A hearty band of 35 beer enthusiasts gathered in Seattle in
late August to start an eight-day beer-intensive cruise aboard
the modern and elegant 965-foot-long Celebrity Infinity.
We gathered the night before departure at the now-historic Pike
Pub & Brewery in the Pike Place Market as guests of owners
Charles and Rose Ann Finkel and Brewmaster Drew Cluley.
The Finkels have recently remodeled the pub, using part of
their treasure trove of breweriana to create a gallery celebrating
the art of beer. What more fitting place to begin our beery
voyage?
On your next visit, pay particular attention to the collection
of photos of the Finkels with the late beer authority Michael
Jackson. As we were there close to the anniversary of his
death, the pictures proved even more moving. Special thanks
to Seattle-based Celebrator writer Don Scheidt for
standing by with a potential pub crawl that proved unnecessary.
The next day, we were greeted by beautiful sunny weather
in Seattle! We loaded on to the ship and headed to the elegantly
appointed Michael’s Club for a reception hosted by three
local breweries and two international importers. Pouring that
afternoon were Sam Watkins from Pyramid, Dave Buhler from
Elysian, and the Finkels from Pike Brewing.
World-class imports were offered by Jhon Gilroy from Merchant
du Vin and Alan Shapiro from Specialty Beer Services, along
with Matt Younts from Click Distributing. A great way to start
a Brews Cruise! Our introductory gathering that night at sea
served to give us our “sea legs” and gave us the
opportunity to finish up some of the leftovers from the reception.
Saturday was our first “beer class,” and we talked
beer basics while sampling our way through 11 beers chosen
to illustrate various styles. After class, we headed to the
spectacular two-story dining salon for dinner with, you guessed
it, more beer. Part of our beer order (35 cases) was included
in the ship’s store for us to buy on the ship at regular
beer prices.
| Back on board at midnight, the gang assembled at one
of the clubs for a final farewell blowout. |
On Sunday, we took small tenders to shore to visit Sitka,
the historic Russian village in southeast Alaska. That night
we “studied” IPA styles, with some big ones (Big
Daddy from Speakeasy Ales & Lagers, and Maharaja from
Avery Brewing) for the finale.
Monday included an inspiring if somewhat drizzly visit to
the Hubbard Glacier, followed by our History of Beer tasting.
From wit to framboise to Duchesse de Bourgogne and Cuvée
René and Smoked Porter to Old Rasputin and Samichlaus,
the class was enthralled. And, these beers were available
to us at the ship’s restaurants and bars at regular
beer prices! Most excellent.
Tuesday was our much-anticipated visit to Juneau and the
Alaskan Brewing Company. Owner and brewer Geoff Larson greeted
us after our tour for a vertical tasting of Smoked Porter.
Yum! After that we had a catered lunch in the brewery parking
lot with some of the brewery staff. Outstanding!
On Wednesday, we visited Ketchikan, the self-described “Drinking
Village with a Fishing Problem.” That night was our
Big Beer tasting, which began very nicely with Malheur Brut
Reserve, rocked through Damnation and Celebrator Doppelbock
(naturally), hit the Maredsous 10 and Three Philosophers,
did the ’07 and the ’02 Bigfoot, and finished
up with Samuel Adams’ awesome Utopias! Big beers, indeed!
On Thursday, we put in to spectacular Victoria, B.C. —
the gem of Vancouver Island and seat of the provincial government.
We managed, thanks to the Celebrator’s John
and Carol Rowling and Gerry Hieter, to visit four brewery/brewpubs
in our four hours on shore: Phillips Brewing and Gallery,
Spinnakers’ fabulous gastropub, Swans Buckerfields Brewery,
and Canoe Brewpub. Our crew was becoming hard-core!
Back on board at midnight, the gang assembled at one the
of the clubs, where the staff rounded up the remaining beer
for a final farewell blowout. We arrived back in Seattle by
dawn the next morning, tired but not “beered out,”
according to most of the gang. New friendships were made,
and a whole new appreciation for the vast scope of beer styles
and beer history was evident in the parting comments of our
Brews Cruise veterans. The question seemed to be, “When
can we do this again?”
Special thanks to Michael Weil and the gang from Magic Happens
Travel for the incredible voyage and beer appreciation opportunity.
They will be doing a cruise on the Rhine River in Germany
next year with beer and wine tasting. Check it out at magichappens.com.
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