Beer + Kilts = True Love!

Highland Reserve Scotch Ale

If you’re familiar with Boundary Bay Brewery at all, you’ve probably tasted (or at least heard about) our Scotch Ale.  It was our original, flagship beer when we opened in 1995, but we’d planned to have it on tap only as a seasonal beer. However, it turned out that our Scotch Ale was so popular that in 15 years we’ve never once taken it off tap even once!

This Scotch Ale has a thick, creamy head and a beautiful red hue with an incredibly smooth finish that lingers.  We make it with roasted, unmalted barley which provides a distinctive flavor and hop it just long enough to give the beer good balance with just a touch of sweetness.  You can pretty much always find our Scotch Ale on tap here at the brewery, at any number of regional restaurants and bars who have our beer on tap and in 22 oz. bottles here at Boundary Bay Brewery and at regional grocery stores and bottle shops.

But, this time of year, our beloved Scotch Ale gets a little bit of competition!  This Thursday (May 17th) we’re releasing our Highland Scotch Ale which is brewed in commemoration of the Bellingham Highland Games.  Made with Dark crystal and peated malts, this beer is rich and dark with a faint smokey finish and is definitely stronger than our traditional Scotch Ale.  This small batch brew is only available seasonally, so be sure to come try it while it’s on tap!  This beer tends to go pretty quickly around these parts and you won’t find this one in bottles, either, so plan your weekends around a road trip up here to Bellingham!

Blessing of the Firkin last year!

You can also enjoy this beer of ours at the Bellingham Highland Games on June 1st – 3rd  out at Hovander Park.  You’ll find it in the beer garden at the games all weekend, but there are a few opportunities for you to get your hands on it early, too!  Here in the Boundary Bay Brewery beer garden, the Highland Games association will be conducting a blessing of the Firkin ceremony on Thursday, May 24th.

They’ll bless the kegs of Highland Scotch Ale heading out to the games and even have some pipers, dancers, game officials and men in kilts…of course!  Here’s the catch though…that special Firkin they’re blessing?  Well, it’s not gonna get tapped until Friday, June 1st which kicks off the Highland Games festivities.  If you head out to Hovander Park that night, you’ll get to enjoy the Kirkin o’ the Firkin AND a Scottish Idol talent show!  What’s a Kirkin of the Firkin, you ask?  Well, $20 gets you a special mug that allows you to drink as much of the Firkin (filled with our Highland Scotch Ale) as you want till it’s gone…that means even the next day if there’s any beer left!

Oktoberfest with Solace

Boundary Bay Oktoberfest poster by Solace Wonder

Join us next Thursday, September 30th, in our Beer Garden for the Boundary Bay Brewery Oktoberfest Celebration!  The party will get started around 4pm and the event is free and family friendly! We’ll have live music, beer trivia, hand made Bavarian pretzels by Ralf’s Pretzels and a special German menu.  Not to mention, an art show by Seattle guest artist Solace Wonder and a Firkin Keg (or 2!) of fresh-hopped Harvest Ale!  Our Harvest Ale is akin to an “Oktoberfest” style.  Our popular fall seasonal features Dark Crystal, Carastan and Munich malts giving this ale a rich malt character and a beatuiful red-orange hue.

Here’s what Solace Wonder has to say about himself and Oktoberfest, in general:

“As long as I can remember, Oktoberfest posters have always caught my eye.  True, there are usually pretty girls and big beer steins on them-which may play a big part, but it’s more than that.  The more I thought about it, the more I realized it’s because of the fall season, it’s colors, and what it brings that has connected me to these posters for so many years.  Being that I’m a beer-loving German fella, I figured it only appropriate to have an art show based on the Oktoberfest season.  Boundary Bay Brewery was kind enough to play along with my vision and host the show as part of their celebration.  I tapped into my roots, (as well as many beers,) for inspiration for this collection.  It is playful, colorful, and at times a humorous way of seeing a season that is well known for its traditions.  I’ve captured everything from lederhosen wearing lads to pretzel wielding ladies and much more!  Bring the family down to enjoy the festivities and the art!”

Solace – Urban Artiste at Large and for Hire!

sol·ace [ sólləss ]

1. relief from emotional distress: comfort at a time of sadness, grief or disappointment
2. source of comfort: somebody or something that provides comfort at a time of sadness, grief or disappointment

I call myself an urban artist or street artist because my work is influenced by street culture and highly inspired by graffiti. While graffiti is normally rooted in letterforms, I lean towards the character design element.  My pacific-northwest surroundings instill a respect for nature that is personified in my work.  Via organic textures, vibrant colors, and a graphic painterly approach, I attempt to meld city life with the tranquility of uninhabited lands.  Through a blend of mediums, aerosol propelled and acrylic, I concoct my background landscapes and finish them with the character design. I call my characters “wanders.”  The wanders are unique in perspective and rely on body language over facial expression to tell their story.  I am always looking to progress my style and increase my stable of characters while challenging conventional mediums.  The mediums most utilized at this time are canvas, large-scale mural production, custom vinyl toys, original plush toys, live painting, graphic design, and t-shirt design.

Some of the venues that have been most gracious in showing my work include:

In Seattle– 35^th North Skateshop, 619 Western, Artifakt, Artoleptic Urban Arts Festival, Bauhaus Coffee and Books, Bherd Studio, Brand Vibes Studio, Café Flora, Capitol Hill Block Party, DB Clay, Deli, Evo, Flatcolor Gallery, Form Space Altier, Fremont Solstice Parade, Goods, Graphic Display Sign and Awning, Greenwood Collective, Halogen Gallery, the Henry Art Gallery, Jones Soda Co., King Cobra, Kristo’s, Laced Up, the Little Red Studio, LoFi, Mackie, Mad Pizza, Market Street Shoes, Mercury Cloud, Moksha, Nectar Lounge, NW Throwbacks, Olivo Doce, the Pioneer Square Saloon, the Purple Razors Studio, Rio Pacific Gallery, the Robert Daniel Gallery (Tacoma), the Satellite Lounge, the Seattle Center, Showbox, Skatebarn West, Sneaker Pimps, Snowboard Connection, Sonny’s, Thread, Trickwood Skateshop, Twilite Collective, Upper Playground/24sea, Urban Light Studio, Vera Project, and the Zebra Club.

In Bellingham (Wa)- Boundary Bay Brewery.

In Oregon: Brian Marki Gallery (Portland)

In Massachusetts– Now Here Fast (Boston)

In California– Alpha Cult (Long Beach), Lost Souls Café (Los Angeles), Da Festicon (San Diego), Munkey King (Los Angeles), Ronin Gallery (Los Angeles), UnitedState (Sacramento), and Sk8ology (Long Beach).

In Florida– Sk8ology (Miami)

Questions, comments, and inquiries are always welcome- feel free to contact me via Email: solacewonder@gmail.com or facebook.com/solacewonder

Who Gives A Hoot About Oktoberfest?

Oct. 1st in the Boundary Bay Brewery beer garden

We’re gearing up for our own Oktoberfest celebration here at Boundary Bay Brewery and we were wondering how many other people out there loved this awesome beer celebration like we do?  As it turns out, lots and lots and LOTS of people give a hoot about Oktoberfest!

Oktoberfest is a sixteen-day festival held each year in Munich, Germany during late September (and running to early October.) It is one of the most famous events in Germany and the world’s largest fair, with some six million people attending every year.  The Munich Oktoberfest, traditionally, takes place during the sixteen days up to and including the first Sunday in October and is an important part of Bavarian culture.

The original “Oktoberfest” occurred in Munich, on October 18, 1810 and by 1960, the Oktoberfest had turned into an enormous world-famous festival.  Today, the idea of Oktoberfest has spread like wildfire – with festivals happening in Argentina, Colombia, Hong Kong, Vietnam and Palestinian territories (to name just a few!).  It’s even inspired fictional festivities…in World of Warcraft there is a “Brewfest” event that takes place in early October each year.  What can we say?  People know a good idea when they see one!

For our Boundary Bay Oktoberfest, we’ve planned festivities in our Beer Garden to celebrate craft beer.  It all kicks off at 4 pm on Thursday, October 1st when we’ll be tapping a very special Firkin Keg of Harvest Ale that has hops from our very own beer garden in it!  The Boundary Bay Harvest Ale is a red-orange beer with rich malty flavors. This is our Autumn seasonal beer that bears only a distant connection to the German “Oktoberfest” style from which it gets its inspiration.  Our take on the Oktoberfest style results in a  full bodied beer with maltiness as the predominate flavor…perfect for our cool fall evenings.  We’ll be serving up a special Oktoberfest menu too, so dust off your Lederhosen and get on down here.

This is the kind of celebration where families are welcome and costumes are encouraged.  To prove our point, here are a couple pics from last year’s Oktoberfest right here at Boundary Bay Brewery:

Join us on Thursday, October 1st for Oktoberfest…Boundary Bay Brewery style!  The show starts at 4pm with the tapping of the Firkin Keg.  Maybe you can be the one to shout out “O’zapft is” (Angezapft ist) or “It’s tapped!”, the cry that goes up every year when the Lord Mayor of Munich hammers a spigot into the very first keg of Oktoberfest beer.  See you there!  

Oktoberfest at Boundary Bay!

As we know, all good things must come to an end and, unfortunately, the season of events in the beer garden has come to an end.  It did, however, go out with a bang!  For the final event of the season in our beer garden we had our own Oktoberfest celebration.  The garden was full of Fall revelers and people getting in to the spirit of things!  Ralf supplied us with authentic Bravarian pretzel treats and, as is our Oktoberfest tradition, we tapped a Firkin keg that, this year, held Havest Ale that had been fresh hopped with hops from our very own garden.  Here’s a couple of our favorite pics from the Oktoberfest celebration:

Looks like a fun time was had by all!  Don’t miss out next year on our Oktoberfest party in the beer garden.

Oh, and while I began this blog by saying the Oktoberfest marked the end of the season in the beer garden…well, all rules have exceptions, don’t they?  While the season is, for the most part, over…there are three events that came in just under the deadline and will stretch the season of garden events just a little longer.

The first of these events is on Saturday, October 4th when the Soundwaves Surfrider Benefit Concert is happening from 2pm until midnight.  The Northwest Straights chapter of the Surfriders Foundation is holding a benefit concert and fashion show in the beer garden.  The fashion show by Georgie Girls is at 7 pm and there will be a raffle to win a Gabe Kling autographed custom surfboard.  There will be music by The Surf Messiahs, Boris Budd, Vox Solis, North by Northwest, Vaughn Kreestoe, Voodoo Grace Notes, Pau Hana Brothers, Kreg Presley, and Sweet Beets.  All ages are welcome until 10 pm and the cover is $7 ($5 for 10 and under).

On Sunday October 5th, we’re going to have an art exhibition and a live art show down in the garden starting at 3 pm.  Don’t miss this unique, exciting opportunity to watch an amazing artist create right in front of you!  This art show is going to be from a Seattle artist named Solace who makes great urban, graffiti inspired art.  He’ll be working with acryclics and spray paint in the garden on Sunday.  Trust me, you do not want to miss this!  Check out this gallery on myspace of Solace’s work.

And finally, on Saturday October 25th, there will be a fundraiser in the beer garden for the Alpine Safety Awareness Program (ASAP).  This is an all ages community event featuring live music from BentGrass, all you can eat fish tacos, and a live auction of outdoor recreational equipment.  All money raised during this evening of fun pays for the insurance that ASAP must purchase to offer their free youth and adult awareness programs.

Just Whetting the Appetite!

Check out our Oktoberfest teaser…and the enthusiasm of our brewer, Anthony!  =)

And then remember to come to the Boundary Bay Beer Garden on September 25th to celebrate Oktoberfest in true, Bellingham style.  Don’t miss out on this year’s Firkin keg full of Harvest Ale that has been fresh hopped with hops from our own beer garden!

September at Boundary Bay

September is here already and rather than lament the ending of Summer, Boundary’s got lots of good news brewing to lure you into Fall. On September 22nd, we’ll release our Autumn favorite: Harvest Ale! It only comes once a year and is brewed in limited quantities so don’t miss this chance to taste this beautiful red-orange beer with rich malty flavors. This is a full bodied beer, which is perfect for our cool fall evenings. This autumn seasonal beer has only a distant connection to the German “Oktoberfest” style from which it gets its inspiration. Maltiness is the predominate flavor component of any true Oktoberfest style and also really stands out in our Harvest Ale. Just in case you love the Harvest Ale as much as we do, look for our limited edition Harvest Ale hoodies to add to your Boundary Bay wardrobe.

Speaking of Oktoberfest, join us in our own beer garden on September 25th for an Oktoberfest celebration Bellingham style! Yes, you read right…the Oktoberfest celebration is in September. Confusing as it is, we’re following tradition by holding the festival in late September just as it’s always been done in Bavaria. We’ll be tapping the beloved Firkin keg which is always a good show, and there will be a special Oktoberfest menu (with traditional favorites like Brats!) as well as our usual fare.

Last, but definitely not least, we’ll be tapping the Traverse Ale on September 25th as well. The Bellingham Traverse is a race that takes place on September 27th and celebrates the lifecycle of salmon, recognizing the natural and urban challenges fish face in their life-long journey. 5.5 mile run, 6 mile Mountain bike, 18 mile Road Ride, 3 mile Trail Run, 4 mile paddle, .5 mile Team Trek to the finish line at Boundary Bay Brewery. So, in celebration of all the hard work of the race participants, we’ve brewed a Traverse Ale that is a deep reddish-brown ale with medium to full body and a lively hop character. The hops make this beer particularly refreshing, especially for a darker style. The flavor is rich enough to stand on its own, but also goes extremely well with pastas and spicy food. This beer has a smooth refreshing finish, creating a perfect summer session beer to cool off with after a long “Traverse.” And, whether you participate in the Traverse itself or just enjoy the Traverse Ale, there will be souvenirs aplenty available at Boundary Bay: Traverse hoodies, t-shirts and pint glasses. Available for a limited time only.