Early un-inspired logo for GLL.
It’s kinda hard to believe, but May 30th 2013 marks the 5th anniversary of when Great Lakes Libations first spilled onto the worldwide interweb.
GLL started out as website where Michigan craft beer fans could discover the address/contact info for local breweries, along with news and a listing of statewide beer events. It was primitive, but effective nonetheless.
Then in 2009, the address/contact info morphed into an interactive brewery locator map, which still exists today. GLL also expanded into the realm of social media via Facebook and Twitter, and later launched this blog where folks could be bored to sleep reading nonsensical beer-related ramblings.
Most recently, the Yelp, Tumblr, and Instagram applications have all been dumbed-down thanks to our presence.
However GLL’s crowning achievement likely came in 2012 during the Michigan Summer Beer Festival, when web users were treated to a live video feed on our website. We found this pretty impressive, considering our desktop Pentium 2 is still running Windows 95.
Slightly less un-inspired logo circa 2011.
Looking ahead, folks can expect (or perhaps beware of) some further expansion. For example, due to the tastes and preferences of our various contributors and influencers, lately we’ve begun including Michigan-made wine and spirits under the GLL umbrella. We are also planning on making the site a bit more user-friendly for the multitude of mobile users (better late than never, right?).
But regardless of where the future takes us, the underlying principle from five years ago will remain the same: Great Lakes Libations is dedicated to spreading awareness, and connecting those who consume with those who produce.
That, and enjoying a drink or two in the process.