Rondy leaves two tastes in mouth (2-25-2005)
Published: February 25, 2005
Last Modified: December 20, 2005 at 04:26 AM
Fur Rondy is the Budweiser of winter events. It arrives in a likable, predictable package and proffers exactly what's expected -- carnival rides, fireworks, grand prix races and sled dog championships. Anyone can appreciate its quenching fizz and welcoming buzz. But a big gulp reveals its limp body and flawed aftertaste: the hassle of parking; a frictional blend of wet blankets and cold plastic that forces grade-school kids to shuffle their way over each hump of the super slide; the trash, and the trash talk, and the trashy attitude of a man poking fun at his boy for not wanting to ride the Ferris wheel. Oh, and the bravado! The thick fur coats and dead animals; 25 cent prizes for $2 games; the posturing of teenagers and middle-aged sourdoughs wearing nothing but tennis shoes and track suits despite the biting cold of wind against skin and skin against metal; the guys who grumble at toddlers; the parents and grandparents and great-grandparents who scream at them for wanting more.
All that toughness, all that money, all that urine at Tozier Track. But Fur Rondy is also like Arctic Devil Barley Wine. Every time it comes around, it has its own nuances and subtleties, dark and rich and mysterious. It warms the heart like a jolly old woman dead set on living well and long and hard, and it catches up with you like a ride on a spinning apple when everyone, even the 5-year-old, churns the wheel faster and faster.
Sometimes, it dribbles through the cracks like bourbon over oak, smelly and strong, steady and hilarious, kind of like the hoot and holler of a long ski over Double Bubble as two eager little boys bend their knees and squint their eyes like pirates, ready for the payoff for all that work and then, later, admitting that sometimes the best thrill comes when you have to hump up one side of a hill to slide down the other. Anyone who yearns for Midnight Sun can find all that charm and joy and warmth at Fur Rondy, an ode to winter with the promise of spring.
THE WHIRLING DEVIL WINS AGAIN Arctic Devil Barley Wine from Midnight Sun Brewing Co. proved its mettle again with its second place finish at the Toronado Barley Wine Festival in San Francisco earlier this month. About 50 barley wines from across the country were on tap, and a true-blue Alaskan came in second.
The bourbon-laced beer also won second at our own Great Alaska Beer and Barley Wine Festival in January, making it a hot commodity now. So while you're out and about enjoying the carnival atmosphere, stop by Midnight Sun Brewing (7329 Arctic Blvd., 344-1179) and snag a few bottles before the 2004 version runs out. Look for bottles of the oak-aged La Maitresse du Moine Dark Strong Ale too.
LEARN MORE ABOUT BEER AT THE IMAGINARIUM Yes, your child's favorite science exploration zone, the Imaginarium, will conduct a beer demonstration at 6 p.m. First Friday, March 4. The organizers didn't have a lot of details about the exhibit, but "Of Pints and Petri Dishes" won't include beer samples.
Instead, the two-hour gig will allow visitors to learn a bit more about the cultivation of hops and barley, the fermentation process as yeast consumes sugar and produces alcohol and carbon dioxide, and an overview of the equipment required to make it all end up in your glass.
Of course, the exhibit will also explain how alcohol affects the body and mind, but you'll have to do those experiments on your own.
Reporter Dawnell Smith can be reached at dsmith@adn.com.
