It’s always interesting to see how different communities welcome the changing of the seasons. That’s one of the best parts about living in Michigan, you get to see the visually magnificent change of four seasons and you also get to see how it affects the people around you.
With the changing of the seasons, Michiganders change as well. From once hopeful of their favorite football teams’ rankings to finally committing to that promise made years ago about learning how to snowboard, each season invokes different emotions within us. If anything, the changing of the seasons is a way to give us hope for what’s to come.
Michiganders see the changing of the seasons physically and mentally. Whether it be watching a leaf fall from a tree as you walk to class, to trying to fight the winter blues, Michiganders live through it all. They hear their neighbors mowing their lawns in the summer and hear those same neighbors chipping off the ice from their cars in the winter.
After the rut of the middle of whatever season it might be sets in, there always seems to be some type of event or tradition that gives us hope. This year, the bitterly cold winter weather has over stayed its welcome. Everyone seems to have an apathetic feeling toward life as the uneventful day to day routine sets in. But then, as all hope for warm weather seemed to be lost, one little tradition saved the day.
Recently, that hope was the release of our local spring and summertime beer, Oberon.
Oberon, a Bell’s Brewery seasonal beer, was introduced back into the beer section of our grocery stores and back into our hearts. It’s refreshing to know that even though it’s freakishly cold outside, having an Oberon with some friends gives us Michiganders a better outlook on the future.
What is it about Oberon that the people of Michigan love?
As a seasonal beer, Oberon gives us a reason to look outside and know that this gloomy weather is only temporary. Soon we will be sipping on our favorite summertime drink as a casual game of bags is played in the open parking lot of our apartment complex. That little smiling sunshine on the bottle reassures us that we lived through yet another unpredictable Michigan winter. We can start gearing up for some Detroit baseball coupled with a hot dog on the grill on a sunny afternoon.
Oberon release day in Kalamazoo, at Bell’s Brewery is something to be experienced. It’s an amazing feeling knowing that after class you’re going to be heading to the brewery to share the welcoming of springtime with a beer and with other members of the Kalamazoo community. People, young and old come to enjoy the beer garnished with an orange by sharing different stories; laughing with old friends or talking with new ones.
Bell’s Brewery has done an exceptional job of maintaining this tradition of welcoming spring each year. To them, the people of Michigan, and the people who respect a well-crafted beer, thank you. It’s not just the beer that reminds us to slow down and enjoy the changing of the seasons, but it’s a beer that brings a community together year after year.
Oberon Day is more than a release day of an old favorite. Oberon Day brings the community together and helps set off the excitement of summertime in Michigan.
A tradition such as Oberon Day can never be forced. Kalamazoo is a great city. Oberon is a great beer, and it’s days like this that make me proud to say I live in Kalamazoo.