DJ Fir$t Lady spins at The Brotherhood Lounge tonight. SOUTH SOUND PREFUNK THURSDAY, SEPT. 7 2017: Green Drinks and DJ Fir$t Lady PREFUNK: Why drink alone when you can get your drink on with cool cats who care about environmental issues? On the first Thursday of each month, Green Drinks invites Tacoma and Pierce County residents to do just that — hang out and chat with other green-minded individuals over drinks and snacks. At 6 p.m. Peaks and Pints hosts the Green Drinks, er, drinkers with special guest ForeverGreen Trails, a coalition of Pierce County trail
Wingman Brewers S’mores Porter will be released on draft and in cans at 6 p.m. in Peaks and Pints bottle shop in Tacoma’s Proctor District. Artwork by Sam Dollar TACOMA PREFUNK WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 6 2017: Wingman S’mores Porter and Cashing In Karma PREFUNK: The campfire has been responsibly extinguished. The sleeping bags rolled up. And the final hugs have been exchanged with promises to stay in touch. Wingman Brewers and Peaks and Pints, a brewery and bottle shop from Tacoma, respectively, will release their second collaboration craft beer at 6 p.m. inside Peaks and Pint’s lodge
Ninkasi Brewing Co. has a concession stand inside the Tacoma Dome. MORNING FOAM FOR WEDNESDAY, SEPT. 6 2017: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the Hyperloop Pod. … Ninkasi signed a three-year contract with the city of Tacoma for the concession stand at the Tacoma Dome. The Eugene, Oregon brewery opened the first branded craft-beer concession stand at the Tacoma Dome Aug. 1. Ninkasi’s concession stand is part of a broader $21-million renovation of the 34-year-old Tacoma Dome. Expect to drink Total Domination IPA, Pacific Rain Pale
Remember when you woke up to snores from “The Room” at 7 a.m. on a Saturday. Psychedelic clothing draped the beanbags. Starving, and not waiting to awake your parents, you tiptoed in footie pajamas toward the cereal cabinet for greatness in a box, the all-sugar-little-added-value, strangely colored food group known as breakfast food. Oh, joy! You poured Count Chocula into a Slurpee cup as to not alert of your early feeding. Ok, maybe that was just Peaks and Pints. Oh, but the Count Chocula and Franken Berry. … General Mills hit it out of the park with those monster-themed breakfast
The party began in October 1810, when a great horse race was organized to celebrate the marriage of Crown Prince Ludwig and Princess Therese of Saxe-Hildburghausen. Everyone had so much fun that it was held again, and eventually became an annual event, dubbed “Oktoberfest” in 1872. It has since evolved into a 16-day Munich blowout in late September and early October. Oh, to be in that great mass of humanity, dancing to the throbbing polka beats, scarfing down sausage, kraut, and strudel, and most of all, imbibing from the holy grail … er, stein. … You see before refrigeration, fermentation
In celebration of what would have been rock legend Freddie Mercury’s 71st birthday, Peaks and Pints’ turns over our daily fresh hop/Oktoberfest hug to Mr. Mercury. Dude is a rock legend. He was a masterful pianist and an incredibly gifted vocalist. Even though Queen’s performed without him over the years, it’s always been as Queen + ______. Today, it’s Queen + Fresh Hops and Oktoberfests. That’s right. Peaks and Pints continues The Hunt For Fresh Hoptoberfest, our month-long, fresh hop celebration paired with Oktoberfest beers. We’re pouring bright, hop-hazy fresh-hop beers, just hours from field to kettle and mere days
All day, US of A … with fresh hops and Oktoberfest. And so, today, summer unofficially ends the way it unofficially began: you, drinking craft beer and cider, eating sandwiches and avoiding work. It’s been a long, hot summer, but we made it. Relax: it’s the American way. Peaks and Pints will be open for business today, and we continue The Hunt For Fresh Hoptoberfest, our month-long, fresh hop celebration paired with Oktoberfest beers. We’re pouring bright, hop-hazy fresh-hop beers, just hours from field to kettle and mere days from the fermenter to your glass AND drink to your health,
Traditionally, Labor Day signifies the end of the summer and the beginning of fall (more or less). Or, at least, that’s what it’s supposed to be everywhere else but in Washington state. We’re sort of the exception to the rule this year, considering that our hot-as-hell summer continues for the next few days. Celebrated the first Monday of every September, Labor Day honors America’s workers and their many contributions to our nation’s strength, prosperity and well-being. That said, it’s also a great time for friends, family, cookouts and BEER. Peaks and Pints is offering a beer flight of a few
Chatter Vulture hiking the Indian Bar Trail at Mount Rainier A little motivation, encouragement or camaraderie goes a long way when it comes to getting out and finding adventure. Them Vultures, a group of hiking buddies, are motivated by beer. OK, that’s not fair. The gentlemen are avid hikers who happen to wear Peaks and Pints shirts and drink beer once they loosen the laces at the predetermined peak. Peaks and Pints receives after-action reports from Them Vultures with photographs of trail scenery and, of course, a Peaks and Pints shirt-wearing shot. Chatter Vulture of Them
The Good, The Fresh and The Oktoberfest Fresh-hopped beer is an ephemeral thing, arriving only during hops harvest season, with its piney, citrusy taste and delicate fizz. Fresh hop festivals abound in the Northwest, but Peaks and Pints’ The Hunt For Fresh Hoptoberfest is the only month-long fresh hop celebration paired with Oktoberfest beers. We’re pouring bright, hop-hazy fresh-hop beers, just hours from field to kettle and mere days from the fermenter to your glass AND drink to your health, clean, hearty Oktoberfest-style lagers from Germany and nearby. We’ll wager our pretzel bread sticks you’ll drink both. Since Sept. 3
The Hunt For Fresh Hoptoberfest — Thirty-one days of fresh hops and Oktoberfest beers Peaks and Pints is throwing a month-long autumn beer party marrying up two popular seasonal beers — fresh hops and Oktoberfest. We’re calling it The Hunt For Fresh Hoptoberfest, tapping fresh hop and Oktoberfest beers daily through Sept. 31. You’ll find bright, hop-hazy fresh-hop beers, just hours from field to kettle and mere days from the fermenter to your glass AND drink to your health with clean, hearty Oktoberfest-style lagers from Germany and nearby. We’ll wager our pretzel bread sticks you’ll drink both. You see, fall
In 2009, Hopsteiner Breeding Program released Delta (Hopsteiner 04188), a cross of two well-known varieties: the earthy English Fuggles and floral Cascade — the quintessential flavor of West Coast beers — which is itself a blend of Fuggles and the Russian hop Serebrianker. Originally bred as a Willamette replacement, Delta’s superior yield and improved disease tolerance give it an edge. Spicy and earthy with slight citrus aromas, Delta has been labeled a “Super Willamette.” It’s a great variety substitute for Willamette or Fuggle. Fuggle is usually a pretty subtle hop, but Delta has a stronger, more assertive character — an
According to most beer historians, growers in the Hallertau region of Bavaria in southern Germany first cultivated hops. Going back to at least the 11th century, hops were added to beer not only to preserve it, but also enhance its flavor. The initial, venerable Continental European hops are German Hallertauer Mittelfrueh, Spalter, and Tettnanger, and the Czech Saaz from the Žatec region of Bohemia, which in the 1980s the United States tagged as “Noble hops.” What ties these four varieties together is their powerful terroir, which is their centuries-old history of having been grown in and having adapted to their
TACOMA PREFUNK WEDNESDAY, AUG. 30 2017: Raven De Brett and Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band PREFUNK: Bière de Garde, at least by today’s definition, is a warm fermented strong pale ale — sometimes blonde, sometimes amber, and has much in common with Belgium ales. Black Raven Brewing’s Raven De Brett falls into this style, housed a six-month secondary fermentation with the “wild” yeast strain Brettanomyces lambicus, then dry hopped in order to meld bright fresh hop aroma and accent with aged wild yeast character. On the nose, expect crisp fresh melon and dark lemon, dry earthy oaky notes with
TACOMA PREFUNK TUESDAY, AUG. 29 2017: Northish Forge Your Own Chains IPA and the Promised Land PREFUNK: “Inspired by Old World styles and New World techniques Tacoma-based brewing project Northish Beer Co. has officially released its first beer, Forge Your Own Chains IPA. “For our debut beer we wanted to brew something we would love to drink, day-in and day-out,” states the Forge Your Own Chains IPA release. “Taking inspiration from many different takes on the style, the result is stronger than any of its individual links. Forge Your Own Chains pours a hazy yet deep orange with bright aromas
According to the Brewer’s Association, pale ales are the second most popular style of craft beer, trailing only IPAs. Pale ales originated in the UK in the late 1700s and were made famous by the Bass Brewery of Burton-upon-Trent, England. Sierra Nevada then “Americanized” the style in 1980 when they released their hoppier version of the pale ale featuring Cascade hops, which became the signature hop for the American version of style. English pale ales often have less assertive hoppiness that comes off more herbal and grassy. The Belgian pale ale was brewed in one form or another all the way
Wingman Brewers S’mores Porter can label featuring collaborators Peaks and Pints ownership camping with the Wingman staff. Campers are, from left, Ron Swarner, Robby Peterson, Ken Thoburn, Peter Brown, Justin Peterson and Daniel Heath. Artwork by Sam Dollar What happens when the owners of Wingman Brewers and Peaks and Pints gather around a campfire to toast their latest collaboration batch of Peaks and Pints Perfect Proctor Porter? Yes, a mean game of Kick The Can, but also a recipe development for their new collaboration, S’mores Porter. Childhood memories in an adult beverage, indeed: Wingman Brewers and
Score: A Film Music Documentary screens at The Grand Cinema twice today. TACOMA PREFUNK MONDAY, AUG. 28 2017: Holy Mountain Transfiguration and Score Film Music Documentary PREFUNK: Today’s Prefunk includes a documentary examining the magic of film music. Peaks and Pints has Holy Mountain’s Transfiguration (6.1% ABV) flowing from our Western red cedar tap log. Someone should film a documentary on this clean, delicious saison brewed with pilsner malt and Vienna, then hopped in the kettle with Motueka and Waimea. Transfiguration was fermented in stainless and then dry-hopped with Waimea. It’s amazing. 2:20 AND 7 P.M.
Peaks and Pints thinks “drinkability” is a perfectly decent, useful word. Yes, drinkability is one of those words that some people dislike, along with “refreshing,” “smooth” and “creamy.” There’s nothing inherently wrong with aiming to brew high quality and drinkable beer. There are many craft breweries that seek to create balanced, drinkable beers that aren’t hop bombs. Our flight today is all about complex and delicious, easy-drinking American craft beers. Enjoy Craft beer Crosscut 8.28.17: A Fight of Drinkability. Evil Twin Sour Bikini 3% ABV Throw on a bikini top, drop the beads around your neck and toss back Evil Twin’s
TACOMA PREFUNK SUNDAY, AUG. 27 2017: Destiny City Film Festival and Bric-A-Brac Bingo PREFUNK: Now in its fourth year, the Destiny City Film Festival has become a staple of summer in Tacoma. Every August at the Blue Mouse Theatre, the beloved film festival brings eye-opening, thought-provoking cinema to Tacoma’s Proctor District, including today’s final screening, which include a bunch of shorts from Washington state filmmakers, The Blood Is At The Doorstep about a family investigating the death of their son who was shot 14 times and killed by police in Milwaukee, and A Bad Idea Gone Wrong featuring two would-be
The Destiny City Film Festival is a homegrown, true-Tacoma community event, inspired by our city’s nickname — The City of Destiny — and is built to showcase the best independent films from the Pacific Northwest and beyond. Curated by former Tacoma Film Festival director Emily Alm, the fourth version of this film fest ends today with a closing party at 6 p.m. inside Peaks and Pints. In celebration of the film festival and the City of Destiny — Tacoma, Washington — Peaks and Pints presents a flight of Tacoma breweries that we call Craft Beer Crosscut 8.27.17: A City of
Mr. Blackwatch will be the first band to perform at the Hilltop Street Fair today. TACOMA PREFUNK SATURDAY, AUG. 25 2017: Founders Green Zebra Gose and a screenwriting panel PREFUNK: Founders Brewing Co.’s award-winning stouts and IPAs watched in horror as the Grand Rapids, Michigan brewery brewed a watermelon gose. (Insert record scratch.) It took a year’s worth of test batches, but Founders Green Zebra is a thing — a tasty thing. There’s sweet, juicy watermelon flavor up front — real watermelon, not Jolly Rancher watermelon — and a tart, slightly salty finish. At 4.6% ABV
Normally condemned to rot in a mediocre glass bowl, the fruit salad has finally been given the respectable and stylish home it deserves — Peaks and Pints’ craft beer flight. That’s right, this is not your mama’s fruit salad. It’s more like a fruit salad on … hops. Once considered a maligned novelty, fruit is now one of the arenas where brewers experiment most, uh, fruitfully. According to archeologists, the Mesopotamians were brewing with fruit thousands of years ago. In 1999, Fruitheads became a type a drinker after they gobbled up gallons of Dogfish Heads’ Aprihop, a fruit beer made
TACOMA PREFUNK FRIDAY, AUG. 25 2017: The Bruery Poteria and Destiny City Film Festival PREFUNK: In 2016, The Bruery celebrated its eighth anniversary with the bourbon barrel-aged old ale Poterie. It’s freakin’ delicious with sweet, salty and umami flavors all in one. A sexy bourbon burn hits first followed by chocolate, vanilla, raisins, custard, oak, dried fruit, apricot and a little brandy. Every aspect of this beer is beautiful, from its sultry dark appearance to how the wet bourbon barrel traits perfectly mesh with sweet artisan chocolate. Peaks and Pints pours the delight from our Western red cedar tap log.
If you are like most, identifying trees is a challenge and there are really only two categories of trees that exist to you: 1) pine, like a Christmas tree; 2) not pine. Pine trees are evergreen, coniferous resinous trees growing 10-260 feet tall, with the majority of species reaching 50-150 feet tall. Pines are long-lived, some shooting their first roots well before Jesus, before Rome, before most forms of civilization whatsoever. And the extra oxygen? Yes, pines filter countless pounds of CO2 though all those sun-dappled branches to make us healthier, And happier. Because of pine trees. We mean, clearly. Sadly, many
TACOMA PREFUNK THURSDAY, AUG. 24 2017: Schneider Weisse Tap X Aventinus Cuvée Barrique and the Black Ferns PREFUNK: In 2010, Han-Peter Drexler, brewmaster of the Bavarian brewery G. Schneider & Sohn, tinkered around with his finest beers in wine barrels. The result is Schneider Weisse Tap X Aventinus Cuvée Barrique (9.5%), one of the world’s best weizenbocks, aged in four different oak barrels. French Oak Chardonnay barrels provide dry fruity and fresh aromas supported by fine tannins. Then, the beer rests in American oak, which once housed German Pinot Noir, for powerful aromas of dark berries, paired with elegant roasty
It’s the end of the summer. Are you going on vacation? Everyone seems to be going on vacation this weekend. You deserve a vacation. You need a break from the daily grind. Vacation! Beer! Peaks and Pints hopes you get to go on a vacation, even if it’s just for one day, even if it’s just in your mind, you know? We’re vacationing in our mind as we write today’s craft beer flight, the one you are reading or having read to you by computer robot voice. We’re enjoying a lovely vacation can of beautiful tropical craft beer, but we’re
TACOMA PREFUNK WEDNESDAY, AUG. 23 2017: Give Blood Get Beer and The White Album PREFUNK: The Cascade Regional Blood Services hosts a blood drive program titled “Give Blood Get Beer” — a program where if you donate a pint of blood you will receive a pint of beer. Enter fast talking announcer guy: “Give Blood Get Beer is a theme for a series of Cascade Regional Services blood drives that enable local restaurants and pubs to support our community’s blood supply in a unique and fun way. Peaks and Pints, a bottle shop, taproom and restaurant in Tacoma’s Proctor District,
Dawson City: Frozen Time screens at The Grand Cinema twice today. TACOMA PREFUNK TUESDAY AUG. 22 2017: Anderson Valley Pinchy Jeek Barl and Dawson City PREFUNK: Today’s prefunk beer is not only a prefunk option for the events listed below but also a prefunk for the holidays. Anderson Valley’s Pinchy Jeek Barl Bourbon Barrel Pumpkin Ale is basically Thanksgiving in a bottle, provided you usually burn the turkey and just switch to bourbon. It’s got all those sweet/spicy pumpkin notes, but kicked in the gobble by six months in a Turkey barrel. Even more alarming is
If you’re anything like Peaks and Pints and are into Caribbean voodoo then you’re a fan of Azacca, the Haitian god of agriculture. He’s a simple, gentle, hard working farmer and thus respected by the peasants. But, he’s also a hillbilly who likes to eat, drink, gossip and chase girls, which makes him an ideal character for a hop and a beer. In the world of American agriculture, Azacca — formerly known as #483 (a way lamer name) by developer American Dwarf Hop Association in Washington state — is a hop with big citrus and tropical fruit tones and excellent
An once-in-a-lifetime opportunity is happening this morning when a total solar eclipse cuts a path across North America after a 99-year hiatus. For a few minutes from Oregon through South Carolina, the sky will go dark, the stars will come out and temperatures will drop in the middle of the day for people in the path of totality. The moon won’t be seen completely covering the sun in the South Sound, but the area will get 94 percent totality during this celestial phenomenon. At Peaks and Pints, the eclipse will peak at 10:20 a.m. To celebrate this cosmic wonder, we
TACOMA PREFUNK SUNDAY, AUG. 20 2017: Left Hand Nitro Milk Stout and Wonder Woman PREFUNK: Consider nitrogen. Oxygen and carbon dioxide get all the press, but nitrogen is the most abundant gas in our planet’s atmosphere. It’s an important element in draft beer — Peaks and Pints’ draft systems utilize a blend of carbon dioxide and nitrogen to push the beer along our lines, with the percentage of each gas varying based on factors such as distance, temperature and resistance. Our nitro taps deliver beer pressurized with a higher ratio of nitrogen to CO2. Because our atmosphere is composed mostly
See how local breweries work together at the Washington Beer Collaboration Festival, featuring 27 beers created by 50 of our state’s beloved breweries. TACOMA PREFUNK SATURDAY, AUG. 19 2017: Oskar Blues Old Chub and beer festivals PREFUNK: When en Rama opened in downtown Tacoma we knew we had no intention of wearing swimsuits this summer. Yummmm, pasta. So we can drink plenty of canned Oskar Blues’ Old Chub Scottish Style Ale. It’s brewed with copious amounts of crystal and chocolate malts, and a dash of beechwood-smoked malts. The cola-colored beer features a dense, tawny head; a
Hop Breeding Company of Yakima, Washington released Citra in 2007. It wasn’t until Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. dry-hopped its Torpedo IPA two years later that the hop turned heads. Citra Brand HBC 394, as its officially known, is comprised of Hallertau Mittelfrüh, US Tettnang, Brewer’s Gold and East Kent Golding with a fairly high alpha acid and total oil contents, plus a low percentage of co-humulone for bittering. Bittering is cool and all, but Citra’s organoleptic profile and chemical composition lend themselves overwhelmingly to aromatic and flavor additions of citrus and tropical fruits such as grapefruit, mango, gooseberry, lychee, melon,
Phasers On Kill will rock The Valley tonight. Photo courtesy of Facebook TACOMA PREFUNK FRIDAY, AUG. 18 2017: Walking Man Yoga Pants and Phasers On Kill PREFUNK: Hooray for yoga pants, man. We mean, for dudes it’s the obvious thrill of lowbrow ogling, but for the ladies, too, they rock — best-case scenario they show off your ass, worst case they’re comfortable. They’re basically sweatpants, except tighter and socially acceptable, right? “Going out” sweatpants, if you will. Walking Man Brewing rocks the Yoga Pants, too. (Hold on.) wait, Walking Man’s Yoga Pants isn’t clothing. Yes, the
India Pale Ale. This extra hoppy style of beer was created by way of an historical accident. During Great Britain’s occupation of India, many an ale was shipped from the motherland down to all the British sailors, soldiers, merchants and governors who grew thirsty doing the work of the empire. Sadly, many of these ales spoiled during the long sea voyage. The solution was to add more hops, which contain oils and resins that function as pretty decent preservatives. More hops meant the beer could make the trip, but not without a little extra bitterness. The best IPAs have fresh,
TACOMA PREFUNK THURSDAY, AUG. 17 2017: Cascade Elderberry and John Wolf PREFUNK: Being the pioneer of the Pacific Northwest-style sour movement since 2006, Cascade Brewing Barrel House produces some of the world’s best sour beers. Almost every batch enjoys at least a year in one of the brewery’s many French oak, wine or bourbon casks alongside an abundance of spices and fruits that might include, but are not limited to, apricots, cherries, elderberries, strawberries, cassis … the list goes on. Cascade’s Elderberry NW Sour Ale awaits in Peaks and Pints’ cooler. Aged six months in French oak wine barrels, then
Stepping into the craft beer world can be intimidating (not really), and it may require a period of adjustment for your desperate and corn-fatigued palate. For those of you who are ready and willing to immerse yourself immediately into the world of craft beer, Peaks and Pints presents Craft Beer Crosscut 8.17.17: A Flight for Everyone. Indeed, today’s beer flight present five craft beers everyone should enjoy. These craft beers don’t require that you wait in line for hours to buy them, or that you travel to some distant locale, or that you trade away your car for a taste.
Checking into the Washington Beer Mobile App is more fun with photos. Photo credit: Pappi Swarner Thankfully for lovers of Washington state craft beers, the Washington Beer Commission brain trust has put its glasses down long enough to create an app that helps the state’s craft beer industry and Washington Beer Lovers, or WABL, connect, engage and learn about their favorite pastime. For Washington state brewers and bottle shop proprietors, getting and keeping their passionately made and served products in front of Washingtonians has become easier and quicker than ever. For WABL members, the ability to
Have your palm read at The Mule Tavern tonight. TACOMA PREFUNK WEDNESDAY, AUG. 16 2017: Bale Breaker Frenz IPA and palm readings PREFUNK: Bale Breaker Brewing Co. has launched its Harvest Collaboration Series — a chance for the Yakima Valley craft brewery to spend quality time with its fellow craft breweries. According to Bale Breaker hype, “For the Harvest Collaboration Series, we will be releasing four different beers brewed in collaboration with four different breweries, with release dates from late-August through early-October.” First up … Georgetown Brewery. The Seattle brewery entered the recently expanded Bale Breaker
The breeders of the Warrior hop keep its origins shrouded in mystery. Some reports claim Yakima Chief Ranches first harvested Warrior in 2001, but the hop developers in Yakima Valley, Washington, keep the pedigree of this hop under wraps. Warrior imparts a great deal of bitterness thanks to its high alpha acid content, which makes it a vital part of many IPAs and other hop-dependent styles. The other flavors that come out tend to be along the lines of grapefruit and lemon with some underlying pine notes. Warrior is a relatively high yield hop with good storability, which makes is
The Fourth Annual Destiny City Film Festival will be held Aug. 25-27 at the Blue Mouse Theatre in Tacoma’s Proctor neighborhood. Festival Director Emily Alm will presents 32 dynamic films from around the world, filmmaker Q&As, a free screenwriting panel and recognition of this year’s short screenplay competition winner. “In its fourth year, the Destiny City Film Festival” is proud to bring award-winning films to Tacoma, and to connect our community with the power of storytelling,” says Alm. For more information, visit destinycityfilmfestival.com. Peaks and Pints is honored to host a 6 p.m. DCFF prefunk with festival information, giveaways and
TACOMA PREFUNK MONDAY, AUG. 14 2017: Stillwater On Fleek and This Is Spinal Tap PREFUNK: Stillwater Artisanal On Fleek imperial stout can looks like it’s from the ’90s, and its playful design makes the beer can a signature artist Mike Van Hall piece. The packaging has florescent yellow, green and pink leopard spots, plus blue and black tiger stripes lining the can. It’s the kind of beer that Picasso might pour. The beer is dark, boozy and brewed with dark sugars and molasses, but also deceivingly drinkable for 13 percent ABV. Stillwater collaborated with Greensboro Bend, Vermont-based brewery Casita Cerveceria,
Some people are just not “people” people. Some people are dog people, some are cat people and some are just plain animal people. If you are an animal person, may we suggest today’s beer flight — Craft Beer Crosscut 8.14.17: A Flight of Brew Zoo. You need to know a few things first. You don’t have to say “fuzzy duck” to the person on your left, drink like a T-Rex or chase Ping-Pong balls. And you won’t be sweating your ass off at the zoo; although it’s no coincidence that one of the only words you can form from the
