The 49th State is Alaska and the name of an Anchorage brewery

         This fall I got to thinking how long ago it had been since I had seen Alaska (close to half a century) and when I learned of the Great Alaskan Beer Train run on the Alaska Railroad, I figured I should go up there again.  A flight to Anchorage  and soon I was at the tourist information center, a log cabin in the heart of downtown.  Lining up some sightseeing trips led to the identification of some vital destinations in center city.  

Two blocks from the tourist center I spied the brewpub 49th State Brewing and moseyed in for a mid-afternoon pint.  The substantial building sits on the edge of a bluff, created by the 1964 earthquake which rocked the city, traces of its damage still plain to see.  A 15-bbl brewing system in the lower level cranks out a good choice in beers.

The tap handles at the bar indicate the variety of styles.  Some are carved from local materials like whale bones.  I tried a pint of the Blonde Eagle (5.2%) upon learning that this was the flagship ale.  Stomach full, I passed on the foods offered in the menu but saw a number of tasty-sounding salmon options.  

The Russian Imperial Stout (11.2%) merited a can to take to my lodgings and try that evening.  William Seward, the Secretary of State named to his cabinet by Abraham Lincoln and still serving Andrew Johnson in 1867, negotiated the purchase of Alaska from the Russians for $7.2 million.  The transaction was derided by some in Congress as Seward's Folly; the critics had no idea of the riches this land contained.  The rich, sweet, malty flavor disguises the potent alcohol content of this one-and-done stout.  

(Visited 09/29/2022)

Found in Schenectady: Frog Alley

 

        The old factory town of Schenectady (light bulbs and GE appliances, locomotives), for several postwar years home and source for fiction ideas of Kurt Vonnegut, has been perking up a bit from its classic rustbelt look lately.  Near the Mohawk River and the community college, lower State Street now features a block of new buildings, capped on one corner by the Frog Alley Brewing Co. Open since 2018,

the brewery shares a wall with Annabel's Pizza, where pizza and sandwiches can be ordered through an opening in the pub. An expansive area in the back offers frequent music events.  The name derives from a once-marshy area near the river and then an eponymous baseball team. This sporting nine became famous in 1903 by playing a game vs. Albany on a Sunday, in violation of the blue laws, and spending the night in jail courtesy of the Schenectady P.D.  

    Brewing is done on what looks like a 20-bbl system with a canning line.  Draft beer flows though a pair of sixteen tap handles. While IPAs predominate, good choices remain in the darker and maltier styles. I tried a flight with a winter ale (pale in color but with the same spicy flavors that marzen style usually has), a pilsner, a brown and a porter.  All nicely done and the darks would have been good for a pint later.

    The day I stopped in, the World Cup was on and the U.S. vs England game was starting to draw a crowd near one of the many tv screens in the pub area.  

(Visited 11/25/2022)

District Brewing, Mt. Vernon, two+ years old

Around the time the Covid pandemic began, spring of 2020, I went into blog hibernation on this site.  This was due to some google changes I didn't process, had nothing to do with masking up or getting tested or all those pandemic things.  New breweries that had been in the planning stages in 2019 managed to open in 2020 in spite of the challenges of that time.  One such was District Brewing, right here about five blocks from my apartment.  They opened in the late spring with pizza to go or eat outside and a choice of beers in 12-oz cans available from the get-go.  The site used to be the Lyric Theatre, a cinema back in the day, and they name their pizzas for classic old movies.  The beer names not so much, with one noble exception.  Sean Connery passed away in 2020 and District, then bringing out a rich, malty Scotch ale, named it Connery Scotch, a tribute to the Scottish actor.  

As pandemic restrictions eased up last year, indoor dining came back to District.  Two views from 

the balcony level, one out toward the Skagit River, with the Mount Vernon Farmers Market in the foreground, the other looking at the 15-barrel brewing system through the huge glass window wall. My next stop will be for a Red October pizza (Go, Phillies!) and a pint of Connery Scotch.  

(Visited many times since 06/20, most recently 10/17/22)
 

Glacier Brewhouse and the Great Alaska Beer Train

The Alaska Railroad, established and for many years operated by the federal government, was purchased by the state in 1985.  Headquartered in Anchorage, trains run north to Fairbanks and south to Seward and Whittier, where the big cruise ships dock.  In addition to scheduled runs, the railroad sets up special excursion trains with various tourism-focused companies.  

One such company, Glacier Brewhouse in downtown Anchorage, celebrates October with the Great Alaska Beer Train, a four-hour run along the Cook Inlet with fabulous views, delicious food, and of course plenty of beer. A $200 ticket buys you the experience, six half pints of different beers paired with the food, and the food, of course, brought to you at your seat.  Here is the menu for 2022: 

And this was how the bratwurst sausage was served--

The train doesn't cover a lot of distance in the two hours south, maybe fifty miles.  It does a turnaround and heads back to Anchorage at the same speed, with plenty of time to sip and savor the scenery and the beers.  The sixth token for a half point can be your choice after trying the five on the list.  I went back and had another strong stout!  Wish I had had a Seward's Folly to compare it to.  

I checked out Glacier's restaurant/taproom the next day.  They make at least a dozen beers so there were some good brews that didn't get to ride the train this year.

(Train ride 10/01/22)

Triple Bottom: Spring Garden gets craftier

Triple Bottom Brewing Co., seen here from the steps of the Roy-Pitz Barrel House on busy Spring Garden Ave., became the third brewer in two blocks (Love City being the other) when it opened in October.

The Ways to Glenside, PA

Upon first hearing of The Ways Restaurant and Brewing Co., I had to wonder what sort of ways they were talking about.  "Let me count the ways" [how I love you], in Elizabeth Browning's poem?  Or "knowing how way leads on to way" in Robert Frost's Road Not Taken?
None of the above!  Way is the surname of two brothers, Tim and Steve, natives of the town next door, Jenkintown, who opened this cozy pub about six months ago.  Steve Way operated a popular food truck, Smokin' Tacos, for some years and played at home brewing on the side.  Tim Way spent some years as a nurse in an ER and then opted for pro-level brewing with studies at the American Brewers Guild school in  Vermont and a turn at Weyerbacher in Easton, PA. 
 

Tim makes beer on a ten-barrel system with a novel array of finishing tanks: four fermenters and six brite tanks.  The brite tanks link directly to six of the dozen taps behind the bar.  The other six dispense from kegs, three of their own and three guest taps. I tried two different stouts to go with a bowl of Guiness beef stew, just right on a chill December afternoon.  The first was Attache Case, an English style stout, sweeter than Irish versions, dry-hopped with Fuggles and EKG hops (5 % abv). Next was a pint of August West, an Oatmeal stout with local coffee and chocolate added (6.6%) type which came next.  Both delicious in their different "ways".

The pub was doing a good business

in gift cards and growler fills this last Saturday before Christmas.  The other beer choices in the local offerings were four IPAs, a Helles, an Alt, and a fruit lager with blueberries and tart red cherries in the mix. Rapidly becoming a neighborhood fixture.
The Ways' logo features the intersection of a highway and a railroad's tracks, which describes the pub's location perfectly.  It sits smack beside the SEPTA lines to Doylestown and Warminster and is a stone's throw from the station. 

(Visited 12/21/19)

Inland Empire Festival in Spokane

A good time on Friday, Sept. 20 on the outfield grass of Avista Stadium, home of the Spokane Indians baseball team.  Coming in, I noticed a plaque telling the world that this is one team that can call itself the Indians without controversy.

Some thirty-plus brewers had set up on the outfield grass: a few, like No-Li here in Spokane and Bale Breaker in Yakima get over the mountains to Western Wash, while most do not.  The barley growers have an association and had set up a stand reminding us that all our favorite styles begin with their crops.  And the hop union was there, as well.
In downtown Spokane a craft beer incubator has opened up, a building where entrepreneurs can move out of their garages and start brewing commercially.  I met one, TT's Brewing, that had just graduated from the incubator and opened up their own brew space recently. 
(Visited 09/20/19)