49th State Brewing wins state fair contract

PALMER — Of the 57 beers on tap at last weekend’s Mighty Matanuska Brewfest on the Alaska State Fairgrounds, it was 49th State Brewing Company’s “-12 Quadruple” that captured the crowd’s taste buds, winning the coveted People’s Choice Award.

As the 2014 Brewfest’s champion, 49th State is the official brewer and “-12” is the official beer at the 2015 Alaska State Fair. 49th State unseated the reigning champ of the last four years, Talkeetna’s Denali Brewing Company.

“This is the reason why I came,” said one brewfest attendee to 49th State employees, holding a glass of -12.

“You have to try this,” said another patron, as he submitted his beer ballot with the box next to -12 checked.

49th State brewmaster Jason “Jay” Bullen said the -12 also won the People’s Choice award at the Kenai Peninsula Beer Festival in August.

“(It) definitely seems to be a big crowd favorite,” Bullen said by phone on Monday.

Bullen said their brewery had just shut down for the season, something not a lot of breweries can afford to do.

“I don’t know of many places in the world that are seasonal the way we are,” Bullen said. Given their location, he said, and the success of their beer, apparently, it just made sense for them to close up shop.

But that “down time” doesn’t go to waste. Bullen said this is their fourth year in operation and their third brewing a “hibernation series,” for the beers that could taste even better with a little more time in the tanks in cold conditions. The “bigger” beers tend to age well, he said, and that aging “really shows in beer.”

That time also is used for research and travel, Bullen said.

This year, however, 49th State is mixing it up a bit.

“This is the first year we’re sending kegs out up to Fairbanks and down through the Valley and to Anchorage,” Bullen said. “We just brewed a couple of batches for distribution at the end of the season, just to kind of see what the reception is and see if it’s a worthwhile opportunity for us.”

Bullen made a point to emphasize the small quantity of -12 coming south, saying they were “thinking about holding onto them” — the two kegs — until it started winning awards at brewfests and demand increased.

Patrons of the Crossbar in Anchorage and the Eagle River Alehouse should be on the lookout for the -12 Quadruple, as Bullen mentioned those locations as potential servers of their beer. The Odom Corporation — the wholesale beverage distributor through which 49th State operates — however, has the final say, Bullen said.

The -12 Quadruple is described in the official brewfest pamphlet as a “Strong, Belgian style ale (that) is complex with notes of banana, dark fruit, and caramel,” and includes Bohemian Pilsner malt, Northern Brewer hops, and Belgian Candi syrup.

For more information, visit 49statebrewing.com.

Contact Caitlin Skvorc at 352-2266 or caitlin.skvorc@frontiersman.com.