A Brewer’s Thoughts on Highland Games

Our Assistant Brewery, Anthony Stone, reflects on the Bellingham Highland Games:

I’ve had a long history with Hovander park and the Bellingham Highland Games.  Growing up in Bellingham, Hovander has always been one of my favorite parks in Whatcom County.  While I was a student at Huxley I had the opportunity to work on a project there and meet with the recently deceased Charles Hovander, one to the last children to grow up on the farm.  Also while at Western I took two quarters of Scottish Highland Dance, the second quarter students perform at the Bellingham Highland Games.  (Just a note to current Western guys, I was the only guy in a class with about twenty girls so not a bad class to take!)  Anyways, our class did some Scottish Country Dancing demonstrations at the games which is why I bought my kilts from a vendor there at the games.  That year I also discovered the beer garden and I keep going back every year since.

Anthony: kilt, medal and all!

The last several years I started volunteering with Boundary Bay Brewery to help pour beer in the beer garden, and help co-ordinate those volunteers.  Every year it gets bigger under the guidance of Jared Winchester.  This year we were pouring eight beers, five meads, and three wines.  That is an amazing selection for any event.  Last year I participated in the Novice Heavy Athletics.  (click here to see photos of Anthony in last year’s competition!)I had no idea what I was doing, but Bob Ham and the guys were very helpful and patient.  I say I participated because if you saw these guys, I was definitely not any competition for them.  This year I stayed with my best event, keg tossing and marathon beer pouring.  We went through about 20 kegs of Boundary Bay beer alone this last weekend, that’s 310 gallons or 2480 pints.  Apparently the Highland Games president, Peter Rolstead or “Peter Piper,” was pleased with my performance because he gave me medal before I left.

This year marks the 50^th anniversary of the Bellingham Highland Games and is a busy two day event.  You don’t have to be Scottish to have a good time with so much to see and do throughout the weekend.  The two biggest draws I think are the athletics and the pipe bands.  If you’ve never been before, I suggest getting there for the opening ceremonies when all the bands play together.  I’ve had friends go there for the first time and visit a clan tent only to shortly after find themselves proudly carrying their clan banner in the Parade of Clans.  The clan tents are a great resource for people wanting to research their Scottish ancestry.   There are loads of great vendors there, but probably the coolest thing to get at the Highland games is a sword or battle axe.  I don’t know how many guys I’ve seen leave the beer garden after a few Highland Scotch Reserves only to come back an hour later showing off their latest weapon.  I always encourage the uninitiated to try some Haggis and Irn-Bru, Scotland’s distinctive soft drink.  There’s also Highland Dancing, Irish harping, Drumming, Bag Pipes, bands like our local Maggie’s Fury and the ever popular Wicked Tinkers.  You can camp there at the park over night and some people even sleep.

enjoying the fruits of his labor...

Every year I am impressed with the hard work and dedication of the dozens of volunteers who make the Bellingham Highland Games such a great success.  They are a tight knit group that really exemplifies what being part of a clan means.  There is always a need for new volunteers to help.  If you’ve never been to the Highland Games, then please come out next year.  It is always held on the first weekend of July.  If nothing else come have a meat pie and a Highland Reserve in the sun and listen to all those bagpipes…  I wake up the next morning and can still hear them… If you are interested in more information about the Highland Games or want to volunteer, check out their website www.bhgs.org or call/fax 360-647-8500.

Alba Go Bragh!  Scotland Forever!   Cheers, -Anthony

Whole Weeks Devoted to Beer!

Ah May!  Spring has Sprung, we’re all feeling frisky and there are eleven whole days this month strictly devoted to celebrating all things craft beer!  Could this month get any better?!?  Seattle Beer Week kicks off May 13th and winds down May 23rd while American Craft Beer Week runs May 17th to the 23rd.  We suggest clearing your calendars now and cashing in on that vacation time you’ve got saved up at work.  This is gonna be huge!  Seattle Beer Week features all kinds of events happening at breweries, bars and bottle shops in the greater Seattle area and all the way up here to Bellingham.  Craft Beer Week, on the other hand, is a national celebration with thousands expected to participate.  The “Mother of All Beer Weeks” celebrates small and independent craft brewers and is a chance to highlight all that the U.S. loves about craft beer. In 2006, the week became the largest national effort focusing on American craft brewers and remains so today.

Here’s how we’re participating at Boundary Bay Brewery:

On Friday, May 14th, we’ll have our only event outside of our own brewery.  Collins Pub in Seattle 4-7pm is hosting Boundary Bay Night, where they’ll be “celebrating Washington’s finest microbrewery”!   They’ll have eight Boundary Bay beers on tap, including at least one cask and a special release beer or two. Not to mention schwag, food specials, and people from Boundary Bay Brewery on hand to charm you!  Collins Pub: 526 2nd Avenue, Seattle WA 98104. Phone: 206-623-1016.

Take part in Afternoon Delight at Boundary Bay Brewery on Wednesday, May 19th from  4-7 pm.  You’ll get to meet the Boundary Bay Brewers and sample vertical tastings of Cabin Fever and Old Bounder!  The beers will be paired with a selection of sweet and savory snacks.  Our Old Bounder is a rich, full-bodied barley wine.  Copper in color with a smooth caramel sweetness, warming alcohol content and balanced hop character.  Excellent with desserts or as an after dinner beverage.  The Boundary Bay Cabin Fever is a strong ale or winter warmer with dark red-brown color and avery rich malty flavor.  While this big beer is deceptively strong, it tastes very smooth thanks to extra long cold conditioning.  Try it with spicy foods, paired with rich heavy foods or all by itself!

Join us in the Beer Garden for a Highland Scotch Ale Release Party 4pm on Thursday, May 20th.  Our Highland Scotch Ale is rich and dark with a faint smokey finish.  Dark crystal and peated malts are added to achieve the elements unique to this historic seasonal.  This seasonal brew is hand made annually in commemoration of the Highland Games held in Bellingham each summer and this year we’ll be having a Highland Extravaganza in our Beer Garden to celebrate it’s arrival.  The annual Bellingham Scottish Highland Games includes competition in piping, drumming, dancing, and athletics and we’ll have competitors here to show you what they do!  Come enjoy BBQ while watching the Highland Games athletes, pipers and dancers!  We’ll have a special cask of this beer on hand for the party and the Highland Scotch Ale will be available on tap at the bar Friday, May 21st.

Join us in the Boundary Bay Brewery beer garden for a Locks of Love party!  The fun begins at noon on Saturday, May 22nd when two of our brewers are getting sheared and donating their hair to Locks of Love to help support the American Cancer Society.  We’re hoping other brewers from the greater Seattle area will join in…not to mention any of our usual customers who have 10 inches of hair to cut off and donate!  Stylists from Honey Salon and Bellisima Salon will be set up in the Beer Garden to cut anyone’s hair who’d like to donate to Locks of Love and we’ll even have representatives here from St. Joseph’s Cancer Center to provide support, answer questions and raise awareness.  BBQ and beer too, of course!