On Tap: Perry Street puts on a party to mark year 2

Perry Street Brewing celebrates its second anniversary this weekend with a little taste of the past, and bigger plans for the future.

The Kumquat IPA originally brewed for last May’s Spokane Craft Beer Week will return on tap when the festivities kick off at 4 p.m. Friday. “It was our most popular beer, hands down,” said brewer Ben Lukes, who owns the business with his wife, Christy.

There will be a raffle for two cruiser bicycles donated by Two Wheel Transit, with proceeds going to the T.E.A.M. Grant program at nearby Grant Elementary School, a regular beneficiary of the brewery’s charitable efforts. The winner of a “golden growler” raffle at 9 p.m. Saturday gets a free fill and a pint each week for the coming year.

Music arrives Saturday, when doors open at noon, with bluegrass by Sam Saxton and friends at 2 p.m. followed by the Nic Vigil Quartet at 4 p.m. DJ Downtown Tony Brown finishes things off in the taproom from 7 to 11 p.m. The 3 Ninjas and Bistro Box food trucks will be on hand Friday and Saturday, respectively.

By next month, Perry Street plans to be serving sandwiches and soups from its own kitchen, following up on the small-plate menu that launched last year. With food trucks not always a guarantee, Lukes said, “So many people are leaving us for the lull during dinner, it will be nice to have something to offer them so they can stay.”

And in addition to the pergola placed over the patio last year, a bartop made of 3-inch cedar from sunken river logs is being installed along the railing overlooking Perry, with Amish tractor seats for stools.

“Continued growth has been the theme around here,” Lukes said. “We’re finally getting close to finishing what this place will be. Then for year three, we can add some tanks and begin to do a little more distribution around town.”

Such experiments as the Kumquat IPA aside, the brewery has built a reputation for solid interpretations of more straightforward styles, from a Czech pilsner to a Scotch ale to the milk stout.

“We love brewing to style and playing around within styles,” said Lukes, who got his start with Missoula’s Big Sky. “I like drinking sours and stuff, but when I’m drinking beer, I crush pales and IPAs.

“A well-made pilsner or pale, there’s a craft to executing these styles that everybody sees as commonplace. It’s fun when you can nail that, it’s really rewarding.”

The brewery, whose Wi-Fi password remains “nosimcoe” – a joking reference to its inability to procure that popular hop in the early days – now has hop contracts secured for the next three years.

A new IPA tapped Tuesday takes a fruitier turn from a combination of Simcoe, Mosaic and Amarillo, compared to the previous Centennial and Citra, with its alcohol percentage reduced a full point to 6.3. The recently introduced Citra double IPA will become a regular offering.

Lukes also hopes to find the time and space to squeeze in some more barrel aging. The brewery’s first barrel beer, a Belgian-style tripel that has spent three months in chardonnay barrels, could debut as soon as Saturday. “That beer is going to be killer,” he said.

One of the past year’s biggest developments on the brewery side was the addition of assistant brewer Riley Elmer, 1 of 6 certified Cicerones (think wine sommelier) around the area, who has taken over the daily duties.

Elmer also leads blind tasting sessions where the Perry crew compares its beers to similar local and regional styles and gets ideas for fine-tuning recipes. “He’s brought so much in the way of sensory (analysis) to our brewing,” Lukes said. “It’s been great to have him.”

And his mere presence has been a blessing, Lukes added: “Being the full-time brewer for a year and a half, while trying to run an entire business, I honestly can’t believe I survived that.”

Down by the river

River City is marking the release of this year’s revised Riverkeeper IPA with a Riverwalk promotion involving eight restaurants along and near the Spokane River.

Stop in at any of them – The Blackbird, David’s Pizza, The Knock, Nectar Wine & Beer, O’Doherty’s Irish Grille, Ripples Riverside Grill, Rock City Grill and Veraci Pizza – order a pint of Riverkeeper and/or a meal and get a stamp on your Riverwalk guide (available at the restaurants and the brewery).

Earn four stamps and receive a commemorative pint glass. For seven stamps, you’re also entered into a drawing for a half-day trip with ROW Adventure Center. As always, a portion of proceeds from sales benefits the Spokane Riverkeeper environmental protection program.

The new Riverkeeper IPA (6.5 percent alcohol by volume, 77 International Bitterness Units) is lighter, drier and crisper than last year’s version, thanks to a reduction in caramel malts, and fruitier from the addition of Falconer’s Flight 7 C’s hops in the boil and dry-hopping with Citra and El Dorado.

Freshly tapped

-Waddell’s Imperial Oatmeal Alligator Stout (10 percent ABV, 34 IBU) is a brawnier version of the regular Alligator brewed with house-roasted oats.

-The Steam Plant’s Centennial Barley Wine (10, 46), celebrating the building’s 100 birthday, contains Centennial hops and a blend of specialty malts and was cask-conditioned for three months.

-Hopped Up is pouring a big-batch version of what was the first beer in its ongoing small-batch flavor-infused series, Pogue Mahone Irish cream stout (7, 35).

-Iron Goat’s spring seasonal Irish Kate imperial red returns bigger than ever (9.5, 60).

Save the date

-The fourth anniversary party at Pints Alehouse today and Saturday will feature a half-dozen specialty beers from the cellar each day.

-Daft Badger marks the release of its first bottled beers – Summer’s Envy IPA and Josiah’s Revenge imperial stout – with a party Saturday at noon. Look for food specials, giveaways and music by New Jack City and Boom Shack.

-MickDuff’s in Sandpoint celebrates its 10th anniversary next weekend with a series of events including a St. Patrick’s Day party, open house on March 18, and happy hour all day March 19 at the Beer Hall with live music in the evening.

Send beer news, comments and questions to senior correspondent Rick Bonino at boninobeer@comcast.net.