I just can’t be everywhere all at once. I don’t think it would be good for me anyway. God was unfair in terms of constructing the ultimate drinking machine. I was granted two legs, two arms, two eyes, two lungs, two hands and two feet, but one liver. What’s up with that? The point I’m getting to is that even here in the far north, there are so many incredible drinking venues and beer line ups around town, I’ll remain forever remiss by not mentioning them all.
For example, although I don’t find the staff very open or outgoing, I’m long overdue for an evening at Chilcoot Charlie’s. Regardless of the atmosphere in the joint (that, for whatever reason, the most serious beer drinkers avoid), the beer line up is formidable and worthy of your palate. Constant specials and great pub-oriented snack deals bait the palate and the music venues are world class. I’ll give them that. If you’re crowd aversive, the best time to visit is mid-day to mid-afternoon.
Because I’m not a sports fan, I don’t get to The Peanut Farm often enough either. A radio spot boasts 90-plus beers on tap, which is a little misleading from the standpoints that some are repeats across the various bars under one roof, but still, I have been there and the line up is impressive. My favorite visiting time is in the summer where I can take advantage of the outside deck looking over Campbell Creek, away from the often maddening sports crowd.
There are many more great venues that I need to visit and expose, so if I’m missing something, let me know and I’ll add it to my list. For a time there, my drinking accomplice Jason Ditsworth and I had a pact that we were going to research and visit all of Anchorage’s neighborhood bars. We struggled with what defines a neighborhood bar, but sort of used some of the classics as benchmarks. The Carousel in Spenard comes to mind, as does Al’s Alaska Inn and the long gone and torn down Billiken on the east side. Oh, and then there’s the 210 East on Muldoon Road. I’ve been to a number of these venues, but think it would be fun to revisit each and capture some of the unique character of each.
If you’re looking for a quieter, more refined place to slurp your suds, don’t forget about Kinley’s Restaurant and Bar at 3230 Seward Highway, right next to the iconic Moose’s Tooth Pizzeria. Beer and Wine Manager Solomon Loosli spends a lot of time and energy to 
ensure the tap line and bottled selection are top notch and reflect our local palate. He’s constantly tinkering with the beer menu to ensure that local beers are even the seasons are well represented in the mix. “I’ve blown out all of my summer beers and most of my fall selections,” he wrote in a recent email, and is focusing on the heavier winter selections. For example duck in and expect to find Delirium Noel, Flying Dog’s Horn of the Dog Barleywine and Midnight Sun Brewing Company’s Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter and CoHoHo Imperial IPA on tap, to name a few. His bottle selection is even more impressive including Dupont’s Bon Voeux Saison Holiday Seasonal Ale, Avery Brewing Company’s Old Jubilation, Mahr’s Christmas Bock, Nogne-0 Winter Ale, Ridgeway’s Bad Elf and Lump of Coal, again, to name just a few of the over 50 high-end bottle selections to choose from.
Chef’s Brett Knipmeyer and Jim Nyholm exercise their culinary mastery to provide an equally hearty and high end menu with which to pair the myriad of beer offerings. The appetizer menu is tempting enough to pair many beers with, and if you’re spending the evening with family and/or friends, you won’t be disappointed, even if there are those in your group that prefer the grape to the grain.
Halloween is long gone, but on November 8th, from noon – 5 pm, Celestial Meads is observing the original event, the ancient Celtric celebration of Samhain (Sah wen), which marked the end of the harvest season and the death of the earth. Well, not really, the earth was slated to be re-born again in the spring. The Celts celebrated the event on the evening before the day. A lot of mead was consumed and the next day was spent in quiet observance (read: recovery). At the Celestial Meads gig, two very special Reserve meads will be released and samples will be provided. Costumes are optional, but if you want to get a little more mileage out of this year’s get up, this is the event.
Don’t forget that La Bodega’s Big Inventory Reduction Sale started on Thursday, November 6th and runs through November 12th. Expect significant discounts on select high-end brews. I hate to use the “C-Word” so early on, but here’s a great chance to get some early Christmas shopping out of the way for the beer lovers in your mix. 
La Bodega’s Novemberfest 2nd Anniversary Party has been formalized and the date has been set for Friday, December 5th at 7 pm at the Tap Root Café. Two things come immediately to mind. La Bodega owner Pamela Hatzis remains incredibly hot, which translates to incredibly popular, which translates to projected huge attendance. The second thing that comes to mind is that Tap Root is a dinky little venue that’s crowded even when it’s darned near empty, so the $20 tickets that cover one beer and the cover charge for the music are going to be sold out as quick as they’re released. So, the best advice that the good Doc can forward is that you get to La Bodega quick, grab the best sale items early and secure your seat for this killer upcoming event.
In the interim, there are some tasty selections on tap at the Root this week:
Midnight Sun’s Sockeye Red
Midnight Sun’s Oosik Amber
Midnight Sun’s Arctic Rhino Coffee Porter
Midnight Sun’s Berserker Hot, Hot HOT!)
Midnight Sun’s Saturn (Belgian-style fresh hop IPA)
Sleeping Lady Brewing Company’s Fish On! IPA
Sleeping Lady Brewing Company’s Cherry Belgian Strong Ale
Sleeping Lady Brewing Company’s Green Dragon Pale Ale
Sleeping Lady Brewing Company’s Braveheart Scottish Ale
Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop’s Imperial Spiced Honey Wheat
Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop’s Roughneck Stout
Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop’s Beaver Tail Blonde
Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop’s Gold Nugget Hefeweizen
Ring of Fire Meadery’s Pear-Agave Cyzer
Brouwerij Riva’s Lucifer
Unibroue’s Maudite
Elysian Brewing Company’s Night Owl Pumpkin Ale
Pabst Brewing Company’s Pabst Blue Ribbon Beer
Privatbrauerei Franz Inselkammer’s Ayinger Celebrator
Avery Brewing Company’s Old Jubilation Ale
Brouwerij Huyghe’s Delirium Noel
On November 19th, Tap Root will host a tasting of Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop beers. The gig hasn’t been finalized yet in terms of the time and cost, but according to Kassik’s, at a minimum, expect to sample their Imperial Spiced Honey Wheat (an aged batch), Caribou Kilt Strong Scotch Ale (a World Beer Cup medalist), Dunkel, Dolley Varden Nut Brown Ale, and Morning Wood IPA. I’m sure there will be more. Stay tuned for details.
For my Fairbanks readers, on Saturday, November 8th, The Blue Loon Theatre Club (2999 Parks Highway) is having a beer tasting event at 8:00. For $20, you’ll get to taste 10 beers and go home with a complimentary glass. The headline reads “Beer tasting with music on the 
side. We’ll have brats, beers, and great jazz and blues.” Featured beers include Alaskan’s Baltic Porter, Widmer’s Brrrr, Redhook Brewing Company’s Double Black Stout and AB’s Winter Cask Bourbon Ale, to name a few. Embarrassedly, although traveling back and forth to Fairbanks in a previous job, I’ve never been to the Blue Loon, but on all accounts from readers that have been there, it’s a pretty cool place. I did a little web research and discovered that these cats have a really full calendar. Check out http://www.theblueloon.com/events.html and get on the mailing list if you are from around those parts or travel there often.
The efforts of our local breweries are increasingly recognized in media from around the nation. The November edition of the industry rag, Draft magazine featured Midnight Sun Brewing Company’s Monk’s Mistress as one of the “Top 10 Beers to Keep You Warm.” The write up cited that “It’s no secret it gets ubercold up in Alaska, so it’s safe to assume the crew at Midnight Sun has a strong brew to help counter, or forget, its states’ epic winters. Available year round, Monk’s Mistress is an 11.5% ABV Belgian-style dark strong ale that can transform a shivering evening tin an absolute delight. Aged in bourbon barrels, the complex flavors – inspired in part, by the Northern Lights – will make great company as the evening hours slip by.” I won’t argue with that. Check the calendar below for release dates for the next beers in the formidable Planet series of beers orbiting around the brewery.
Below is the Humpy’s draft line up effective Friday, November 07, 2008. Note in particular that Christoff has paired up the incredible 2006 and 2006 Midnight Sun Berserker Imperial Stouts. The 2006 is incredibly rare and will never be seen again. Get in there quick and do your own mini-vertical with these two beers. Alaskan Brewing Company’s Jalapeno Imperial IPA is also on and this is the same batch that took a bronze at this year’s World Cup Competition.
Wheats / Fruits
(Local) Kassik’s Brew Stop Dunkleweisen
(Local Moose’s Tooth Wild Country Raspberry Wheat
Pyramid Apricot
Pyramid Hefeweisen
Lindemans Framboise ####
Golden Ales / Pilseners / California Common
Full Sail LTD #1 (Live The Dream)
Kona Longboard Lager
(Local) Midnight Sun Goldstrike Kolsch
Spaten Premium Lager **
Pale Ales / E.S.B.’s (medium hop bitterness)
(Local) Alaska Pale Ale
Deschutes Hop Trip Pale Ale
Deschutes Mirror Pond (Cask Conditioned) *
(Local) Moose’s Tooth Polar Pale Ale
Sierra Nevada Pale Ale
(Local) Alaskan E.S.B.
India Pale Ales (med - high hop bitterness)
(Local) Alaskan Jalapeno Imperial IPA * (7.5%)
Same batch as 2008 World Cup Bronze Medal
Dogfish Head 60 Minute I.P.A. * (60 IBU)
(Local) Humpy’s Sockeye Red by Midnight Sun (70 IBU)
(Local) Midnight Sun Cohoho Imperial I.P.A. # (8%) (85 IBU)
(Local) Moose’s Tooth Fairweather I.P.A. (64 IBU)
Stone’s Arrogant Bastard Ale
(IBU Classified: Brewery Will Not Tell!)
Belgian Ales
Blue Moon Belgian White Wheat Ale
Shock Top Belgian White Wheat Ale
St. Bernardus Grotton Brown ###
Stella Artois **
Strong Belgian Ales (Alcohol by Volume over 7.5%)
Chimay Cing Cents Triple ##### (8%)
Delerium Tremens #### (8.5%)
Gulden Draak Dark Triple Ale ### (10.5%)
Unibroue Trois Pistoles ## (9%)
Harvest Ales
Avery Kaiser Imperial Oktoberfest # (9.37%)
Ayinger Oktoberfest #
Paulaner Oktoberfest **
Redhook Late Harvest Autumn Ale
Widmer Oktoberfest
Barley Wine
Sierra Nevada Big Foot Barley Wine #
Amber Ales / Bocks / Dopplebocks / Scottish
(Local) Alaskan Amber Ale
(Local) Midnight Sun Oosik Amber Ale
Mac Tarnahan’s Scottish Ale
Rogue Dead Guy MaiBock *
Brown Ales
Full Sail Nut Brown Ale
(Local) Midnight Sun Kodiak Brown Ale
Porters / Stouts
Deschutes Black Butte Porter
Deschutes XX Anv. Black Butte Porter # (11%)
(Local) Silver Gulch Pick Axe Porter
Full Sail Imperial Stout # (9.9%)
Guinness Stout *** (on Nitro)
(Local) Midnight Sun Berserker Imperial Stout
### ed 2006 (10.8%)
(Local) Midnight Sun Berserker Imperial Stout
### ed 2008 (12.7%)
North Coast Old Rasputin
Imperial Stout # (9%) (on Nitro)
Pumpkin Beers
Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin Ale
Jacks Pumpkin Ale
(Local) Midnight Sun Humpback Jack Pumpkin Ale
(Local) Midnight Sun Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter
### (7.8%) ed 2007
(Local) Midnight Sun Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter
# (7.8%) ed 2008
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
11/07/08 McGinley’s Pub November First Taste Featuring Samuel Smith’s Beer 5-8 pm $9.00
11/08/08 Celestial Meads Celtic Samhain (Sah’ wen) Observance and Tasting Noon – 5 pm Free Samples
11/08/08 Blue Loon Pub (Fairbanks) Beer Tasting hosted by Gold Hill Liquors 8 pm $20
11/09/08 Café Amsterdam BJCP Program Begins Noon – 3 pm TBD
11/14/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Venus Belgian-style Quadrupel Release 6 pm Free
11/19/08 Tap Root Café Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop Beer Tasting TBD TBD
11/19/08 Humpy’s/Subzero Celestial Meads Tasting TBD TBD
11/21/08 Seward Sea Life Center Alaska Grown Close to Home Wine and Beer Tasting 7-10 pm $30 per person
11/21/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Obliteration IV Double Wheat Release 6 pm Free
11/28/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Arctic Devil 2009 Release 6 pm Free
12/05/08 Arctic Brewing Supply Entries accepted for Bigfish Homebrew Competetion Noon – 6 pm Free
12/05/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Uranus 100% Brett Beer Release 6 pm Free
12/05/08 Tap Root Café La Bodega’s Novemberfest 2nd Anniversary Party 7 pm $20 (in advance)
12/06/08 SubZero Microlounge Humpy’s Bigfish Homebrew Competition Judging 10 am Free
12/19/08 Midnight Sun Brewing Company Jupiter Champagne-style Tripel Release 6 pm Free
02/22/09 Café Amsterdam BJCP Exam 10 am TBD
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