Copyright 2010 Snow Goose Restaurant and Sleeping Lady Brewing Co

Awards

INTERNATIONAL AWARDS:

Silver Medals

Urban Wilderness Pale Ale

2000 World Cup

2002 World Cup

Frozen Kriek

2010 World Cup

Bronze Medals

Urban Wilderness Pale Ale

2006 World Cup

NATIONAL AWARDS

Gold Medals

Old Gander Barley Wine

1999 GABF

Silver Medals

Portage Porter

1998 GABF

Urban Wilderness Pale Ale

1998 GABF; 2002 GABF

Old Gander Barley Wine

2007 GABF

ALASKAN AWARDS

Great Alaskan Beer and Barley Wine Festival

Best in Alaska and Second Place Overall

Old Gander Barley Wine

2008

2009

ANCHORAGE PRESS PICKS

2006 - Anchorage Convention and Visitor Bureau All Alaskan Award

2009 - Fish On! Voted second best local Beer in Anchorage

Best Deck in Anchorage - TOO numerous to count!

One of the first brewpubs to pour fresh suds in Anchorage, the Snow Goose built its nest on the upper tiers of the Elks Lodge in 1996. Over the years, the Snow Goose's Sleeping Lady Brewing Company has been recognized both nationally and internationally for its expertise as a craft brewer.  Have a brew with a view at the Snow Goose Restaurant!

Gold Rush – Golden Ale

Gold Rush is an excellent introduction to the full flavor and freshness of handcrafted ales.  Brewed with Pilsner malt and Noble German hops, this smooth unfiltered ale is as light and crisp as the finest Pilsner.

Urban Wilderness – Pale Ale

This tasty English style pale ale gets its charm from our unique, proprietary house yeast strain.  Combined with American malts, hops and Alaskan water, our pale ale is supremely balanced between bitterness and full malt flavor.

Fish On – I.P.A.

The Pacific Northwest is home to a particular style of IPA that is lighter in color, crisper, and much hoppier than IPAs in other parts of the country.  Northwest style IPAs have a very dry finish and must have an intense hop aroma and bitterness.  Fish On! gets it's signature flavors from two new high-alpha acid hop varieties, which lend a very intense yet drinkable bitterness and flavor.

49er – Amber Ale

Our Amber Ale is an American take on a Southern English Brown Ale.  We use fresh American Pale malt and mix in some light crystal malts with imported English Brown malt, then add a touch of Chocolate malt.  Combine Noble English hop varieties to our House English yeast strain and you have a crisp toasty malt flavor with a hint of chocolate that segues into a clean crisp finish.

Braveheart – Scottish Ale

Bravehart is rich with a smooth malty flavor and a brown sugar likeness derived from kettle carmelization during a three hour boil.  A single addition of Northern Brewer hops lends a very balanced and subtle hop bitterness while the rich malt flavors seduce your palate.

Portage - Porter

A dark chocolate colored ale with a blend of toasty malt flavors and a dark caramel, this is a malt lovers paradise.  Portage Porter's rich flavor can allow you a glimpse into the history of how beer used to taste back in the 1800s.

Old Gander – Barley Wine

Old Gander is more of a specialty beer as it is aged in Jack Daniels Oak Barrels.  This beer is a blend of our aged Old Gander with newly brewed Barley Wine.  The aroma is sweet, with hints of vanilla, sugar and toffee.  The blend produces a complex taste.  The hop bitterness is noticable, but only so much as to counter-act the maltiness.  The flavors are unique to a beer that spends so much time in an oak barrel.

John Henry - Stout

This special ale is as black as the Alaskan winter nights. With a nod to the past, we brew John Henry Oatmeal Stout as an American take on an Irish Classic. Fuller in flavor and with a silky mouth-feel from the oats, we add an American twist by adding a small portion of rye which lends a spicy note. Conditioned with Nitrogen our Stout pours with a frothy head and smooth feel.

Try our Award Winning

House Root Beer

Old fashioned Root Beer, brewed right here. Fresh from our kegs, our Root Beer is not too sweet, just like the good old days, and has a spicy finish. Want it sweeter? Try our Root Beer Floats!

Beers!

June 2010

The other day I caught myself being prejudice. I watched a man walk out of the grocery store sporting a Mohawk, a case of beer, and a child. I was not judging the man based on his hair. I once had a Mohawk for about 12 hours. I didn’t judge the man based on the fact that he was carrying beer and a child. I judged the man based on his beer selection. It was the light, yellow, fizzy, water-like beer that craft brewers the world over have come to demonize. Did I wish that he had purchased a better beer? Does he like better beer? Or, what is it more that I felt sorry for the child who was destined to grow older in a house with no good beer?

I spent the better portion of my younger years in a house that carried only Pearl Light in a can. But somewhere along the line I got lucky. My college years, like everyone else, became the real start of my beer drinking career. The local grocery store was like the South Carolina Mecca of craft beer. I remember locally produced beer like Palmetto and other brands like Pete’s Wicked Ale and Sam Adams. But the beer that changed it all was Sierra Nevada. The SN Pale Ale (green label) was my first hoppy experience. It blew my mind and forever changed my palate. Unbeknownst to me, it was doing the same thing all over the country. 

Today, our Urban Wilderness Pale Ale is a tribute to that beer from Chico, CA. I can only hope that someday I make a beer that has as profound an impact on someone else. So join us on the deck and raise a glass to craft beer and that unending Alaskan sunshine.

Greg

November 2011

A Tale of Two Lagers

It was the best of times, it was the worst of times....  In the fall, I am afforded the luxury of time. I can allow beer to sit in a tank for months if necessary. Time is something that all lagers need. The lager yeast strains require much cooler temperatures than their ale counterparts. Scientifically speaking, reactions occur much slower in cooler temperatures. Thus, lager fermentations are weeks longer than ale fermentations. Then, there is a warm-conditioning period which is followed by a cold-conditioning period. More time. So why brew this way? The answer is in the beautiful simplicity of the finished beer. The final product is smooth. The aromas and flavors are all so subtle, yet combine to make an extraordinary beverage.

In the spirit of Octoberfest (and in tribute to my recent European vacation), I decided to brew a Vienna Lager. I used all German varieties of malts, European hops, and Anchorage water. My own unique twist was the combination of two lager yeast strains for the single fermentation. The beer that emerged was exactly what I wanted. Deep golden color. Faint aromas of toasted malt, nuts, and the light sulphurous character of lager yeast. It is slightly sweet, but crisp and refreshing.

The success of the previous beer led me try my hand at another. I recently brewed the Turnagainator Doppelbock. In keeping with tradition, and historic/stylistic accuracy, I used all German malts and European hops. The Doppelbock is characterized by robust malty flavors reminiscent of caramel. I hoped to achieve these flavors by the selection of malts and an extended boiling time. I used the same combination of yeast strains as the Vienna lager. The beer has just begun to ferment. With a very high starting gravity, this fermentation will take quite some time. I hope that the Turnagainator will not disappoint. Only time will tell.

Dec 2010 – Jan 2011

It’s cold.

And when it’s cold, we turn to bigger beers. Enter the Old Gander. The 2011 version of the Old Gander Barley Wine Ale is something the likes of which has never been seen (or rather, tasted). It has taken years and will never be able to be duplicated. There are four recipes spanning three years in this beer. A portion of the Old Gander was originally made in 2007 and has been quietly aging since. The blend includes beer that was aged for more than a year in retired Jack Daniels American Oak barrels and beer that was aged over six months in former red wine American Oak barrels. The blending process is a labor of love. It requires the early morning sampling of every barrel and keg of barley wine along with the various blends of those samples. Notes taken, thoughts pondered, samples revisited. The result is actually more faith than skill. Once the blend has been determined, the various vessels are emptied into a large tank. The beer is chilled and slowly carbonated. At first, the flavors are always disjointed. One may taste all of the various flavors but they act independent of each other. With time, the whole beer comes together. The 2011 Gander was blended and allowed to rest for more than a month before I felt confident that the flavors were playing together nicely. Oxymoronic to say, but this beer has subtle complexity and robust nuances.

The 2011 Gander appears a deep garnet color and pours with just a small amount of off-white foam. There are fruit-like aromas mixing with barrel character. The flavor is quite unique. One tastes the caramel, candy-ish flavors associated with extended boiling. That flavor is quickly replaced by the woodiness of the barrels. Then, the alcohol. Higher alcohol beers will become somewhat sweet with time, but the burn is always noticeable. Barley wines commonly have a residual sweetness that can overwhelm the product, but not Gander. The extended time in barrels gives a tannic astringency that works to counteract the sweetness, leaving the drinker with the desire to take another sip. This beer surprises me more every day. I only hope that everyone else is pleased with the 2011 Old Gander.

See you at the Great Alaska Beer and Barley Wine Festival January 14-15!

November 2010

Baltic Porter

The winter provides me with the luxury known as time. With this time, I can make beer of a more exotic nature which keeps me (and you patrons) entertained. This winter, I present to you the Baltic Porter. This style of beer probably originated in the late 1700’s to early 1800’s as a response to the popularity of English Porters. Areas all over Europe became infatuated with Porters and a demand was created. Knowing that alcohol is a natural preservative, many brewers made stronger beers that could withstand sea travel. This story is akin to that of the IPA and Imperial Stout with the final result being that customers on the receiving end became used to these new beers.

Why buy it when you can make it? This thought drives me as a brewer, and I’m willing to bet that it has driven others as well. Sweden, Finland, Poland and other nations around the Baltic Sea started making Porters of their own and still do to this day. Typically, the brewers of this region would ferment at colder temperatures using lager yeasts. This requires much more time as care must be taken to prevent off-flavors.  The benefit of this time is a unique aroma profile and an incredibly smooth beer. Baltic Porters have a very malt-forward aroma described as “roasty” with hints of chocolate, coffee, and/or caramel.  They should look ruby red to dark brown in color with a tan foam. The flavors should mimic the aromas. Subtle warmth from the alcohol plays very well with the complex maltiness.

It was my intention to brew this style of beer as a tribute to the Baltic brewers of the past and present. However, it is probably more appropriate for me to call this a Bering Porter. With this beer, I hope to dispel the myths and show that a Baltic Porter is not simply an Imperial Stout with a clever name. It has taken me over two months to make this beverage and I hope that this time translates into a world-class beer.

Malt: German Munich and Vienna Malt, Belgian Special B, and Chocolate Malt

Hops: Brewers Gold

Yeast: Bavarian and Munich Lager Yeasts

September 2010

I used to celebrate spring as a prelude to summer, but things have changed.  The summer in Alaska is incredible, but it is the winter that makes us Alaskan. September crept up quickly and soon the termination dust will be visible. But, we go on undeterred. The next few months are incredibly fun for brewers such as me. I trade the rapid fire production of sunshine-inspired libations for the slow steady ferments of more robust and labor-intensive beers. The colors tend to darken and gravities rise.

This fall, I will be releasing another traditional German Marzen. This is a style of beer that I never thought I would like… until I brewed it. Cold-fermented with a blend of lager yeasts, it is copper in color with toasty grain aromas. The Marzen is synonymous with Oktoberfest and has come to symbolize the transition of summer into fall. It takes weeks to ferment and several more weeks to condition, but it is worth all of the trouble.

There are many more special beers that are slated to flow in our bar, but a good chef never gives away his secrets. I only ask that we remember to embrace the changing of the seasons and enjoy what lies ahead.

Current Specialty Brews

Honey Cream Ale

Our weekly special:

16 oz. $3.00!

Spartan Imperial Stout

10 oz. $6.75

Negative Anticipation Black Double IPA

10 oz. $6.75

2011 Old Gander Barley Wine 10oz. $6.75

Cherry Grand Cru

10 oz. $6.75