Peaks and Pints can feel it in the air—winter is here. And as the temperatures plummet and the days grow shorter, it’s scientifically proven that the body goes into “cold weather” mode. Much like the mighty grizzly bear stocking up for the long winter months, we are drawn to comfort foods like hearty sandwiches, heart sandwiches and hearty sandwiches to stave off starvation, especially after a long day of slaying the slopes.
But what about quenching a mighty thirst? After a day on the snow, you need something tasty on the way home. Sure, you could head straight home and cuddle up with a hot toddy or Irish coffee, but what you really need is craft beer that reflects your love of snow. You need Snoqualmie Falls Brewing Company’s Avalanche Winter Ale (6.8%) — a seasonal designed to take the chill off of the stormy Northwest winter weather yet drinkable enough to enjoy more than one.
That’s right. Who needs 12 days of Christmas when this wintry ale packs a plethora of hops? This year, Snoqualmie head brewer Rande Reed upped the aromatic hops by a quarter, yielding a much more pronounced hoppy beginning to Avalanche. Even so, by the time the flavor has moved to the back of the palate, the hops have given way to the full-bodied complex malt flavors.
Peaks and Pints has invited Snoqualmie Falls Brewing Company and their Avalanche Winter Ale to our next Lodge Meeting, 6 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 8. After a reading of the minutes from the last meeting, Avalanche Winter Ale, Wildcat IPA, Black Frog Nitro and Steam Train Porter will pour from our Western red cedar tap log.
Founders Pat Anderson, David McKibben, Dave Eiffert, LeRoy Gmazel and Tom Antone must have had issues with Snoqualmie Pass avalanches along Interstate 90. Otherwise, Avalanche Winter Ale could just have well been named Ragnar Winter Ale, Ernies Grove Winter Ale, Ellisville Winter Ale or any number of towns dotting the landscape around Snoqualmie Falls and historic downtown Snoqualmie, Washington, where the brewery sits for the last 19 years.
“We did not have the sense to know that you had to be crazy to start a brewery in 1997, when most of the rest of the world thought the craft brewing industry was going down the tube,” says Eiffert, president and general manager of Snoqualmie Falls Brewing Company. “Our original beers were formulated by Pat, and the initial batch of each was brewed by David, with Pat’s occasional assistance. Of Pat’s original beers, only Wildcat IPA remains today.”
Wildcat is named after the local Mt. Si High School football team, the school where three of the founding members roamed the halls. Anderson brewed Wildcat when he was a member of the Brews Brothers homebrew club. The flagship Wildcat IPA remains the brewery’s bestseller.
“Cans” is written on the top of Snoqualmie Falls Brewing’s meeting room’s chalkboard.
“We’re working on weaseling our way into the canning game by starting with our root beer, which has been getting wildly popular and is universally proclaimed as ‘The best root beer I have ever tasted,’” says Eiffert.
Eiffert also says to keep watch for a broader spectrum of one-off brews such as Lemondipity, their lemongrass double Belgian, as well as a spruce tip beer and molasses stout.
In the meantime, slide to Peaks and Pints Thursday, Dec. 8, for an Avalanche Winter Ale or the other Snoqualmie Falls Brewing’s après–ski delights we’ll have on tap. Similar to previous Peaks and Pints Lodge Meetings, raffle prizes will tumble.
PEAKS AND PINTS LODGE MEETING WITH SNOQUALMIE FALLS BREWING CO., 6 p.m., Thursday, Dec. 8, Peaks and Pints, 3816 N. 26th St., Basecamp Proctor, Tacoma, no cover
