A heart full of Tap Night

 Celebrate your love (of beer!) this Valentine's Day by doing a Tap Night Tacoma pub crawl. This beautiful event takes place on the 2nd Monday of every month. Casks of the following beers will be tapped at the following locations in The 253 (feel free to just read the poster if you are too lazy to read the words that are coming out of my fingers):

• The Red Hot -Maritime Pacific Islander Dry-Hop Pale
• Parkway Tavern - Big Al Brewing Hop Villain Black IPA
• Doyle's - Greene King Abbot Ale
• The Swiss - Diamond Knot Industrial XIPA
• Engine House #9 - E9 Chocolate Stout

All casks are tapped at 6p sharp and last until the beer runs out! 

Cheers Big Ears!

taptaptappin' on heavens door,

the pissed liBEERian

Love is in the air... or at least something smells in Tacoma.

I really need to start learning how to write things down in pencil. My poor day planner has about a 1/2 inch thick of white-out because of my ever changing, ale related plans. Thought it best to inform you of the crazy amount of fun stuff coming up for the days, weekend and beyond...

Tuesday 8th - Goldfish races at the Harmon Tap Room (8:30p, Tacoma) I hope for your sake that the Vanilla Porter is still on tap because it was darn loverly in my mouth hole last week.

Wednesday 9th - Brewers Night @ the Red Hot featuring Firestone Walker (6p, Tacoma) Sure to be bountiful schwag and copious amounts of swallowing. At least for me, I'm not a spitter.

Thursday 10th - The Nosh League of Tacoma will be hosting a wine/beer/chocolate pairing (Chocolate Lovers Unite!) at Beyond the Bridge Cafe this evening (6:30-9:30p, Tacoma) or if you feel like making the trek to Seattle, Pike Brewing is having their 3rd Annual Chocofest. Dubbed as a 'romantic evening of chocolate, beer, mead, wine and spirits'. Admission is $25, click here for more details. (5:30-9p, Seattle) I'll be attending the Chocofest but if I could be in 2 places at once this evening, I would. 

Friday 11th - IDK what y'all have planned for this Friday but after I get my tires replaced (stupidrunningoversomethingbigandmetalandstupidattwointhemorningonSundayonthefreeway) I'm hoping to FINALLY get my booty out to the 7 Seas Brewing tasting room in Gig Harbor for a tour and a proper pint or two. (3-9p on Fridays, Gig Harbor)

Saturday 12th - If you are a member of the Tacoma Beer Appreciation Society then you already know about the private Beer Drinkers/Makers Meeting (beer potluck) that's going down. Gonna do my best to stop by Amocat Cafe for some tasting. (7:30p-11p, Tacoma)

Sunday 13th - Anti/Valentine's Day Artist Craft Fair is being put on by Tacoma Is For Lovers at King's Books and has my name written all over it. With a Sharpie. A fat one. In fuchsia. (11a-4p, Tacoma) After I've shopped my little anti-Valentine heart out, I'll be hitting up Metronome Coffee for another rousing meeting of the Literature and Libations book group. (3-6p, Tacoma) We drink (coffee & beer), we read, we repeat every few weeks.

Monday 14th - Happy Valentine's Day! Now go participate in Tap Night Tacoma, I'll give you 5 reasons why you should. Engine House 9, The Swiss, Doyle's Public House, The Red Hot & Parkway Tavern. Oh and Big Al's newest brew, the Hop Villain Black IPA will be at Parkway Tavern. There... I gave you 6 reasons, so just do what I say. Kthnxbai. (6p, Tacoma) I stopped by Big Al Brewery last weekend to get a special tour, ala Micah Sims, and he let us try the Hop Villain Black IPA. Unless of course that was one of the 'Don't tell Big Al I let you have some of this and drink it quick because he'll be back any minute' beers... then I, uh, have no idea what I'm talking about. P.S. It was delicious, can't wait to have more!!!

Wednesday 16th- Brewers night at Parkway Tavern featuring New Belgium. (6-9p, Tacoma) I don't need to be told twice ('cause you're not the boss of me) so don't make me tell you twice either.

Hope you find yourself at one or many of these events, there is just too much fun to be had...

the pissed liBEERian

My heart doth beat for thee...

Please don't get me started on Valentines Day. Well... I did just write the two words that are largely feared (when put together in a sentence) by men around the nation so now I've kind of set myself up (and your lovely eyes) for a soapbox moment. Bullshit. Hallmark. Holiday. Obligations and expectations run high as we approach the 14th of February, with many a male ending up in the dog house for little to no reason, IMHO. Don't get me wrong, I love how everything comes in red & pink and there are hearts as far as the eye can see. I'm almost 30 yet still buy boxed valentines (Hello Kitteh!) to be handed out to my coworkers and friends. Yet in my heart of hearts, I do not get the point of a holiday that is forced upon everyone, (and usually has little to no relevance within the personal relationship between two lovers) making them express their love and devotion in such a lemming like way. How special or romantic could that possibly be?

I've been blessed with relationships (current one included) where I'm spoiled rotten and treated like a queen all the time, and not just for the obligatory handful of holidays on the calendar. If I was spending my time and energy on a man who never did anything randomly sweet and thoughtful for me, I might put a lot more emphasis on Valentine's Day... true.

• You never hold my hand when we walk... I'd like 1 dozen roses on 2/14 please.
• You never open car doors for me... that will be a box o' chocolates big fella.
• You've never looked into my eyes after a lovely evening out (thank you, 1022) and told me that my face was magic... I prefer emeralds over sapphires sweetie, kthnxbai.

How sincere can a gesture be when it is socially expected and therefore obligatory? My thoughts on V-Day don't change anything, the world will go right along celebrating their love in one massive heart bubble orgy. However, maybe it's time to take some pressure off the men folk to make things uber special for their lady? Females do not have the monopoly on being unappreciated, guys rarely get kudos for all the stuff they do.

So instead of eating your way through an overpriced dinner in a crowded restaurant full of other couples making googly eyes at each other this Valentines Day, go experience Tap Night Tacoma with your honey. Offer to drive your way around to the different locations and live up the good ales that are sure to be had.

 You may love boxes of chocolates, but you can be sure any dude will appreciate some Beercandy Caramels! Buy some fun ales to pair with these treats and make a private beer fest for two. I've never had one go wrong, PBF's are where it's at.


As women, we love it when a guy is all clean shaven and smelling delicious. Like when you can't keep your nose away from them or your mouth hole off of them? Yeah... like that. Members of the pork sword society like to be pampered just as much as we do, so why not go with an awesome old school shaving kit that includes some stout soap.

Celebrate your Valentine a few days early at the Pike Brewing Chocofest, happening on Thursday the 10th this year. Beer and chocolate pairing, followed by a fun romp around the 206... pretty sure everyone wins that game!

No more whinging about the lack of housework help! If you want to pull the old 'I wash, you dry?' line after dinner... give him accessories to ensure he'll always get excited about it! And yeah... I want those towels for myself.

These are just some fun ideas I stumbled upon for this Valentines Day, whether you celebrate it or not. Everyone needs to feel appreciated and special to the person in their life. I just hope you all make a point to do it on a regular basis, not when the rest of the world tells you to.

in my heart of hearts, i know you to be the best thing that's ever been mine...

the pissed liBEERian

Festival of the Beer... the Winter WABL version.

Winter Beer Fest @ Hale's Palladium

December 10th & 11th

 Seems like I'm approximately 2 months over due on this post, liBEERian fines equaling no less than 1 million dollhairs! I'm always a bit late. If I came early or was on time, you wouldn't know what to do with me. Considering all the lovely events MGD & I have attended, I think we got this one right. See formula below (do not attempt to calculate or duplicate without the supervision of a trained professional):

1 Friday session + 1 hotel room for 2 nights + the presence of my only (& therefore my favorite) sibling who newly moved back to WA sate + 2 Saturday sessions + midday break @ Kate's Pub + closing the place down after all attendees have vacated + one trip to the super elite brewer's green room + 1 keg of Schooner Exact Schoon Light (hmmmmm...) + a suicidal Boundary Bay Santa + Theo chocolate in flavors of curry & coconut + over 70 beers to choose from + a session on the rocky 7 Seas that is Santa's lap + some of the hottest hotel nooky I've ever partaken in (which is TOTALLY what I asked Santa for!) ='s An Amazingly Great Weekend & Festival in the Big (overdue) Book of the Pissed LiBEERian.

Travis Guterson rockin' a winter onesie

 This may be the first time I truly felt the (minuscule amount of) celebrityness that my blog has generated. It's nice to come in and know a good chunk of the brewers and discuss the fun ales they have planned. I mean who doesn't like the 7 Seas guys dressed as Santa or sporting an adult onesie? (Travis... only YOU could pull that look off) Head swells further as fellow beer blogger Mike Besser (brewdad.com) comes up to introduce himself and tell me how much he enjoys my mad awesome writing skillage (my words, not his). Now practically at the point of having to wipe brain & skull matter off my fellow event goers as my head gets to the exploding point of swollen, as WABL member & home brewer, Brandon Horn, comes up to say hello and ask if I'm the pissed liBEERian. Why yes in fact, I am! (He was also instrumental in hooking us up with some super special WABL brew, the Holiday Knickerdropper. Served in both whiskey & sherry casks. Delicious!!)





Yeah... wow. I'm still trying to not be shocked when people come up to me in both Tacoma and Seattle because they recognize me from the blog. Still wigs me out because I feel like I'm supposed to know them back, yet it's always ridiculously flattering and blushworthy. I'm kind of a big deal. Which makes MGD a bit of a big deal. Hahahaha. So you reader people out there? Thanks a heaping tun of mash for making me feel so special in a non short bus kind of way. :) Best compliment I got this week on the Book of the Face: "Dang! I just read your blog... wow, awesome read! You're like all beer-famous and stuff yo!" Epic.

Beers of Noteworthiness from 35 WA Breweries (basically the awesome ales we gave 3 out of 3 stars amongst our collective group):

Alex from Airways

 7 Seas Brewing - Port Royal Export Style Stout & Saison
Airways Brewing - Sky Hag IPA (Hot Chocolate Ale pretty tasty as well. Brewer Alex told me he made the Widebody Blonde in honor of me, which might have been a compliment about my curvature, but all I could laser focus on was 'Is that a fat joke dude?' )
Big Al - Peanut Butter Imperial Stout (PB does truly fill the cracks in the heart, glad they had an extra keg for the 2nd session!)
Big Time Brewing - Holy Mole Chocolate-Chile Ale (molemolemolemole)
Diamond Knot Brewing - Aged Belgian Blonde Ho Ho Ho
Elysian Brewing - Bifrost Winter Ale
Hale's Ales Brewery - Supergoose (a bigger version of their Mongoose IPA)
Silver City Brewery - Imperial Stout
Snipes Mountain Brewery - Pumpkin Death, 2 Fresh IPA, Zombie Killer, Sour Pumpkin (secret blend a lot of brewers kept coming back for so we hopped on that band wagon)
Two Beers - Cask Conditioned Jive Espresso Stout, Double Dry-Hopped Infused Evo, 20:20 Blonde (so yeah... basically everything they brought was beyond consumable)


And surely not to be overlooked, the official debut of Schooner Exact's Profanity Hill Porter and (squee!) their Midnight Union Raspberry Brown Ale. The Profanity Hill Porter was very nice but Midnight Union, seriously? Like I'm gonna stop spending my  wooden festival money on that at any point. Delicious raspberry dark roasted malty goodness for me... sigh. Later on in the night, owner and brewer of SE Matt McClung told me that they made this beer for me (undoubtedly because of my ongoing obsession and promotion of their Seamstress Union Raspberry Wheat Ale). I'm pretty sure he was a bit inebriated and possibly lying to me, but I'm totally okay with that.

 

always willing and ready to mix it up in the Pd, atomic # 46...

the pissed liBEERian

Photography works of amazingness and general 'do you even know how to spell (editing)?' by the wonderful MGD

Park it right there mister!

It's been a hot minute since I enjoyed a pint at the Parkway Tavern, so there was very little arm twisting involved in getting me to stop by last night. To my shock and awe, it happened to be Double IPA night. 2nd day of the 2nd month... why WOULDN'T it be Double IPA night @ Parkway? Oh, that's right... because nobody told me therefore it shall not exist! Parkway, can I come have some of your awesome tomato/gorgonzola/basil soup next time you bust it out and handle all of your event PR? Seriously guys... cereal.

What was meant to be one pint (Russian River Damnation, woot!), turned into dos (2010 Sierra Nevada Bigfoot Barley Wine), which also included a free schooner from bartender Nick (Hair of the Dog) as well as another schooner poured by the owners of Bremerton's Der Blokken Brewery (Sacred Hop Double IPA).

Which is all fine and dandy but it kinda created some overflow into the rest of my evening when I started off wanting to just have one pint and a few laughs with a friend. Oh well... had some new beers and hung out with friends old and new. Plus I got the skinny on some upcoming Parkway events that are Sharpie worthy in the Calender O' the Pissed LiBEERian. Check it out:

2/14 - Tap Night Tacoma (Parkway will have the Big Al Hop Villain Black IPA)

& also on 2/14 (Valentine's Day for you knuckleheads who don't know)...

2/14 - Parkway will have a slough of chocolate beers

2/16 - New Belgium Brewer's Night

3/2 - Silver City Brewer's Night

3/29 - Ninkasi Brewer's Night

And according to the taps under the 'Next On Tap' sign, we'll be seeing some Big Al's Winter Warmer osoon, plus something about the Younger coming... Ohhhhhhhh.

needing someone to warm up my winter...

the pissed liBEERian

Photo Credits to MGD & myself