Every now and again we like to tell you about the advantages of becoming a member of Washington Beer Lovers (WABL). What is a WABL? Simply put, it is the official Washington beer fan club. If you are the kind of person who likes to go to beer festivals, visit breweries and brewpubs, and attend exclusive beer events, then the advantages of being a WABL outweigh the cost of $25 per year. (Visit the official WABL site.)

Last Sunday we attended the monthly WABL event, which takes place at a different brewery or venue each month. This month it took the form of a party hosted by Boundary Bay Brewery in Bellingham. The party included food specials, happy hour pricing on great beers, a sneak peak of a couple of special soon-to-be-released Boundary Bay beers, brewery tours, and live music. WABL members even received a 15% discount on Boundary Bay Brewery merchandise, including the newly released 15th anniversary gear. The luscious beer garden was reserved exclusively for the party and the weather even cooperated—not a sniff of rain and nary a cloud in sight.

Janet Lightner, Boundary Bay’s General Manager, welcomed the crowd and thanked us for our support. Giants’ Causeway, a local Celtic folk trio, provided the live music. Boundary Bay Brewing’s head brewer, Aaron Jacob Smith, led groups on tours of the brewery and then took the stage for a question and answer session.

Janet welcomes the crowd.

We’d like to thank Boundary Bay for extending such gracious hospitality and WABL for arranging such a great event.

Click here to see the complete post and more photos.

Giants' Causeway.

Aaron Jacob Smith leading a brewery tour.

Every brewery has them. Boots.

Aaron answers questions from the crowd.

This information is important for current WABL members. What’s a WABL? The short version: Washington Beer Lovers (WABL) is the official Washington beer fan club. You get perks for being a member. You should check it out.

WABL members, your Seattle Beer Week Passports are ready and can be picked up at one of the locations listed below.

While Seattle Beer Week will feature dozens of great beer events, members of Washington Beer Lovers (WABL) have an opportunity to earn a free ticket to the upcoming Washington Brewers Festival. If you are a current member of WABL, you are eligible to get a Seattle Beer Week Passport. Get your passport “stamped” at Washington-focused SBW events and get your free ticket to the festival (valid Sunday, June 20 only. No exchange). Details below.

• Must be a current WABL member to participate.
• Only stamps from the participating SBW events that support Washington breweries will be accepted. Some events didn’t make the cut for the Passport printing. Participating events are listed in the passport, but since some events didn’t make it to print, use your best judgment. You are a WABL, after all.  If it features a Washington brewer or brewery, it probably qualifies. You should have received a WABL email recently that listed the qualifying events.
• Stamps, stickers, beer labels, business cards, signature, etc, are all acceptable ways to mark your passport.
• You can collect multiple stamps, stickers, etc, from the same establishment if they are hosting multiple Seattle Beer Week events. Just make sure to put the name of the event and/or date under each stamp.
• To be eligible to receive the prize, you must have at least 10 stamps AND one of the stamps must be from the Last Call closing event on May 23.
• You must turn in your Passport at the WABL Booth during Last Call and you must be present to be eligible. No exceptions!
• One Passport/prize ticket per member.

Pick up your Seattle Beer Week WABL Passport at:

99 Bottles
35002 Pacific Hwy. S. A102
Federal Way, WA 98003
(253) 838-2558

Bottleworks
1710 N 45th St., Suite 3
Seattle, WA 98103
(206) 633-2437

Full Throttle Bottles
5909 Airport Way, S.
Seattle, WA 98108
(206) 763-2079

Hale’s Ales Brewery
4301 Leary Way NW
Seattle, WA 98107
(206) 706-1544

Malt & Vine
16851 Redmond Way
Redmond, WA 98052
(425) 881-6461

Last night we attended the WABL 4th Anniversary Party – held in the Rainier Room at Seattle Center. As anticipated, the crowd (approx. 300) lined up long before the 4:00 opening. When the doors swung open the crowd streamed inside to find a wonderful selection of Washington beers, most of which had been specially crafted for this event.

There was a buffet and a birthday cake, but the real star of this show was the beer. The infused British Pale Ale from 7 Seas Brewing was my favorite. I was also quite fond of a beer called “1982″ from Yakima Craft Brewing. The crowd went bonkers over the fresh-hopped rye IPA from Anacortes Brewing. At the WABL anniversary party, the Washington Brewers Guild thanks their most loyal fans in the most appropriate of ways: by serving them great beer. Speeches were made and a lot of swag was given away. The party is just one more reason you should join WABL.

Brewers were on hand from 7 Seas Brewing, Dick’s Brewing, Snoqualmie Falls Brewing, Scuttlebutt Brewing, Black Raven Brewing, and Schooner Exact Brewing. Glasses were raised to honor the three brewers that the guild has lost recently – Brian Sollenberger (Diamond Knot), Dick Young (Dick’s Brewing) , and Jim Quilter (RAM U-Village). The evening also included the introduction of Eric Radovich, the new Executive Director of the Washington Beer Commission, who served as emcee for the event. Janelle Pritchard (Snoqualmie Falls Brewing) was even so kind as to give a shout out to the local beer bloggers (including us), which we sincerely appreciated.

The crowd lined up outside, thankful it wasn't raining.

Heather McClung (Schooner Exact Brewing and President of the WA Brewers Guild), along with other brewery representatives, addressing the crowd.

A room full of WABLs. While the Rainier Room might lack je ne sais quoi, it serves its purpose well.

If you’re reading this blog, you probably love Washington beer. If you love Washington beer, then you should probably be a member of WABL — WA Beer Lovers, the official “fan club” of the Washington Brewers Guild. This is a reminder for all you WABLs out there that tickets are on sale for the 4th Anniversary Party. (What’s a WABL? Find out here.)

The event, held at Seattle Center’s Rainier Room, is always fun. In addition to all of the great beer (see below) there are also a lot of give-aways from breweries, bottle shops and more.

The event is November 7th, 4:00 – 8:00 p.m.

Here is the ticket info:

Mail a check payable to the Washington Brewers Guild along with your name, WABL ID number and your guest’s name, if any.
Washington Brewers Guild
P.O. Box 20014
Seattle, WA  98102.

Admission for WABL members are $30 and non-WABL member is $40 (one guest per member). Once they receive your payment they will send you tickets in the mail within a week. Tickets are not transferable. Advance purchase is required (no day of sales). Capacity is 300 people.

They plan to serve an impressive lineup of beers for this event. Washington’s brewing community sends out nothing but their best, most creative efforts to show their appreciation. Here is a partial list of what you can expect. Some of the beers are collaborative efforts between multiple breweries. The list is subject to change.

• 7 Seas – Infused British Pale Ale
• Alpine Brewing – Alpine Ur-Märzen
• Anacortes Brewery – Imperial Fresh Hop Rye Pale Ale
• Big Al Brewing – Watermelon Sour
• Black Raven/WABL Committee – Peach Pit Wit
• Chuckanut Brewery – Chuckanut Foreign Stout
• Diamond Knot/McMenamin’s/Lazy Boy/Scuttlebutt (a blend of 4 beers from each brewery)
• Hale’s Ales Brewery – TBA
• Powerhouse Brewery w/ Colin Lenfesty & Rodney Clark – Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout
• Schooner Exact & Two Beers – Two if by Sea Brown
• Walking Man Brewing – Oak Aged Jaywalker
• Yakima Craft Brewery – YCBC’s IPA

Tonight (Fri. Oct. 23th), Brouwer’s Cafe will begin its celebration of Washington Beer. This is similar to the WA beer event we hosted at the Beveridge Place Pub last June (here), only on a grander scale. Brouwer’s will turn over their 60+ taps to serve Washington beer exclusively. Obviously, they won’t go through all 60 kegs in one night, so you can expect to find an outstanding selection of Washington beers on tap through the weekend if you cannot make it tonight.

This event is being sponsored by WABL (Washington Beer Lovers). If you are a WABL member don’t forget  to bring your passport. You will receive happy hour prices all night long. If you are not a WABL member, you should be. Click here to learn more about becoming a member.

Here is a list of the beers they’ll be pouring at Brouwer’s:

Alpine Octoberfest
Anacortes Darkside IPA
Baron Liberator Doppelbock ’07
Big Al Harvest Ale
Big Al Mild Mannered Ale
Big E Two Pints Imperial IPA
Big Time Jeezum Crow
Birdsview Ditzy Blonde
Black Raven La Petite Mort
Boundary Bay Irish Stout
Boundary Bay Oak Aged Cabin Fever ’08
Breakaway IPA
Chuckanut (not sure which)
Diamond Knot Shipwreck XXXIPA
Dick’s Bottleworks Rye
Dick’s Double Diamond
Elliot Bay Imperial Von Boorian
Elysian Haleakala Hibiscous Sour
Engine House #9 Brewing Co Dry Hop Pale
Fish Winterfish
Flyers PBY Pale
Flyers Pro-Am Stout
Fremont Lil’ Woody
Georgetown Choppers Red Cask
Hale’s Dry Hopped Pale
Hale’s HSB Nitro
Harmon IPA
Hood Canal Big Beef Stout
Ice Harbor Hop Warrior
Iron Horse Mocha Death
Lazyboy Big Trouble Double
Leavenworth Alt
Lunar Goat Roaper Scottish Ale
Maritime Dry Hopped Pale Cask
Northern Lights Chocloate Dunkel
Olympia (It’s the water)
Peaks Pub Big Ass Red
Pike 5x Stout
Pike Old Bawdy 08
Port Townsend Oak Aged Scotch Ale
Port Townsend Scotch Ale Nitro
Ram Northgate Barrel Aged Red Cherries & Bugs
Ranier (Mountain fresh)
Red Hook Belgian Tripel
Rogue Issaquah Pumpkin Frog
Roslyn Dark Lager
Schooner Exact Dry Hopped 3-grid Cask
Scuttlebut Golden Mariner
7 Seas Balls Deep douple IPA
Silver City Fat Woody
Silver City Red
Skaggit Black Jack Lager
Skookum Hooskal Stout
Snipes Mountain Porter
Snoqualmie Dry Hopped Avalanche
Three Skulls IPA
Trade Route Chieftan Amber
Two Beers Stout
Walking Man Black Cherry Stout
Water Street (not sure which beer)

WABL is having it’s first-ever camp-out party this year on Labor Day weekend at Deception Pass State Park. (Still don’t know what WABL is? Want to join WABL? Click here.) If you aren’t free on Labor Day weekend, but camping with beer geeks sounds fun, our bloggy friends over at Seattle Beer News are also having a camp-out. Their’s is a couple weeks later, the weekend of Sept. 19th.

The WABL campout is for WABL members only. It’s easy to join. Pretty much the only requirement is that you be a WA Beer Lover. This is a great opportunity to get out in the woods, meet new and interesting people, and drink good beer with them.  Here are some details from the WABL committee:

WA Beer/WABL campout at Deception Pass

Washington brewers and WABL members are cordially invited to the 1st annual WA Beer/WABL campout at Deception Pass. We have reserved a group camp site at Deception Pass for Saturday, September 5th – Monday, September 7th during the Labor Day weekend. This is a 21+ only, WA brewer/WABL exclusive event.

Here’s some detail:

• This is a “do-it-yourself” “bring-your-own-everything” event. You are responsible for your own transportation to/from the camp site, setting up your tents, and for everything you will need during the weekend including food, water, beer, tent, camping gear, etc.

• Please bring your own food and beverages (including beer) and feel free to bring extra to share with others. We’ll do potluck each night and it’s all about sharing good food, beer & time with great company!

• Deception Pass is the most popular state park in Washington State. There will be lots to do including hiking, swimming, fishing, etc. You can sign up for groups and partake in those activities with fellow WABLers/brewers, or you are welcome to make your own plans individually (but be safe!).

• We’re also considering doing a cook-off, possibly using beer as an ingredient. More info to be announced soon…

Deception Pass State Park
41020 State Route 20
Oak Harbor, WA 98277
Group camp site 1
It has a fire circle, picnic shelter, vault toilet and five tent pads. It provides two adirondack (three-sided) sleeping shelters that combined sleep 16 people.
Park info: www.parks.wa.gov/parks/?selectedpark=Deception%20Pass

How to sign up
This is a 21+ only, WA brewer/WABL exclusive event (sorry, no non-WABL guests). You must be a current WABL member in September, 2009 to be eligible. About 20 spots are reserved for Washington brewers and 30 spots are reserved for WABL members (exact breakdown subject to change depending on demand by each group).

For WABL members first 15 spots are first-come, first-serve and the rest will be selected by a random drawing, if the number exceeds the capacity. Sign up fee is $10 per person. You can reserve both nights, or just one night (fee is the same regardless of the number of nights). If you’d like to reserve your spot please mail a check payable to the Washington Brewers Guild to P.O. Box 20014, Seattle, WA 98102 by July 31st. Please make sure to include the following info with the check:

* Your name and WABL ID number
* Other WABL members whom you wished to be grouped with and therefore don’t want to be separated (i.e. husband gets picked and wife doesn’t). Please write down all the names in your group and indicate that you do not want to be separated.
* Night(s) you want to participate (Saturday night, Sunday night, or both)

Cheers!

WABL Committee
Lisa Miyashita
Beaux Bowman
Matt Stromberg

By now, all of you who love Washington beer and want to support the vibrant brewing culture that we enjoy here in the evergreen state should be members of WABL (Washington Beer Lovers). Read our What’s a WABL article, if you don’t know already.

For each of the beer festivals hosted by the Washington Beer Commission, a brewery is selected to make the official WABL beer. This brew is available exclusively to WABL members. With the Washington Brewer’s Festival approaching (it’s in June), it is time for us WABLs to select the brewery that we want to make this year’s festival beer. Get it? They’re going to make a beer just for us, and we even get to pick the brewery that will make it. Pretty excellent, eh?

If you are a WABL (and you should be), you should also join the WABL YAHOO Group. As a member of the group, you’ll get news about what’s happening with WABL, be able to chime in on discussions about WA beer, and generally support the WA beer community. Right now, you can participate in a pole and vote for the brewery you think should make this year’s festival beer. There are a number of breweries listed and you are also free to write in any brewery that is not on the list.

This is just another example of how much the Washington Beer Commission –and the breweries that are members of the commission– appreciate our support.

The WABL group at YAHOO! http://groups.yahoo.com/group/wabl
The official WABL homepage. http://www.washingtonbeer.com/wabl.htm

Not a WABL? Well you should be. Here’s just one more reason why. January 18th Fish Brewing in Olympia will host the monthly WABL event.

What’s a WABL? Find out here. In short, WABL is an organization of Washington beer lovers. If you love Washington beer, you really should be a memberL. It’s very easy to join and your friendly WBB reporter encourages you to do so.  It’s a way for you to get special perks while also showing your appreciation of what a great job our local brewers are doing.

Last night, WABL officially celebrated its 3rd anniversary. Organized by the Washington Brewers Guild, WABL (Washington Beer Lovers) is an association of beer lovers that anyone can join (read more about WABL). The anniversary celebration was held at Seattle Center’s Rainier Room.  Essentially, this was an “invite only” beer festival. It was a love fest – a show of mutual appreciation between the people who love beer and the people who make beer. There were 18 different beers from which to choose. These were hand picked, specially crafted beers. Many of them available only at this event.

In addition to all the beer, they provided food — pizza, salad, other munchies. They also gave away a ton of swag donated by breweries around the state. The emcee for the evening was Arlen Harris, Executive Director of the Washington Beer Commission, and a stream of brewers got up to introduce themselves and talk a bit about their beer and their breweries.

On behalf of all WABLs, the WBB would like to extend our thanks to Lisa, Arlen and all of the great people at the Washington Brewers Guild. This was a great event that really made us WABLs feel appreciated. They make us proud and we hope that we return the favor.

To see a list of the breweries and brews involved, click here.

Continue reading to see more photos…

More photos from the event

Got a message from Doug Hindman this morning. He’s the head brewer at Elliott Bay Brewery. Doug suggested that we remind everyone that there’s still time to join WABL and get invited to next weekend’s WABL Anniversary Party. What’s a WABL? See our original post. If you love Washington beer, you really should join. Our orginal post about WABL explains the many thirst-quenching benefits. Plus, it’s a way that you can support the Washington Brewers Guild (from whom all blessings flow). 

Take a look at the list for next weekend’s WABL-only event. These beers were specially crafted just for this event… just for us WABLs:

Anacortes Brewery –Anacortes Bourbon Barrel-aged Stout
Big Al Brewing Co. –Dark Roast (Tropical Stout)
Black Raven+Hale’s Ales collaboration –Southern Mystery Monster
Chuckanut Brewery & Kitchen –Festbier (Marzen)
Elliott Bay Brewing Co. –Blended Brett Beer (aged 09.2007-09.2008)
Harmon Brewery & Restaurant –One Hop Wonder
Issaquah Brewhouse –QuadFrog Oak Aged
Laht Neppur Brewing Co. –Whiskey Creek Wild Hop Ale
Lazy Boy Brewing Co. –Nacho Pils
Northgate Ram –TBA
Pike Brewing Co. –Pike Entire (Bourbon Barrel Aged Imperial Stout)
Redhook Brewery –Dopplebock
Scuttlebutt & McMenamin’s & Diamond Knot collaboration –WABLation (Wet Hop Wheatwine)
Silver City Brewery –Sasquatch Stout
Skookum Brewery –Hooscal Stout
Snipes Mountain Brewery –Porter w/sweet orange peel
Walla Walla Brewers –Fresh Hop IPA
Water Street Brewing Co. –Chocolate Oatmeal Stout