Mighty Matanuska Brewfest draws more Valley brewers to fairgrounds

PALMER — As she talked about just how much the business she co-owns has grown in its short six years of operation, a satisfied customer interrupted Jen Barnett.

“Best brewery in the state! You can print that!” the man exclaimed while departing to refill his glass before he could be asked for his name.

Barnett is part owner of Denali Brewing Co., which, having started in 2007, has a slight leg up on the other two Mat-Su Borough breweries in Palmer and Wasilla, both of which are younger.

It kind of showed at Denali’s booth at the Mighty Matanuska Brewfest Friday, where the brewery occupied a large table loaded with merchandise and beer. Other locals had beer, but not as much merchandise.

Barnett said the brewery moved into canning its brews last fall and will be adding a fourth canned beer to the line soon. It’s been a lot of growth in a short time for an operation that began by offering beer only at its restaurant.

“As soon as we feel like we’re on top of it we take on more,” she said, describing a production facility with multiple additions bursting at the seams.

Two tables over, the second oldest brewery in operation in the Valley, Last Frontier Brewing Co., which has been operating since early 2011, offered a selection of its brews as well as a barley wine at the Mighty Matanuska Brewfest. Owner Randy Martin said he loves brewfest.

“You get to see your friends, get to see your business associates,” he said.

But most of all, it’s a way to meet new customers and let them sample his wares. He says the brewery has something like 12 or 13 brews he refers to as “steady Eddies” that are available regularly. Other runs are available from time to time. His son runs the business day-to-day is now ageing a second barley wine.

Martin said running a brewery and restaurant can be challenging. There are a lot of things to keep on top of to make sure customers keep coming and that quality is maintained. He said he goes to all the brewfests he can, but the one this weekend on the Alaska State Fairgrounds might be the best.

“I think this helps our business more because it’s local,” he said.

In the booth next door, Stephen Gerteisen and wife June manned the booth of the Valley’s youngest brewery, Arkose Brewery.

Stephen Gerteisen said that he’s been to every brewfest he can get to since opening in Palmer. He says the festivals are a popular destination for a good reason.

“People like knowing where their food comes from, they like knowing where their coffee comes from and then like knowing where their beer comes from,” he said.

Arkose has a very distinct graphic style to its labels, T-shirts and stickers. Stephen Gerteisen credits his wife with that. Her background in graphic design was put to good use when they started brewing.

“I’m my toughest client,” June Gerteisen said.

Back in the kitchen, Sherry Musgrave, who organized the event for the Alaska State Fair, said the brewfest has grown every year since it started in 2008. She said a couple of things set it apart from other fests in the state. It has good live music and there’s a pretty great prize for the winner of the People’s Choice balloting.

“That brewery has an option of having a tap at the Alaska State Fair, which gives them a lot of exposure,” she said.

She said it started with basically three main distributors bringing suds and this year drew in 36 breweries, 13 from Alaska. All told, there were 80 beers on hand.

“It’s grown a lot from how it started,” she said.

Contact Andrew Wellner at 352-2270 or andrew.wellner@frontiersman.com.