Washington Brewers Festival 2012 Beer Listholio

This weekend (Friday, June 15th through Sunday, June 17th) is Washington Brewers Festival at Marymoor Park in Redmond, WA. Rain or shine, fun will surely be had and delicious craft beer will most definitely enjoyed. You don't want to miss it!

Here is a recap from our 2011 Brewers Festival experience, for your reading pleasure.

For all the info on times, tickets, and other such junk you can hit up the Washington Beer Commission site.

Below you will find my Picks of Beer Awesomeness for the Washing Brewers Festival coming up this weekend. For a complete list of beers being served up this weekend, click here.

* = Beer poured on Friday only (if you go on Friday, I highly suggest getting there early)
S = Beer poured on Sat/Sun only
! = Beer I will probably end up drinking based solely on its name

192 Brewing
Granny’s Apple Ale

7 Seas Brewing
Rude Parrot IPA (So excited that this will be pouring, one of my fave 7Seas brews!)

Airways Brewing (S)
Ol’ Wooden Hag IPA
Coconut Cream Ale (!)
Rotating Cask

American Brewing
Piper’s Scotch Ale

Anacortes Brewery
Cask IPA*

Barhop Brewing
PA 7
Predecessor ESB
Six Confessions Scotch Ale
Red Neck Logger

Big Al Brewing
5 Star Chile IPA (If this was MGD's blog he would triple bold and highlight this one)
Rat City Blonde
Brewer’s Select (By 'Brewer's Select' I hope they mean one of their sours...)

Big Time Brewery
Icculus Pale Ale
Homegrown IPA

Black Raven Brewing
Pina Colada IPA
Kitty Kat Blues*

Brickyard Brewing
Brickyard IPA
Masonary Stout

Diamond Knot Brewing
Possession Porter*

Dick’s Brewing (S)
Working Man’s Brown

Dirty Bucket Brewing
XXX-Tra Filthy IPA (!) (Extra filthy, just how I like it)
Full Nelson Black Ale*

E9 Brewery (S)
Dry- Hop Tacoma Brew
Golden Berry Hefe
Rowdy & Dick amber

Elliott Bay Brewing (S)
Organic Coffee Stout
Aussie Double IPA
Three Tree Imperial Porter

Elysian Brewing
Ruin: Rosemary Agave IPA
Great Pumpkin
Zephyrus Pilsner Cask

Fish Brewing  (S)
Swordfish Cascadian Dark Ale
Leavenworth Blackbird Island Hopfenweizen

Flyers Restaurant and Brewery
Mile High Summer Rye
Pacemaker Porter
Barnstormer Brown Ale
Jet Fuel Coffee Porter*

Foggy Noggin Brewing
Chief Lightfoot (Saturday Only)
Little Chief (Sunday Only)
Big Chief (Imperial Irish Red)

Fremont Brewing
Kentuck Dark Star*

Gallaghers Where U Brew
White Knuckle IPA
Blonde in the Back

Georgetown Brewing
Craigalicious Black Lager*
Johnny Utah Session IPA (S) (!!!!!!)

Hale’s Ales Brewery and Pub
Wit (Chardonnay Barrel Aged)

Harmon Brewing (S)
Expedition Amber

Hood Canal Brewery
Big Beer Oatmeal

Issaquah Brewhouse
Frog in the Rye IPA
Rogue Chocolate Stout on Cask*

Kona Brewing (S)
Wailua Wheat (Scored a Kona beach towel last year through my powerful powers of persuasion, can't wait to see them again!)

Kulshan Brewing (S)
Bastard Kat
Good ol’ Boy Pale

Lantern Brewing
Sour Pale

North Sound Brewing
Bitter Rain
Oaked Hazelnut Goosetown Brown

Northern Lights Brewing
Solar Winds
Blue Berry Creme Ale

NW Peaks Brewery (S)
Redoubt Red
Black Blonde

Odin Brewing
Odin’s Gift- Juniper Amber Ale
Thor’s Limited Release

Paradise Creek Brewery
Dirty Blonde (!)
Paradise Hoe (!)
Hopocalypse Cascadian Black IPA*

Pike Brewing
Pike Space Needle Golden Anniversary IPA

Port Townsend Brewing
Peeping  Peater Scotch Ale (!)

Ram Restaurant & Brewery
Cask Peachy Keen Pale Ale

Riverport Brewing
Bullseye P.A.
5/5 Pepper Beer

Schooner Exact Brewing
Seamstress Union Raspberry Wheat (Don't even get me started...)
West Point Pale Ale
Latona 25th Anniversary*
Raspberry Sour Brown (Sunday only.. 1/6 bbl)

Silver City Brewery
Ziggy Zoggy
Whoop Pass Double IPA*

Skookum Brewery
Katspaw

Snipes Mt. Brewery
Vaquero
Quinceanera* (We were on a blending panel at Snipes to help create this beer in the Spring, we might be helping pour it so come say hello!)

Trade Route Brewing
Midnight Ale
Beach Blonde
Ginger Pale Ale*

Twelve Bar Brews (S)
Wicked Riff
Supertonic
Turnaround Red
Pentatonic

Twelve String Brewing
G-String Blonde (!)
C#7#5 IPA
Drop D Stout*

Two Beers Brewing
Mango and Orange Infused Evo. IPA
Ginger and LiMe Infused Panorama Wheat
Cask Evo. IPA*

Widmer Brothers Brewing
Marionberry Hibiscus Gose

Wingman Brewers
Pomegranate P-51 Porter
Peanut Butter Coconut Porter*

the pissed liBEERian 

Micah Sims of Big Al, Chad Roberts of Snipes and me enjoying ourselves at the 2011 Brewers Fest

May Craft Beer Events

May Craft Beer Events & Going Ons

in and around Tacoma

(including related events outside of Tacoma that I think are rad and/or will be attending personally)

Thursday 3rd - Give Blood Get Beer @ Great American Casino (Lakewood) Cascade Regional Blood Services brings a bloodmobile to the sponsoring business for a Pint-for-Pint blood drive around lunch time or early afternoon. All registered donors receive a prepaid coupon for a pint of beer that can be redeemed beginning the day following the drive.

Tuesday 8th - Science Cafe @ The Swiss Pub (Tacoma, 6:30p) 'Preserving Asia's Wild Cats' is the topic of this month's Science Cafe, put on by the PacSci Center and KCTS9. Come to the Swiss Pub to participate in a discussion about the following: Clouded leopards, fishing cats, bay cats, and more: Southeast Asia's wild cats are beautiful and fascinating, yet poorly understood. At the May Tacoma Science Cafe, join Point Defiance Zoo & Aquarium zoologist Karen Povey to explore the challenges of studying these elusive cats in the wild and learn how our actions can impact the survival of rare species half a world away. You can learn about more Science Cafes by checking out their schedule of talks also taking place in Kirkland and Seattle.

Thurs. 10th thru Sun. 20th - Seattle Beer Week 2012 (All over Seattle!) An insane amount of craft beer awesome events are happening for Seattle Beer Week this month, no one person can possibly do them all! Might be a challenge tho... so get out there and try your darndest.

Thurs. 5/10 Cask-O-Rama Pt.1 (BPP)
Fri. 5/11 Back in Black Stout Fest (Brouwer's Cafe) & Cask-O-Rama Pt.2 (BPP)
Sat. 5/12 Pine Box Can Derby (The Pine Box) & Brewers Mini-Golf Blowout (Interbay Golf Center)
Sun. 5/13 Iron Brewer Triple Header (BPP)
Mon. 5/14 This is Washington Dammit! (BPP) & Beer Bingo! (Pyramid) & Big Al's Brewery Night (Columbia City Alehouse) & Big Sky Ride the Bull Night (Brouwer's Cafe)
Tues. 5/15 Northwest Women in Beer (Pike Brewing Co.) & New Brewers' Night (Park Pub) & Bottleworks Cellar Tasting (Bottleworks)
Wed. 5/16 Score on Skip (American Brewing Co.) & All Beer Quiz Night (BPP) & New Belgium Sour Symposium (Stumbling Monk) & Snipes Mountain Sour Night (The Noble Fir)
Thurs. 5/17 Sour Fest (Brouwer's Cafe) & Wall of Casks (Latona Pub)
Fri. 5/18 Bodacious Brewfest (BPP)
Sat. 5/19 Beer Sensory Panel w/ Jamie Floyd (Bottleworks)

Saturday 12th -  
Gig Harbor Beer Festival (Gig Harbor, noon-7p) Check out the site for information on tickets and which brewers will be representin'. This is the first beer festival in Gig Harbor and I'm sure the sun will be a shining!!!
Pocket Aces Double IPA Release @ Wingman Brewery Tap Room (Tacoma, 2-11p) Head on down to the new Wingman Tap Room for a pint of their New Pocket Aces Double IPA. There's only one keg of it so show up early!

Wednesday 16th
-Wingman Brewers Night @ Dog & Pony (Renton, 6:30p) There should be a Wingman beer on tap for every kind the Wingman guys have available at that time. Go drink and enjoy some local 253 goodness!
-Silver City Tap Room Opening @ Silver City Brewery (Bremerton, 3p)

Silver City Brewery Taproom will open to the public on Wednesday May 16th. The Taproom will feature all of their annual offerings, seasonal brews, specialty releases, small & pilot batch & experimental beers on tap for guests to try & enjoy. All beers will be available in samples or pints to enjoy, with most available for growler fills, 22oz bottles & kegs to go. Silver City Taproom will also offer retail merchandise and daily brewery tours.

  

Thursday 17th - (SBWk Event) Sour Fest @ Brouwer's Cafe (Seattle, 11a) This might be a day worth getting off work early for... Russian River Supplication, Temptation, Several Cantillions, Cascade has something in the works, as does New Belgium, Double Mountain Devil's Kriek, and so many more. Oh my!

Friday 18th - Give Blood Get Beer @ The Spar (Tacoma) Cascade Regional Blood Services brings a bloodmobile to the sponsoring business for a Pint-for-Pint blood drive around lunch time or early afternoon. All registered donors receive a prepaid coupon for a pint of beer that can be redeemed beginning the day following the drive.

Wednesday 23rd - Wingman Brewers Can Release Party @ 99 Bottles (Federal Way, 4-7:30p) That's right! Wingman Brewers of Tacoma is now packaging some of their beers... in cans! Why cans? It keeps beer fresher, protecting it from light and oxygen better than the bottle. And you can take cans nearly anywhere: River rafting, golfing,... Meet head brewer Ken Thoburn and taste Wingman's canned beers for $1 and bring photo id. The first 48 tasters get a FREE Wingman pint glass!!                                         

Saturday 26th - Made in Tacoma @ Wingman Brewery (Tacoma, 6-11p) Madrona Coffee, 21Cellars Winery, Barrel 51 BBQ, and Backcountry Creamery will be joining Wingman Brewers in a celebration of products made in Tacoma. There will be beer, coffee, wine, cheese, and BBQ. Check out their event page to RSVP and get more information.

Reoccurring Events

Randall Wrecker Mondays @ Parkway Tavern (Tacoma, 6p) - A new beer (and much more!) will be thrown into Parkway's Randall every Monday night for your mouthhole delight. They even have a Randall Wrecker punch card!

Beer Tasting Wednesdays @ Tacoma World Beers (Tacoma, 4-7p) Hit up your localest of local beer stores every Wednesday for a $2 beer tasting. You can always make your own tasting from the beers they have on tap but check out their Facebook page or sign up for the newsletter to see what special beers are being served every week.

Cask Thursdays @ Airways Brewing Tap Room (Kent, 4p) - A firkin will be tapped every Thursday at their Tap Room. You can find weekly updates on what cask ales are being served on their website.

Growler Fills @ Wingman Brewery (Tacoma) - New Taproom open!!! Newly located at 509 1/2 Puyallup Ave, Tacoma, 98421. Swing by for a growler fill or taste of their lovely beer on Thurs, Fri & Sat from 2-11p.


the pissed liBEERian 

Things are brewing in Puyallup!

It appears that things are really brewing (sorry, I couldn't help myself) in the Puyallup area lately. In addition to the oh so loverly Power House Brewery, the area now hails as the home of both DUO Brewing and Puyallup River Brewing. My experience with the guys and brews behind each of these breweries has been a pleasure in many ways (and by pleasurable I am referring to free bottles of beer and not being scolded in 'class' for talking too much) and I am stoked to see both places making a go of it.

I initially met Puyallup River Brewing's Eric Akeson through my blog (he was a long time reader, first time stalker) and we have become good, beery friends ever since. I was privileged to sample some of his ales early on and am excited to see what progressions have come of the movement to a larger system. Puyallup River is doing bottles only to start and you can currently grab a few at Tacoma Boys, H&L Produce and 99 Bottles. Thank goodness for our new beer fridge (which  has essentially converted a typical, everyday garage into what we lovingly call Beertopia; a heavily guarded and padlocked Beertopia that is...), we are now free of space issues when it comes to buying beer. First brews on my list to snag will be the Paradise Blonde Saison (adorable blond chickie on the label has my salivating, even if the beer style isn't one of my faves) and the Fryingpan Cascadian Red Ale (for obvious reasons).

See? Adorable!

On a random whim of mutual inspiration, my superb minion Basil and I signed up for a Beginners Homebrewing class at the King County Library. Dan O'Leary (of DUO Brewing) helped teach the class, which was not only informative but made the endeavor of homebrewing seem both easy and approachable. Which explains why I still haven't gotten around to doing it yet... The first thing I noticed about Dan was that he was sporting one of those bottle opener rings. Plus he and his co-teacher were willing to take cheesy pics with me for my blog, so my first impression was obviously a favorable one. I've gotten to know Dan a bit through the interwebs and have had his beer at a couple of festivals now. DUO Brewing been a long time dream for both Dan and his wife Heather, who have dealt with a fair share of hardships getting started up. You can find DUO's beer in a few places around Tacoma such as at Engine House No. 9 and The Red Hot, but check out their website for what brews are currently on tap elsewhere. They have hopes to distribute some 22oz bottles on the farmers market scene this summer so keep your eyes peeled!

Dan and I at Belgianfest '12, enjoying some beer and randomness

You can read about more wonderfulness on both breweries if you check out the recent write ups by Sue Kidd (of TNT Diner fame), on both DUO Brewing and Puyallup River Brewing.

I'm curious to hear what others have to say about these local brews so feel free to drop me a line with your thoughts!

Cheers!

the pissed liBEERian

Me and my trusty sidekick, BASIL!

April Craft Beer Events

April Craft Beer Events & Going Ons

in and around Tacoma

(including related events outside of Tacoma that I think are rad and/or will be attending personally)

Tuesday 10th - Science Cafe @ The Swiss Pub (Tacoma, 6:30p) Get your nerd on while enjoying a pint or two! This month's Science Cafe topic is all about climate change. "Climate Change and the Arctic Ocean"As global warming continues, we hear a lot about melting polar ice, warming oceans, and their potential consequences. At the April Tacoma Science Café, join Dr. Mike Steele from UW's Polar Science Center to discuss his experiences in the Arctic studying how our changing climate is affecting the Arctic Ocean. If this date/time/location isn't convenient for you, check out the other April Science Cafes in different areas.

Thursday 12th - PRO-AM Parkway Submissions Due @ Parkway Tavern (Tacoma, by closing time) This is the last day to enter your beers in the Parkway Am-Pro. Bottles must be properly labeled and it is $5 per entry. MGD & I have been asked to guest judge again this year and I'm excited for another chance to do so, it was so fun and I learned a ton!

Saturday 14th - Snipes Mountain Brewers Dinner & Blending Panel @ Snipes Mountain Brewery (Sunnyside, 6p) All kinds of delicious, gourmet oddities (such as Prairie Oysters and Creole Bread Pudding) will be served up to us with Snipes beer pairings for their Brewers Dinner after we participate in a beer blending panel. And since MGD and myself are making the trek across the mountain on Friday night, we can commence the wine tasting at 10a on Saturday to get nice and lubed up for said blending and eating.

Sunday 15th - PRO-AM Parkway Beer Judging @ Parkway Tavern (Tacoma, should probably find out what time they need us there since we have to drive back from Eastern, WA this same morning...) We had a blast being a part of the beer judging process for Parkway's PRO-AM homebrew competition, I'm sure this year won't let us down one bit either! Can't wait to try what's been concocted! Last year I rated a barleywine that a good friend had brewed (unknowingly a the time, as all the brews are anonymous) and he gave me some kudos for my review a few weeks later. He said my comments were constructive and helpful, so this year I feel marginally more confident in my abilities as a judger of beery goodness vs. beery badness.

Wednesday 18th 
- Wingman Brewers Night @ Diamond Knot Brewery & Alehouse (Mukilteo, 6-9p) I don't have any other info on this so just show up at Diamond Knot and enjoy some tasty Wingman brews, mmmmkay?
- Sidetrack Distillery Collaboration Beer Release @ Airways Bistro (Kent,  5:30p) For the 2nd beer released in Airways' collaboration series you can head on down to the Bistro and enjoy Airways Starliner Stout with Oak Chips soaked in Raspberry Liquer.
- Black Raven Night @ Red Hot (Tacoma, 6p)Your favorite tube steak place has the hook up on some gems by the oh so popular Black Raven Brewery. Swing in tonight for a taste of the Trickster IPA, Totem Northwest Pale, Wisdom Seeker Double IPA and Grandfather Raven Redmond Imperial Stout (only brewed once a year). It's sure to be packed with this kind of line up, so get there early!

Thursday 19th -  Double IPA Blind Tasting @ Beveridge Place Pub (West Seattle, All day long) Think you know what your favorite IPA is? Challenge your taste buds with 6 of the best and find out the truth...

 Saturday 21st - Wingman's New Brewery Opening!!!  (Tacoma, starts at 2p) The Wingman Brewery doors will finally be open on the new brewery and taproom, a much needed expansion. You can find their new digs at 509 1/2 Puyallup Ave, Tacoma, 98421. Come join the party!

Wednesday 25th
-PBR Night @ Parkway Tavern (Tacoma) Something about there being a gigantic Connect Four game, IDK. Gets pretty kuh-razee up in the Parkway sometimes so bring your A-Game.
-DUO Brewing Brewers Night @ Dog & Pony (Renton, 6:30p) Go try a pint of DUO's Belgian Golden Ale, Coffee Porter, Cask Conditioned Vanilla Porter, or the Milk Stout.

Saturday 28th - April WABL Gathering @ H20 Bar (Anacortes, 3-6p) This new beer bar is owned and operated by the peeps of Anacortes Brewery. Go check out the new bar (maybe on your way to April Brew's Day in Bellingham) and enjoy 24 taps of lovely craft beer. WABL members can enjoy $3 pints (this means you should probably bring your passport) and there will be prize drawings!

Saturday 28th thru Monday 30th - Holy Crap, It's Barley Wine Fest! @ Parkway Tavern (Tacoma, from 2p on Sat. until closing on Sun. (technically 2a Mon.) My liver is both excited and currently cramping in anticipatory happiness for the Parkway's BWF. I don't remember last year very well but that means I probably had a stellar time. Hit up their Facebook page for a complete list, it's guaranteed to make your mouth hole water. They usually coordinate a Barley Brunch for one of the mornings with special food (brunch, duh) and beers so keep an eye out for that as well!

Reoccurring Events

Randall Wrecker Mondays @ Parkway Tavern (Tacoma, 6p) - A new beer (and much more!) will be thrown in the Randall every Monday night for your delight. They even have a punch card!

Beer Tasting Wednesdays @ Tacoma World Beers (Tacoma, 4-7p) Hit up your localest of local beer stores every Wednesday for a $2 beer tasting. You can always make your own tasting from the beers they have on tap but check out their Facebook page or sign up for the newsletter to see what special beers are being served every week.

Cask Thursdays @ Airways Brewing Tap Room (Kent, 4p) - A firkin will be tapped every Thursday at their Tap Room. You can find weekly updates on what cask ales are being served on their website.

Growler Fills @ Wingman Brewery (Tacoma) - New Taproom open now!!! Newly located at 509 1/2 Puyallup Ave, Tacoma, 98421. Swing by for a growler fill or taste of their lovely beer on Thurs, Fri & Sat from 2-11p.

 April showers bring me

special beer powers!

Why I love Eyeluvbeer & other out of this world musings

 You gotta check out my buddies blog post today over at Eyeluvbeer, it made me laugh out loud (sorry, I can't physically make myself type 'LOL'). I totally love them and their goofy weirdness, my kinda peeps through and through. You can check out his other posts and rad merchandise here, after you're done reading. Might as well read on and enjoy!

Meet 0101110, Our New Friend

Hi, I'm 0101110

Greetings Earthlings. I have been deployed from the planet Bräuzeer contained in the UDFj-39546284 Galaxy, which is approximately 13.2 billion light-years from Earth. We are fluent in 10,126 languages, including English. My planet Bräuzeer is interested in a liquid you create called beer. Where I'm from no such thing exists. We used our recently developed Hopdar Sensor Technology (HST) and have found the Pacific Northwest produces some of the best beer in the United States. After careful analysis we have chosen Oregon as our test site; Portland to be exact. Bräuzeer was amazed when they looked at their radar findings and saw 47+ breweries in the metropolitan area. Fascinated by this enormous number they have sent me, 0101110 to explore the love you humanoids have with beer. Oh, and don’t worry, we aren’t going to try to take over your planet like those Hollywood movies want you to believe.

Bräuzeer as seen from your crappy Hubble Space Telescope

My space craft was programmed to land at 45° 33' 7.2'', -122° 40' 32.2''. As it turns out, this was the exact coordinates of what I have become to know as Bridgetown Beerhouse. I made it, but was in bad shape from a very rough landing. Almost unconscious outside Bridgetown’s entrance, I was scooped up off the ground by a scruffy looking human who was headed out the door. I noticed one particular article of clothing the earthly being was wearing had some strange symbols on it; one I recognized was the state of Oregon. Below it, in tiny letters was some text. It read Eyeluvbeer. I would call this Earthling, Eyeluvbeer.

Eyeluvbeer, put me in his pocket and we traveled by foot to the place he calls home. So far, I have been on Earth for roughly two weeks. In that time, I have consumed a number of beers and have begun to see why you humans love it so much. It's certainly delicious, there seems to be a style for everyone’s liking and more importantly, it brings people together. I have met some really great beings in Portland while out sipping a pint. They think I look a little funny at first, but they figure I’m just keeping Portland weird.

Eyeluvbeer bought me a nice
HUB Galactic Imperial Red.  It was out of
this world!

Eyeluvbeer has promised to take me out more and more. He said he’d be happy to have me as a guest blogger or at least contribute somehow to the beer blog he maintains. Eventually I will have to return to Bräuzeer to report my discoveries. Until then, I hope we cross paths and can enjoy a pint together.

Happy St. Patricks Day,
0101110

You can check out Eyeluvbeer's other blog posts and rad merchandise here, they are definitely doing their part to keep Portland weird. Thank goodness for that!