Palmer brewery to offer ‘Arkose 557 Revival Ale’

PALMER — Folks looking forward to the day when Alaska Railroad Engine No. 557 may once again chug down the tracks can get a “chugging” advance as part of a unique fundraiser sponsored by Arkose Brewery.

In honor of Engine No. 557, Stephen and June Gerteisen of Arkose Brewery have brewed a one-of-a-kind batch called “Arkose 557 Revival Ale.”

“In other words, this is not one of our regular recipes and while we were scheduled to brew that Monday, we created a new recipe just for you,” she wrote in an email announcing the offer to members of the nonprofit Engine No. 557 Restoration Co.

Arkose has planned a First Tap party next Saturday to sample the new brew. The time? You guessed it. The party starts at 5:57 p.m., June 29 at Arkose Brewery, 650 E. Steel Loop.

This First Tap also will offer a special opportunity for beer and train lovers, Gerteisen said.

In support of the nonprofit Alaska Community Foundation 557 Fund, Arkose also will offer collectable 16-ounce glasses and 64-ounce growlers with the special Arkose 557 Revival Ale label.

Only 100 of the packages will be available during the First Tap event at Arkose, she said.

Here’s the deal. The first 100 people who donate $100 or more to the Engine 557 restoration fund get a collectable Arkose 557 Revival Ale growler premium package, which includes a 557 Revival growler and beer glass and a certificate to fill up the growler.

People who can’t attend First Tap can still purchase a collectible growler by having a friend attend for them, or the Gerteisens have offered to play the role of “friend” for those in need.

To have the Gerteisens hold a 557 Revival package for you, send an email by June 28 to sewtrain557@gmail.com with the subject line “557 be my friend.” In the body of the message, include a phone number, name and mailing address.

Growlers can only be filled at Arkose Brewery in Palmer at 650 E. Steel Loop. To reach the brewery, at the fairgrounds turn east onto Inner Springer and continue to S. Eklutna Street, turn right into the Palmer Commercial Center and go to the end of the street.

Named for Arkose Ridge and Arkose Peak in the Talkeetna Mountains, the couple opened the brewery Oct. 11, 2011.

Restoration continues

Engine 557 Restoration Co. President Patrick Durand said this is a key week for the historic engine rebuild project.

This week volunteers lifted Engine 557 off her drivers so a team from Steam Services of America could perform an inspection June 20-24.

Engine No. 557 is a World War II-era locomotive that was the last steam locomotive in regular service in Alaska. It was finally sold for scrap to Monte Holm in 1964. Also a history buff, he placed the engine at Holm’s House of Poverty Museum in Washington state, where hundreds of school children saw it each year.

When he died in 2006 at age 89, Vic and Jim Jansen stepped in, bringing the 162,500-pound heirloom home to Alaska in 2012.

The Jansens gifted the engine to the Alaska Railroad and volunteers have been working since then on its restoration. The historic engine was transported in August 2012 to the old Kenai Supply building in Wasilla, where restoration work is ongoing.

A timeline established when the Jansens gave the engine to the railroad gives volunteers eight years to restore it.

Overall, the effort to rebuild the engine and a tender from the Museum of Alaska Transportation and Industry is expected to cost $600,000 to $700,000.

A $350,000 matching grant from the Rasmuson Foundation will cover part of the project’s cost.

For more information about Arkose 557 Revival Ale, contact 746-2337. For more information about Engine No. 557, contact sewtrain557@gmail.com.

Contact managing editor Heather A. Resz at 352-2268

or heather.resz@frontiersman.com.