distributed TUE 02.10.09 from Anchorage, Alaska

BEER & GIFT SHOP HOURS:
MON - THU 3 PM - 6 PM FRI noon - 7 PM with TOUR at 6 PM SAT 2 PM - 6 PM
tees. hoodies. glassware. beanies. ballcaps. koozies. gift certs.

Dear SeeKers of Ways to Find LoVe in Yer Very Own Kitchen:

Now through SAT 2/28--yeah, not MID-month, the END of the month; just in case U don't get whatcha really want on the 14TH, you can still treat yerself--we've got some beery schweet VALENTINE'S DAY SPECIALS:

LoVeFesT: VENUS + 2 MSBC logo stem glasses for $25
NuDeFesT: Panty Peeler + 2 MSBC logo stem glasses for $20
Menage a Trois: VENUS, Panty Peeler, Monk's Mistress [or URANUS] $25
A SpanKing Good Time: one hardwood beer sampler paddle with four [read: quatro] oH-sO-CuTe sample glasses...yes...again...yours for $25

Who needs ChoCoLaTe, right? But here is my favorite-est pairing of the bunch: CUPID. OK, so we all know that VENUS, Roman goddess of love and beauty, had several lovers, one of which was MERCURY, Roman god of, well, a LoT of things. Here is my short list: god of good luck, commerce and wealth; patron of merchants, gamblers, liars and thieves; protector of travelers; god of sleep and dreams; wittiest of the gods; inventor of dice, fire, astronomy, weights and measures. Hmmm...isn't MERCURY also the god of modern day flower delivery? Yep, it's those danged winged shoes that give him up every time. Hey, but don't get me started on sHoes...back to the BeeR: Venus and Mercury created a child--CUPID, a juicy and effective MiX of love, beauty, fire, dreams, luck and lies. ALaS...it aLL makes sense now, ay! To concoct yer own CUPID, pour equal parts VENUS and MERCURY into your vessel of choice...then lounge back and enJoy the perfect elixir of LoVe. Then hopefully love, or at least sleep--drop dead gorgeous SLeeP--will find you. And when it does, preferably you are in your fluffy, flouncy bed and not on the cold, hard kitchen floor. Unless, of course, you are into that sorta dirty sort of thang. Add wings..and bow and arrows...and silky satin...and roses...and OKifUmust...duct TaPe, I mean...CHoCoLaTe, as needed.

To treat yer sweet and/or yerself on V-Day, get in on FRI 2/13 for oak-aged Imperial Chocolate Pumpkin Porter. WoW. Delicious anD nutritious. The barrels will yield about 50 cases so do NoT miss out. This is one to cellar now and torture me with later. But isn't that what LoVe is all about?

RondyBrew 2009--an exhilerating American Pale Ale--is in full schwing. It's 3F: fresh, fun, fabulous. Playful pale malts and fiesty American hops come together to create a light copper-colored ale with enticing Simcoe and Centennial hop aroma and flavor and delicious, refreshing malt character. For 22's: check out Brown Jugs, La Bodega, Value Liquor at Klatt and Gold Rush. For draft: grab a glass at Humpy's, RumRunners, Simon's, Kinley's, TapRoot and LaMex X 2. Fur Rondy runs FRI 2/27 - SUN 3/08 with the Running of the Reindeer event on SUN 3/01. Come out and run with the herd!

The first beer in our new 2009 Crew Brew series will debut on FRI 2/20. Jeremiah's BREWTALITY Espresso Black Bier delivers rich espresso flavor in a smooth black lager. Deep, dark and balanced...and, at 9.7% ABV, it will smooth out aLL yer edges and provide an antidote for hibernation. Mugs uP!

Specialty Imports' 30th Anniversary Black Double IPA is a BiG HiT. It sold out to retailers before the barley wine fest so we're brewing more. Find it on draft and in 22-oz bottles throughout Alaska. Cafe Amsterdam has both our Black Double IPA and Alaskan's Imperial Black IPA on tap - a most fabulous way to explore and eXperience this beer style. CheeRs to Cafe A!!

Our FEBRUARY "SPECIAL" focuses on a worthy cause. I chose Dare to Care because it is a young yet effective organization making a difference in kids' lives:

Dare to Care is a non-profit organization dedicted to ensuring that no child
goes hungry in our schools. Dare to Care facilitates private, corporate and individual funding to provide meals to children-in-need identified by school personnel.
For more info, please link to http://www.daretocare-alaska.com.

All FEB sales of our beer samples will be donated to Dare to Care. Please join us this month in sampling our wonderful beers responsibly, knowing that each $1 goes directly to a great cause. Turn your LoVe of BeeR into feeding kids in need. We will also donate $5 for each black/yellow MSBC logo tee sold in FEB.

Beer/Food Pairing of the Week: Kinley's Ahi Tuna Tacos and Elk Pate with CoHoHo Imperial IPA. The tuna is fresh, raw and seasoned with sesame oil and ginger; the elk-pistachio pate is wonderful on its own or layered with grainy mustard, greens and a berry compote--yuM! CoHoHo complements the salty, nutty, sweet and tartness of these dishes very, very well. I am really into textures and there is a LoT to crunch and munch and mmMmmmm through here.

COLLABORATION BREWS
We've got two collaboration brews in the MiX. Colby Chandler of Ballast Point Brewing Company [San Diego] brewed a Belgian-style IPA with Gabe while he was up here for the barley wine fest in JAN. This beer is based on Ballast Point's Sculpin recipe but fermented with a Belgian yeast [primary] and then Gabe's BFF Brettanomyces [secondary]. Some of this batch is aging in French oak Cabernet Sauvignon barrels and the rest rests in stainless. The full batch will be blended back together before being packaged in [tentatively] late MAR. The boyz are calling this beer 3767, which is the number of miles between BPBC and MSBC, and will be distributed in AK in bottle-conditioned 22's. [Very limited draft will show up at special events.]

The second collaboration beer will be brewed at 21st Amendment Brewery [San Francisco] this week. Gabe and Ben are heading down for the Toronado Barley Wine fest and will brew a Belgian Double IPA with Shaun O'Sullivan of 21A. Vinnie Cilurzo of Russian River Brewing Company [Santa Rosa] is contributing his "Damnation" Belgian yeast to the cause. This keg-conditioned yet-to-be-named beer will be distributed in the SF Bay Area on draft. Sorry AK!! Maybe we can work out a way to get a keg or two up here...

One More ThanG: our very lovely "spunky and chunky" German-style Hefeweizen [read unfiltered wheat beer], Old Whiskers, is the Official Beer of the World Beard and Moustache Championships, which will be held here in Anchorage in May. This competition is held in odd years around the world; this is only the second time in the US. Check out the link above for details, schedule, photos, club registration and entry forms. While the Mane Event will be held at the new Dena'ina convention center downtown on FRI 5/22 and SAT 5/23, MSBC will host an early-in-the-week evening for Beard Team USA. Old Whiskers Hefeweizen is The Official BeeR for Those Who Grow Their Own. T-shirts coming soon...

And U know iT: we've got LoTs of FaBuLouS, FRiVoLouS FuN for you this winter...and beYond. Come by the brewery. The BeeR is aLways BOLD.

Cheers,
Barb Miller
VP/La Femme de Beer
Midnight Sun Brewing Company
barb@midnightsunbrewing.com