Sauced

Revealed: First Chance to Try Spirits from Mystery-Shrouded Fremont Mischief

The secrecy-loving distillery shares a little info.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Aug 23, 2011 at 09:01AM 1 Comments

Enough with the shushing! Fremont Mischief finally talks.

Photo via this blog

Years in the works, Fremont Mischief Distillery, project of Mike and Patti Sherlock, has been notably hush-hush about plans.

And in true Seattle style, when the distillery finally revealed itself, it did so quietly and nerdily. Last Saturday, the first tours of its luxe-looking HQ at 132 N Canal Street were offered to 750 treasure hunters during a Groundspeak geocaching party, according to Patti.

The distillery and tasting room are “almost ready to open,” but Patti says that the first public opportunity to try the products will be August 31, during the grand opening of the new upscale state liquor store at 4100 SW Alaska Street in West Seattle. (The store is one of the 30 tapped for the pilot program to test spirit sampling in state stores, according to West Seattle Blog.)

“Most of our spirits and a sampling of our products will be there,” Patti revealed yesterday evening in an email. So if you head to the new hooch emporium on the 31st, you can try “Fremont Mischief whiskey, gin, and vodka,” and check out the distillery’s “cocktail kits, vintage leather cases with a dirty martini kit, and more.”

Look for more Mischief info coming soon.

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Tags: Fremont, West Seattle, Microdistilleries, Distillery Report

Seattle Beer Week Essentials: More Beer Cocktails, Hale’s at Cooper’s, Old World Versus Lazy Boy

There are still plenty of chances to take advantage of SBW.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on May 25, 2011 at 01:26PM 0 Comments

Beers from Hale’s are on tap tonight at Cooper’s Alehouse.

More beer? More beer! Here are the SBW picks for May 25.

FREMONT
If you missed Brewing Up Cocktails last night, you have another chance. This time tenders will be making cocktails with brews from Hopworks Urban Brewery in Portland. The five signature drinks are available tonight at Brouwer’s Cafe from 6 to 9pm.

MAPLE LEAF
Cooper’s Alehouse is all about the home-brewed pride: Its 23 taps have been devoted exlusively to Seattle beers all week, and tonight it is featuring brews from Hale’s Ales in Ballard.

WEST SEATTLE:
Tonight at the Cask a tasting that pits four Euro brews against four beers from Lazy Boy in Everett. It goes from 6 to 9pm.

A sampling of all eight runs you $5. These are the beers:
Belgian: Orval Trappist Ale versus Lazy Boy Belgian
German: Pinkus Organic Ur Pils versus Lazy Boy Lager
English: Samuel Smith’s Nut Brown Ale versus Lazy Boy Amber
English: Samuel Smith’s Oatmeal Stout versus Lazy Boy Porter.

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Tags: Fremont, West Seattle, Seattle Beer Week, Seattle Beer,

Seattle Beer Week Essentials: Cider on Cap Hill, $3 Pints, Brouwer’s Taps Evil Twin

Rare deals and rarer taps on day five of SBW.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on May 21, 2011 at 10:21AM 0 Comments

Cider and cheese pair up at Quinn’s tonight.

And so we’ve come to the middle.

It’s day five of Seattle Beer Week, and the events continue to flow forward like a frothy, turbulent river current. Break out your metaphorical canoes and ride that rapid, people. Beer week comes but once a year.

Here’s what looks good for Monday, May 23.

CAPITOL HILL
Cider fans: Tonight Quinn’s is hosting an event in your honor. Pay $25 at the door to receive six different cider samplings paired with cheeses. This goes from 6 to 9pm—I suggest you call to see if there is still space. I’d do it for you right now but Quinn’s isn’t open yet.

FREMONT
Brouwer’s Cafe in Fremont has been touting the fact that tonight it will tap rare kegs from Evil Twin Brewing in Denmark.

WEST SEATTLE
If Beer Week, for you, is about sampling as many state-made brews as possible, head to Beveridge Place Pub in West Seattle. It has 24 Washington beers on tap, and is charging just $3 a pint.

Also, Tomme Arthur from Southern California’s Port Brewing Company will be at Super Deli Mart at 1pm. (At 7pm he heads to Hopvine on Capitol Hill. Don’t let any Cascadia brewers catch you chilling with one of the San Diego dudes.)

A trio of side notes:
1. Don’t forget we’ve got a guide to SBW beer week dinners over on Nosh.

2. All week The Dray on Phinney Ridge is dusting off bottles stored in its cellar and serving them up to you, fair customer. This is to honor its third birthday.

3. For a full list of events, turn to the SBW website.

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Tags: Capitol Hill, Fremont, West Seattle, Phinney Ridge, Seattle Beer Week,

Seattle Beer Week Essentials: Kulture Freaks, Chuckanut at Shultzy’s, Guide to Beer Dinners

It’s only day two people, keep them livers primed.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on May 20, 2011 at 09:58AM 0 Comments

Kulture Freaks happens tonight at Brouwer’s

Photo: brookstonbeerbulletin.com

FREMONT
Big old party at Brouwer’s: Kulture Freaks, featuring carnival attractions, burlesque performers, and a whole lot of beer starts at 9pm and sounds like a wild ride. If you’re just doing one SBW event this year, this might be the one.

U-DISTRICT
Fair warning: Shultzy’s promises to be a total sausage fest tonight. (Sorry, I just can’t not make the sausage fest joke.) Staffers from Chuckanut in Bellingham will be on hand to talk about the brewery’s lagers—the restaurant is pairing five of those with five different sausages.

WEST SEATTLE
The Beer Junction is hosting a tasting of Iron Horse Brewery beers. That doesn’t sound like a big deal but I would like to take this occasion to steer you towards the Ellensburg-based brewery’s IPA. It’s milder than a lot of our state-brewed IPAs, an excellent gateway beer for reluctant hopheads.

Looking towards the weekend: Nosh Pit has posted a guide to the good SBW beer-pairing dinners, you’ll want to reserve today if you’re interested in attending one of them. The Volunteer Park Café and Stone Brewing feast sounds like an amazing, possibly gout-inducing indulge-o-rama. (Bone-marrow mashed potatoes? Hard core.)

On Saturday, there are a bunch of tasty-looking brunches, and that’s the day that the Tour de Pints happens. Look to SBW’s website for a complete list of events. I’d also refer you to SBW coverage on Seattle Beer News.

Good stuff.

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Tags: University District, Fremont, West Seattle,

Attention Beer Fans: ExBEERience and Hop Scotch Are Approaching

Seattle’s annual spring beer events get under way.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Mar 01, 2011 at 01:20PM 1 Comments

Hopscotch returns to the Fremont Studios.

Photo courtesy: Hopscotchtasting.com

On Saturday, March 12, ExBEERience comes to the Weatherman’s Room at Redhook Brewery in Woodinville.

On hand will be 15 local craft brewers alongside a number of home brewers—so you can see how those hobby dudes compare. (Most commercial brewers start out as hobby dudes anyway right? Also why am I calling them “hobby dudes”? That sounds dumb.)

A buffet lunch and six beer tokens are included in the $25 ($30 at the door) price, proceeds go to Childhaven. Tickets on sale here.

Then of course you’ve got Hop Scotch, the annual beer-and-scotchanalia that benefits SIFF. In addition to the main tasting event—lots of good West Coast brews—there are tequila and scotch flights and hour-long seminars with a master of whiskey.

Hop Scotch happens on April 1 and 2 at Fremont Studios. General admission is $25 ($30 at the door). That buys you five tokens, each good for a schooner of beer. Upgrade to the $35 price and you get 10 tokens. You also get a big buzz, unless you happen to be a Superhero called Megatolerance (dumb joke number 2), so plan your ride home accordingly. Advance tickets to Hopscotch are available here.

PS: If you’d like to volunteer to work at Hop Scotch (free admission/tokens), be quick about it! A lot of people volunteer.

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Tags: Fremont, Woodinville, Craft Brewing, Beer Festivals

Morning Booze News: Allagash at Brouwer’s; Barrel-Aged Cocktails at Liberty

Belgian beers and aged mixed drinks are what’s up this am.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Feb 22, 2011 at 01:00AM 1 Comments

Bartenders at L’Abattoir in Vancouver combine the ingredients for spirit-forward cocktails in oak barrels, then allow the mixture to age for a few weeks before serving.

Photo courtesy Canada.travel

If you are unfamiliar with Allagash—the Belgian-style brewery based in Portland, Maine—you might want to remedy that as soon as possible.

As soon as, say, Wednesday, February 23. That’s when founder Rob Tod will be at Brouwer’s Cafe in Fremont, offering up samples of Allagash White, Curieux, Black, and Hugh Malone. The Allagash happy hour lasts from 3 to 6pm. Don’t forget to eat French fries.

Speaking of trying things, ever sipped a barrel-aged cocktail? London bartender Tony Conigliaro was the initial innovator behind this trend, combining the ingredients of spirit-forward drinks in oak barrels and then aging them for weeks at a time. Portland barman Jeffrey Morgethaler (Clyde Common) has been barrel-aging drinks and documenting the results on his excellent blog for some time now, and L’Abattoir in Vancouver, BC has become a hot spot for aged drinks as well.

Now it seems Liberty on Capitol Hill is experimenting with barrel-aging. And according to a blog post from Liberty’s Andrew Friedman, the bar has plans to use the little age-your-own barrels from Woodinville Whiskey to allow customers to create their own barrel-aged mixers.

I’ve got a message in with the Liberty men, I’ll try to get details about price, etc. Meantime, start thinking about which drink you want to age.

A Boulevardier, perhaps? Maybe a Red Hook?

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Tags: Capitol Hill, Beer, Fremont, Booze News

Five New and Very New Places to Check Out This Weekend

New year, new watering holes. Here’s what’s popped up around town.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Jan 07, 2011 at 12:40PM 1 Comments

Locöl Revelry It’s the weekend, time to explore fresh drinkeries.

1. 50 North has opened across the street from University Village—stop in for happy hour.

2. Chorizo dumplings, pork belly pancakes, five spiced duck balls: Almost everything on the menu at Revel is under $15 and Quoin, the attached bar, is shaping up nicely.

3. Patience, my dears. Local 360 is opening very softly and slowly, but stop by the coffee bar and grab a latte and a chance to check out the interior.

4. Pop into Soul Wine, the new South Lake Union shop from Pike and Western’s Michael Teer, and get a glimpse of the goings-on upstairs at about-to-open Serious Pie.

5. All signs point to a grand opening this weekend at West Seattle’s year-in-the-works beer and wine bar Locöl. I’ve got a message into the owners, will let you know as soon as I hear.

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Tags: Seattle Restaurant Openings, South Lake Union, Fremont, West Seattle, Wine Bars

A First Visit to Quoin in Fremont

Promising signs at Revel’s 20-seat bar.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Jan 06, 2011 at 02:58PM 2 Comments

The bar at Quoin.

I generally like to give new places some time before I write about them, but I can’t resist saying a little something-something about Quoin (pronounced "coin").

Joule in Wallingford turns out very fun food, so I was excited when chef owners Rachel Yang and Seif Chirchi announced they’d be opening Revel, a Korean street food-inspired restaurant on North 36th in Fremont. Because Fremont could really use a jolt of fresh, inspired dining, could it not?

It gets better. Attached to Revel is Quoin. It’s just a little gray room with two rows of bar stools—ten at the bar proper and ten more on the parallel wall. Nothing fancy. My intention, upon entering, had been to grab a beer and soak up a bit of the atmosphere before conducting myself homeward. But once I’d perused the cocktail list and noticed the wall of bottles behind the bar, I focused my attention away from the beer list and towards the hard stuff. And this pleased me. Because what Fremont could really use is a place to get a decent cocktail.

The bartender on duty was a friendly bearded fellow named Brady. He made me his own Quoin 75—a riff on a French 75 with Hendrick’s Gin, Cynar, prosecco, and lemon ($10). Cynar is an artichoke-flavored bitter aperitif from Italy. I love it. But it is an assertive son of a b, that Cynar. It must be used judiciously. Brady’s took advantage of a fun flavor play between cucumbery Hendrick’s and bitter artichoke, then livened that up with bubbles, lemon, and a touch of sweetness.

Also consumed by me were the house bar snacks: Walnuts doused in homemade “seven spice” (Chinese five spice plus two more secret spices) and mixed with bits of crispy seaweed. Free. Buttery. Dangerous.

Quoin opens at 4pm daily, a happy hour is in the works.

Some things to note:
-Quoin means cornerstore in Korean.
-The full Revel menu is available at the bar.
-Infused sojus (a lightly sweet Korean spirit traditionally made with rice) are the specialty of the house. Choose from hibiscus, meyer lemon, lemongrass, and Carole orange.

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Tags: Fremont, Bitters, Bar Openings

Deschutes Brings Giant Beer Barrel to Town

Catch Woody as he travels through Seattle, dispensing beer.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Sep 15, 2010 at 09:00AM 0 Comments

Woody comes to town on the 17th.

“Woody” is the name that Oregon’s Deschutes Brewing has bestowed upon its giant traveling beer barrel on wheels.

The barrel will be in Seattle from September 17 through 26. This means you will be able to taste your first tastes of this year’s Jubelale, always an occasion for malt-fueled jubilation.

Check out the full schedule of events here, or just plan to catch Woody (hee hee) at Fremont Oktoberfest —he will be there from the 24th through the 26th. Tickets to Oktoberfest are $20 in advance; $25 at the door.

Eastsiders might also like to check the kick-off event at Malt and Vine, which takes place place on the 17th beginning at 5pm.

Okoberfest? Jubelale? Holy crap it’s really fall.

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Tags: Beer, Fremont, Octoberfest

Hopfest at Brouwer’s: Happening Right Now

If hops are your thing, this is your kind of thing.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Sep 10, 2010 at 11:21AM 0 Comments

Get hopped up at Brouwer’s during Hopfest, which happens today, Friday, September 10, from 11am to close.

One of the things I noticed when I moved to Seattle is that people here like their ales hoppy. So, so hoppy.

If you’re a more-hops-please sort of a beer drinker, you should probably head over to Brouwer’s in Fremont. All day and evening, the Belgian beer hall is hosting Hopfest: 62 hopped-up brews on tap.

Brouwer’s has Firestone Walker Union Jack on cask, always a cause for celebration. They’re also pouring the Skuttlebutt Hoptopia, which has two and a half pounds of hops per barrel, if you can believe that. Tempt your palate—or whatever bit of your palate hasn’t been blown out by too-hoppy beer—with a full list of offerings here.

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Tags: Beer, Fremont, Drinking Events

Sour Beer Fest Tonight at Brouwer’s

Pay your respects to the Duchesse and 39 other tarties tonight in Fremont.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on May 20, 2010 at 10:48AM 2 Comments

All hail the Duchesse

Can’t believe I forgot to mention this most momentous of beer week events: the sour beer fest. Lambics, gueuzes, krieks? Heck yes. Brouwer’s is serving up over 40 sours including Verhege Duchesse de Bourgogne, a rich, Belgian red ale that is aged for 18 months in oak. (Brouwer’s shows its reverence for the duchess by hanging her portrait on the wall at the mezzanine level.) There are three from Lost Abbey, some New Belgiums and Russian Rivers, a bunch of Cascades. It’s a sour-lover’s ultimate event. Stop by.

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Tags: Fremont, Seattle Beer Week

The Hopscotch Festival is Upon Us.

Here’s how to do it right this year.

Posted by: Jessica Voelker on Apr 07, 2010 at 09:36AM 3 Comments

Drinking good beer from wee glasses in the dark while pop music plays in the background: This is Hopscotch Spring Beer and Scotch Festival at Fremont Studios, and it is good. I went last year and camped out by the Firestone Walker booth, a California microbrewery that makes some of the best pale ale and IPA I’ve ever tasted. But there are so many good breweries on hand it will make you dizzy, check out the list.

A ticket ($20 in advance; $25 at the door) buys you a tasting glass and five tokens, each good for one beer. You can go on either Friday, April 23rd from 5pm to 12am or on Saturday, April 24th from 1pm to 12am. Or go on both days. Nobody’s judging.

An added attraction are the spirit flights—scotch or tequila—each $10. There is also the option of super-sizing your experience by paying $25 in advance, $30 at the door and receiving, in return, 10 tokens. If you’re going this route, I suggest you plan ahead. There is food at Hopscotch, but what if they run out? Or you don’t like sausage sandwiches or whatever stadium eats are on hand this year? You’re in Fremont, there is plenty of food around. Go to Roxy’s for latkes and eggs beforehand, or Homegrown for a grass-fed organic something something, or Paseo for a giant Cuban sandwich. Whatever you do, eat before you drink.

I’ll leave you with two final suggestions. 1. Buy the tickets in advance, it’s cheaper and that way you can plan for a designated driver or Hummer limo or whatever mode of transport strikes your fancy. 2. Arrive early. The line becomes atrocious as early as 30 minutes into the festival. It’s seriously terrible. If you go late and find yourself stuck, for an hour, behind six drunk girls in tank tops screaming into a cell phone, you can’t say I didn’t warn you.

Happy Hopscotch!

[ Photo Source ]

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Tags: Beer, Fremont, Tequila, Scotch, Festivals