In 1974, Larry Sidor walked into Olympia Brewing Company wearing galoshes. Two decades later, he ran out. He couldn’t take dumbing down lagers anymore. He found happier times at Deschutes Brewery, developing legendary recipes like The Dissident, The Abyss and Red Chair. In 2012, he and Paul Evers opened Crux Fermentation Project in a former AAMCO transmission shop in Bend, Oregon, with the complete freedom to brew whatever they desired, and by desire that meant sublime IPAs, complex barrel-aged Flanders reds and restrained pilsners. They designed the brewery for non-traditional brewing methods such as decoction mashing, open fermentation, oak barrel aging, wild yeast strains and experimental hops. Proudly, they bottled and labeled by hand in small batches right at the brewery.

Peaks and Pints will welcome Crux Fermentation Project to its Lodge Meeting Thursday, April 23.

Pouring from our western red cedar tap log will be the Bend brewery’s bourbon barrel-aged Russian imperial stout [BANISHED] Tough Love, a craft beer of immense complexity. It utilizes a dozen grains, including smoked and roasted malts, rye and wheat, plus adjuncts like black strap molasses, vanilla beans and cherries, then aged in bourbon barrels. For the uninitiated, Crux’s [BANISHED] beers are hidden away for months in oak barrels, allowing flavors to mature, meld and mellow.

Other tapped Crux delights include the new Show Me The Money IPA with Cashmere hops for tropical flavors, Nitro Stout, Hopped Scotch Ale aged on scotch whisky oak and the new PCT Porter, an easy drinking porter with notes of espresso, spruce tips, vanilla and caramel with part of the proceeds benefiting the Pacific Crest Trail Association, which is awesome.

In addition to amazing Crux craft beers, the March 23 Lodge meeting will include giveaways and the also amazing Tacoma Runners.

LODGE MEETING WITH CRUX, 6 p.m., Thursday, March 23, Peaks and Pints, 3816 N. 26th St., Basecamp proctor, Tacoma, no cover