Michigan Brew Ha-Ha

I've gone for 3 years in a row. Each year, the number of beer vendors seems to get lower and the number of people seems to increase. Also, the entryway to get into the event was a mess. Very unorganized. Normally, I'm patient but when its 10 degrees out..... On a positive note, the comedians this past year were better than the previous year. Very funny.

This was the first time I've attended the brew HaHa. There's a lot of variety of beers and everyone was very accommodating and friendly I would definitely recommend this to anybody else who might think about going next year

Had an amazing time!!!! Just wish they had more meads.

We have gone before but this year seemed better organized. It was easy to wander up to a table to sample beers, the comedy was awesome and we had a blast. definitely recommended

This was a fun event. We didn't have to wait in line at all for most beer samples. A pint of beer at all stations was 6 tickets, tho = $6. Comedian shows were a full house, standing room only left if you didn't get in there early. Towards the middle/end of the night a lot of beer was out, as expected I guess.

An exceptional selection of beers to sample from all over Michigan. Did the VIP package and was not disappointed with the selection they brought for a private tasting. The first comedian was so so, but second one not too funny. Nothing was offensive, just not funny. Look forward to next year's.

Plenty of beers to try at tables in several rooms off the auditorium where the comedians performed. Three of the four comedians were hilarious. Fun evening but the reason I did not give a 5 is because of the lack of communication for this event-difficult to find details for how the event would play out. We had VIP tickets and enjoyed the meet and greet on stage. Lastly, I would think that with an event that started at 4PM (VIP) entrance time and lasted til 11PM there would be a better venue for food. Pizza, hotdogs, brats, popcorn, nachos was about it, could have had a better selection. Next time I will definitely eat before attending.

The comedians were great! The beers were not the best, not like we expected it to be anyway. On top of that the people behind the beer vendor tables were not as kind and inviting as I would have expected. You would stand right in front of the table and no one would say anything to you... Strange.

Noy an event to go as a group, you will loose each other constantly!. Overall a nice time, worth the $ and will go back again

The variety of brewers there was great. Only wish that you had brewers represented at the event as opposed to volunteers or Dow Event Staff present. I did not like the comedic acts, they were collectively bad with the exception of one.

We couldn't find any info about this event anywhere, so I wanted to review it so people know what to expect. There are a bunch of different exhibit halls at the Dow Center, and Brew Ha Ha uses 2-3 of them. You walk in and get your tickets, and there's a coat check if you want,, and then there's one hall with beer in it to the left and one to the right. The comedians are in a separate theater, and they did shows at (I think) 7:00, 7:15, and 7:40, and then again at 8:30, 8:45, and 9:15, or something like that. So you walk around tasting beers, and then you can get a full beer and go in and listen to the comedians. You can buy additional drink tickets for $1 each, but (I think) you have to buy them in packets of 10. Most of the samples were 1 tickets, but some of the high-octane stuff was 2 tickets. The full beers were 5-7 tickets. There was a bar that we didn't go to (we had already paid for beer, why pay extra?), and there was a snack bar where you could get ballpark food -- pizza, hot dogs, popcorn, etc. If you want something more substantial than that, eat first. As for the review: it's a crazy mass of people like any beer fest, so expect long lines and a bit of jostling. Beer fests are always like that; you're being unrealistic if you expect anything else. There were a lot of good beers to try, but one important thing to remember is that it's not like the festivals that the MI Brewers' Guild puts on -- the people pouring the beer are not from the brewery, they're from the Dow Center. They are not going to know much about the beer beyond where the brewery is located. In some cases, they might not know about beer at all (one woman didn't know how to pour a stout and I ended up having to wash my coat later). The comedians ran the gamut from OK to hilarious. I saw that in previous years there were complaints about the sound, but we could hear just fine.

You could get 90% of the beers of the shelf at any beer store. The comedians were not that funny. They swore a lot and put down women, that was most of their material. Great stuff in the 10th grade but not for a professional.

The only suggestion I would have is start the comedians at 6pm.

My group really enjoyed the comedy show. But what is up with more than 1 ticket per sample?? Not what folks expected and very disappointing.

Nice event, great comedy. The only negative thing about it that it was so packed full of people (when no comedy was going) that you couldn't move or even get a drink... too many people

Loved all the brewery's represented and all the choices. The comedy was really good too for the most part. The MC did a great job. The first headliner was AMAZING!!! The second headliner was pretty lame & I walked out half way through. Reason #1 for only 3 star rating. Only brewery complaint is full glass purchases ending at 10pm and all samples ending at 10:30. The ticket clearly states the event goes til 11pm. Felt cut off early without any warning. Reason #2 for only 3 star rating.

The overall experience was good. Good speakers, good comedy, great brewers and everyone was nice and we learned alot. My only gripe was the convention center only had soft pretzels and popcorn for sale. How are people supposed to sober up on that? Maybe next time Dow Convention Center will think ahead and have some overpriced hotdogs, burgers, and coffee?

LOVED this event! Great choice of breweries, lots of things to do and awesome to have the comedians there as well. The mobile app was a great companion, I just wish there was a way to make a "my beer list" so I could save the beers I really want to try instead of having to go through the whole list over and over. A floor map would have been helpful as well, particularly between shows when the floor was packed.

Great night out for the grown ups! Loved tasting the variety of beers from local distilleries .

Great variety of local brews and hard ciders. Hilarious comedians!

We are beer hounds and love tasting trips like this. The array of brewers was excellent and there was plenty of room to handle the crowd that came out. The only drawback was lack of seating in the tasting area - standing for two hours before the first comedy act was tough. We only stayed for the first act but one of the comics had m in tears for most of the show.

Thought the VIP passes were definitely worth it. The event Could have been explained a little better upon first entering the venue for first timers like us.

I enjoyed the way in which the event was set up. I would have liked to see some places that you would be able to sit down and enjoy tasting/conversations.

It was a good time. Comedy was funny and crowds weren't too bad. It would be nice if one, the brewer's would actually be there to talk to about their beers. Second, if they had some of their special beers instead of the same old ones I buy from the store all the time. It's supposed to be a showcase so bring your best stuff.

Lines were very long. Could have used more help in pouring. Some ran out of beer. We left for better food options. Otherwise good event. Don't think we'll be back.

So glad to see events like this coming to Saginaw. Dow looks great, new parking area across the street is very convenient and affordable, new walkways are attractive. Brew HaHa was a blast. Good beer varieties, decent samples and prices, could use a little more food selections although the pulled pork was delicious! Comedians were very entertaining. Nice they could make local connections, good 'clean' fun. We will definitely go again. Can't wait until next year.

I attended the Brew Ha Ha last year and had a great time. This year's experience, however, was not the same. It was way too crowded and you spent 15-20 minutes on average waiting in line for your sample. As for the comedy show, the sound system was terrible this year. The sound level was fine, but the clarity was awful. It was very difficult to understand what the comedians were saying, which obviously made the show not as enjoyable. Bottom line, the four of us who went last year and then again this year agreed that we wouldn't go back for a third year.

It was way too crowded. The lines were ridiculous. Also, we could not understand the comedians. The acoustics were so bad. We won't be going again.

Comedy was really good and longer than expected. Beer wasn't really to my liking and other drinks were really expensive.

This was my first time at Brew Ha Ha and didn't know what to expect, although I liked the idea of pairing beer & comedians. It was nice to see so many great Michigan microbreweries in attendance and the beers were great, if you didn't mind waiting FOREVER to get a sample. This is the ONE thing I thought needs improvement. With a crowd this size, they needed more room and more people serving the beer. Some of the lines were ridiculously long, and no wonder, especially when there was only one person pouring samples from two very popular breweries. When I finally got served at that one line, I asked the server a question about the beer and he didn't have a clue. I later heard that some of the breweries hired local people with no connection to the brewery, so of course they wouldn't know anything....a very poor way to market your product I'd say!!!! Some of the servers were very generous with their samples and others didn't even know the proper way to pour a beer and barely made it to the "line" on the glass with a few ounces beer and a good inch of foam...pitiful! It was nice hearing Rex Halfpenny and the 3 brewers, and the comedians were great, especially Norm Stulz. Overall, it was a fun night but I'm not sure I'd attend again.