Cognition Brewing Company

Stopped in here on both of my two nights in Ishpeming for the ski jumping tournament. Good variety of brews, love their Belgians, especially the Biere Bella. You can grab a sub, cudighi or pasty in town and eat it here (currently no food service on site). Cozy, friendly.

It’s a somewhat interesting little brewery in a slightly weird space (under a hotel). Pretty small but attractive with lots of nice wood and upscale bar design. They were holding some sort of mountain biking event when we showed up so there was an unusual amount of spandex clad dudes milling about. It would have inspired great conversation between the wife and I, but conversation was essentially impossible as they also had a live band (jazz) playing and live music in such a tiny venue just seems to be a poorly planned idea. We had a flight of every beer and it was all average to slightly above average. Staff was friendly and seemed on top of things. I’d probably drop in again if in the area.

Well for all the hype I guess I had higher expectations. Weird atmosphere. Sort of unfriendly to «outsiders», I grew up here but moved away almost 20 yrs ago. Bartenders are nice. Beer ok (5 out of 10 according to hubby the beer connoisseur). Wine sucks. In all fairness I didn’t try the blackberry wine, but the red blend tastes like jam. Way too sweet and fruity with no real substance. The atmosphere reminds me of a vfw hall and I would have thought that would have more modern furnishings, but I wish them the best and truly hope they succeed.

If you like beer and going by Ishpeming, you definitely need to stop here. The beer is pretty good and the atmosphere is great. My favorite was a Belgian pale ale. Great clove, with hint of banana, without being too much. This place was a bar that had been closed for 30 years or so. When the new owners purchased the place it still had the original chairs and lighting which they left in place. This is all per a local that was sitting next to us.

A great addition to this tiny town. Great beers friendly atmosphere and cozy! Beer tender was knowledgeable and knew his stuff. My only problem is road signs. They are really hard to see. Stop signs too. Overall, really good!

Cognition opened to the public in a big way on March 14, 2015 and handily met the great expectations of many in the community.
The brewery is located in the original tap room of a grand old downtown hotel, the Mather Inn, which was a symbol of local pride and prosperity for much of the 1900s but became an indicator of the mining town’s decline when the hotel closed nearly 30 years ago. Ever since, locals had been saying «someone should do something with» the building. Well, now someone has, and it has been done right. (Note: For several years the building has slowly been undergoing development for private residences, but this has not been particularly visible or relevant to the general public.)
Now on to the substance. I’d never looked into the tap room in its many years of vacancy, but I’d heard stories about people looking into the windows and seeing furniture set up and left just the way it was the day the tavern had closed. I can only imagine that the interior now is a beautiful and faithful restoration of what it originally looked like. The room is full of authentic wooden tables and chairs, and much of this woodwork is also reflected in the walls and ceiling. The details are all attended to. The bar itself is a great focal point at the front of the room. Unfortunately I can’t be more descriptive because — oh, darn — the room was very crowded for most of my visit on opening day and was quite dark.
There were, I believe, six beers on tap that day. I tried five of them, and there were none I really disliked. My favorites were the accessible and classic Oblivion Milk Stout and the Mather Mild, a highly drinkable, low-​alcohol brown ale. I didn’t like the wheat offering quite as much, and I usually do like wheat beers. I am never a fan of IPAs so I won’t comment on that. The point is that there is something for everyone here, and you need to go and form your own opinion. I’m not good at fancy beer reviews. :)
For now, this is strictly a pub with no food available, but I believe plans are to reopen the hotel’s adjacent restaurant. Meanwhile, you can bring in takeout from any of the fine local establishments — everything from the classic Italian-​American Mama Mia’s, the refreshed Venice Pub and Pizzeria, and the popular Congress Pizzeria, to bar-​and-​grill fare from Jasper Ridge, another brewery out on the highway.
Cognition is a great thing for Downtown Ishpeming and the surrounding area. I hope residents of the area will give it a try and continue to return, because Cognition’s success over the long term will be that of Ishpeming — a town that still has a lot to offer and has been ripe for rebirth.