In the early ’90s, Dusty Trail converted the historic Engine House No. 9 bar into a brewpub at the corner of Sixth Avenue and Pine Street, officially becoming the first microbrewery in Tacoma. Dick Dickens grabbed the Engine House reins in 2002, bringing in head brewer Doug Tiede. Heads turned and medals were hung. In 2011, The X Group added the Engine House to their local restaurant empire, with Shane Johns and Donovan Stewart running the kettles and hanging even more medals, mostly for their sours and saisons. Four years ago, they separated the brewery from the restaurant and opened E9 Brewing in Tacoma’s Historic Brewery District. This past year, they have cranked out an endless supply of new, delicious beers, five of which are on our in-house flight today, Peaks and Pints Beer Flight: E9 Brewing.
Peaks and Pints Beer Flight: E9 Brewing
E9 Snakehips
4.2% ABV
E9 Brewing collaborated with Upright Brewing to create their take on an Irish dry stout. Brewed with Irish stout malt, this classic black beer has all the bells and whistles of a dry stout including coffee like roast accents in flavors and aromas, with a nice dry finish and a lingering pleasant mouthfeel.
E9 Just Livin’
4.8% ABV
The first definition of just livin’ is, “To live life without care or worry. Also, to be free of worldly possession or devotion to anything that takes effort.” The second definition of Just Livin’ is, E9 Brewing’s Just Livin’, a saison dry hopped with Australian grown Summer hops imparting apricot and melon characteristics blending with classic Belgian yeast spice and aromatics.
E9 Sleeping God Cold Fermented Ale
4.8% ABV
Originating in Cologne, Germany, the Kölsch beer technique requires fermenting with ale yeast, then finishing at cold temperatures, like a lager. The result is a style that exhibits some of the best characteristics of both categories. Kölsch tends to be light and drinkable, often with a touch of subtle fruitiness and spice like an ale but with a crisper, cleaner finish you would expect from a pale lager. E9’s Sleeping God Cold Fermented Ale is a Kölsch brewed with their house Kolsch yeast in cold temperatures, then hopped with Southern Hemisphere Wai-ti and Taihekhe for notes of peach, apricot, and tropical citrus aromatics.
E9 Ghost Within
6% ABV
The Ghost Within follows Margot (Michaela Longden), a young woman suffering from severe memory loss who sets out to solve the twenty-year-old mystery of her sister Evie’s death. Returning to her family home, a series of terrifying encounters with her sister’s ghost begin to bring her lost memories back. E9 Brewing’s Ghost Within is hopped with a spooky amount of Enigma, Nelson, Citra, Strata, and Estate Comet, E9 Brewing’s Ghost Within IPA hits the nose with a punchy aroma of herbaceous tropical tea, gooseberry, citrus, and grassy dank strawberry tangerine.
E9 Realize Real Lies IPA
6% ABV
E9 Realize Real Lies is a slightly hazy IPA that starts on the “hot” side of the brew with late additions of Columbus and Citra and finished with double dry hopping of Amarillo and Simcoe imparting fruity yet dank aromatics, followed by a fruity splash on the tongue.
LINK: Peaks & Pints beer and cider cooler inventory
