TACOMA PREFUNK TUESDAY, JUNE 6 2017: Chuckanut Brewery and swing dance culture film PREFUNK: In the early 1980s, chemical engineer and homebrewer Will Kemper paid a visit to the brewmaster of the now-defunct Rainier Brewery in Seattle where he was told he couldn’t open a brewery because he wasn’t born into it. Good one. In 1984, Kemper, his wife, Mari, and Andy Thomas opened Thomas Kemper Brewery in Poulsbo, Washington. In 1992, Thomas Kemper merged with Hart Brewing, which went on to be Pyramid Breweries. The Kempers saw the ugly side of the business and became consultants with East Coast
Like Cameron Diaz and Benji Madden, grapefruit and beer may seem an odd pair at first glance. But, it works. Well. Grapefruit has a diverse flavor profile — sweet, tart and bitter all rolled into one. Methods for brewing with grapefruit depend on the brewery, and each has its own take on this tart fruit. Some prefer to put the fruit flavor in the boil, allowing the sugars and sweetness to ferment out to leave a subtle citrus flavor. Others layer by adding grapefruit juice to the boil, followed by the rinds in the secondary, followed by hops, hops and
Brian Cox’s Churchill will never come to you hat in hand. TACOMA PREFUNK MONDAY, JUNE 5 2017: Jason Locking benefit and summer memories PREFUNK: With heavy hearts, we at Peaks and Pints send our deepest condolences to Jason Locking’s “family.” Jason, 44, died peacefully in his sleep following a 15-month battle with pancreatic cancer. The beloved Tacoma chef and musician played in several bands over the years, including Gold Teeth, Pioneers West, NMVGPTS and, most recently, Old Foals. Shortly before his cancer diagnosis, he was promoted to sous chef at Boka at Hotel 1000 in downtown
Founders reDANKulous Imperial Red IPA is a no frills, bold 9.5% ABV India Pale Ale. MORNING FOAM FOR MONDAY, JUNE 5 2017: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to old beer ads. … Portland’s Lardo on Hawthorne is welcoming Melvin for a week long of Wu-Tang antics — 17 beer tap takeover, Wu-Tang, Kung Fu, and the “World’s Greatest Ping Pong” show. The dankness runs June 8-15. Modern Times has released Centaur Gardens, a hazy IPA crammed with Amarillo, Simcoe, Citra, J17 and Mosaic hops and fermented with
Sour beer styles are as old as beer brewing itself, yet they remained dormant in the craft world until several years ago. Today, brewers with an eye toward innovation have looked backward in time, adopting nearly-forgotten brewing practices. Not that all sour beers are boldly mouth puckering and expensive. Rather, they run the gamut of tart, tangy, acidic, pungent, affordable, and refreshing. When fruit is added to balance the flavor profile, the drinkability, in many cases, is enhanced. Sours get their trademark tartness and sourness from bacteria and wild yeasts — Lactobacillus, Acetobacter, Brettanomyces and other critters — which you
For any craft beer enthusiast living in the South Sound, the past 12 months have been a stellar. From the opening of 7 Seas Brewing and Dystopian Brewing in Tacoma, the opening of Matchless Brewing in Tumwater, E2W Brewing launching in Gig Harbor, Hoh River Brewing’s official opening in Olympia, Half Lion Brewing’s opening in Sumner, Tacoma Brewing Company’s expansion into a new location, new bottle shops BrewDad’s of Bonney Lake, Brewers Row and our little Peaks and Pints, the ever-growing Tacoma Beer Week — plus too many new beer releases to mention — the stream of craft beer-related events
Jason Kenneth Locking, 1973 – 2017 With heavy hearts, we at Peaks and Pints send our deepest condolences to Jason Locking’s “family.” Jason, 44, died peacefully in his sleep following a 15-month battle with pancreatic cancer. The beloved Tacoma chef and musician played in several bands over the years, including Gold Teeth, Pioneers West, NMVGPTS and, most recently, Old Foals. Shortly before his cancer diagnosis, he was promoted to sous chef at Boka at Hotel 1000 in downtown Seattle. Jason was true Tacoma. A friend of the city, and hundreds of its denizens. He was one
In 1978 the white lab coats at the Hull Hop Research Institute in Germany introduced their creation: Hallertau Perle hop but often referred to simply as Perle. They successfully crossbred Northern Brewer hops with the easily to remember 63/5/27M hop for all of Germany to enjoy, and eventually the United States, especially Oregon. The small to medium size cones are ready mid to late season after a moderately vigorous growing cycle without out much fear of wilting, mildew and disease. Science! Perle is known for adding a traditional, German-like quality to beer and is popular for its minty and spicy
TACOMA PREFUNK JUNE 3 2017: Mountain Beer Fest and a weird Mad Max PREFUNK: Peaks and Pints we will host an all-day Mountain Beer Festival from 11 a.m. to 11 p.m. Craft beers and ciders from mountain community breweries and cideries as well as mountain moniker brews will flow from our Western red cedar tap log and into keepsake Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Festival glassware, for those who want to donate to Green Tacoma Partnership ($5). Expect to drink such delights as Double Mountain Dry Cider, Grand Teton American Sour, Holy Mountain The White Lodge Wit, Alaskan Big Mountain
Mirrorgloss performs at Half Pint Pizza Pub tonight. Photo courtesy of Facebook TACOMA PREFUNK FRIDAY, JUNE 2 2017: Monkey Paw This One Goes to Eleven and Mirrorgloss PREFUNK: Monkey Paw Pub & Brewery has swung into Peaks and Pints with its tail wrapped around a keg of This One Goes to Eleven triple IPA. The San Diego brewery collaborated with their “wonderfully drunken friends from Jackson Hole, WY, Melvin Brewing” on this 11 percent triple IPA with 11 malts, 11 hops and 1,100 total pounds of grain for dank tropical goodness. It’s pouring from Peaks
There are many frivolous “holidays” out there, but National Rocky Road Day is not one of them. Celebrated on June 2 (that’s today!), Rocky Road day commemorates one of America’s favorite ice cream flavors. William Dreyer came up with Rocky Road ice cream in 1929. He added walnuts to chocolate ice cream, along with marshmallows he cut into eenie weenie bite-size pieces using his wife’s sewing shears. He quickly changed the walnuts to almonds, and Rocky Road was born. He named his ice cream “Rocky Road” as a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Great Depression and the difficulties that lay ahead.
THURSDAY PREFUNK JUNE 1 2017: Scuttlebutt Lodge Meeting and The Red Elvises … PREFUNK: If you’ve been waiting since the day you were born to drink Scuttlebutt Brewing Company craft beer, this is your year: Everett’s renowned brewery turns 21 in July. If you’re already 21 you can enjoy Scuttlebutt craft beers a month earlier at today’s Peaks and Pints Lodge Meeting when Scuttlebutt dons the ceremonial robe and Grand Poobah hat as we pour the brewery’s beers from our Western red cedar tap log, including KEXP Transistor IPA and 20th Anniversary Russian Imperial Stout. Peaks and Pints, Tacoma 6:30
Yes! MORNING FOAM FOR THURSDAY, JUNE 1 2017: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the song of the summer. … Pike Brewing Company announces our summer seasonal beer release: Pike Seafair Summer Ale. A light and lemony summer ale, Pike Seafair Summer Ale has a clean and round mouthfeel that pops with citrusy hops. Crisp and bright in your glass with a white head, this session ale is ready for your summer adventures and toasts Seafair, a 67 year old Seattle tradition. In a three-way collision between
Phil Bannan Sr. and his family founded Scuttlebutt Brewing in 1996. Family, indeed. The family business, which today employs about 75 people, started with a homebrewing kit Bannan’s wife, Cynthia, bought him on Father’s Day in 1990. Cynthia eventually kicked him out of the kitchen and into a facility at the Port of Everett. They decided to name their brewery “Scuttlebutt” after Cynthia’s nickname bestowed upon by her father after her impending birth became the scuttlebutt of Naval Station Norfolk where he worked. Phil Bannan Jr. is the brewery’s general manager, and he and his wife, Mindy, designed the taproom
Backwoods Brewing’s Gifford Pinchot Pilsner will pour from Peaks and Pints’ Western red cedar tap log during the Mountain Beer Fest Saturday, June 3. Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Fest: Backwoods Brewing Gifford Pinchot Pilsner Peaks and Pints we will host an all-day Mountain Beer Festival Saturday, June 3. Craft beers and ciders from mountain community breweries and cideries as well as mountain moniker brews will flow from our Western red cedar tap log and into keepsake Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Festival glassware, for those who want to donate to Green Tacoma Partnership. At 8
WEDNESDAY, MAY 31 2017: Firestone Walker Luponic Distortion 006 before Le Fomo and The Abides PREFUNK: Firestone Walker Brewing’s Luponic Distortion is a series of craft beers that revolves approximately every 90 days, all of which showcase specific hops. The California brewery keeps a continuous “base beer” and alters the hops that are used with each new version of the series. Luponic Distortion 006 hit Peaks and Pints’ western red cedar tap log with a blend of seven hop varieties led by two hops grown in the up-and-coming region of Michigan. This IPA ultimately provides a vivid taste of a
First grown by in Kent, England as a chance seeding in 1861, Richard Fuggle brought his namesake hops to market in 1875. Fuggle hit its peak in 1949 when 78 percent of the English hop crops were Fuggle. Today, Fuggle continues to be grown in the UK in addition to Oregon and Washington state, though the US version is slightly less potent than its English counterpart. Originally used as a bittering and aroma hop, it is more recently used as primarily an aroma hop. Fuggle is also used in breeding and is parent to Willamette, Cascade and Glacier hops. The
Holy Mountain’s The White Lodge wit will pour at the Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Fest Saturday, June 3. Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Fest: Holy Mountain The White Lodge Peaks and Pints we will host an all-day Mountain Beer Festival Saturday, June 3. Craft beers and ciders from mountain community breweries and cideries as well as mountain moniker brews will flow from our Western red cedar tap log and into keepsake Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Festival glassware, for those who want to donate to Green Tacoma Partnership. At 8 p.m., Tacoma bluegrass band Barleywine
Get your buzz on with Rogue Ales’ Double Chocolate Stout in Peaks and Pints’ cooler. Cold snaps in the summer weather make for fine opportunities to sip bold craft beers, bursting with spices, roasted malts and complex flavors. There’s a great scene in the 2007 documentary American Brew where late British author Michael Jackson (a.k.a. the Beer Hunter) describes a perfect scenario for sipping a dark ale. He’s in a pub, holding a full pint of heavy Rogue ale. “This would be even better on a cold night,” he says, “just as the rain is hammering
Witchburn rocks Jazzbones tonight. TACOMA PREFUNK MAY 30 2017: Breakside India Golden Ale before Chris Evans and Witchburn … PREFUNK: Originally released in 2013 as a limited draft only special collaboration with Ninkasi Brewing, Breakside Brewery’s India Golden Ale, or I.G.A., is a golden double IPA that’s light in body, lighter in color and HUGE in citrus flavor and aroma. I.G.A. showcases Mosaic and Eldorado hops. Mosaic gives the beer a bright mix of stonefruit and tropical flavors along with a big piney backbone. Eldorados are fruity and soften the finish. The Portland, Oregon brewery keeps
Coming from a family of German aroma hops and open pollination, the Sterling hop was developed in 1990 and released in 1998 as a replacement for the Saaz hop. Saaz is known agriculturally for its susceptibility to disease and fungus, of which the stronger Sterling is tolerant. Developed in the Northwest, this hop — an alternative to European hops — is a widely popular variety amongst American craft brewers. The citric qualities of the Sterling are lemony with a hint of pineapple. Its spicy and herbal aroma gives it a sense of sophistication, while the citrus asserts itself on the
MORNING FOAM FOR MONDAY, MAY 29 2017: A seven-taster flight of craft beer and cider news, from the fluffy head all the way to the golf gymnastics. … The Washington Beer Commission presents the 12th Annual Washington Brewer’s Festival at King County’s Marymoor Park June 16-18. The Washington Brewer’s Festival is a unique all-ages beer festival where thousands of beer aficionados can sample more than 500 beers from 130 Washington breweries. In addition, the festival offers wine and cider tastings, great food trucks, live music and all-ages activities. 2 Towns Ciderhouse has release two ciders for summer. Prickle Me Pink^2
Ah yes, a long holiday weekend is upon us! Are you excited Peaks and Pints Pals?! With the unofficial start to summer, what styles are you most excited for? We hope you get to enjoy the outdoors and perhaps even stock your cooler from our cooler. Whatever you do, be sure to share your lovely beer photos with us and tag us at @peaksandpint. We’ll meet you back here again next Sunday. Cheers! https://www.instagram.com/p/BUVDDSFgDmA/?taken-by=matchlessbrewing https://www.instagram.com/p/BUZwbnrlBRc/?taken-by=mcmenamins https://www.instagram.com/p/BUdMxv9hs8h/?taken-by=chuckshopshopcd https://www.instagram.com/p/BUc1mn4lF_9/?taken-by=odellbrewing https://www.instagram.com/p/BUfwyDfh9E3/?taken-by=culturebrewingco https://www.instagram.com/p/BUiCH8pB79b/?taken-by=draftmag https://www.instagram.com/p/BUiMMloD94s/?taken-by=10barrelbrewing https://www.instagram.com/p/BUkeb1ThyHg/?taken-by=pintplease https://www.instagram.com/p/BUkFBahgrbM/?taken-by=rogueales https://www.instagram.com/p/BUk7ki7jLwj/?taken-by=deschutesbeer https://www.instagram.com/p/BUnDnfbgQBW/?taken-by=wingmanbrewers https://www.instagram.com/p/BUpAzHRhXcF/?taken-by=oskarblues https://www.instagram.com/p/BUpiol9jZ4L/?taken-by=buzzardsbaybrewing https://www.instagram.com/p/BUqIlPljbTQ/?tagged=craftbeer https://www.instagram.com/p/BUqHmuogZrC/?tagged=craftbeer https://www.instagram.com/p/BUqHeAJD7NX/?taken-by=blackheartbar https://www.instagram.com/p/BUqHQgzgBd0/?tagged=craftbeer https://www.instagram.com/p/BUqFPagg8Q6/?tagged=craftbeer https://www.instagram.com/p/BUqFCaKFr-j/?tagged=craftbeer https://www.instagram.com/p/BUqCfakjJhL/?tagged=craftbeer
Everybody’s Brewing Pucker Huddle Porter waits for a seat on the brewery’s popular deck. Welcome to the Northwest Porter Companion: Everybody’s Brewing Pucker Huddle. … “I’ll start off with a Pucker Huddle, please.” Of course, it’s probably obvious to everyone, including the Everybody’s Brewing bartender, that I’ve “started off” a long time ago — like around 1981 — but that’s beside the point, isn’t it? She seems quite pleased with my order as she spins around to pour me the brewery’s flagship porter. I watch the pint glass fill with pitch-black delight and a cappuccino head.
Uinta Cucumber Saison will pour from Peaks and Pints’ Western red cedar tap log during the Mountain Beer Fest Saturday, June 3. Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Fest: Uinta Brewing Cucumber Saison Peaks and Pints we will host an all-day Mountain Beer Festival Saturday, June 3. Craft beers and ciders from mountain community breweries and cideries as well as mountain moniker brews will flow from our Western red cedar tap log and into keepsake Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Festival glassware, for those who want to donate to Green Tacoma Partnership. At 8 p.m., Tacoma bluegrass
Kareem Kandi Band performs at The Swiss tonight. SUNDAY, MAY 28 2017: Tacoma events + craft beer … PREFUNK: Our nation’s warriors can hardly turn around without being offered a free meal or hearing civilian choruses of “thank you for your service” from every direction, especially on this Memorial Day weekend. Ideally, this holiday weekend also reminds us of the extreme sacrifices endured by the military on our behalf, and prompts legitimate discussions about how to improve services and readjustment opportunities for those we send to war. Iron Horse Brewery launched the Hopping Hands Project this
While Memorial Day is first and foremost a holiday dedicated to remembering our fallen men and women who heroically served in our Armed Forces, many craft breweries think charity first and beer second. Peaks and Pints likes to think of them as liquid philanthropists as they donate a piece of their pie to charity. They believe true fulfillment never comes from financial or material success. Happiness and deep sense of connection is their goal. The five craft breweries we highlight in our beer sample flight sit on the same mountaintop. Money comprises the base, but idealism, balance and good vibes
We wish you a merry … May? We were wearing shorts when the pumpkin beers came out, and now it’s Christmas in May — Peaks and Pints just can’t contain our excitement for spruce tips in craft beer. Spruce beer actually has a long history, especially in colonial America, and within multiple naval traditions. When Captain Cook sailed the Pacific in the 1700s his crew drank spruce beer to help ward off scurvy. Of course boiling the spruce probably destroyed all of the vitamin C making it useless as a scurvy cure, but being beer it probably helped ward off boredom
The Rusty Cleavers perform at The Swiss tonight.photo by Kendra Design Photography / facebook.com/KendraDesign FRIDAY, MAY 26 2017: Tacoma events + craft beer … PREFUNK: Bend’s Crux Fermentation Project kicked off their 2017 [BANISHED] barrel-aged beer series with the release of In The Pocket, a Brettanomyces aged and blended imperial saison. The “young” version was primarily fermented with Brettanomyces Lambicus and Bruxellensis, while the “elder” one was aged for 16 months in Northwest red wine barrels. The barrel-aged portion was first fermented with a saison yeast, secondary fermentation was with Brettanomyces Lambicus. The result is delicate,
THURSDAY, MAY 25 2017: Tacoma events + craft beer … PREFUNK: A good rauchbier has a strong smokiness, but you never forget you’re drinking a beer. A little smoke can go a long way. It’s an even tougher task for a brewer to make a smoked beer that’s based on a light-bodied golden ale or lager. Redhook Brewery’s small batch brewer Nick Crandell is well known for his venturesome, sometimes whimsical, beer recipes. He’s a brewer who’s not afraid to produce what even craft brewers consider offbeat, like a collaboration Rauch Helles with Chuckanut Brewery, which makes sense since both
One of the four “noble” hops (meaning a race of wildly occurring hops which are low in bitterness and high in aroma), Saaz hops are extremely popular in Bohemian style beer and are the main hop component of the Czech pilsner. As a noble hop, rather than being bred, Saaz has been growing naturally in the Czech Republic for centuries and was named after the city of Žatec (Saaz in German) where it was originally found. With such a low Alpha Acid content, Saaz are almost exclusively used for aroma and not bittering. Though quite mild and delicate, Saaz hops
In Bend, Oregon, Goodlife Brewing is releasing Secret Stash series #003, a blood orange IPA and also celebrating their 6th anniversary with a party Sat. June 17. MORNING FOAM FOR THURSDAY, MAY 25 2017: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to special Russian dog correspondent. … South Puget Sound Community College has created a craft brewing and distilling educational program. The two-year program rolls out this fall. From Fort George to Worthy and on to Gigantic, the Cosmic Collaboration Series from Ecliptic Brewing has most recently been Oregon
Dru Bru IPA will pour from Peaks and Pints’ Western red cedar tap log during the Mountain beer fest Saturday, June 3. Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Fest: Dru Bru IPA Peaks and Pints we will host an all-day Mountain Beer Festival Saturday, June 3. Craft beers and ciders from mountain community breweries and cideries as well as mountain moniker brews will flow from our Western red cedar tap log and into keepsake Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Festival glassware, for those who want to donate to Green Tacoma Partnership. At 8 p.m., Tacoma bluegrass band
WEDNESDAY, MAY 24 2017: South Sound events + craft beer … PREFUNK: If you’re looking for a summer beer that’s not going to confuse the hell out of you, then check out Reuben’s Brews’ Summer IPA. It pours clear golden body with a thin, white head and features mild aromas of light malt, tangy orange and grapefruit with hop forward notes. The taste follows the head of this ale leaving little room for mystery. It’s a classic example of a delicious and easy-drinking summer IPA. The Summer IPA pours from Peaks and Pints’ Western red cedar tap log. Peaks and
Jeppe Jarnit-Bjergsø, the founder and man behind Evil Twin Brewing, was a physics and English teacher in his native Denmark before starting Copenhagen’s Ølbutikken, a highly regarded beer store. He’s also an evil twin himself. His brother, Mikkel Borg Bergsø, brews under the Mikkeller label. Jarnit-Bjergsø, however, has done his best to outshine the good twin. He founded Evil Twin in 2010 as a nomadic brewery. Like his brother Mikkel, Jarnit-Bjergsø would concocts a recipe for his beer and hand it to another brewery with some extra capacity. This contracted brewing partner brewed, bottled, priced and sold the beer, then
Selkirk Abbey Brewing Co.’s 12° strong dark ale is in Peaks and Pints’ cooler. There’s a tradition of leisurely beer-drinking embodied by “session” beers with lower alcohol content, rooted in a time when laborers could sit around drinking for a few hours without staggering home, or more likely back to work. But the craft brewing revival has also whetted appetites for the opposite type of excess: the “big beer,” full of flavor and extraordinarily high in alcohol content. In lieu of sucking down multiple session IPAs and lagers in your backyard kiddie pool, Peaks and Pints
TUESDAY, MAY 23 2017: Tacoma events + craft beer … PREFUNK: It’s the best Disco in town, funky music pound for pound / Join the crowd, come on dance and sing, hey, hey / It’s the best Disco in town, people come from miles around / It’s the place to do your own thing, hey, hey. Of course The Ritchie Family wasn’t waxing discotheque but rather Aslan’s Disco Lemonade Berliner Weisse. The light-bodied sour wheat beer is so delicious it deserves a song. With its bubby effervescence and tartness, the centuries-old Berliner Weisse style was called the “Champagne of the
In 1993, Adam Avery launches his Avery Brewing Company in a garage off an alley in Boulder, making him one of the pioneers of Colorado’s craft beer scene. At first, consumers were apprehensive when it came to the new tastes Avery introduced to the market place. In 1996, Avery was among the first breweries in Colorado to offer an IPA. Many of the deliveries were returned because the beer tasted too bitter. Pushing the limits in the brewhouse, they began experimenting with barrel aging in 2003 and barrel-aged fanatics throughout the nation seek the results out. Many of the big
Grand Teton Brewing’s American Sour will be pouring from Peaks and Pints’ Western red cedar tap log during the Mountain Beer Fest Saturday, June 3. Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Fest: Grand Teton Brewing American Sour Peaks and Pints we will host an all-day Mountain Beer Festival Saturday, June 3. Craft beers and ciders from mountain community breweries and cideries as well as mountain moniker brews will flow from our Western red cedar tap log and into keepsake Peaks and Pints Mountain Beer Festival glassware, for those who want to donate to Green Tacoma Partnership. At
Hear what this photo sounds like at Peaks and Pints tonight. Photo credit: Pappi Swarner MONDAY, MAY 22 2017: South Sound events + craft beer … PREFUNK: We interrupt our regular SudsPop music and craft beer Monday nights to bring you a Squeak and Squawk listing party at 7 p.m. tonight inside Peaks and Pints bottle shop, taproom and restaurant in Tacoma’s Proctor District. Squeak and Squawk is a five-day indie music festival in Tacoma that persists in spite of itself. Founded in 2008, by Sean Alexander and Peter Lynn, the form of having 10 shows
To commemorate the coming mêlée in the Emmy® Award-winning show’s epic seventh season, Brewery Ommegang and HBO Global Licensing are excited to announce a new beer in their collaborative series: Bend the Knee Golden Ale. MORNING FOAM FOR MONDAY, MAY 22 2017: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the Moon beer. … Sierra Nevada Brewing returns in 2017 with a new take on its successful Beer Camp Across America collaboration 12 pack with a slight twist. New for this year is Beer Camp Across the World collaboration
Since Peaks and Pints began our daily beer sample flights with themes we have received approximately 3 hundred emails a week proclaiming, “Today is National Cheese Doodle Day!” or “It’s National Candied Orange Peel Day!” It’s the job of PR people to invent this stuff, and we respect that. It’s their job to dangle the carrot (National Carrot Day is Feb. 3, incidentally) in front of our noses — “Easy blog post! Hi res images! Soundbites!” — and our job to celebrate it. It’s the circle of life (and it moves us all). Today is National Vanilla Pudding Day. The
The weather is beautiful. It’s a sweltering 70 degrees — which is just about incomprehensible for a South Sounder living through this past winter — and we’re shuffling around the Uptown Gig Harbor Shopping Center with several hundred other lightly clothed beer tasters, shifting between booths emblazoned with names of the breweries Gig Harbor Brewing Co. founder John Fosberg has given the thumbs up to serve the unsunscreen’d masses at the 2017 Gig Harbor Beer Festival Saturday, May 21. This festival is for those with a curious palate; for those who don’t shudder at the idea of not one, but
SUNDAY, MAY 21 2017: Tacoma events + craft beer … PREFUNK: Wet Coast Line Jumper IPA gets its name from the boats smuggling liquor across the Canadian boarder into the US during prohibition. Accordingly, the Gig Harbor brewery smuggled in a new recipe for its Line Jumper. The Chinook and El Dorado hops have been loaded in a boat and cast away. Mosaic and Eureka join the anchor Columbus hop. That’s right; two heavyweights with complex flavors meet head-on in this delicious IPA. Mosaic — probably one of the most aptly named hops — fuses an array of tropical fruits,
