion. It had a small on-site brewhouse producing 10 beers; it seats 120 people inside the brewery and another 70 outside in its German-style biergarten. By the end of the year the main production brewery was producing over 40,000 barrels per year, a 68% increase over 2013, and was shipping internationally for the first time, with beers being distributed to Munich, Germany.

2015 was a big year for Atwater. Distribution increased to include New York, Colorado, North Carolina, and select locations in Canada. The main brewery reopened their tap room, which had been entirely remodeled, and included the longest bar in Detroit. Part of the remodeled area included a kitchen, additional brewing equipment, and a distillery. After acquiring a distilled spirits permit, Atwater launched a line of spirits including whiskey, rum vodka, and gin, that were available at Atwater in the Park. The brewery teamed up with McClure’s Specialty Foods to release the world’s first craft Michelada, which combined Atwater's German-style lager with McClure’s Bloody Mary spices. The Michelada was canned at the Brew Detroit plant in Corktown, which was a partnership between Atwater and three other breweries that handled additional contract brewing for Atwater. By the end of the year, Atwater produced 55,000 barrels, making it the biggest brewery in Detroit and the third largest brewery in Michigan.

In 2016, distribution expanded to include Georgia, New Jersey, and New York City, with a total distribution of 30 states. Atwater also announced an agreement with Flemish Fox Brewery & Craftworks to brew beer in a new collaboration brewery in Austin, Texas. Flemish Fox was founded by Christine Celis, daughter of Pierre Celis, a famed Belgian brewer and founder of Celis Brewing in Austin, Texas, who had resurrected the witbier style in Hoegaarden, Belgium in 1965. The brewery capacity was planned to be more than 60,000 barrels per year and expected to be in production by early 2017.

In addition to this new collaboration brewery, Atwater was also considering expanding into the Chicago area, while at the same time they were opening a new location in Grand Rapids, Michigan, inside the renovated Rowe building. With 40 taps and an independent brewing system, the Grand Rapids location allowed Atwater to create new and unique beers to test before mass producing them at the main brewery in Detroit. Atwater Grand Rapids featured indoor seating for 186 and outdoor seating for 60, with a menu offering pizzas, sandwiches, salads, appetizers and entrees.

In 2017 the brewery completed a new rooftop biergarten above its century old brew house in Detroit. The new rooftop venue featured rotating taps offering a selection of Atwater beers with special emphasis on its signature “Dirty Blonde” and “Whango Mango Wheat,” plus the brewer’s wines and spirits. The open air rooftop had biergarten-style seating plus a long bar railing where guests could sit and enjoy views of the Detroit River and the historic Rivertown district. By early 2018, Atwater was beginning to feel pressure from intense competition, particularly in their expanded distribution network, and Rieth recognized that they had spread themselves too thin. Although the brewery had invested millions of dollars in new brewing equipment, new facilities, and expanded markets which had all resulted in tremendous growth, the return on investment was not where Rieth wanted it to be. He began to pull Atwater out of multiple markets and abandoned the Texas and Chicago expansion plans, focusing instead on profitability and local sales and investment.

In 2019, Atwater partnered with the Detroit Pistons to create a co-branded beer called the “Triple Double.” The specially designed ale was available for purchase at Little Caesars Arena at all Pistons games and was additionally available in stores throughout the Michigan area. The “Triple Double” was a low-calorie option for a light ale, containing 3.2 ABV. Atwater had also supported the Detroit Tigers since 1997, as both as a sponsor and serving their beers throughout Comerica Park, including its standalone pop up behind section 136, the Michigan craft beer bar, at the grab and go, on the in-seat menus, as well as at the Long Bar, the Corner Tap Room and the Tiger Den and Club. And continuing with local investment and expansion, Atwater added another brew house location in the Detroit Metropolitan Airport.

That same year, Atwater introduced its first batch of Hard Seltzers, available in Mango, Cherry and Lime. Initial production quantities sold out quickly and received high marks from industry insiders, customers and reviewers. Even though some industry experts expected seltzers to be a summer fad with sales cooling off during the fall, Atwater felt that sales would continue to be strong due to the refreshing taste and an enthusiastic audience of health and fitness conscience younger customers, so they increased production of seltzers for 2020. However, by the end of the year, growth had slowed to single digits, with only 23,000 barrels produced and distribution down to just 12 states, although Atwater was still one of the 5 largest breweries in Michigan.

In 2020, Molson Coors announced plans to buy Atwater Brewing. Selling to Molson Coors gives the regional brewer some security and the ability to expand both distribution and Detroit-based staff as the craft beer market gets increasingly crowded and competitive. The brewery needed capital and craft beverage expertise after growth had slowed over the past few years. Atwater is to be acquired by Molson Coors' Tenth and Blake Beer Company, the U.S. craft division of the Denver-based multinational beer company formed in 2005 when Coors merged with Molson. Rieth and his team will continue to lead Atwater's day-to-day operations. The acquisition is expected to take most of 2021 to be completed.

Atwater's VooDoo Vator Dopplebock tempers the sweetness of caramel malt with the crisp, more nutty flavor of Munich malt. Despite the depth of color, burnt flavors are not present. It is big, black and sweet. It’s malty character is derived from two caramel malts along with Munich malt to create the smoothest high-gravity beer this side of the pond. Traditional extended lagering makes the VooDoo Vator deceptively smooth though high in alcohol. Be warned.