So you got your invitation to #SpoBREW2 literally months ago, and now you're asking "Where was it again?!" "When?!" "How?!?!" Well, here is the reminder:
Time: August 25th, 4pm.
Place: Inside The Porch, 1804 W Broadway -- a map is available at the Facebook event page.
Veraci will be making pizza just outside of the event, so bring cash if you feel like getting pizza! And baristi from Indaba will be at hand with coffee! Awesome? Awesome!
We'll have a little donation bucket for those who feel inclined to supporting The Porch's Haiti work -- a great cause -- too!
And again the brews will be judged by people who really know there stuff: New Belgium's Ely is back, and will this time be joined by Matt from up and coming Tricksters Brewing! And of course, the brewers will vote for their favorites too -- those with smartphones can do so quickly and easily through the browser, otherwise we'll have paper forms for those who are still Ludditeing it.
The art will be voted for by the people, and we're looking forward to seeing some cool pieces again this year!
We're currently putting together some prizes for the winners, but the main thing here is, of course, to win the bragging rights. Brad is still predicting himself as a repeat winner, but we're not so sure he has what it takes this time around.
There's of course only one way to find out, and that's to show up at The Porch on Saturday 25th, 4pm, and judge for yourself!
When theKeaton Violet told us he wants to make the #spokanerising a "thing", who would we be to deny him his request, nay, demand? We would be cynical bastards, that's who, the kind who'd say hashtags tend to die a quiet death within a few weeks. Luckily we're not always cynical bastards, so we'll support the quest -- apparently started by @calebingersoll and @cathedralpearls -- to make #spokanerising a thing, and a hashtag used for anything awesome happening in this town.
Speaking of the tweet that sparked this whole thing: Method Juice is now open. Early buzz has been positive, so you should probably not suck and check them out. Pay with the Square app, and they'll even give you 25% off your first drink! Method's address is 718 W Riverside, right downtown, and #spokanerising seems like an appropriate hashtag for them.
And if you read Spokesman's beer column this week, you'd have seen a #SpoBREW2 mention. Woo! The starting time should be ready to be announced next week when we actually know what it is. And yes, #SpoBREW2 will throw #spokanerising all over your face.
Let's talk about Sierra Nevada's Hoptimum for a while, just because I feel this is a talk we need to have. Why? Hoptimum is simply an excellent beer, and it is a bit sad you haven't tried it. Unless you have, of course, in which case you probably should have it again!
Much of an Imperial IPA as this might be, it feels just a bit different, kind of like it is its own thing. It pours a clear copper with about a finger's worth of head, and a sniff reveals a surprisingly balanced nose. The hops are there, certainly, but there are also strong hints of floral citrus.
Sip, and the balance carries over really quite well. I had expected a hop bomb, and while this certainly is a hoppy beer, there is also a whole lot more going on. A robust sweetness of caramel really takes the edge of the hops, and a nice maltiness coats the back of the throat. All throughout the citrus is there, like a comforting muse, singing songs long forgotten. Or something of that sort.
Granted, Hoptimum isn't for everyone. 10.4% ABV isn't something to play around with, and one of these is plenty. It's not a boozy beer, which I suppose can be both a good and a bad thing depending on your viewpoint. That ABV really can sneak up on you.
All in all, this is one I'd highly recommend to those who like to figure out a beer. It's refreshing and complex, and one you can enjoy it in the heat as a slow sipper.
Nomadic Brews: We are not sure if they actually are nomadic or not; maybe they do move according to the season in an effort to survive? That, of course, makes them dangerous -- a team brewing for survival might just have something extra up their homestitched sleeves.
SingleTrack: Is this another nomadic team, one that jumps on the single track railroads? Or do they have single track minds? Possibly both? Maybe they're simply single track mountain bikers? Either way, they sound very focused, and focused teams are dangerous contenders.
The Hop Whisperers: This could potentially be an extremely hardcore team. And not to mention somewhat creepy. Do they actually lovingly whisper into the hops's ears to make them grow faster? Well, that might be creepy, but that kind of dedication creates winners, which leaves us all even more worried.
Inland Brewers Unite: This was of course Chris's team last year, which now has been taken over by Cameron. Will the other IBUers participating accept him using their collective name? We shall see, and while we certainly don't support violence, we obviously can't help it if Inland Brewers Unite's bottles accidentally break.
And those are the teams, all twenty of them! The contest is just eighteen days away, meaning it's almost showtime. More information will come soon.
