Go bowling.

There was no rational reason to do so. The sun beat down on springtime Proctor District when I crossed onto 26th Street. The steady flow from Washington Elementary to Wheelock Library dried-up as spring break reached mid-point.

Go bowling.

It wasn’t as dramatic as the disembodied voice in “Field of Dreams,” but the thought wouldn’t leave me. A sundeck would have made more sense to pick Chef Jacob Thacker’s brain on the April 27 Hop Valley Brewing Dinner at The Swiss Restaurant and Pub.

Arriving late, I pushed the Chalet Bowl’s glass door open to find Chef Jacob six frames into his second game. To his right, a small family enjoyed their Wednesday afternoon. To his left, nothing. Vacation time and sun outweighed slippery shoes and pine boards.

I arrived just in time to see Chef Jacob pick up big ears — the 4-6-7-10 split.

“That was a successful experiment,” he said walking toward me with a huge smile. “I didn’t put my thumb in the hole.

Successful experiments are how Chef Jacob rolls. For the next three games we discuss his successful experiments during the popular craft beer dinners he leads at The Swiss. A couple frames in I see the exhaustion in his frame. Chef Jacob had just put the finishing touches on his new spring menu at The Swiss. Our bowling excursion was more therapy than interview. Cue Chalet’s craft beer on tap.

The Swiss will host Hop Valley Brewing Co. out of Eugene, Oregon for the downtown Tacoma restaurant and bar’s next six beer, four-course beer pairing dinner, which will be at 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, April 27. Chef Jacob enjoys planning and preparing the beer-pairing dinners. It’s an open frame where he can nail a strike, if you will. In addition stepping away from The Swiss’ menu and letting his imagination run, Chef Jacob enjoys the challenge of cooking for a large group, a skill he learned post culinary school working for several catering companies, including the Temple Theater in Tacoma.

Chef Jacob and Hop Valley sales executive Rob Brunsman went back and forth on the pairing beers. “Hop” is in the brewery’s name for a reason. Hop Valley brews excellent hoppy beers: Alpha Centauri Imperial IPA, Alphadelic IPA, Citruss Mistress IPA, Proxima IPA, Red Ale — all use a generous amount of hops. The brewers at Hop Valley have their hops dialed in. It’s one of the reasons why the brewery is the fifth largest producing brewery in Oregon.

“I made sure Hop Valley’s Light Me Up Lager was part of the dinner,” said Chef Jacob. “I love its flavor.”

When guests arrive, and receive their welcome hug from Brunsman, their first sip will be the Neon Prince Session IPA, a complex yet light bodied version of the style with tangerine, grapefruit, peach, mango, floral, biscuit and ample pine flavors.

“It’s going to be a night of waves,” explained Chef Jacob. “From the Neon Prince we rise to Hop Valley’s Red Ale cresting with the Citrus Mistress IPA, then bridging with the well-balanced Vanilla Infused Porter, dropping to the Light Me Up Lager then peaking with the Black Nova Imperial Stout. Lots of hops involved in this dinner. It’s a fun little dance of flavors.”

Food wise, the night will begin with fresh spring lettuce tossed in a roasted garlic Parmesan dressing encircled with a cucumber ring, snow peas, grape tomatoes and topped with a nest of kohlrabi.

“It’s a changing of the season, fresh spring-summer salad,” said Chef Jacob. “The dressing turned out delicious, and the hoppy Red Ale perfectly compliments the garlic and Parmesan.”

The lab coat came out on course two — testing for the perfect dish to pair with the award winning, bouquet of hops and grapefruit/peach/pineapple Citrus Mistress IPA. Chef Jacob threw a bunch of ingredients at the wall, with his kitchen staff pleading to add yogurt to the mix. The result will be a roasted vegetable ragout piled over handmade peppered chickpea crisps with a drizzling of herb yogurt sauce.

“I’ve never made chickpea crisps,” he says with a chuckle. “I kind of invented this version. It’s my take on the fried Indian lentil crisp Papadom … with chickpea flour. And it’s a great beer.”

Talk turned to my rudimentary bowling skills. Chef Jacob gave me a few tips. I still rolled straight instead of curving the ball into the pocket.

“Put your thumb in first, all the way, then just the tips of your fingers, he ordered as he stood beside me. Stand with your right shoulder lined up with the second arrow. Now, roll your strike ball. As usual, the ball hit two pins. “That’s OK,” he said. “Move left about six inches.” Despite the new starting point, most of the pins again escaped unscathed. “Move farther left, line your shoulder between the third and fourth arrow.”

“Tell me about mole,” I said, changing to a more comfortable direction for me.

“I look forward to the challenge,” he laughs again. Mole sauces are fascinating in their complexity — a rich, spicy sauce made of dried chiles, toasted nuts, chocolate, spices and many more ingredients ground into a paste, thinned with broth and served with meat, in this case, slow roasted wild boar. It is a case of the sum being greater than the whole, with each ingredient adding a key layer that joins with the others to create a kind of multiplier effect.”

Chef Jacob dropped by Dave’s Meats to get owner Derek Kipapa’s take on the mole meat. Chef Jacob left with wild boar. The wild boar mole will arrive stuffed in Chinese steamed buns for pockets of steamy goodness. The pairing Vanilla Infused Porter isn’t overpowering, with caramel, hints of vanilla and just enough roast to compliment the dish’s chocolate notes.

“I think the savory chocolate and the slight vanilla will work well,” Chef Jacob spouted as he pulled the ball into his chest and did a quick shimmy with his hips. He swung the ball first backward, then forward, his arm a pendulum of kinetic energy, as he took five measured steps toward the foul line. He released the ball, and it glided across the oiled wooden planks like it’s floating, hydroplaning, spinning counterclockwise along a trajectory that seems to be taking it straight for the right-hand gutter. But as the ball neared the edge of the lane, it veers back toward the center, as if guided by remote control. The hook carried the ball back just in time. In a heartbeat, what was a wide, sneering mouth of pins was now — nothing.

“Shall we talk dessert?” he asked smiling all the way back to our Chalet seats.

Nice.

Dessert will be on the lighter side, with pressed ricotta cheese atop of an oatmeal wafer with a white balsamic cardamom and honey glaze showered with toasted nut. Light Me Up Lager’s pale malt, light florals and hint of lime won’t get in the way.

Chef Jacob ended the interview with eight pins down in the final frame. Patrons of the Hop Valley Beer Pairing Dinner will end the night downing 8 percent ABV Black Nova Imperial Stout.

Strike!

HOP VALLEY BREWING BEER PAIRING DINNER, 6:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 27, $40 at brownpapertickets.com or the bar, The Swiss Restaurant and Pub, 1904 S. Jefferson Ave., Tacoma, 253.572.2821