It snowed in Anchorage on Sunday October 6th. It started in the late afternoon and snowed for a while and stopped. Still, the snow didn’t go away. That’s the telltale sign that winter’s finally arrived. It snowed again on Saturday and Sunday, October 11th and 12th, this time more. Winter’s here to stay.
Still, Alaska’s beer is hot, hot HOT if you use this year’s Great American Beer Festival (GABF) as a thermometer. Here are Alaska’s impressive wins:
Alaskan Brewing Company
Silver Medal
Alaskan Raspberry Wheat Beer
Category 4: Fruit or Vegetable Beer: 87 Entries
Alaskan Brewing Company
Gold Medal
2006 Alaskan Smoked Porter
Category 19: Aged Beer: 38 Entries
Alaskan Brewing Company
Silver Medal
2007 Alaskan Smoked Porter
Category 21: Smoke Flavored Beer: 21 Entries
Alaskan Brewing Company
Silver Medal
Alaskan Summer Ale
Category 39: Golden or Blonde Ale: 40 Entries
Midnight Sun Brewing Company
Silver Medal
Pride
Category 61: Belgian and French-Style Ale: 34 Entries
Moose’s Tooth Brewing Company
Gold Medal
Darth Delirium
Category 64: Belgian Style Strong Specialty Ale: 44 Entries
Here’s my analysis. First, this is the biggest medal-gathering for Alaska in the history of the event. This is good news because wins like this continue to put Alaska on the global beer map. Second, our beers are distinctive. The only “benign” beer in the bunch is Alaskan Brewing 
Company’s Alaskan Summer Ale. This is by no means a mundane beer; don’t let the category name fool you. Summer Ale is a koelsch by style, but for some reason it fit nicely in the golden or blonde ale category. Pride and Darth Delirium are both difficult to produce Belgian-style ales in an increasingly popular realm of clone beers that all of the world seems to be rushing to produce. Alaskan’s Smoked Porter is in a realm all of its own and continues to be the award-winning-est beer in the history of the GABF. Third, Alaskan Brewing Company has done more than any other brewery to bring recognition to our great beers up here. The next time you encounter staff from any of the noteworthy breweries that bring home medals, congratulate them for their continued, dedicated efforts to produce the best for us to enjoy.
This year, more than 127 trained beer sensory analysts from 11 countries evaluated 2,902 beers in an event that 46,000 people attended and participated in. These are impressive statistics and I’m ashamed that in all of my years enjoying and writing about beer, I’ve never attended. Maybe next year. It’s on my bucket list.
Mark your calendars for the upcoming Celestial Meads Pre-Halloween Open House on Saturday, October 25th between noon and 5 pm. Meadmaster Mike Kiker will have at least a dozen meads on tap for sampling, and will roll out his two newest Special Reserve Meads. Trebuchet is a 14 percent Californa Sage Blossom Honey, Iowa Basswood Honey and Blue Ridge Mountain Spring Wildflower Honey mead that was aged for a year. Raizin d’ Etre is a 14 percent pyment (the meadery’s first” made with Zinfandel grapes, Blackberry Blossom Honey and aged in French oak. These are big, well aged, hugely mature meads with tons of flavor.
Celestial Meads, after moving to the bigger facility, has more room to host tastings and Kiker’s got more time to throw at it. The next tasting is slated for November 8th (same time). The meadery will be observing the ancient Celtic celebration of Samhain. According to Kiker, “Samhain marked the end of the harvest season and the dealth of the earth (which would be reborn in the spring.). The Celts (and most Northern Europeans at that time) celebrated the event on the evening before the day, and this is where our modern day Halloween comes from.” Nice! Big 14 percent meads ought to enhance the experience nicely!
Oh, and just in case you’re looking to service a party, Celestial Meads is selling growlers of Cyser Does Matter for $26. This sparkling mead will light up any party and the nice thing is that it probably would last in a growler longer than beer would. I think I’m going to get one for the next time I head to camp for the weekend. This would be nice around my fire pit in the snow.
Thursday October 23rd’s edition of the Anchorage Press will contain a beer article with my take on this year’s pumpkin ale offerings. I found the line up a little blander overall this year with less of that expected fresh-from-the-oven pumpkin pie aroma and flavor, especially in the national brands. In fairness, maybe my palate’s changed. Just the same, research indicated that the Snow Goose Restaurant and Sleeping Lady Brewing Company decided not to make a pumpkin ale this year. It was a conscious decision on brewer Clay Brackley’s part. “We can’t outsource fresh Alaskan pumpkins through Charlie’s Produce this year,” said Brackley. “Anyone can make a beer with canned pumpkin 
Aside from the Glacier Brewhouse Imperial Pumpkin Ale (an 8.5 percent spiced ale using 159 pounds of pumpkin in 10 barrels of beer), look for the standard, dependable line up on tap including Blonde, Amber, Hefeweizen, IPA, Stout and Raspberry Wheat. Things get a bit more interesting with the addition of Imperial Blonde, Double IPA and the forever interesting Beam Oktoberfest, if there’s any left. Now that the tourists are gone, most of the construction is finished in the downtown corridor and only the seasoned brave are negotiating the snowy streets, parking shouldn’t be too much of a problem in the evenings.
By the time I got the article ready to go to Press last week for this week’s piece, more seasonal ales showed up in town, so my timing was off. For example, Silver Gulch Brewing Company’s Oktoberfest came in and so did Avery Brewing Company’s Kaiser Imperial 
Oktoberfest. Other seasonal selections that are finding their way to shelves and taps include Avery’s Old Jubilation, Lagunitas’ Old Gnarleywine, and Flying Dog Brewery’s Horn Dog Barley Wine all on draught. Some of the same may show up in bottles, but look for bottled stock including Port Brewing’s Old Viscosity, Big Sky Brewing’s Powderhound, and Buffalo Bill Brewing Company’s Pumpkin Ale. I’ll be out there looking them up and giving them a palate spin.
This week at the Tap Root Café, southside’s fresh beer, fresh food and fresh local music oasis (Huffman, across from the Carr’s center) features Ring of Fire Meadery’s Pear Agave Cyzer, Midnight Sun Brewing Company’s Humpback Jack Pumpkin Ale, Sockeye Red IPA, Oosik Amber, Arctic Rhino Coffee Porter and Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter. From the Sleeping Lady Brewing Company expect Fish On! IPA, Harvest Black Pepper Rye, Espresso Bock and the brewery’s Belgian Golden Strong Ale. From the Peninsula, look for Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop’s Beaver Tail Blonde and Roughneck Stout. National selections include Deschutes Brewing Company’s Fresh Hop Pale Ale, North Coast Brewing’s Brother Thelonius Abbey Ale, and Left Hand Brewing Company’s Oktoberfest.
La Bodega fans will rejoice in the pending announcement of the establishment’s Second Anniversary Celebration called Novemberfest that will be held offiste, and hopefully at Café Amsterdam. Dates and details are being fleshed out, but it’s tentatively scheduled for Saturday, November 8th. If you have ideas on how to make the event lively, contact La Bodega proprietor Pamela Hatzis at 
labodegastore@gmail.com. Pamela doesn’t want to just sit around and eat and drink, she wants to par-TAY. In the interim, Pamela’s planning an Anniversary Sale that starts Thursday, November 6th. Good deals on the store’s awesome bottle stock will abound while Hatzis works to reduce inventory in anticipation of the influx of a huge variety of winter seasonal beers and specifically Christmas beers.
Café Amsterdam has plenty to pick from while you wait for Pamela’s anniversary gig. Indulge in this weeks’ offerings including:
Chimay Cinq Cents, Delirium Tremens, Grotten Brown, Midnight Sun Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter, (Firkin, also this Saturday), Sierra Nevada Southern Hemisphere, Sierra Nevada ESB, Kassik’s Dunkel, Alaskan Dunkel, Unibroue Blanche de 
Chambly, Full Sail Prodigal Son, Smithwicks Lager, Spaten Optimator, Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin, and Baron Brewing Dopple Bock.
If there’s nothing on THAT list to wet your whistle, on deck beers include: Paulaner Salvatore, Pikes XXXXX Stout, Pikes XX Tandem, Rogue Dry Hop, and Rogue Chocolate Stout.
Patience is a virtue, so wait a little longer and enjoy an upcoming vertical tasting of Alaskan Smoked Porter featuring the 06, 07, and 08 versions. Don’t forget that by the glass you can get Fantome Black Ghost and Saison and an assortment of both Ring of Fire Meadery and Celestial Meads products.
It’s Pamela’s impromptu little newsletters that always announce the next First Friday event at McGinley’s Irish Pub in the downtown district. On Friday November 7th, McGinley’s will feature a taste as you go line of of Unibroue’s (Chambly, Quebec) Don De Dieu, Seigneuriale and Terrible. The event runs from 5-8 pm. This is a great way for a cheap price to duck in off the street and quickly work through three world class beer samples. I ducked in the other night for a pint and enjoyed a very fresh Spaten Oktoberfest, followed by a Harp Lager. The four TV’s were a bit loud when I got there, but I guess I wasn’t the only one who felt that way because about mid-pint, someone turned down the din and it got a little quieter. McGinley’s features a solid lineup of Irish-themed beers including Guinness Stout, Harp Lager, Smithwicks, Murphy’s Stout, and Bass Ale. A good compliment of craft beer rounds out the selection including Alaskan Amber, Midnight Sun Kodiak Brown, Moose’s Tooth Polar Pale Ale, Widmer Hefeweizen, Stone IPA, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company’s Pale Ale, Pike’s Kilt Lifter, and Elysian’s Night Owl Pumpkin Ale. Bud Light and Killians bring up the rear on the domestic side. Obviously, the tap line is a mix of steadfast steadies, and rotating seasonals, so repeat visits are always rewarding.
Are you interested in helping preserve the Resurrection Bay area out of Seward and in the outlying reaches? Here’s an opportunity to combine beer, food and fun for a worthy cause. I was alerted by Kenai River Brewing Company’s Amy Hogue that “Alaska Grown, Close to Home Wine and Beer Tasting” is the theme for the Second Annual Resurrection Bay Conservation Alliance (RBCA) Fundraiser. The tasting features locally made fermented wares from Ring of Fire Meadery, Alaskan Brewing Company Moose’s Tooth Brewing Company, St. Elias Brewing Company, Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop, and of course the Kenai River Brewing Company. A silent auction will be held featuring work from local artists. Food will be provided by local venues and chefs. The gig is Friday, November 21from 7-10 pm at the Seward Sea Life Center. Tickets are $30 per person, $25 for Conservation Alliance members and if you want to attend and join the alliance at the same time, the cost is $45. Tickets are available at the door. The RBCA is an active citizen group with the mission of advocating for the enjoyment of healthy water, land and air. Check them out at www.rbca-alaska.org or contact 
Madelyn Walker at (907) 224-3848 or at sixmilebb@alaska.com for more details.
In a recent press release from Full Sail Brewing Company announcing the release of Wassail, the brewery’s prestigious winter seasonal ale, the company said: “A few unmistakable signs tell us that winter has arrived in hood river: the waterfalls in the gorge start kicking out the jams.” That’s obviously quite local, but it has a nice ring to it. The beer’s got a very nice ring to it as well.
I’ve always had great respect for this seasonal sipper. If you’re a Jubelale fan (Deschutes Brewing) you’ll find Wassail a bit drier and with a substantially different hop profile. Dark malts and a large percentage of caramel malts round out the grain bill and a mixture of European noble hops and Pacific Northwest aroma hops spice up the batch. The beer pours dark mahogany an crystal clear and rocks up a nice, off white head. Despite copious hops, the beer comes across as malt forward overall and quite clean in the finish. If you still doubt the beer’s quality, consider that historically, the beer’s pulled a gold at this year’s World Beer Championship and a platinum medal at the 2005 event. It took gold at the 2004, 2006 and 2007 events and silver in the 1999, 2000, and 2001 events.
Deschutes’ Brewing’s Hop Trip, a fresh-hop pale ale is also available around town. This is the forth season for this great, grassy, fresh-from the bine hop beer. The hopes come directly from Oregon’s Willamette Valley and are harvested straight from the vine and brought immediately to the waiting brew kettle for the freshest hop experience possible. If you want to see the entire, exciting process, hit www.deschutesbrewery.com and find the film documenting this year’s efforts.
The views expressed on the Dr. Fermento blog site are not necessarily those of the drunks he associates with, but rather the exclusive byproduct of his self-inflicted liver degradation and delusional inebriate lifestyle
Dr Fermento Beer Calendar
10/17/08 Lyon’s Club Eagle River Eagle River Brew Festival TBA Pay As You Go
10/18/08 Mykel’s Restaurant Soldotna Kassiks’ Kenai Brew Stop Beer Tasting 6:30 pm TBA
10/18/08 Juneau Arts and Culture Center 5th Annual Autumn Festival (think BEER GARDEN) TBA TBA
10/08/08 Café Amsterdam MSBC Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter Firkin Release 6:00 pm Pay As You Go
10/19/08 Humpy’s Great Alaskan Alehouse Oktoberfest Celebration 6:00 pm TBD
10/25/08 Celestial Meads Pre-Halloween Open House Noon – 5 pm Free Samples
10/31/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Planet Series beer Saturn release at the brewery 6:00 pm Free
11/01/08 Café Amsterdam Planet Series beer Saturn Firkin Release 6:00 pm Pay As You Go
11/08/08 Celestial Meads Celtic Samhain (Sah’ wen) Observance and Tasting Noon – 5 pm Free Samples
11/09/08 Café Amsterdam BJCP Program Begins Noon – 3 pm TBD
11/21/08 Seward Sea Life Center Alaska Grown Close to Home Wine and Beer Tasting 7-10 pm $30 per person
12/05/08 Arctic Brewing Supply Entries accepted for Bigfish Homebrew Competetion Noon – 6 pm Free
12/06/08 SubZero Microlounge Humpy’s Bigfish Homebrew Competition Judging 10:00 am Free
02/22/09 Café Amsterdam BJCP Exam 10:00 TBD
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