Vince Brown performs at Swing Wine Bar tonight. Photo courtesy of Facebook WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Open mic + 3-Way IPA = four ways Jazz guitar + Hop Valley Brewing = Double-D Blonde Blues guitar + Ale House = Yay and Haye! NPCC OPEN MIC Unlike certain franchise joints that dot our landscape with little green faces like Martian pimples, Northern Pacific Coffee Company’s aspiration is not java hegemony. No, Northern Pacific is content with its corner on Garfield, a block east of Pacific Lutheran University, and its reputation
Full Sail’s new Brewmaster Reserve Capsize Imperial Pilsner WEDNESDAY, JUNE 15 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … Beer production has officially begun at 7 Seas Brewing’s new facility in Tacoma with the release of their new Water Chopper Gose, which will be release Friday, June 17, in their Gig Harbor taproom. The on-demand convenience store delivery startup goPuff — which promises thousands of products at your fingertips in 30 minutes — is adding beer and wine to the list with the launch
Comedian Gabriel Rutledge performs at Jazzbones tonight. TUESDAY, JUNE 14 2-16: South Sound events + craft beer Comedian + Wet Coast Brewing = local goods Pelé + Elysian Brewing = kicks LOCAL FUNNY GUY Gabriel Rutledge and his self-deprecating autobiographical routine have been cracking up audiences and impressing comedy critics for 15 years or so. Rutledge started opening for touring headliners at the “Go” Club in Olympia in 2002 before winning the 2004 Seattle International Comedy Competition. Rutledge’s career has been on a steady upward trajectory ever since, taking him to comedy clubs all over North
Open mics are being hosted at The Swiss and Flanagan’s Craft Pub tonight. MONDAY, JUNE 13 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Punk ska + The Red Hot = Freigeist Geisterzug Open mics + craft beer = open mics and craft beer PUNK SKA NIGHT Wondering where socially conscious music went after the mid-90s? Northern Illinois band Bombflower offers a nice brew of punk, rocksteady-ish ska, and rap, topped with eloquent and socially conscious vocals delivered by Liza and guitarist Tic James. The band performs with Tarolas De Hueso from Escondido, California, plus Jurassic
Brewery Ommegang has released its first Double IPA. MONDAY, JUNE 13 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … Two Beers Brewing hosts Mary Panza June 15 to discuss Wilderness First Aid 101 as part of the Seattle Brewery’s “The Mountaineers at The Woods” beer and lecture series. Portland’s Organic Beer Fest is celebrating its 12th annual event this summer with a new date and a shortened name. Brewery Ommegang to release its first double IPA, Great Beyond Double IPA. National Homebrew Competition 2016
Sierra Nevada Brewing Company didn’t provide the entertaining sail boats and seaplanes on Lake Union, but the Chico, California-based brewery certainly took care of all the other details at Beer Camp Across America, a roving six-city festival that hit Seattle’s South Lake Union Park yesterday. There were celebrity brewers pouring their own creations — including Sierra Nevada Brewing founder Ken Grossman — beers from more than 100 breweries, on and off rain, the lush melodies of Deep Sea Diver band, tulip glasses for tasting cups, a plethora of food trucks and restrooms — all in a stunning setting between the
Compass & Knife performs at The New Frontier Lounge tonight. Photo courtesy of Facebook SUNDAY, JUNE 12 2016: South Sound events + craft beer Post rock + Wingman Brewers = zest Cerebral Jazz + Sunday Beer Sampler = Scenes WEAR YOUR SPACE PANTS Compass & Knife is a local, four-piece instrumental band that draws influence from ambient, shoegaze and post-rock sounds. Bassist Austin Patterson, guitarist Garrett Werner, pianist/guitarist Jordan Brokaw and drummer Patrick Smith create music that is happy, sad, quiet, heavy, dark, hopeful, introspective, existential, and any other feeling you care to project. The band
Boxing will be held for the 106th time at the Emerald Queen Casino tonight. SATURDAY, JUNE 11 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … DJs + Coconut Porter = Fresh Boxing + Rockridge Orchards = knockouts DJ DANCE PARTY Inspired by the lack of variety in dance music in Tacoma, Calvin Murphy and Omar Stokes founded Ocean Grooves Entertainment in January 1999. They started off strong that February with Monday night shows at the 6th & Proctor Bar & Grill (later became Hell’s Kitchen) and dedicated it to underground dance music showcasing various DJs from
The Kim Archer Band performs at Jazzbones tonight. Courtesy photo FRIDAY, JUNE 10 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Kim Archer Band + Seattle craft beer = I Heard It Through The Beerline The Stoned Evergreen Travelers + Harmon Brewing = Live After The Apollo Champagne Sunday + Odd Otter Brewing = Hurluberlu KIM ARCHER BAND With a timeless vocal delivery only matched by her engaging stage presence, Kim Archer has been pleasing live music fans in our area since 2004. Archer’s powerful voice a la Janis Joplin and Chaka Khan gels perfectly with
Bring your beard to Republic Brewing Company today. CRAFT BEER NEWS FOR FRIDAY, JUNE 10 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … This weekend is Prospectors’ Days in the little town of Republic, Washington, close to the Canadian border, and Republic Brewing Company is hosting a beard contest. The Northwest Beer Night panel blind tastes Hefeweizen and it turns into a sausage fest. The beer drinker’s guide to summer music festivals. Fifteen memorable beers from the 2016 Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Festival. A
Dixie Highway performs at The Valley tonight. Photo courtesy of the Weekly Volcano THURSDAY, JUNE 9 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Dixie Highway + North 47 Brewing = Elated Slug Working Class Theater Northwest + Silver City Brewery = Big Daddy AMERICANA Dixie Highway. Remember those words. You may already know them, but in a year you’ll know them better. At the bluegrass family picnic, Dixie Highway is the loud and brash kid brother, the noisy upstart from down south who would just as soon stand on your sandwich and scream into your
After several wildfires burned across Eastern Washington in recent weeks, and with temperatures expected to reach the mid-90s this week, the Washington State Department of Natural Resources has increased fire danger ratings in several Eastern Washington counties. After last year’s devastating fire season — the worst on record for Washington state — the DNR has set out to better prepare for the wildfires to come in 2016. Every Day Thurston County firefighters Casey Sobol and Jason Stoltz think about those firefighters battling fires in brutal hot conditions. They know. Sobol and Stoltz have responded on firefighting mobilizations to the east
Barleywine Revue performs outside Treos in old Town Tacoma tonight. Photo credit Pappi Swarner WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8, 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Bluegrass + Parkway Tavern = Hop Freshener Bomber Boys + Rainier Growlers = historical night Terrence Malick + Northwest Beerwerks = Flying Cloud Student films + Westside Tavern = Olympia goodness BLUEGRASS ON GRASS “We’re bigger than Barleywine,” banjoist Forest Beutel didn’t say but no one would hold a press conference if he did. Beutel is one-fifth of the Tacoma-based bluegrass band Barleywine Revue, a University of Puget Sound college band
From left to right: “Hamilton” cast members Javier Muñoz, Kamille Upshaw, David Guzman and Max Balkin brew beer. Photo courtesy Jimmy Ludwig WEDNESDAY, JUNE 8 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom splendor. … Over the next four months, Maritime Pacific Brewing Company will be launching one-of-a-kind, specialty IPAs called the Regatta Series designed by head brewer Matthew Schumacher. Bainbridge Brewing will celebrate its fourth anniversary 2-9 p.m. Friday, June 10 and noon to 9 p.m. Saturday, June 11. Cider Summit Portland will present nearly
TUESDAY, JUNE 7 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Healthy Bay Hef + Maya Angelou = remarkable American Brewing + Comedy Showcase = Flying Monkey Dogfight MAYA ANGELOU FLICK One of the foremost 20th-century shapers of an African-American literature and identity, the subject of Maya Angelou and Still I Rise wore many hats in a long, complicated life that has been given valedictory treatment in Bob Hercules and Rita Coburn Whack’s documentary. Made over a four-year period (which enabled them to interview Angelou several times before her 2014 death at age 86), this solid if conventional PBS-style overview
The Swiss hosts an open mic every Monday night. Photo credit: Pappi swarner MONDAY, JUNE 6 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Open mic + Deschutes Brewery = Slice of goodness Post-punk + dry-hooped sour ale = Staying Alive MONDAY OPEN MIC Open mic nights are an invaluable asset to any music scene. Whether you’re a budding musician looking to hone your skills with some stage time, an occasional hobbyist just playing a few of your favorite songs for fun, or a seasoned professional looking to try out some new material, open mic nights
Fish Brewing Company grabbed Gold for its Leavenworth Biers Boulder Bend Dunkelweizen Dark Wheat Ale at the 2016 North American Beer Awards. MONDAY, JUNE 6 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … The 2016 North American Beer Awards were held last weekend in conjunction with the Mountain Brewers Beer Fest and South Sound area breweries came out with seven medals. The NABA’s are arguably the third largest and most prestigious American awards conducted as a single blind sampling followed by rank ordering of
Hilltop Rats will perform at the Jason Locking benefit at The Swiss tonight. Photo courtesy of Facebook SUNDAY, JUNE 5, 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Sunday Beer Sampler + Jason Locking benefit = rock and roll extravaganza Beer Flight + Micro Wrestling Federation = small action JASON LOCKING BENEFIT Tacoma musician, chef and all around awesome dude Jason Locking was diagnosed with late-stage pancreatic cancer and is currently undergoing chemo, radiation, homeopathic and MMJ therapy treatments in conjunction with each other. Locking has had to put his culinary and musical talents aside to
If you enjoy psychedelic, surf-y guitars with a pop sheen, you’ll enjoy the Purrs tonight. Photo courtesy of Facebook SATURDAY, JUNE 4 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … British post-punk + Puyallup Brewing = “It Could Be So Wonderful” Comedy Crawl + Zog’s = “Gettin’ Jiggy With It” THE PURRS While the Purrs certainly do adorn their songs with psychedelic fringe, you’ll notice deeper ingrained layers of influences at play at The Valley tonight. On the top level, British post-punk is what most readily pops out, inspiring the comparisons the band has long received
Public Coast Brewing is now open at Cannon Beach, Oregon. Photo courtesy of Facebook FRIDAY, JUNE 3 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … Mike McMenamin has never seen a ghost. But the historic buildings he invests in with his brother Brian McMenamin are coated in dusty memories and hidden secrets. It’s as if they’ve lived a past life, including the one in Tacoma. Brickyard Brewing is leaving the nest and expanding production with a new brewing facility in Woodinville and opening a
Portland Beer Week Rye Beer Fest returns to the EastBurn June 10. Photo by Pappi Swarner For the sixth consecutive year, Portland Beer Week promises to provide another welcome excuse to tipsily prove Portland’s superiority in consuming massive amounts of glutenful pints and apparently enjoy the longest week in the history of ever, June 9-19 (11 whole days, which makes said “week” technically closer to being a fortnight, guys). Some of the early specials include an official beer by Portland Brewing and Double Mountain Brewery, beer donut by Blue Star Donuts, beer ice cream from Salt
The Pine Hearts perform at Cascadia Homebrew tonight. THURSDAY, JUNE 2 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Melvin Brewing + electroacoustic = madness Beer Camp + punk rock = Rye Ot ELECTROACOUSTIC In progressive electroacoustic music, the electronics play an equal if not greater part in the overall concept. Acoustic instruments performed in real time are usually processed through reverb, harmonizing, and so on, which add an entirely new dimension to the player’s technique. At best, this music opens up new worlds of listening, thinking, and feeling. Seattle electroacoustic duo Medina/Walsh will perform compositions
Jay Thomas will fill B Sharp Coffee House with jazz tonight. Photo courtesy of Facebook WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1 2016: South Sound events + craft beer Jazz + Two Beers = probably three beers Swing + Powerhouse = WT-Hefe? JAY THOMAS The unpredictable Jay Thomas performs at 8 p.m. in the B Sharp Coffee House. He’s unpredictable only in the sense that he can switch from trumpet to alto or flute in the time it takes to enjoy a two-bar rest. Or he may suddenly call up his charmer of a wife, vocalist Becca Duran. But there’s
Rulof Maker, a do it yourself artist, used leg mounted beer bottles for underwater propulsion. Photo courtesy of Facebook WEDNESDAY, JUNE 1 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … Inside the underhanded effort to unseat craft beer in Seattle. Melvin Brewing is opening a brewery in Washington. http://bit.ly/1TXGtgD The latest beer festival to hit Portland’s crowded festival scene is Pints In The Pearl. Independent brewers are playing with ancient ingredients to invent new flavors. There is not part of life in which drink
2016 FORT GEORGE 3-WAY IPA: Thanks “Beer Buddha” Hoyt Smith for the taste! Photo credit: Pappi Swarner Dear 2016 Fort George 3-Way IPA, OK, I know what you’re thinking, 2016 Fort George 3-Way IPA. The crazy slow construction of my Peaks and Pints bottle shop, taproom and eatery in Tacoma’s Proctor neighborhood has turned me into a crank-guy. I can see it in your six eyes. You’re tired of my groans over expensive POS systems. Bitchin’ about events calendar changes is wearing on you. Well, not anymore, 3-Way IPA. See, something happened last week that has
TUESDAY, MAY 31 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Funny opera + great saxophone = applause Sketch comedy + sour beers = funny faces SILLY MARGUERITE The fine French drama Marguerite fictionalizes the life of American socialite Florence Foster Jenkins, whose vocal performances of classical arias, beginning in private music clubs and culminating in a 1944 recital at Carnegie Hall, have earned her a large and respectful entry in the encyclopedia of bad. At the heart of the story is a lie that becomes a bigger lie, as everyone who surrounds Marguerite is complicit in feeding her delusions
MONDAY, MAY 30 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … The history of the beer can is a deeply American one. Fish Brewing Company offers a five-course beer pairing dinner in its Barrel Room June 1. Warner Bros., Sound Brewery and Global Beverage Traders announced a series of beers based on the massively popular video game Mortal Kombat X. Steens Mountain Brewing’s Whorehouse Meadows Wheat refers to an actual meadow on the western slope of nearby Steens Mountain where enterprising women would set up tents during the
Rockabilly Mafia Dolls hosts bands and a benefit at The Brotherhood Lounge tonight. SUNDAY MAY 29, 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Comedy + loaded root beer floats = lots of laughs Rockabilly Mafia Dolls + doughnuts = Shake MALE COUNSELING Comedian Corey Holcomb ain’t wholesome, and he’ll tell you that much. “I’ve got two 7-year-olds, and they ain’t twins,” he jokes. Holcomb — with his women-bashing jokes and admissions of men’s bad behavior (particularly his own) — has endeared him to disgruntled single guys everywhere. And women — the ones who can take
Drink your way through Eugene, Oregon during Eugene Beer Week 2016, running Monday, May 30 through Sunday, June 5. There are beer dinners and specials, tap takeovers and blind taste tests at breweries, bars, bottle shops and restaurants around Eugene. Sadly, Northwest Legends Foundation announced the 2016 Sasquatch Brew Fest is canceled due to logistical and permitting issues with the initial chosen venue. Oh well, there are plenty of other events to keep you knee deep in craft beer, including The Tap & Growler’s Best Imperial IPA Blind Taste Off running the full week. Below are 19 good bets; a
SATURDAY MAY 28 2016: South Sound events + craft beer Hair rockers + beer floats = Pour Some Sugar On Me Tacoma rockers + beer flights = Electrons HAIR NATION The last time ’80s hair rock band Hair Nation played The Swiss, a fight broke out, two ladies were “loving” each other at the edge of the stage, a warehouse burned down a block away and the power in the club blew out right after the band’s last note of the night. See what happens this time at 9 p.m. PREFUNK: There are two schools of thought when it comes
FRIDAY MAY 27 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Monstrous adults + Beer Camp = Family Values Kung-Fu fighting + Three Magnets Brewing = Rumbletowne CONDO CRAZINESS The Grand Cinema gets weird again, screening British director Ben Wheatley’s High-Rise as part of the Tacoma film house’s Weird Elephant series at 9:09 p.m. If you’ve seen any other Wheatley movie — hitman horror Kill List, jet-black romantic comedy Sightseers and hallucinogenic period piece A Field in England among them — then the prospect of a Tom Hiddleston-starring, early Cronenberg-influenced tale of a dystopian society masquerading as a utopian condo
The Washington Brewers Festival will be held at Marymoor Park June 17-19. FRIDAY, MAY 27 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … McMenamins is over halfway to their goal of raising $10 million from accredited investors to open in Tacoma. The Washington Brewers Festival has announced the list of breweries and what’s new. Sumerian Brewing in Woodinville owners Mark and Holly Ihrig launched a new company HMS Brew Tech selling complete customizable systems, fermenters and tanks. Let’s talk IPAs of the Pacific Northwest.
It is a testament to Fred Eckhardt’s greatness that the annual FredFest keeps happening, year after year, with a rare assortment of hand-selected beers and tens of thousands of dollars raised for select nonprofits. The Portland beer writer, columnist, historian and icon, fondly known as the Dean of American Beer Writers, passed away last August at age 89, nine years after a surprise party for his 80th birthday launched FredFest. The Eckhardt birthday parties continue, paying tribute to his life and the incredible role he played in today’s current beer landscape. His book, “A Treatise on Lager Beers,” published in
The Fame Riot performs at The Valley tonight. Photo courtesy of Facebook THURSDAY MAY 26 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … The Fame Riot + Release Point IPA = SOAR! “Godspell” + Frambois = humility, love, brotherhood … POP HOOKS You’ve seen The Fame Riot, right? Two glam-rock brothers donning sparkles, scarves and messy long hair and drawing inspiration from genre-hoppers such as Foxy Shazam and dance-rock like Hot Chip, with an impeccable pop sheen. And the music — so catchy! If you haven’t seen this Tacoma band explode with new wave synth, pop
Peaks and Pints owners, from left, Robby Peterson, Ron Swarner and Justin Peterson / photo credit Oona Copperhill Photography Peaks and Pints website is live. It is true — cause you’re looking at its awesomeness right now. Make it a bookmark. Make it a part of your day, your week, your life, your craft beer and cider drinking decision process. The Peaks and Pints website is new. It has just launched. It is gaining steam, voice, slippery blurbs of craft goodness. Yes, even though Peaks and Pints bottle shop, taproom and eatery won’t open until July
WEDNESDAY, MAY 25 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Buddy Guy + Bob’s Brown Ale = “Damn Right I’ve Got The Blues” Pencil portraits + Wet Coast Brewing = prominence LEGENDARY BLUES Chicago blues legend Buddy Guy, 79, doesn’t just go with the flow. His tunes mix the best of hard rock, gentle balladry and electronica influence, while keeping the heart and soul of blues intact in every note. To experience the delightful Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee, head to the Pantages Theater at 7:30 p.m. for a live demonstration. PREFUNK: Manny Chao, co-founder of Georgetown
Drink one with the Captain! WEDNESDAY, MAY 25 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … Pacific Northwest Brewers Association member breweries share their latest releases: http://bit.ly/1TEbuVl Atwood Ales, a new brewery in Blaine, Washington, offers a field-to-glass farmhouse brewery experience: http://bit.ly/1U8AbGw Hop Jack’s is expanding to Lakewood and Gig Harbor: http://bit.ly/20BnXeh Hops, cans and other ways American craft cider is following the beer playbook: http://bit.ly/1OWLJRm Gotta have agave? Try out these brews that utilize the unique, polarizing flavor of Mexican tequila: http://bit.ly/1WOxSPc Ballast
TUESDAY MAY 24 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Medicine woman + Silver City Brewery = Ziggy Zoggy Paraiti Jake Gyllenhaal + The Oly Taproom = Pale WHITE LIES The Grand Cinema will tell some “White Lies” tonight, and by “White Lies” we mean the New Zealand film that follows Māori medicine woman Paraiti (played by singer Whirimako Black) on a rare visit to Auckland from her Urewera home. She meets a Māori servant (Rachel House) and is drawn into helping a wealthy Pākehā woman (Antonia Prebble) with a scandalous, life-threatening secret. The tale of culture clash and
It’s Vinyl Night at The Copper Door. MONDAY MAY 23 2016: South Sound events + craft beer Gypsy jazz + Rumbletowne Red = good times Vinyl night + Sour Beer Club = Lipps Inc. CHICKADEE Olympia five-piece Chickadee draw on an extensive repertoire of originals, pop tunes and songs from the Great American Songbook with their love of old-time swing, complicated by gypsy jazz master Django Reinhardt and refined through French song. And like a river flooding over a dozen tributaries, their music washes away genres in a massive crest of rhythm. Catch Chickadee at 8
How about a refreshing glass of whale vomit ale, made using ambergris, taken from the digestive tract of whales? MONDAY, MAY 23 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … Elysian Brewing celebrates 20 years at Seattle Center. High Heel Brewing, an innovative new craft beer company founded by master brewer Kristi McGuire, will introduce a line of craft beers specifically aimed at female craft beer consumers. Beerology dives into the world of Saison. Five tips for winning a homebrew competition. Falling Rock Tap
In many urban environments, open, public space is often a commodity in short supply. Parks, gardens and green spaces compete with roads, parking lots, commercial development and other demands of the city. Green spaces plays a critical role in storm water control by absorbing and holding rainwater, which helps control flooding and erosion that can be caused by heavy rains. Green spaces in urban areas also help to filter and clean water runoff from streets. Areas such as gulches are even more special because these truly natural areas within our urban setting are covered in trees, which help to clean
DJ Broam spins at 1022 South J tonight. SATURDAY, MAY 21 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … DJs + 7 Seas = party Old-timey + Top Rung = Pickin’ with My Old Dog Scout SPINNING 1022 When Oliver Doriss isn’t blowing glass, teaching glassblowing or curating his gallery, Fulcrum, you can catch him under the needle as DJ Broam, usually accompanied by a dance floor full of wild sweaty abandon. At 9:30 p.m., he’ll present the coolest “Vibe” of hip-hop, lounge, electro and jazz at 1022 South J with guest spinner Bilori. PREFUNK: The
FRIDAY MAY 20 2016: South Sound events + craft beer … Feuding perfume clerks + Razma Attack = Parkland party! Brazilian folk + 7 Seas Brewing = Romperia Golden oldies + Bike to Work Day = “Keep on Rollin’” SHE LOVES ME Pacific Lutheran University’s Theater Department presents “She Loves Me,” the charming 1963 musical adaptation of Miklos Laszio’s play “Parfumerie,” which later inspired the Tom Hanks-Meg Ryan feature “You’ve Got Mail.” Anyhoo, this intimate and touching show centers on two feuding perfume clerks who, unbeknownst to them, fall in love after answering the same “lonely hearts” advertisement. Catch the
Endless Rant IPA unveiling / photo courtesy of http://adamcarolla.tumblr.com FRIDAY, MAY 20 2016: A seven-taster flight of craft beer news, from the fluffy head all the way to the bottom gunk. … Adam Carolla’s new craft beer is basically a “beer-flavored” IPA. Seattle Beer Week featured events for Friday, May 20. Sierra Nevada’s Beer Camp Across America Festival Tour stops in Seattle from 1 to 5 p.m. June 11. The festival, which will be at Lake Union Park, includes beers from 100 Northwest breweries. Washington Brewers Festival will showcase more than 400 beers from 105 Washington
