THE WAKKER WEEKLY
Issue #1629 – Posted on: 18-April-2022
BREWERY “HOPP”ENINGS: Bushwakker Head brewer, Michael Gaetz, reports our extremely popular seasonally available PONCE DE LEON BLACKBERRY/RASPBERRY ALE is now on tap, in our offsale and available for growler fills too! A batch of KAI’S MUNICH HELLES and a batch of JUST PEACHY BLONDE ALE are also making their way through the brewery. In addition to taking our beer home in glass bottles and 2 litre jugs direct from our pub, you can find a varying selection of 650 ml bottles of Bushwakker beer in a number of REGINA SLGA stores.
Our SASK CRAFT GUEST TAP is currently pouring Saskatoon’s High Key Brewing HEFEWEIZEN. Next up is the Pile O’Bones AMERICANO COLD BREWED STOUT. This will be followed by the HALF DARK AMBER CZECH LAGER from Black Bridge Brewery.
This Weekend’s April 15th & 16th special Dining Feature is our FESTIVE FISH WEEKEND. Our famous STUBBLEJUMPER PILS BATTERED COD. A full order is $22.95 and a half order is $17.95. Our Saturday CLASSIC STEAK & A PINT SPECIAL will also be available. Our Monday and Wednesday WINGS & A PINT SPECIAL and Tuesday PIZZA & A PINT SPECIAL are also great value deals.
APRIL PREMIUM WINE FEATURES! This month’s featured wines are from South Africa. The red is BRUCE JACK SHIRAZ and the white is THE WOLFTRAP VOIGNIER/CHENIN BLANC/GRENACHE BLANC. Both are $8.50 for a glass and $22.95 for a half litre.
Landing the 2023 IIHF World Junior Hockey Championship in Saskatchewan would be a fantastic boost to our province! Hockey is huge all over Saskatchewan in every city and every small town. We all “bleed green” anyway so getting behind this event next year is what we were born to do! Let’s bring it home!
SUPPORT FOR UKRAINE APRIL FUNDRAISER. One of our longstanding Bushwakker Signature dishes is our Saskatchewan Hot Plate. We often hear our customers refer to this dish as being the Ukrainian Plate. It features perogies, house-made beer bread, house-made cabbage rolls, fresh sauerkraut and koubassa from the Ukrainian Co-op. For the month of April we will offer a Hot Plate & a Pint fundraising feature where $10 from each combo will be donated to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress of Saskatchewan to assist the Ukrainian people both here at home and in the mother country. Local artist, Kathy Hancock, has also donated postcards of her Ukrainian Sunflower (the national flower of Ukraine) which will be included with each meal purchase. Posters are also available and proceeds will be donated to the Ukrainian Congress.
Local artist, Dustin Ritter, is selling a selection of unframed prints for $20 each. All proceeds will go to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress of Saskatchewan. Hurry down and pick up your print before they are all gone!
The 2022 “Best of Food Regina” nominees have now been selected. Thank you for nominating your Bushwakker in 18 categories this year including BEST: Brewpub, Restaurant, Pub, Beer Selection, Scotch Selection, Happy Hour, No-Cover Music, Local Burgers, Nachos, Local Fries, Veggie Burger, Lunch Restaurant, Gourmet Pizza, Wings, Salads, Soup, Downtown Pub and Best Venue For a Post-Pandemic Party! Be sure to turn those nominations into wins by voting in the easy and fun multiple-choice ballot. Just head over to prairiedogmag.com or hit the button below. Voting is open only until May 2, so don’t delay. Best of Food 2022 | Prairie Dog (prairiedogmag.com)
Apr. 15: FESTIVE FISH GOOD FRIDAY. The biggest day of the year for our number-one selling Stubblejumper Pilsener battered Cod served with our award-winning fries and house-made tartar sauce! New this year – enjoy either a full order for $22.95 or a half order for $17.95. Enjoy in-house or get an order to go by calling 306-359-7276.
And you can’t have a Festive Fish Friday without our extremely popular CARROT CAKE CHEESECAKE and CHOCOLATE MINI EGG CHEESECAKE. We only see these beauties once a year!
Apr. 18: Monday Night Jazz & Blues. RESONANCE. Featuring upright bassist, Fred Foerster and powerhouse jazz vocalist, Christie-Anne Blondeau. 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.
Apr. 20: Wednesday Folk Night. SPRING SINGER/SONGWRITER SHOWCASE. Veteran songwriter, Neil Child leads the evening featuring: Keely Coleman, Yianni Pantelopoulos, Steve Abbott, Cori Knelson, John Fortowsky, Trent Leggott and Albert Strangeman. 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.
Apr. 21: SCIENCE PUB. “Megaconstellations of Satellites are About to Ruin the Night Sky for Everyone.” Our wildly popular Science Pub Series has returned for a ninth incredible season after a two year hiatus. Enjoy lectures on scientific topics of general interest in our Arizona Room over fine craft beer and award-winning pub cuisine. The room opens at 5:00 PM. Avoid disappointment and come down early for dinner and a pint before the presentation which begins at 7:00 PM.
This month’s lecture is presented by Dr. Samantha Lawler, Assistant Professor, Campion College at the University of Regina. Several companies are starting to launch megaconstellations of thousands of communication satellites (satcons), which would increase the number of active satellites in Low Earth Orbit at least twenty-fold in the next few years. SpaceX’s Starlink satcon is currently largest (over 2,000 satellites) and is adding 60 new satellites every couple of weeks. While these satcons do allow internet access in many underserved rural and remote locations, the costs are prohibitively high for all but the most well-off customers. These thousands of satellites each reflect sunlight, causing serious problems for research astronomy, and making anthropogenic light pollution a fully global phenomenon that cannot be escaped anywhere on Earth. Our recent simulations show that because of geometry and the chosen satellite orbits, latitudes near 50 degrees N and S will see the worst light pollution from these satcons, with hundreds of naked-eye visible satellites all night long in the summer. These satellites also contribute to significant atmospheric pollution, both on launch and re-entry, contribute to diffuse sky emission, and drastically increase the very real threat of Kessler Syndrome. I will talk about how these satellites will affect stargazers and astronomers worldwide, and what you can do to help mitigation efforts.
BUSHWAKKER “NEW NORMAL” NOTES
New Hours! We are open Monday – Thursday from 11:00 AM – 10:00 PM. The kitchen closes at 9:00 PM and last call is at 9:15 PM. Fridays and Saturdays we are open from 11:00 AM until 11:00 PM. The kitchen is open until 10:00 PM and last call is at 10:15 PM.
The government of Saskatchewan announced that the mandatory indoor masking health restriction will be lifted on March 1st. Bushwakker staff will continue to wear masks for the time being.
Proof of Vaccination is no longer required for restaurant dining. However, we have received many customer comments stating they will be reluctant to visit us because of the recent health restriction changes. To put our vaccinated customers who may have immunodeficiency concerns, family health concerns or simply are not comfortable with the latest easing of health restrictions somewhat at ease, we will make our Arizona Room available to them. Customers choosing to sit in this room will be required to provide Proof of Vaccination and ID. Both vaccinated and unvaccinated customers are most certainly welcome at Bushwakker and are invited to sit in the main pub area. Thank you to our legion of Bushwakker fans for your continued enthusiastic support!
Reservations are accepted and encouraged. We accept a limited number of reservations as late as 6:00 PM every day except Fridays. Fridays we accept reservations as late as 3:00 PM. Call us at 306-359-7276 to secure your table. We are now also able to accommodate larger groups. Our two banquet rooms are also available for private parties. Call Kelly at 306-359-7276 to book either our main floor Arizona Room or basement Clubroom.
Please continue to practice safe health measures. Remain connected to one another and to us! In addition to this weekly newsletter, we are very active on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram. Check-in with us often as we navigate these continually evolving times together. Try to support local businesses whenever possible. Be vigilant in your resolve to protect yourselves which in turn will protect others.
Brewers Association Releases Annual Craft Brewing Industry Production Report and Top 50 Producing Craft Brewing Companies for 2021
Boulder, Colo. — The Brewers Association (BA)—the trade association representing small and independent American craft brewers—today released annual production figures for the U.S. craft brewing industry. In 2021, small and independent brewers collectively produced 24.8 million barrels of beer and realized 8% growth3, increasing craft’s overall beer market share by volume to 13.1%, up from 12.2% the previous year.
The overall beer market* grew 1% by volume in 2021. Retail dollar value was estimated at $26.9 billion, representing 26.8% market share and 21% growth over 2020. This growth is stronger than volume primarily due to the channel shift back to on-premise, which has a higher average retail value. Craft brewers provided more than 172,643 direct jobs, a 25% increase from 2020.
“Craft brewer sales rebounded in 2021, lifted by the return of draught and at-the-brewery traffic,” said Bart Watson, chief economist, Brewers Association. “However, the mixed performance across business models and geographies as well as production levels that still lag 2019 suggest that many breweries remain in recovery mode. Add in continuing supply chain and pricing challenges, and 2022 will be a critical year for many brewers.”
The number of operating craft breweries continued to climb in 2021, reaching an all-time high of 9,118, including 1,886 microbreweries, 3,307 brewpubs, 3,702 taproom breweries, and 223 regional craft breweries. The total operating brewery count was 9,247, up from 9,025 in 2020. Throughout the year, there were 646 new brewery openings and 178 closings. Openings decreased for a second consecutive year, with the continued decline reflecting a more mature market. Ongoing pandemic challenges and rising interest rates were additional factors. The closing rate also declined in 2021, likely helped by a combination of better sales numbers and additional government relief through the Restaurant Revitalization Fund, which was available to some brewpub and taproom brewers.
“While the boom in breweries of a few years before has certainly slowed, the continued growth in small breweries shows the solid foundation of demand for their businesses and beers,” added Watson.
TIME OUT– The Adopted Bunny
An infant rabbit was orphaned. Fortunately though, a family of squirrels took it in and raised it as one of their own. This adoption led to some peculiar behaviors on the part of the rabbit. It had a tendency to scurry up trees like its step-siblings instead of hopping along the ground. And it ate acorns and nuts instead of carrots. By the time it was half grown, the rabbit realized that it was different, so it went to its step-parents to discuss the problem.
He said he was unsure of his place in the universe and was generally forlorn.
His step-parents advised, “Don’t scurry. Be hoppy.”
This is just so darn cute we had to share it again!