THE WAKKER WEEKLY – Issue #1760
Issue #1760 – Posted on: 21 – Oct – 2024
BUSHWAKKER SEASONAL SUDS STATUS. Bushwakker head brewer, Michael Gaetz, reports our seasonally available GREAT PUMPKIN SPICED BROWN ALE, POWERHOUSE PORTER, TREPHINATION IMPERIAL IPA, LEMON RASPBERRY ALE and BREW & GOLD DORTMUNTER EXPORT LAGER are currently available. There are also batches of KAI’S MUNICH HELLES, DOUBLE HONEY RED ALE, 30th ANNIVERSARY BLACKBERRY MEAD and MORK’S MEAD (our very first mead) currently working their way through the brewery.
Our GREAT PUMPKIN SPICED BROWN ALE returned last weekend! Most of our offsale bottles sold on opening day but there is still a small amount available. This beer is our Northern English Brown Ale infused with classic pumpkin pie spices including; fresh ginger, vanilla, cloves, nutmeg and cinnamon. We are hopeful it will remain on tap until Hallowe’en! Enjoy this beautiful autumn brew while quantities last!
This Saturday, October 19th TICKETS GO ON SALE TO THE 34th BUSHWAKKER SINGLE MALT SCOTCH TASTING! We had a line-up around the corner the day the tickets went on sale last year and they disappeared in just two hours! Don’t miss your chance to get tickets to one of the most delicious Single Malt Scotch Tasting events in our 33 year history! A number of this year’s featured whiskies are brand new or one-time releases including; LAGAVULIN 11 YEAR OFFERMAN EDITION #3 CARIBBEAN RUM CASK, ARDBEG HEAVY VAPOURS, TOMINTOUL CIGAR MALT, ROSEISLE 12 YEAR NATURAL CASK STRENGTH, ISLE OF HARRIS – THE HEARACH and LISMORE 15 YEAR! Only 150 tickets will be made available and will go on sale Saturday, October 19th at 11:00 AM sharp. The scotch tasting will take place on Saturday, November 16th. Entertainment includes performances from The Regina Police Services Pipes & Drums and The Regina Highland Dance Association. Plenty of door prizes to be given away too. Don’t miss one of our biggest nights of the entire year!
Bushwakker 34th Single Malt Scotch Tasting Dinner Offering (regular menu also available)
Starter: Scotch Poached Pears with bleu cheese, walnuts, arugula, spinach and lettuce salad in a balsamic honey vinaigrette.
Or
Roasted Pumpkin Soup with a scotch crème fraiche, maple candied pumpkin seeds and a house-made crouton.
Main: Laphroaig Smoked Prime Rib with jumbo Yorkshire pudding, apple mashed potatoes and Chef’s select vegetables.
Desserts: Glenmorangie Sticky Toffee Pudding or Raspberry, Honey Oat Crumble & Whisky Caramel Cranachan Cheesecake.
This WEEKEND’S SPECIAL DINING FEATURE for Oct. 18th & 19th is an ASIAN SHRIMP NOODLE BOWL. Our Saturday CLASSIC STEAK & A PINT SPECIAL as well as our Monday and Wednesday WINGS & A PINT SPECIAL and Tuesday PIZZA & A PINT SPECIAL are also great value deals.
Our SASK CRAFT GUEST TAP is currently pouring an OKTOBERFEST LAGER from Saskatoon’s High Key Brewing. Upcoming fellow Saskatchewan craft brewery offerings include a GERMAN HEFFEWEIZEN brewed by longtime Bushwakker friend, Walter Martin, from District Brewing as well as the SEASON OF THE WITCH NEIPA from Malty National Brewing.
OCTOBER PREMIUM WINE FEATURES: This month’s juicy and delicious wine features are new to the province. ESPORAO wines from Portugal! The red is a PE TINTO. The white is a PE BRANCO. Both are $8.95 for a glass and $23.95 for a half litre.
UPCOMING BUSHWAKKER EVENTS
Oct. 19: ANNUAL SINGLE MALT SCOTCH TASTING TICKETS RELEASE DAY. Tickets to our November 16th scotch tasting event will go on sale at 11:00 AM sharp! Last year all 150 tickets sold out in just two hours. Experience six fine specialty Scottish whiskies, door prizes, pipes & drums and Highland dance performances too. Drop by at 11:00 or call 306-359-7276 around noon to get your tickets!
Oct. 21: Monday Night Jazz & Blues. COLIN WIEST. Acoustic, resonator and electric blues guitar veteran. Enjoy 1920’s Mississippi delta to 1960’s Chicago blues. 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.
Oct. 23: Wednesday Folk Night. LIFE OUT LOUD. Contemporary and traditional folk, folk rock and even some rock folk! 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.
Oct. 26: SASK VS. CALGARY. With the recent clinching of a home playoff game, football fever is at an all-time high! Kickoff is at 5:00 PM so stop by before or after the game. Come park your vehicle in the massive free parking lot just east across the street, enjoy our gourmet game day STAMPEDERS BURGER & A PINT Special and then grab a free shuttle to the stadium. Come “devour” the competition!
The Great American Beer Festival Announces the Top Beers and Ciders of 2024
The nation’s largest professional beer competition awarded 326 medals to 273 breweries and cideries.
DENVER — The Brewers Association (BA) revealed the top beers and ciders of 2024 at an awards ceremony during the Great American Beer Festival (GABF®). In partnership with the American Cider Association, the prestigious competition bestowed awards in five new cider categories. With more than 1,200 cider producers in the U.S., the GABF competition keeps consumer drinking preferences and trends at the forefront of the event.
This year, 273 breweries and cideries earned 326* medals. The Great American Beer Festival judge panel evaluated noteworthy brews and ciders across 102 beer categories (including 170 subcategories), five new cider categories, and the Pro-Am and Collaboration competitions.
The competition was made possible thanks to more than 250 volunteers who facilitated the multi-step judging process and 285 beer experts who evaluated 8,836 commercial beer entries, 233 commercial cider entries, 95 Collaboration entries, and 52 Pro-Am entries. Judging occurred in three phases over seven days and included brewery entries from all 50 states plus Washington, D.C., and Puerto Rico.
“The Great American Beer Festival continues its commitment to recognizing exceptional beverages from across the country in the 2024 competition,” said Chris Williams, competition director for the Brewers Association. “With the addition of five new cider categories, we’re pleased to recognize the best of the best in beer and beyond. Congratulations to this year’s winners!”
GABF Competition Statistics
- 38th edition of the GABF competition
- 8,836 beers judged
- 1,869 breweries & cideries in the competition from all 50 states plus Washington, D.C. and Puerto Rico
- 285 judges
- 250+ volunteers
- Average number of beers entered in each category: 85
- Category with the highest number of entries: Category 102 – Juicy/Hazy IPA (349 entries)
- 326 total medals awarded
- 273 medal-winning breweries
- 280 first-time GABF competition entrants
- 25 first-time GABF competition winners
- Five new cider categories
Top 5 Most-Entered Beer Style Category Winners
Category 102 | Juicy/Hazy IPA (349 entries)
GOLD: Professional Human Being | Ambitious Ales | Long Beach, CA
SILVER: Groundswell | Single Hill Brewing Co. | Yakima, WA
BRONZE: Crash of Rhinos | Movement Brewing Co. | Rancho Cordova, CA
Category 100: West Coast IPA (292 entries)
GOLD: Codebreaker | Trademark Brewing | Long Beach, CA
SILVER: Pacific Portal | Alma Mader Brewing | Kansas City, MO
BRONZE: IPA for Aliens | Masthead Brewing Co. | Cleveland, OH
Category 101: American-Style IPA (217 entries)
GOLD: Competition | Highland Park Brewery – Chinatown | Los Angeles, CA
SILVER: One Way | Old Caz Beer | Rohnert Park, CA
BRONZE: Lexical Gap | Pollyanna Brewing Co. | Lemont, IL
Category 50: Dortmunder or German-Style Oktoberfest (210 entries)
GOLD: Festbier | Glenwood Canyon Brewing Co. | Glenwood Springs, CO
SILVER: Festbier | Northwoods Brewing Co. | Northwood, NH
BRONZE: The Cushman | Morgan Territory Brewing | Tracy, CA
Category 52: German-Style Maerzen (195)
GOLD: Pleasantbräu Oktoberfest | Soul Brewing Co. | Pleasantville, NY
SILVER: Marchtoberfest | Galveston Island Brewing | Galveston, TX
BRONZE: Oktoberfest | Left Hand Brewing Co. | Longmont, CO
Most-Entered Cider Category Winners
Category 203: Fruited & Botanical Cider (74 entries)
GOLD: Blackberry Cider | McMenamins Breweries | Portland, OR
SILVER: Ozark Strawberry Rhubarb Cider | Ozark Beer Co. | Rogers, AR
BRONZE: Pacific Pineapple | 2 Towns Ciderhouse | Corvallis, OR
Most-Medaled Breweries
Apogee Brewing Company | Grover Beach, CA
Gold, Lucy Loves Rye, Category 76: Specialty Saison
Bronze, Aurora, Category 73: Belgian-Style Ale or French-Style Ale
Bronze, Monks on the Moon, Category 78: Belgian-Style Strong Specialty Ale
Bronze, Monks In Space, Category 79: Belgian-Style Abbey Ale
Highland Park Brewery – Chinatown | Los Angeles, CA
Gold, Competition, Category 101: American-Style India Pale Ale
Gold, Baseball, Category 40: Contemporary American-Style Lager
Gold, Timbo, Category 91: American-Style Pale Ale
Gold, DDH Pillow, Category 98: Juicy or Hazy Imperial India Pale Ale
COLLABORATION COMPETITION (95 entries) See criteria here.Opens in new window
GOLD: Twenty-Fold Sword | New Zealand-Style IPA | No Boat Brewing Company and Obelisk Beer Co. | Snoqualmie, WA
SILVER: Stupid Sticky Fingers | Wood & Barrel Aged Imperial Stout | Werk Force Brewing Co. and Rocky Reef Brewing Co. | Plainfield, IL
BRONZE: Spudweiser | American Pilsner | Live Oak Brewing Company and Hold Out Brewing | Del Valle, TX
PRO-AM COMPETITION (52 entries) See criteria hereOpens in new window. Sponsored by Briess Malt & Ingredients Co. & White Labs
GOLD: Piwo Grodziskie | Kansas City Bier Co. and Mike & Stephanie
Butler | Kansas City, MO
SILVER: Rising Sun | Crooked Lane Brewing Co. and Matt Hall | Auburn, CA
BRONZE: South of Helles | Starr Hill Beer Hall & Rooftop – Richmond and Joel Miller | Richmond, VA
*Out of 327 possible awards, 326 were conferred. Bronze was not awarded in Category 15 for Amber to Dark Non-Alcohol Beer.
TIME OUT – Another Pumpkin Pit Stop
What did the pumpkins say at happy hour?
Let’s get smashed.
How do you mend a jack-o’-lantern?
With a pumpkin patch.
What do you call an athletic pumpkin?
A jock-o-lantern.
How does a pumpkin listen to Halloween music?
On vine-yl.
Whether you seek tickets to a premium whisky tasting event or a pint of perfectly pleasing pumpkin ale, we have you covered this Saturday, October 19th!
