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Brewery to focus on papa with new ale

By Lorie Hutson lorieh@spokesman.com(509) 459-5446

Now that Mom is taken care of, the Coeur d’Alene Brewing Co. is making something special for Dad.

The brewmasters there, with help from the staff at the Spokane Regional Convention and Visitors Bureau, have developed Papa’s Pale Ale as part of festivities for the centennial celebration of Father’s Day.

“They thought there was a natural connection between dads and beer,” says Gage Stromberg, president of the Coeur d’Alene Brewing Co.

A Spokane woman, Sonora Smart Dodd, started the holiday to honor her father, who raised six children as a single father after her mother died. The first Father’s Day was celebrated in Spokane in 1910.

Papa’s Pale Ale debuts Thursday at the Inland Northwest Tourism Awards at the Northern Quest Casino.

Stromberg describes the beer as a mildly hopped pale ale with more color and flavor than a traditional American lager. The beer features Yakima hops and grain grown in the region, he says.

The beer will be available through Father’s Day at the Steam Plant Grill, 159 S. Lincoln St. and at the Post Street Ale House, 1 N. Post St.

Papa’s Pale Ale also will be served at Best Fest along with this year’s Maestro Brew, another Coeur d’Alene Brewing Co. beer that was made with help from Spokane Symphony Music Director Eckart Preu.

Best Fest, a series of symphony concerts, will be held June 18-20. There’s more information about all the events planned for the Father’s Day centennial at www.fathersday birthplace.com.

Preschool cooking classes

Community Minded Enterprises and the Main Market Co-op are teaming up to offer three cooking classes for little ones.

The classes, designed for children ages 3 to 6, will give kiddos and their parents a chance to make a healthy snack, practice pint-sized kitchen skills and try new fruits and veggies.

The first Preschoolers in the Kitchen class will be held Sunday and features fruits, veggies and dips. The June 6 class will focus on making roll-ups. On June 20, smoothies are on the menu.

The classes are free and held 4 to 6 p.m. at the Main Market Co-op, 44 W. Main Ave. Organizers hope they will get kids excited about trying new foods and healthy cooking.

For parents who can’t make it to the classes, weekly activity cards will be available at Main Market. The activity cards are at the store information center.