(SpoCOOL) A Spokane Blog

First, Blue Spark is looking at opening its door a little earlier than 3pm on Saturday, so you'll have the chance to meet and greet the players and grab a beer and basically wonder why anyone would try to do something like this to themselves. And! Tacos Tumbras will have their truck outside, meaning you will be able to eat some kick-ass tacos while witnessing the spectacle!

Speaking of players...

The returning warriors

This isn't a team contest, but many of the players from last year's Spiceavore are returning. Team SpoCOOL, for example, is back (minus Bryan who took his cowboy hat and rode off into the sunset). Lars might be known for his chicken suit, but the 6pack Saddlebag creator schooled the spicy coffee last time. Seen, with his skirt (possibly a kilt) added insult to injury when he kept picking on the bones after winning Spiceavore's hot-wing challenge. And yours truly has come out of retirement, for this one last spicy food contest. Team SpoCOOL won last year, and you can expect the players to place near the top once again.

Team DTE is back in full force. Bart swore on that fateful night of Spiceavore that he'd never lose another spicy food contest again, and has gone through Rocky-like training, conquering the EWU hot wing challenge, to set his aim toward the top of SpiceaWAR. Mark is eyeing the throne himself, with a glimmer of golden habaneros in his eyes. Finally, Chris Dreyer, the man who insisted on this re-match, has worked himself up in a frenzy, and has proclaimed that only victory will be good enough. Team DTE might not ave won last year's event, but this time all the individual players are hands-on favorites to make it to the end.

Team Blue Spark (where somewhat ironically nobody actually worked for Blue Spark) fell apart after last year's event. We don't exactly know what happened, but crying was surely involved. The only player emerging out of the almost literal flames is Patrick, who has travelled the world to compete in spicy food contests. Will the experience pay off? We shall see. We. Shall. See.

New kids on the block

Adam tried to chicken out, but realized too late he was in too deep. This might sound like somebody at a disadvantage, but you know what will happen when you back a tiger into a corner -- it'll pounce!

Brett might be best known as the Brews on Washington guy, but we have learned he comes from a family of spiceavores. Don't think of him as a beer guy; he swigs back Insanity Sauces too.

Kai is Lars's brother, and he also Envisions Spokane. This is a lethal combination, and we can only assume he does his envisioning while eating hot wings and laughing maniacally while eyeing the SpiceaWAR trophy!

There's only one lady on the roster, Liz, who has proclaimed she will take home SpiceaWAR and kick up gender roles once and for all. 

Sean: We don't know Sean, but Patrick signed him up just last night. We assume he bribed Patrick to be able to play, meaning he plays dirty, and we approve of that.

You!

You?! Yes, you! We're leaving one spot open for an audience member to participate! Come down to Blue Spark on Saturday, around 2pm-ish and state your case, and you could be part of this event. (Lord knows why you'd want to, but now you have the option.)

Tomorrow: What's in this for you?! Tons of stuff will be happening at SpiceaWAR at the Blue Spark, and all will be outlined tomorrow.

Holy crap, SpiceaWAR is on Saturday, 3pm? At The Blue Spark? Well, that's what this Facebook invite is telling us at least, and if you want to witness the ultimate spicy food contest in Spokane, you better run over and RSVP!

So what will you see there? 

We already told you Savor Sweets will have ghost pepper pops on hand. What else? Saranac is preparing a spicy linguica sausage, pickled egg and habanero relish. Monterey Cafe is tossing in a "ring of fire" pizza. Newcomers Rex's Burgers and Brews are tossing in "the hottest wings in town"! A hot chili from Soulful Soups will be on hand. Brain Freeze spicy ice cream will be paired with cupcakes.

Can you say awesome?! And can you say "lord, those sound both delicious and painful"?!

And keep in mind: Much of the food will be sampleable for those who make a contribution to the Cystic Fibrosis Foundadion. 

Hey, with all that crazy hot food from awesome local spots, why wouldn't you want to be there?! It only makes sense, so run over to Facebook and RSVP!

Remember Stone Imperial Russian Stout? We do, and with quite a bit of affection at that.

Now Stone has released the Belgo Anise edition, giving us something that already was sublime with the addition of an even better flavor. Impossible, you say? You have every reason to, but I'm going out on a limb here: This Belgo Anise IRS might just be the ale to knock Deschutes's the Abyss down from its throne.

Here you have everything that is great about an excellent beer -- and feel free to read my tasting notes on the standard edition if you need a reminder -- amplified. The flavor is just a bit deeper, with the malts coming out to play in fuller force than last time. Heavy as the 10.5% ABV is, it's still not insanely pronounced here; think of it as a foot soldier, assisting general Anise.

Ah yes, the anise. I can go either way on that flavor, but here, here it is balanced perfectly into the mix. It hits at the end, gently at first, until it takes over the flavor profile almost gingerly. Just sit back and let the anise seduce you. It is an amazing feeling.

Go out and pick up as many bottles you can of this beer. It's cheaper than the Abyss and possibly better.

Big Sky's Powder Hound was a favorite last year and is already in the running to repeat the success in 2011. This is a great winter ale, one that tastes like the season should taste while actually feeling just different enough from last year's batch to also bring some surprises.

This pours an amber-like color with a golden hue and a good finger worth of head. It looks inviting, and looks appropriately winter-y. Sniff, and I'm fairly certain it comes across a bit hoppier than last year's batch.

In fact, tasting it confirms that the hops are more at the forefront, though that's not to say Powder Hound is a hop-bomb. Here they gently lace the tongue, and a nice deep flavor of caramel flanks them. The mouthfeel is somewhere around medium, which matches the flavor profile nicely.

Really, Powder Hound is what a winter ale should be. It is not too complex, yet not too simple, just a good, down to earth, honest ale with crisp hops and soothing malts. In other words, it's pretty damn good.

Winter season is off to a good start. Deschutes and Big Sky might go head to head over who has the best seasonal, leaving us as the true winners. That I can live with.