| Alaskans are a sturdy bunch. Independent
and resourceful, they are in survival mode for much of their
existence in the wilds of the Last Frontier. Included in “travel
gear” are water, blankets, Spam or jerky and a good supply
of duct tape (called 100-mile-an-hour tape). Downtown Anchorage
is a bit more civilized, with modern hotels, shops, restaurants
and pubs. Scattered around the biggest state in the U.S. (with
one of the smallest populations) are an impressive collection
of breweries and brewpubs (more per capita than any other state?)
catering to the eclectic tastes of its hearty inhabitants.
Once a year, during the dead of winter (the summer is far
too busy for such foolishness), the Alaskan brewers and beer
fans converge on the “big city” of Anchorage for
the annual Great Alaska Beer & Barley Wine Festival. Traveling
300 to 800 miles to a beer fest is a challenge for most brewers
and beer geeks, but in Alaska it means over roads that can
be covered in snow, with temps plunging to –30ºF. For
this year’s festival, the weather was milder, with highs
in the upper 20s and lows in the teens — a regular heat
wave for those rugged inhabitants.
Aurora Productions did another superb job of organizing a
great beer show. Fest founder Billy Opinsky of Humpy’s
Alehouse did yeoman’s work in bringing the best Alaskan
beers together, along with excellent offerings from the Pacific
Northwest and beyond in the Lower 48. Classic European beers
were also available to provide a truly excellent cross section
of great beer for interested Alaskan beer lovers, and an inspiration
to local brewers and homebrewers alike.
| Constantly pushing the envelope on styles, ingredient
use and whacked-out marketing, Midnight Sun is the shining
example of what makes Alaska great. |
All three sessions were presold, but the crowds were more
manageable at the Saturday afternoon Connoisseur Session,
which featured a performance by the Celebrator’s Rolling
Boil Blues Band with local beer-biz players (Frozen Boil?).
Judging the commercial beers has always been a part of this
fest, and the Great Northern Brewers Club, under the direction
of Chief Judge Jason Ditsworth, did a remarkable job of double-elimination
panels for both the barley wine competition and the newly
added Winter Warmer contest. Hometown Anchorage brewers finished
in the money for both categories.
Award-winning barley wines were Lagunitas GnarlyWine (first);
Midnight Sun Arctic Devil (second) and Pizza Port Farley Barleywine
(third). The new Winter Warmer category was won by Glacier
BrewHouse with its Glacier Ice Eisbock.
New to the Alaskan beer scene was Denali Brewing Company,
located in the Mat-Su Valley, north of Anchorage, at the foot
of America’s tallest mountain, Mt. McKinley. (Measured
from base to summit, Mt. McKinley is the tallest mountain
in the world.) The Twister Creek IPA and Hibernale Belgian-style
beer were treats.
Tiny Haines Brewing Company got a lot of cred with its 16-lb’er
IPA — a double IPA with IBUs over 90! Also worth noting,
if only for the names, were DMMDIIPA (Devil Made Me Do It
IPA) and the Broke Dick Ale (a winter seasonal).
The reopened (2007) Skagway Brewing Company brought three
beers, including a wonderful Chilkoot Trail IPA. Another newcomer
was St. Elias Brewing Company of Soldotna, south of Anchorage,
with its malty Williwaw IPA and Moose Juice Barley Wine. Kenai
River Brewing Company, also in Soldotna, had a killer Arctic
XPA that claimed to be a pale ale, although its 74 IBUs said
otherwise. Alaskans. Kodiak Island Brewing Company featured
a California common beer called Liquid Sunshine as well as
Island Fog barley wine.
The Anchorage beer scene continues to evolve, with new good-beer
places piling up like bear scat during berry season. Spenard
Roadhouse is new to the region, featuring a draught lineup
of local favorites.
Midnight Sun Brewing Company is comfortably
into its new digs and now features an upstairs tasting room
with a killer restaurant. Don’t miss the Cheddar-Ale
soup, made with Midnight’s Kodiak Brown Ale, and the
Sweet Cheeks slow-roasted pork carnitas, with some smokin’
chipotle heat. Yum! The phenomenal lineup of great beers continues
to amaze this traveling beer geek. Head Brewer Gabe Fletcher
and the gang simply don’t do anything ordinary. Constantly
pushing the envelope on styles, ingredient use and whacked-out
marketing, Midnight Sun is the shining example of what makes
Alaska great. Although we didn’t get a lot of sun in
the dead of winter, the liquid Midnight Sun more than brightened
our days.
The kickoff to my beer week in Alaska was the “Break
into the Cage” Belgian beer dinner, hosted by Humpy’s
Alehouse at its newly renovated and very upscale subZero nightclub
in the same building. Billy Opinsky had just done a major
archeological dig in his infamous beer stash, kept at a local
brewery that has lots of cold box space. The result was an
amazing collection of rare and properly aged Belgian beers
paired with Chef Tim’s wonderfully rich cuisine. Highlights
included the welcome beer, Castelain 2001, and a really old
Boon lambic geuze served with a spinach, pomegranate, arugula,
gorgonzola and crispy pancetta salad.
The Hanssens Kriek 2002 paired with pan-seared foie gras
on cabbage braised in Hanssens Kriek was, well, unbelievable!
The buzz beer of the dinner had to be the Thomas Hardy’s
1996, served with a deconstructed venison stew with braised
root vegetables. The Unibroue 2005 anniversary ale was also
a hit. The 2004 Rochefort 8 seemed a bit past its prime, but
the pistachio crusted lamb chops resting in Duchesse demi-glace
and potato gratin was wonderful.
The evening ended with a 2006 Gouden Carolus Noël served
with bread pudding with Tim’s whiskey sauce. All that
for $90! Billy obviously doesn’t adhere to food and
beer costs. This is typical of Alaskan hospitality and yet
another reason to put the Land of the Midnight Sun on your
beer lover’s itinerary. |
