THE WAKKER WEEKLY
Issue #1653 – Posted on: 03-October-2022
BREWERY “HOPP”ENINGS: Bushwakker Head brewer, Michael Gaetz, reports that our new PONCE DE LEON BLACKBERRY RASPBERRY WHEAT, SUMMER WHEAT and KAI’S MUNICH HELLES are currently available on tap, in our offsale and for growler fills too. A batch of HARVEST OKTOBERFEST LAGER as well as our GREAT PUMPKIN SPICED BROWN ALE will be released next week! In addition to taking our beer home in glass bottles and 2 litre jugs direct from our brewpub, you can find a varying selection of 650 ml bottles of Bushwakker beer in a number of REGINA SLGA stores.
Thank you Regina! Of the dozen wins we received in the 2022 “Best of Food” Regina Awards, the BEST DOWNTOWN PUB win may have sparked some debate. Are we a downtown pub or a Warehouse District pub or a central Regina pub? Although the original proposed location for your Bushwakker was right next to the SGI Building in downtown Regina, our initial application for a brewpub license was (much to our surprise) denied. This dark cloud proved to have a silver lining because our second application was indeed approved and our new proposed location was on Dewdney Avenue which is the showcase strip for the Regina Warehouse District. Dewdney Avenue is schedule to receive a massive facelift. Once that beautification project is complete we hope to see the Regina Railyard area put to good use. This long-awaited development may finally link the historical old brick warehouses with the more modern buildings of downtown Regina. But our heart and our pride will always lie with the Regina Warehouse District!
This Weekend’s September 30th & October 1st Special Dining Feature is a CHIMICHANGA for $19.95. 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.
Our SASK CRAFT GUEST TAP is currently pouring the SEASON OF THE WITCH New England IPA from Regina’s Malty National Brewing. This will be followed by a beautiful BROWN ALE from Nokomis Craft Ales. With our upcoming Oktoberfest Week event coming up, a keg of PAULANER OKTOBERFEST BIER imported from Germany will find its way on tap too! Enjoy this celebration brew in a one-litre stein!
OCTOBER PREMIUM WINE FEATURES This month’s wine features are the organic HERITAGE ROAD WINES from Australia. The red is the Bloodstone Shiraz and the white is the Moonstone Pinot Grigio. Both are $7.95 for a glass and $21.95 for a half litre.
WE ARE HIRING! The busy fall and winter season is a comin’! We need experienced lunchtime servers, full and part-time cooks and part-time bartenders. Stop by with your resume today!
Now on SaskTel maxTV Local on Demand! The Bushwakker Brewpub was recently featured on “Behind The Menu!” This 25 minute finely crafted video tells the story of how the national award-winning brewer, Bev Robertson, carved his own path—whether he was “bushwacking” on cross-country skis, or paving the way to help legalize brewpubs in Saskatchewan. His legacy of fine food, beer, and service lives on through The Bushwakker and many other Saskatchewan brewpubs alike.
You can now also view this video on YouTube by visiting https://youtu.be/58dqbNmDb4U
EXTENDED! The 2022 edition of the Regina HOP CIRCUIT has seen its most successful year to date! Due to all those smiles the Hop Circuit season will be extended until the end of October. You still have a chance to earn a commemorative Hop Circuit glass or even pick up another one. Grab a map and visit all six participating breweries at your leisure. Download the free Hop Circuit app to make your experience even slicker!
Oct. 3 – 8: OKTOBER-SCHNITZLE-PUMPKIN-FEST! A whole lot of fun all wrapped up into one! Enjoy a variety of unique German-themed meal specials all week long as well as a one-litre stein of imported German brew. Our Oktoberfest beer (Harvest Lager) will be released on the Monday to kick off the week. Our Great Pumpkin Spiced Brown Ale will be released on the Friday. Schnitzels and spätzles and dunkles, oh my!
Oct. 3: HARVEST LAGER RELEASE. We haven’t seen our big, malty and rich Oktoberfest Lager since 2019. As we slowly recover from the pandemic we are finally able to produce some of our seasonal brews once again. In the spirit of celebration, we will unveil our Harvest Lager to kick off our Oktoberfest Week! It will be available on tap, in our offsale and for growler fills too!
Oct. 3: Monday Night Jazz & Blues. 8’s ‘ENUFF. This mini big band features some powerhouse brass to deliver great jazz and swing tunes. 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.
Oct. 5: Wednesday Folk Night. TOMMY JOHN EHMAN DUO. Country/Alt-Country/Roots/Canadiana, and a little Folk music too from this talented team. 7:30 PM – 9:00 PM.
Oct. 5: MONTHLY ALES CLUB MEETING. If you are interested in delving into the world of homebrewing or are just looking to brush up on your brewing skills then the ALES Club is for you! This month’s topic will be Oktoberfest and Oktoberfest Beer Styles. Come to the Bushwakker basement clubroom at 7:00 PM and discover what the ALES Club can offer you. New members are always welcome!
Oct. 7: FIRST FIRKIN FRIDAY. Enjoy the pomp and circumstance of this longstanding Bushwakker monthly tradition! A piper from The Regina Police Services Pipes & Drums leads a keg (the firkin) of special ale throughout the pub in a procession. A guest volunteer tapper is selected to wield the handmade wooden maul affectionately named, The Mighty Firkin Wakker, and attempts to tap the keg in one mighty blow! This month’s special firkin offering will be a WILLAMETTE DRY-HOPPED IRISH RED ALE! The suds-soaking spectacular takes place at 5:30 PM.
Oct. 7: GREAT PUMPKIN SPICED BROWN ALE RELEASE. After a three-year pandemic-induced hiatus, our autumn speciality brew will return just in time for the Thanksgiving weekend! Our rich Brown Ale is infused with nutmeg, cinnamon, clove, vanilla and more. Tastes like pumpkin pie in a glass! It will be available on tap and in our offsale! Limited quantities available.
CURRENT HOURS OF OPERATION AND RESERVATIONS NOTES
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.
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. Our two banquet rooms are also available for private party rentals. Call Kelly at 306-359-7276 to book either our main floor Arizona Room or basement Clubroom.
13 Oktoberfest Fun Facts
By Maya Pankalla
Think you can handle the world’s biggest beer and bratwurst party? Get in the Bavarian spirit with this surprising look at the world’s most famous beer festival.
Oktoberfest Began as a Marriage Feast
The first Oktoberfest was held in 1810, as a wedding feast honouring the union of Bavarian King Ludwig I and Maria Theresia of Saxonia. The royal shindig took place at the Theresienwiese (Theresia meadow) where it continues to be held today.
By 1819, festive horse races were replaced by beer carts and a new edict: that the party return each fall. Since then, the festivities have been cancelled only two dozen times-once in 1870 during the Franco-Prussian war, twice due to cholera epidemics, and later in the hyperinflation of the 1920s and in the years during and after the two world wars.
You’ll Have to Reveal Your Mug
Every year, festival-goers and patrons itching for free memorabilia attempt to make off with official Oktoberfest beer mugs. The one-litre glasses, or Masskrugs, while fantastic souvenirs, are actually the property of the beerhall or tent landlords. Security guards are specially positioned near marquee entrances, and told to look out for mugs leaving the tents. Last year, 226,000 glasses were recovered by security staff before patrons could sneak off with them.
The penalty for treating yourself to a Bavarian piece of hardware? A likely charge of theft. For those less keen on incurring a criminal offence, these same steins are available for purchase on the Oktoberfest grounds.
It Actually Starts in September
Despite a name that clearly evokes October, the original Munich Oktoberfest actually begins in September. Authorities opted to move the festival start date forward in order to benefit from the warmer early-fall weather-and the resulting increase in crowds. The event now begins the first Saturday after September 15, and lasts between 16 and 18 days. The name, however, has remained the same, and the festival always ends in October.
The Prices Are Enough to Make You Sway
With all the great beer made in and around Germany, which do you serve? Only beer brewed within the Munich city limits, for starters!
Last year, visitors drank a whopping 7.5 million litres of Munich brew. The cost to fill up your stein continually rises each year, with the average price of a litre of beer at $12, compared with roughly $8.50 just ten years before.
Still, with many of the brews boasting from 7.5 to 8 per cent alcohol, and the price of a bottle of water coming in around $9, it’s hard not to get carried away. Locals have an affectionate name for those over-consumers passed out on the beerfest grounds: Bierleichen, or “beer corpses.”
It’s a Proper Barvarian Pig-Out
Think giant soft pretzels, dumplings, cheese noodles, sausages and roast chicken-and lots of them. Every year, Oktoberfest revellers eat over 500,000 roast chicken and roughly 120,000 pairs of pork sausages. Last year, in just 17 days, 118 oxen and 53 calves were consumed.
But the Munich party isn’t the only Oktoberfest big on food. In Cincinnati, Ohio, at the largest Oktoberfest in the United States, organizers hold a yearly Bratwurst Eating Championship. The 2011 winner gobbled down 35 brats in 10 minutes for a $2,000 cash prize.
TIME OUT
Two men celebrating Oktoberfest walk into a bar….
They walk up to the bartender and both order a pint and a bratwurst. One of the men’s phone rings and he answers. It’s his wife on the line.
“Honey, I need to tell you, I cheated on you.”
“What?!?!” the man yells, “With who??????”
There’s indistinct mumbling from the other line, then the call drops.
The man is furious! He jumps up from his seat, picks up the bratwurst and chucks it into the wall as he storms out of the bar.
“Jeez. Any idea who slept with your friend’s wife?” the bartender asks his friend.
“No idea”, says his friend. “But I’m going to assume the wurst.”
Be sure to enjoy our delicious German Bratwurst special as part of our Oktoberfest Week celebration!
