On Tap: Local breweries offer up Halloween treats

Trick-or-treating is much more fun when you end up with beer in your bag. Here’s what local breweries and craft beer bars have planned to help you celebrate adult-style:

Community Pint’s “Embrace the Darkness” from Thursday through Saturday will feature five barrel-aged beers – Boulevard’s Rye on Rye, Cascade’s Cherry Bourbonic Plague sour, Firestone’s Sucaba barleywine, Founders’ Backwoods Bastard Scotch ale and Fremont’s Coffee Cinnamon B-Bomb winter ale – along with Block 15’s hazy Story of the Ghost IPA.

Downdraft’s Fright Night fundraiser Friday from 6 to 9 p.m. benefits Coeur d’Alene animal welfare nonprofit HELP (Help Every Little Paw), which will receive a dollar from each pint sale. Look for seasonal beers, costume contests for people and their pets, a silent auction and raffle, food from DATBella Moon’s BBQ, DJ music and karaoke.

Iron Goat’s Halloween party Friday from 7 to 11 p.m. will include a costume contest and music by El Primo.

Mad Bomber celebrates Saturday starting at 8 p.m. with a pumpkin carving contest, costume contests for singles and couples beginning at 10 p.m., live music and merchandise giveaways.

Black Label’s Costume Bash on Saturday from 7 to 10 p.m. offers a free mug club membership as grand prize, plus more raffles and music by Haley Young and the Bossame.

V Twin caps a weeklong celebration of its second anniversary Saturday with a birthday/Halloween party. Come dressed in costume or in brewery merchandise for $1 off pints.

Twelve String has Halloween-themed trivia Oct. 31 starting at 7 p.m., with a $50 gift certificate for best costume.

Badass Backyard’s Halloween Haunted Beer Bash from 5 to 9 p.m. Oct. 31 features beer specials, games and prizes for the funniest, most creative, scariest and sexiest costumes.

A Halloween night costume contest at Waddell’s Brewpub starts at 6 p.m. with judging at 8 p.m., offering $50 prizes for scariest, funniest and most creative.

Not so spooky

Of course, not everything this time of year has to be about Halloween. Among your other options on the craft beer calendar:

Whistle Punk’s Punktoberfest on Friday and Saturday from 3 to 11 p.m. will feature several special German-themed beers, stein holding contests, German music and a Bavarian menu by neighboring Heritage Bar and Kitchen.

Bottles has a grand opening at its new location – 3223 N. Argonne Road – on Friday at 5 p.m. with a Fremont tap takeover and the Meat barbecue truck.

Nectar Wine and Beer in Kendall Yards turns back the clock with an I Love the ’90s party Saturday from 6 to 9 p.m. Fifteen taps will be dedicated to longtime breweries who were operating during that decade along with ’90s music and a period costume contest.

River City’s monthly First Friday open house Nov. 2 from 4 to 10 p.m. will include food from the Mac Daddy’s truck, music by the Jus Wright Band and artwork by Shelby Allison.

The Rocket Market welcomes winter with a Beer to Keep You Warm tasting Nov. 2 from 7 to 9 p.m., including some rare barrel-aged selections. Cost is $25 plus tax; call (509) 343-2253 for reservations.

Mad Bomber celebrates its fifth anniversary Nov. 3 with the release of the annual Black Hand barrel-aged imperial porter plus prize giveaways, live music and food from The Wurst Man in Town.

Powderkeg returns as part of the Inlander Winter Party snow sports expo Nov. 9 from 4 to 9 p.m. and Nov. 10 from 10 to 7 p.m. at the Spokane Convention Center, featuring 40-plus beers and ciders. Various tasting packages are available in addition to the $10 event admission.

Twelve String’s fifth annual Barrelfest is expanding to two days – Nov. 10 from noon to 7 p.m. and Nov. 11 from 11 a.m. to 5 p.m. – with more than 20 barrel-aged offerings, both old favorites and several not previously released.

Freshly tapped

Back for the season is Twelve String’s 12 Strings of Winter (7.5, 65), a malty IPA heavy on piney, spicy Chinook.

English Setter is serving a black IPA dubbed 9161 (6.1, 91).

Mountain Lakes’ Sweater Weather (5.6, 30) is a spiced pumpkin ale hopped with fresh Mount Hood.

Millwood Brewing’s fresh hop IPA (5) is made with Munich malt and Cascade hops from Bonners Ferry.

Genus Brewing, which serves small-batch specialties at the Nu Home Brew supply shop in Spokane Valley, has come up with its most unusual yet: a Hawaiian pizza beer (6.2) brewed with bacon, pineapple and smoked malt for a wood-fired character.

Whistle Punk’s Raspberry Sherbet (5.4) is the first in a series of mixed-culture “sherbet” sours brewed with lactose and oats, and conditioned on fruit and vanilla beans.

The latest releases from Humble Abode are a juicy, hazy Dirtier Sunshine IPA (6.3) and a Sweet Peaks Waffle Cone Porter (5.4) that uses actual cones from the regional ice cream company.

No-Li’s barrel-aged Big Pumpkin (9) is strong, sweet and spicy.

The spiced seasonal Apple Butter Bock (8.3, 23) has returned at 238 Brewing on Green Bluff, accompanied by a big blackberry stout (8.9, 64).

Bellwether’s annual Wind on Sea Scotch ale (8.8, 18) is brewed in the spring with new-growth spruce tips and keg-matured for release in the fall.