Down the Hatch: Execute your right to try killer Alaska brews, barleywines: Bars

Midnight Sun Brewing Co. signed a lease Nov. 7 to secure space in a South Anchorage industrial area. The owners still need to get licenses transferred and municipal permits/reviews completed, but they hope to move all brewing operations to the new site next year.

The undisclosed location will almost triple the brewery's size from 3,500 square feet to 10,000 feet, all of it in an easily accessible area off Abbott Road.

Ask about it when you check out the brewery's latest Planet beer, Venus, at the tour from 5 to 7 tonight at the brewery, 7329 Arctic Blvd. (www.midnightsunbrewing.com). Look for bottles at liquor stores around town too.

Alaska breweries win again

Keep an eye out for some of the medal-winning beers from Alaska's fine breweries as well because they came back from the Great American Beer Festival last month with six medals.

Alaskan Brewing Co. won gold for Alaskan Smoked Porter 2006 in the aged beer category along with three silvers for Alaskan Raspberry Wheat in the fruit/vegetable competition, Alaskan Summer Ale in the golden/blonde category and Smoked Porter 2007 in the smoked-flavored beer group.

Midnight Sun won silver for Pride in the Belgian- and French-style contest, and Moose's Tooth Brewing Co. won gold for my beloved but woefully hard to find Darth Delirium in the Belgian-style strong specialty ale category.

Seward beer festival Two of those breweries -- Alaskan and the Moose's Tooth -- will participate in the second annual Alaska Grown, Close to Home Resurrection Bay Conservation Alliance Fundraiser from 7 to 10 p.m. Nov. 21 at the Alaska SeaLife Center.

Admission is $30 and includes wine and beer from the Bear Creek Winery and Ring of Fire Meadery of Homer, Kassik's Kenai Brewstop, St. Elias Brewery and Kenai River Brewing of Soldotna, Alaskan Brewing of Juneau and the Moose's Tooth of Ship Creek.

Organizers expect 150 to 200 people to show up for Alaska music, food, wine and beer. A chef's challenge will let cooks vie for accolades by making the best dish from local ingredients.

The Holiday Inn Express in Seward (1-907-224-2550) is offering special rates at $63 a night. Find out more information about the alliance at www.rbca-alaska.org.

12 Days of Barleywine

With the holidays almost upon us, stop by Glacier Brewhouse for pumpkin ale, rye bock and a tasty nut brown. The 12 Days of Barleywine happens in no time, so it pays to get into a routine.

Craigslist statehood sale

"Alaska Beer Stein, ceramic w/silver lid. Has Alaska scene with a moose, an igloo, 2 Eskimos with a dog team, a polar bear and a ram. Made in West Germany 'Expressly for our 49th state' copyright 1960. In excellent shape, no chips in paint on porcelain, no tarnishing on top."

Too bad. A bit of tarnish speaks volumes.

Find Daily News reporter Dawnell Smith at adn.com/contact/dsmith or call 257-4587.