I spent the weekend participating in judging homebrew entries that were sent to Alaska to be judged within the first round of the 2008 National Homebrew Competition sponsored by the American Homebrewer’s Association (AHA).
Before I get to the more mundane aspects of the event, kudos to the Great Northern Brewers Homebrew Club for pulling off this gig in their customary and usual highly professional manner. Thanks also to the hoards of judges that showed up to ensure the actual nuts and bolts part of evaluating the beer was done with enough certified palates to lend a huge amount of credibility to the effort. I am always in awe of the organizational prowess of the likes of Steve Schmitt, Jason Ditsworth and their gang of homebrewing compatriots that join forces to make even the most daunting events look easy. Thanks also to Pyramid Brewing in Seattle for consolidating the L48 entries and Alaska Distributors for the shipping. Celestial Meads donated the calibration meads for the event, Alaskan Brewing Company donated a small prize for each participating judge and steward and of course the Snow Goose Restaurant and Sleeping Lady Brewing Company for their calibration beers, the use of the facility and putting up with us quirky brewers for two days.
Things actually got rolling on Thursday night (April10th) when a number of devoted homebrewers showed up to unpack the 480+plus bottles of homebrew that showed up from around the nation. In all, only one bottle was sacrificed to the shipping gods; for one reason or another, the bottle arrived capped, but empty with the sticky evidence that it had been full when it got packed. The bottles had to be individually removed from wrapping paper and individual cartons and crates, and assembled and organized by style, labeled and marked for competition in six pack holders. Thanks to the La Bodega Liquor Store in the University Mall for marshalling a lot of customers to bring in six pack holders for the effort.
I showed up ostensibly to help with the effort, but really to take some pictures of the other hard workers and share a pint of beer in the process. I’d just finished a sudsy meeting with Christoff from Humpy’s, and thought I’d hit the Goose on my way home to get a few shots of the unfolding event.
The next night (Friday, April 11th), Ms. Fermento met with the event coordinators and toiled over entering each of the beers and pertinent information into a somewhat clunky database that arrived at the last minute from the national organizers and took some figuring out to get working in the first place.
The actual judging took place on Saturday and Sunday (April 12, and 13) in the downstairs area of the Snow Goose Restaurant and Sleeping Lady Brewing Company. It was very generous of the Goose to provide this space for this important event. It was spacious, well 
lit, quiet and comfortable. In other words, it was a venue entirely conducive to professionally evaluating beer.
Things got rolling on both days a little after 10:00 am. The effort went off without a hitch. I judged dark lagers in the morning and IPA’s in the afternoon. Due to the overwhelming turn out of certified judges, we were able to evaluate the beers at a leisurely pace and provide plenty of good feedback to the brewers about their fermented efforts.
I cursory review of the results of the competition indicate that some of our own local homebrewers did rather well in the competition (they always do in the nationals), but because the information hasn’t been officially released by the AHA yet, I’ll keep my mouth shut.
It will be interesting to see the results later this year at the final round that’s scheduled for later this year back east. I’d love to see some of our Alaskan homebrewers go all the way to the top. Wish them luck.
In the wake of the Nationals, look forward to using your judging prowess to assist with the 16th Annual Great Alaska Craftbeer and Homebrew Festival in Haines, Alaska on Friday, May 23, 2008 at 10:00 am. Yeah, it’s a haul to get town to Haines, 770 road miles from Anchorage, but if you can do it, what’s a better way to celebrate the late onslaught of spring in a little gem of a community in Southeastern Alaska? I helped organize the first annual event and embarrassedly, haven’t returned since. Sixteen years is a long time. But, the point is, that homebrewers from Anchorage have been hugely instrumental in pushing this event into the stardom it resides in today, and the tradition should continue. The event would benefit from the help of certified beer judges from all over the state.
Like the Great Alaska Beer and Barley Wine Festival in Anchorage each year, the event is a combination of festival and judging. Things kick off after the judging with the Brewmaster’s Dinner at the Haines Senior Center at 7:00 pm. On Saturday, the Craft Beer Festival will take place starting at 1:00 pm. Check out the Southeast Alaska State Fair website for event details at http://seakfair.org/beerfestival.htm. Alaskan Brewing Company’s Rachale Juzler is the event coordinator (for the judging portion only) and you should contact her at rachale101@gmail.com or qualitycontrol@alaskanbeer.com if you want to judge or otherwise take part in the homebrew portion of the event. I can guarantee you that Rachale will provide you with information about the festival, judging and other ancillary events periphery to the gig. Pay attention because you could even end up in Pelican, Alaska for the Bordwalk Boogie after the event and the follow-on happenings in Juneau on your way back to Anchorage (or wherever). Contact the “Juz” for in-depth information.
I hope everyone caught the Tuesday, April 14, 2008 Channel 2 News piece concerning the roll-out of new identification cards (drivers’ licenses) that highlight businesses that the holder has had alcohol purchasing privileges revoked due to alcohol related incidents including and specifically a DUI offense. A band announcing the alcohol restriction is prominently displayed on the card. Offenders that get caught trying to purchase alcohol are levied a $1,000 fine.
This is probably a good thing. I have no problem revoking the alcohol purchase privileges of chronic abusers of alcohol because it’s these same chronic abusers that sully the reputation of the rest of us responsible consumers and fuel the neophohibitionists’ fires. Apparently the program was rolled out on January 1st of this year and is in effect.
Of course the objective is to reduce more repeat incidents, but there are some inherent flaws in the system.
First of all, it’s unclear whether a retailer has the right to demand a specific piece of identification when a customer is at the register with booze in hand. I’ve used my military ID countless times when asked for identification for proof of age. Also, it’s not mandatory that clerks check the ID’s at all. So, unless a 100 percent ID check specifying state-issued identification cards is mandated, the success of catching an offender remains hit and miss. That still doesn’t mean the initiative is bad or doomed to failure.
Some establishments, notably the Brown Jug Liquor Store chain have stepped up to the plate and have incentivized the program by rewarding clerks of discover people attempting to purchase booze under the restriction. Other retail establishments should do this as well. Let’s not forget non-liquor stores that sell high-octane mouthwash and certain alcohol-containing extracts.
Of course, repeat offenders could circumvent the system entirely by having someone without the restriction buy their booze for them and I’m guessing a lot of this happens. Still every little bit helps. Recent press has indicated that since some retail establishments have locked up and in some cases eliminated high-octane mouthwash (in come cases exceeding 26 percent), the number of empties strewn around the homeless camps and common areas around town has been cut to next to nil. And, just for the record, this isn’t an anti-litter initiative, it’s helping to deter chronic inebriation of a very visible subset of our population. Does it actually reduce alcoholism or alcohol abuse? I don’t know. All I know is that most responsible drinkers don’t abuse mouthwash, so making it tougher to get or making the high octane stuff unattainable is of no consequence and actually targets the problem, not everyone. Contrast this to higher alcohol taxes that punish everyone, not just the target. See my point?
Congratulations are due Alaskan Brewing Company, this time for something other than the company’s globally recognized beer. Apparently, 
working at Alaskan’s got to be a hell of a lot of fun because Outside Magazine has nominated Alaskan as one of America’s top places to work, according to an Associated Press article on April 17th. Annually, the magazine, uses its own internal criteria to determine what makes a good one to work at and rates the companies. Alaskan ranked 5th overall in the Medium Companies Group. Woo Hoo!
Tap Root Café in south Anchorage continues to feature fine locally produced ales, food and music in a small, intimate atmosphere worthy of your attendance if you want to be part of the burgeoning South Anchorage scene. On tap this week includes specialties from Midnight Sun Brewing Company such as Sockeye Red IPA, Ooosik Amber, Kodiak Brown, Sloth and La Maitresse du Moine. From Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop, look for Roughneck Stout and Beaver Tail Blonde. The Sleeping Lady Brewing Company’s Wit and Saison are also flowing. The Moose’s Tooth Brewing Company’s Moonflower ESB is a happening choice along with Homer’s Ring of Fire Meadery’s Pear-Aguave Cyser. From outside, reach for Flying Dog’s Gonzo Imperial Porter (on tap, mind you) and Monk’s Café’s Flemish Sour Ale, direct from Belgium. Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale provides a good Pacific Northwest palate adjuster.
There was some speculation floating around that the Moose Run Golf Course hadn’t received the special handicap-accessible golf cart that proceeds from the 2007 Great Northern Brewers (GNBC)/Humpy’s Great Alaska Alehouse Golf Tournament purchased through and for Challenge Alaska. Mystery solved. The golf cart is being purchased and will be owned by Access Alaska, but kept and maintained at the Moose Run Golf Course. These tangible results were made possible by the concerted efforts of the three organizations along with generous donations from our local alcohol industry including distributors and breweries and other non-alcohol entities that sponsored the event.
Every year, the event is hugely popular (Duh). Who could turn down the chance to pretend to be a drinker with a golfing problem? It’s the one time every year I get anywhere near a golf course, and that’s just because I get to drive one of the beer carts and push beer on most of my industry friends. That’s a switch, but I digress.
Each year, the brew club and Humpy’s find a charitable organization to donate the proceeds of the event to. In years past, it’s benefited a lot of agencies, but last year was the first year where Humpy’s and GNBC combined forces to come up with a bigger event and of course a bigger pot. Although the proceeds were dutifully donated to Challenge Alaska, no one ever bothered to follow up and see what the status of the golf cart was. Ms. Fermento, last year’s event organizer, made a call today and determined that the special golf cart will be delivered in time for this year’s season open. Thanks once again to everyone who worked this event, the sponsors and even the players who made it all possible.
A week or two ago I was goofin’ at the Brown Jug Warehouse when I spied an oddity. A very ornate red and silver box caught my attention. I bit. The box contained a bottle of Anheuser Busch’s Celebrate Chocolate Lager. This was the 2007 edition, so I surmised it 
was a leftover from the holidays, especially considering the Christmas-like packaging. The beer retailed for $12.29 for the 24 ounce bottle. I bit again and my wallet got about a craft-beer six pack’s worth thinner.
Opening the box revealed a silver and brown cylindrical bottle that was shaped like the projectile on a howitzer or the business end of an ICBM. The more daring and gutter minded might compare it to some sort of sexual aid. The very tip of the beer sported a plastic cone that when pulled off revealed a screw top bottle underneath. What an odd juxtaposition. Still, I was intrigued because the box and bottle boasted that the chocolate lager is a “Superior lager aged on real cocoa beans with natural flavor.” It went on to state that “this limited edition holiday lager is handcrafted by our master brewers and aged on real cocoa beans. Richly aromatic, Michelob Celebrate Chocolate Later delivers a unique flavor, perfect to toast special occasions.” The beer weighs in at 8.5 percent, so apparently there’s some bang for the buck.
The beer pours a rich, crystal clear dark brown with plenty of carbonation and a nicely forming light tan head that dissipated slowly to ring the glass. My sample might have showed some age, but the nose was that of some not-so-really-dark grains with a somewhat dusty following. I couldn’t find any hops, but didn’t expect any either because hops could easily interfere with perhaps delicate cocoa aroma and flavor. The cocoa essence came across more along the scent of dry baker’s chocolate rather than a heavy chocolate presence, and perhaps this is the beer’s intention.
The flavor was indeed unique. The clean, light lager notes swirled with not quite acrid or sharp dry baker’s chocolate notes. The finish imparts somewhat sweetish with notes reminiscent of cognac, but all in all, the beer is not over the top or over done. Although fairly sweet, Celebrate is not cloying. I think the brewers struck a good balance between the malt an the chocolate accent, but I’d still have a problem gunning back the entire 24 ounces by myself, but not because of the strength. The alcohol isn’t too tough to find in aroma, flavor or warming in the mouthfeel, but it’s not obtrusive. The thing is that it’s pretty rich stuff. The packaging implied that this is a beer to be shared, so the larger serving makes sense. Four six-ounce servings seem appropriate. If there’s some around, you might want to reach for it out of general interest, but I could find more interesting beer to drop that much money on.
If you want some good beer chucks (laughs) check out the newest feature of the Celebrator Beer News conglomerate’s TV style webcast 
about beer. It’s still in its formative stages, so don’t look for refined, TV anchor type reporting (we’re talking about Tom Dalldorf, after all) but rather a witty, upbeat broadcasting of all of the latest, funniest, and most fermented in video beer news. All of Dalldorf’s usual witty sarcasm comes out right in your face in the episodes. Look for links to events past including our own 2006 and 2007 Great Alaskan Winter Beer and Barley Wine Festival videos and a video from the 2008 Celebrator Beer News 20th Anniversary Party in Oakland California. Don’t look too closely or you’ll barf at portions of the video where you can see yours truly dancing oblivious and drunk on the floor. P.S.: I don’t dance. P.S.S. I don’t remember this.
Just to tempt you, I’m pasting the entire Glacier Brewhouse Spring Grillin’ Big Beer Dinner menu to the blog this week. There are only 21 seats for this gig…well, make that 20; I’m signed up, so you’d better RSVP quick if this is something you’re interested in.
SPRING GRILLIN BIG BEER DINNER
Italian Plum Lambic Aged four years in used wine barrels from the Napa Valley. Classic tart and fruity lambic. 5.2% abv
Double India Pale Ale Hops are the dominant characteristic. Bitterness is intense but held in check with the malt. 7.76% abv
- paired with -
Spring Pea and Crab Bisque, U-10 Scallop, Goat Cheese Crème Fraiche, Osetra Caviar
Big Woody Barleywine, Imperial Blonde, Cask Conditioned IPA
- paired with -
New Style Cheese Plate with 3 Artisan Cheese’s
Nut Brown Ale Sweet, nutty, malty, and chocolatey flavors abound. 5.86% abv
- paired with -
Tea and Peppercorn Smoked Quail Salad, Asparagus, Morels, and Truffle
Jim Beam Stout Aged 6 months in Jim Beam barrels. Flavors of vanilla, bourbon, coconut, chocolate. 5.61% abv
- paired with -
Spice Crusted Umpqua Valley Lamb, Sea Salt Roasted Peanut Potatoes, Braised Fiddlehead Fern, Craft Brew Jus
Raspberry XXX Sweet maltiness blends perfectly with the raspberry tartness. 10% abv
- paired with -
2-Chocolate Cherry Terrine, White Chocolate Porter Icecream, Fresh Berries
Big Woody Barleywine
The goods are rolling in around town. I got notice from the Brown Jug liquor store on 88th and Old Seward and the La Bodega Liquor Store in the University Mall that a formidable hoard of top-shelf imported beers are now on the shelves. Although other liquor stores around town may have some of these treats, at least La Bodega and the Brown Jug on 88th have weighed in letting me know what goods they have. Here’s a partial line up and more are to come. Brace yourself; this is a pretty impressive array of high-end beers, all here thanks to the efforts of Rob Weller of Specialty Imports:
| BLAUGIES La Moneuse Special Winter ‘ .750L |
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Here’s the Humpy’s Great Alaskan Alehouse lineup for the week (as of Thursday, April 17). My picks? I think it would be good to taste Midnight Sun Brewing Company’s Kodiak Brown and Kodiak Island Brewing Company’s Sweet Georgia Brown side by side. It’s good to see Midnight Sun’s Goldstrike Kolsch back and Deschutes’ Cascade Golden Ale is a wonderful spring treat on tap. Spaten Pilsner Lager is making it’s final appearance until Oktoberfest time. And, take note if you’re into the vintage stuff: Alaskan’s Big Nugget Barleywine is the 2003 version.
Wheats / Fruits
Moose’s Tooth Wild Country Raspberry Wheat
Pyramid Apricot
Pyramid Hefeweisen
Lindemans Framboise ####
Celestial Clarity Mead
Served in an 8 oz glass for $11.25
Golden Ales / Pilseners / California Common
Midnight Sun Goldstrike Kolsch
Deschutes Cascade Golden Ale
Harp Lager *
Spaten Pilsner Lager *
Pale Ales / E.S.B.’s (medium hop bitterness)
Alaskan Pale Ale
Moose’s Tooth Polar Pale Ale
Deschutes Mirror Pond Pale Ale
Flying Dog Doggie Style Pale Ale
Sierra Nevada E.S.B.
India Pale Ales (med - high hop bitterness)
Humpy’s Sockeye Red by Midnight Sun
Kassik’s Brew Stop Morning Wood I.P.A.
Moose’s Tooth Fairweather I.P.A.
Avery Maharaja Imperial I.P.A. # (9.78%)
Fish Tale Organic I.P.A.
Stone Ruination I.P.A. # (7.7%)
Belgian Ales
Sleeping Lady Belgian Wit Bier
Blue Moon Belgian White Wheat Ale
Unibroue Chambly Noire #
Strong Belgian Ales (Alcohol by Volume over 7.5%
Midnight Sun Belgian Mars
Imperial Red I.P.A. ## (8.7%)
Brasserie Dupont Avec les Bons Voeux #### (9.5%)
Chimay Cing Cents Triple ##### (8%)
Delirium Tremens #### (8.5%)
Dogfish Head Raison D’Etre # (8%)
Ommegang Ommegeddon Funkhouse Ale ### (8%)
Seasonal Ales
Elysian Bifrost
Pyramid Snowcap
Amber Ales / Bocks / Dopple Bocks / Scottish
Alaskan Amber Ale
Midnight Sun Oosik Amber
Kenai River Skilak Scottish Ale
Mac Tarnahan’s Scottish Ale
Silver Gulch Winter Rye Bock
Paulaner Salvator Doppelbock ** (7.9)
Brown Ales
Kodiak Island Sweet Georgia Brown
Midnight Sun Kodiak Brown Ale
Porters / Stouts
Kassik’s Brew Stop Moose Point Porter
Deschutes Black Butte Porter
Full Sail Imperia Stout * (8%)
Guinness Stout ***
Rogue Chocolate Stout
Barley Wine
Alaskan Big Nugget Barley Wine ### (9%)
2003 edition
Stone Old Gaurdian Barley Wine ## (11.26)
Dr Fermento Beer Calendar
04/18/08 Princess Hotel: Fairbanks Ring of Fire Mead Dinner 6:00 pm TBD
04/24/08 Glacier Brewhouse Spring Grillin’ Big Beer Dinner 6:00 pm $70.00
05/01-05/08 Arctic Brewing Supply Goblets of Gold Mead Competition Entries Accepted 10:00 am Free
05/03/08 Chena Pump Campground (Fbx) Zymurgist Borealis Nat. Homebrew Day/Big Beer Celeb. Noon Free
05/03/08 Jade Street Brewery (John Craig’s) Brewathon 2008 8:00 am Free
05/08/08 Tap Root Café Midnight Sun Earth Pre-Release Event 7:00 pm Pay As You Go
05/09/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Earth: The Official Release 6:00 pm Pay As You Go
05/16-17/08 Andrew Mellon Auditorium (D.C.) Savor Craft Food and Beer Event Sessions $85.00
05/23/08 S.E. Alaska State Fairgrounds (Haines) Great Alaska Craftebeer and Homebrew Festival Judging 10:00 am Free
05/23/08 Haines Senior Center (Haines) Brewmaster’s Dinner (Haines Brewer’s Festival) 7:00 pm $??
05/24/08 SE Alaska Fairgrounds Great Alaska Craft Beer and Homebrew Festival) 1:00 – 5:00 pm $??
05/25/08 Pelican (SE Alaska) Pelican Boardwalk Boogie ?? Pay As You Go
07/12/08 Silver Gulch Brewing Company E.T. Barnette Homebrew Judging 10:00 am Free
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