Café Amsterdam
The Passion of the Grist
4/8/08 – The spring time is
almost on us. You would never know with the big drop of snow we had last
Saturday.
It wasn’t really expected, but I knew. It wasn’t going to surprise me
this year. I came this close, (ll) of taking my snow tires
off for the season. Ah ha, gotcha. The Ring of Fire mead tasting went over
great this past Saturday. Laurence and Rachel
were very busy talking about their products. They certainly do, do a great
job on the mead making. After all, they did
win a few medals at the International Mead Festival this year.
Judging for the
Cider and Perry style. I don’t think I’ve ever judges a cider or a perry. I’ve drank many, but never had to put
it on paper. Time to get going on the tasting and analyzing.
We have a great cider on tap, Magners Irish Cider.
I’m not sure where it falls,……Oh yeah, here it
is… “Other”. Great. Oh, well, it’s a start.
For what it’s worth, and don’t tell anyone you heard it from me, but, I
am planning some beer
dinners in the future. When?? You ask. Don’t know exactly, but it will
be in this century.
Stay posted to this site, and I’ll let you know when.
3/12/08 – Wow, has it really been
that long since the last scripture?? Well, like I said previously
I just haven’t had enough time to work on this. Even Gable has been
busier than a one legged cat in a
sandbox. Although we did have some fun over the last couple
of months. In December we got a new
computer for the house, but still don’t know how to operate it. It is a Mac, so
there is a little learning curve.
In January we had the Barley wine festival “Brewers Dinner”. A
tradition we have been doing for 4 years
running. Alaskan Brewing hires us to cater the food and supply the building
for the event. Brewers and
associates are invited, but as it usually turns out we have more people than
anticipated. We usually have about
150 to 225. This year a quick count had the numbers up to about 350. Next year we
are going to be giving tickets
to the event. We also met some really great folks, Chris Nelson and
Meridith Canham-Nelson. These people have the
right idea when it comes to beer traveling. They are the Beer-Geeks. You should check their
website to follow their travel
around the world. They are doing a Year in Beer tour. They were here in
January. We caught them in San Francisco
in February for the Toronado and Beeapalooza. It was like when I was in
“Hey, Ken” (see 3/12/07 message). I looked around and there
were Chris and Meridith. It was awesome, everywhere
we went, they were there. Even when they were driving
in town. I would hear them calling to us. Incredible!!
They are truly great people to hang out with.
In February I had the honor to judge at the Toronado Barley wine
Festival. What a trip!!!
Dr. Fermento, Dennis and Lisa Urban and myself
had a great time in
on how fast an office chair can go on a
had the privilege to witness the Beerapalooza 2008…the 20th
anniversary of the Celebrator magazine. The beer was
flowing like water, (well, little wonder..).
We met some old friends, like Paul and Jackie Henderson from Alaskan
Brewing Co. Paul was the Alaska Region sales rep. They moved to
to the
was staying at, (Cathedral Hill Hotel). Bruce Paton the Beer Chef, for the hotel is absolutely
fabulous when it comes
to pairing beers with his foods
While I was in
by the Beer Advocate magazine. The first night, there was
50 wood-aged beers for her to enjoy. The other 2 days,
I think may have been blurs, because I know she tried beers, I saw the
pictures. This year I was hoping we could
make it our year to do more traveling, than what we have been doing.
Hopefully we’ll be able to go to the
Gotta go, somethings burning…
Remember this..When the janitor wakes you and
says it’s time for work, you know it’s going to be a looong day
Later,
Ken
12/25/07 –
Ho, Ho,
Ho to everyone
out there. We hope
you had a joyous Christmas.
It was great having 3 days off
for
Christmas. And we’re going to do
the same thing on the 30th, 31st , and
So don’t make any plans on coming to our place
for
pre-New Years Eve festivities. Even though, we would
love to
participate, we are just going to stay home and watch
a good movie, anddrink a good beer. Beer of choice this year
will
probably be Prestige. I really love that beer.
We
managed to go
through most of the holiday
beers on tap.
For those of
you who missed out on the Levec des bon Voeuex,
Scaldis Noel, and the Unibroue Indulgence,well
we have more on
the way for, hopefully, Wednesday. Going into the New Year, we should be
receiving
more new beers. Our stock is still a-plenty and we are goingto bring some
new stuff out
to make room of incoming stock. Keep your ear to the ground and we will
have more
info
soon.
This website
is
getting a
little too much
for me,
now,
so,
shortly I’ll
be
turning it over to our son, Gable. He has lots of experience with graphics,or at least has the know-how on getting the information. He
has worked for a local TV station, and had a lot of training from some of the
best graphic people in the state. This coming year we dedicating ourselves on
doing some traveling. In January, we have
plans on going to
Magazine Beerapalooza. Shauna will be going to
Later, Ken
it is to all of us here at Café Amsterdam to respect the season and drink
responsibly. It can get a little
hectic out there to want to indulge in the best drinks available, and getting
caught up in the activities.
But, remember, if you get caught up, you will get caught. I’m going to
take it nice and easy and work
at the café tonight. I’ll be bartending, like I normally do on
Wednesdays. We do have some Halloween
beers ready. We will have Nightmare, and Belzebuth, and don’t
forget Duvel.
As far as the Michael Jackson Toast went, it was a huge success. With
all the breweries and meaderies
in the state contributing, we raised $3653.00. We all had a great time
talking about the different experiences
we have had knowing the great “Bard of Beer”. Thank you all for
attending, if not physically, then, in thought.
Gotta get to work now, see you there.
Mention you read this and I’ll buy you an appetizer……(today
only)
Later, Ken
I’m sure most of you know that we are participating in the National
Toast for the Parkinson Foundation
In Memory of Michael Jackson who passed away September 30. The toast
will be at 5 PM Alaska Time, but
The doors will be open from
All proceeds will be going to the National Parkinson Foundation. Shauna
and I will be donating the restaurant
And our time for the cause. I’ll be setting out food to munch on along
with some specialty beers to select from.
I conned Jim Roberts into doing the toast. Hope to see you here…
Later, Ken
Up and running. The most comprehensive and concise report on beer in
Later, Ken
last month on the 14th of July we had the unfortunate happening
that father-in-law died in a head-on collision
on the
have fallen asleep and crossed the center line. He was buried at the
cemetery on
ceremony. He will be missed dearly. He always told me I should make a beer and call it “Damn Cold Beer from
Jim Roberts called me today and informed me of the bad news that
Michael Jackson passed away last night.
Shauna and myself are one of the fortunate
people who have met him, talked with him, and on
one occasion had the honor of doing a blind tasting with him in
Michael Jackson, Charlie Papazian, Greg Noonan, and It was a hoot to
listen to his
opinionated evaluation of the different beers sampled.
Gotta go for now,
Later, Ken
Oh, yea I almost forgot, we have Kassik’s beer coming next week
Just a little cheap groveling here. We have got a bundle of good beers to
offer the connesr, coneseu, conesseau, okay the lover
of good beers. Right now I’m drinking my favorite summer beer Kassik’s
Heffe. Yikes, this is good
On the 28th of this month we’ll be having our “Firkin
Saturday”. Never before have we done a “Firkin Saturday”
in the middle of summer. The brewery has usually been busy trying to keep
up with their inventory and we are usually
too busy to have a firkin on a
Saturday. However, this year we have both got it together and are willing to
take the
chance and go with it. The beer of choice this time will be a Double Wheat. 8.5% with a kick of hops. It sounds very
interesting.
With any luck, we should be able to continue with the “Firkin Saturday”
through the year. I’ll talk to Gabe
And see if he would like the rest of the tourists in on our own little
secret.
I almost forgot about the tasting at Ginley’s on the 9th.
What an excellent display of food and beers from Midnight Sun.
The pairing was exceptional.
Although I do eat there on a regular basis, I found everything
for the tasting to be
above and beyond the expected food fair. Everything was cooked to
perfection. The presentation was delightful
and informative. What a great place to have a beer tasting.
Anyway, more to come later for the firkins and have a great beer drinking
Friday the 13th.
Later, Ken
6/27/07 – Wow, I can’t believe
it’s been over a month since I last entered anything in here. Things have been
quite
Busy here lately. My lead cook was on vacation for over 2 weeks and I
had to open the restaurant. So trying to
manage
the early morning cooking and ordering and bar ordering, (place your
WAAA, WAAA’s here), the website has taken
back seat to everything. We did have
a great beer dinner on the 25th of this month. Duvel Moortgat had
A beer tasting ands we supplied some food products. It was a $50 a
person event. That was way cheap.
$50 for 5 course meal and 7 beers, give me a break. Show me one place
in town where you can get that kind of
Deal, better yet in the
A Midnight Sun Brewing beer dinner on the 7th
of July. Already got my reservations. $60 per person.
Don’t know where these people get these crazy prices.
Hey Tim, I got to know your schedule so you can come and enjoy all
these good beers you’ve been missing out on. Better yet,
I’ll be posting the dinners on this site so you can let me know,
okay??? Hope things are going okay for you up north.
We’ve been enjoying the palm trees this summer at the café. Might as
well be palm trees as warm as it’s been.
The weather has been very good lately, sometimes too good.
That fire in Caribou Hills out by Ninilchik is not a good thing this
time of year. I hope our friend Ted is doing okay. Ted
Retired last year and has a place there that he’s building. Got an
e-mail from him a couple of days ago
And said he had a lot of smoke, but the wind came up and blew it away.
Hope everything is fine there, buddy..
NOW FOR THE BEERS…we have a bunch new beers coming out soon. I’ll be
changing the beer list soon, so hang on.
The tap list is always changing, daily. New tap beers are…De Rulles
Triple, Midnight Sun Wit and Old Whiskers, Hennepin Saison.
See you here…
Later, Ken
tapping some of Kassik’s
beer in honor of their 1 year anniversary at the brewery. I have finally broke
down and
started purchasing ½ barrel kegs instead of the 5 gallon. On tap, next week,
we’ll have Kassik’s
Pale Ale,
Hefeweizen, and Porter. We have a lot of fun with these beers, but not as not as
much fun as Frank and Debbie.
This is the Memorial Day Weekend. We will be closed, as usual, on
Sunday and Monday. We have a trip planned
To
You get to see a lot of things you wouldn’t ordinarily see if you were
driving.
Well, like I said, not too much to write about. See you in Am’dam..
Later, Ken
people found out they have money again. The “firkin Saturday”on the 14th
of April was a huge success.
We not only had the Double IPA in the firkin, but on tap we also had
“Gluttony”, “Envy”, and
“Conspiracy”. I
have never had so many high octane beers on tap before. Lots of people showed up
which is
no surprise, because they all told me they had their taxes completed ;)
The appetizers I set out went very fast. If you have never been to one
of these “Firkin Saturday’s”, it
really is a “hoot”. Midnight Sun Brewing showcases their abilities on making
some “cask-conditioned” beers
for us. It’s usually the 2nd or 3rd Saturday of the
month in the Fall and Winter and sometimes unannounced
the rest of the year. Keep your ear posted to this site and I’ll be sure
to give plenty of warning. On a rare
occasion it may be one week out, providing MSBC has enough beer to do the
firkins. In the summer they are
scrambling like a one legged cat in a sandbox, so they have enough to do trying
to keep their tanks full.
A couple of weeks ago, on the 1st of May, I was
communicating with Dr. Fermento on the new beers we will
be releasing in the next couple of months, (he likes to keep his finger
on the pulse of the beer stuff). As I was e-mailing
him and doing the “first of the month bill paying ritual”, the date kept
hitting me between the eyes all
the way to the back of my head. It finally dawned on me that May 1st
was our restaurant anniversary. Eight
glorious, fun-filled years of pure unadulterated enjoyment. I told the Dr. and
unbeknownst to me he e-mailed
everyone on his list to show for an impromptu party. At around
People kept arriving all evening. We had almost a full house in the
bar. Leave to Dr. Fermento to have any
reason
to go for a beer with his friends. Thank You, “Doc”, that was fun.
We have a lot of beers to work with this year, with more on the way.
I’m setting up a prospectus for the next
several months as to what new draught beers will be released. Most are Belgian
beers we have had before and are
returning by popular demand. Frank and
Debbie Kassik have released their “Gold Nugget Hefeweizen”.
It is great. Very refreshing and thirst quenching.
Some sweet, citrusy notes with a very pleasing, but not
Overpowering bubble gum flavor. This is my idea of a great Hefeweizen.
Good job Frank and Debbie.
That’s it for now. I’ll try to post the beers that are going to be
released in the next several months. Just my
way of tracking who’s reading this.. Oh yeah,…
Hey there Tim, I see it’s still around 0 degrees up there. Better you
than us…Just kidding…see you soon, buddy.
Later, Ken
4/7/07 – Well, another week has
passed. Everyone is in hot pursuit of the almighty IRS weekend. We have
another Firkin Saturday coming up on the 14th, coincidence??, maybe
not…
We have the Midnight Sun Brewing Double IPA that will be flowing. Not a
bad way to spend a night
before, (well, actually 2 nights before), taxes are due. This one can
definitely get your head together for the occasion.
We have the Ertvelds on tap, along with….TA DA…Hoegaardenn Wit. Side by
side they are only similar.
The contrast is different. The Hoegaarden is much more
citrusy with a milder overall taste. I can’t wait to start
mowing my lawn with this beer by my side. The Ertvelds has a lesser citrus
flavor with a more bitter overall taste.
These beers are both the brain child of none other than Pierre Celis.
Check out this story of the wit beers he has created.
Pierre Celis beers. It’s pretty cool….
Saw Frank Kassik From Kassik’s Brew Stop. And
it looks like we may be getting some of his Hefe. It was pretty good last
year when I tried it. This year should be pretty good as well. Even though
he and Debbie have only had their brewery open
for less than a year, one would think they have been brewing for much
longer. It only gets better.
If there are any people on the
Kassik’s Brew Stop, Kenai River Brewing,
even Homer Brewing, and Ring of Fire Meadery. They need to support
locally, otherwise it may never be around again. This comes from someone who
knows. We brewed at the first brew/pub in the state
and know what to do now. This café is enough for us at the present. If I
were to do it again, I would surely
go to the Kenai area and invest in a brew/pub. It doesn’t take a Glacier
Brewhouse or a Sleeping Lady Brewery to make it happen.
If you want input on the perfect brew/pub, come see me. I have got an
idea that would be an instant success.
The
Got some new bottled beers coming in next week.
I’ll try to put those on the website next week.
Okay, gotta go make someone cry…. Have a Happy Easter..
Later, Ken
Gulden Drak on tap. Ertvelds on tap.
Several others will be on tap, but I don’t think they will all be on
tap together. I also got some Monk’s Café Flemish sour ale. Bavik and
Petrus also highlight the spectrum. Anyway that
was about it for this week. Went to Homer last week for my B-day and had a
blast. Drank some good beers
and meads we brought with us. Stopped by Homer Brewing and got more Broken
Birch Bitter, (that we can
never keep on hand). Saw a butt load of eagles on the “Spit”. There were as
many photographers there as
were eagles. Just making sure we don’t forget what an eagle looks like…
(Thanks, Bill, for letting me know about the error for Cliff House. I
fixed it right away. Don’t
know why I linked it, I paid my bill there??) Hey, Tim, we got more new
beers for you to try. Hope
you like Lambics, because April is going to be Cantillion month.
Later, Ken
3/12/07 – Well, it has been a while since I put anything in this
little update. I didn’t realize people actually read this
stuff. I had a delightful couple come into the restaurant the other day and
informed me
that I haven’t done anything in the website lately. Not the number one
priority at the time, but I
should at least update the beer menu. The draft beers keep on changing as
fast as we put them on
tap, so bear with me and I’ll try to, at least, give a heads-up as to
what’s “on deck”. Kassik’s
Pale Moon Ale
is probably the best selling beer right now, but Bitburger, Chimay, and
Wittekerke are also playing for
second and third. I put about 12 new beers on the bottle list, so you may
want to check those.
Anyway, a lot has happened
since last November. First of all, I semi-surprised Shauna
in a semi-surprise birthday party.
I had all of her family fly in from around the country to meet in
20 of them showed. We spent a week there and had a great time. Dinner
was fantastic at
the Cliff House. Of course, we
saw the sights and had a great time with the in-laws.
one of our favorite
back together, even though the staff did a great job on holding everything
together. There were a few
little problems we had to deal with. But, the following week, Shauna, Gable,
and myself were on our
way to
kerstbier
festival in
attended. The beers were incredible, the organizing was great, the people were
friendly, the food was
so-so. It was staged in a sports hall that was the size of two basketball
courts, which is exactly what it
was. Admission was free, the commerative glasses were €3.00, the tokens
were €1.25, and the beer guide
was €1.75. There were 20 tap beers, (all Belgian, or
thing to happen there was when we walked into the building, I heard from way
across the hall,
“Hey, Ken!”. I was thinking, “Who in the hell
knows me here, in
around and there were Steve and Karen from Homer Brewing. I remembered
telling them about the
beer festival 3 weeks earlier. They were planning a trip to
they were attending with about 6 other couples. What a surprise that was.
It was a fun time hanging
out with them, because we never get a chance to drink beer together, as we
are usually both busy.
After we spent 2 days there, we headed back to
up with our son and did what all good Americans do in
The BJCP exam was February 25, and what an exam it was. It’s a 3 hour
written test, and you had better
know beers, and practice handwriting. Although, it did
seem a little easier this year than in the past. This
is the 4th time I’ve taken it, just to see if I can increase
my ranking in the program. Hopefully I’ve jumped
to the next level. We won’t find out our grades until 12 weeks.
Well, gotta go for now. Check out the web site again for an update on
the beers, and by the way, let me know
if you are reading this stuff. I just want to see how many people I’m
totally boring out there.
Later, Ken
11/14/2006 – Week two of the BJCP class and, funny thing, we
didn’t lose people
We gained 2. That’s pretty good for such an intense class. Dennis Urban
is doing
A great job explaining the outline of each
class. It doesn’t feel like
these classes last
3 hours. Tasting the off flavors is probably the most interesting. Even
though I’ve gone
Through the class 3 other times, I always find the weird flavor profile
interesting. I can
Remember some of those flavors in some of the beers I used to brew. Some good, some bad.
join us next week. Most of the people I recruited seem a little over
whelmed by the studying
needing to be done. I know it seems intimidating, but it all becomes clear
after you get your
study hats on. All they have to remember is that it’s only beer, and you got
to have fun with it.
Anyway, I guess we have to go to
Shauna booked us a trip there for her birthday. What she doesn’t know
is that I already have
something planned for her birthday. Can’t tell you now, but will inform you when
the time is right.
Things have been kinda slow around here for the last week. Might have
something to do with the
elections. I going to start getting the Christmas beers
in. I have several that I have had for 5 – 6 years
just waiting for the appropriate time, and I think this year is the
time. I have 6 year
Scaldis Noel,
5 year Delirium Noel, and assorted others I can’t seem to remember.
I’ll be getting the Bitburger on tap next week. The Delirium Tremens is
going great guns, but don’t know
how long that will last. New beers are on the way……
Oh well, I’ll do it twice next year.
This Sunday we start the BJCP classes. Should be interesting
to find out who the real beer people are in this town. I’m guessing we’ll
have about 30 people.
The classes are always informative and it’s always a challenge to
remember all the information.
Dennis Urban is conducting the classes this year. He always has some
good pieces of information
to share. After all, he and Lisa have been brewing for about 1000 years.
The written exam at the end of the 14 weeks of classes, is really
brutal, but worth the anticipation.
Even if we don’t pass the test, the least we can get is Apprentice. How
cool is that. If you still want to
Get with the BJCP classes, come on in on Sundays
And the beers aren’t so bad, either.
By the way, I need to say hello to my friend Tim, who’s working
on “the slope”. Hope that job is working out for you. I’m getting some
more different beers for you to
try when you get back in town. Mostly Christmas beers
and the higher octane ones. We’ll tip one together
when you get back in town. I’ll try to keep this news report updated for
you so you can keep up with the
bar gossip..See you soon,buddy…….Ken
And every Sunday for 14 weeks. The tentative date for the exam is
February 25th
There won’t be classes for Thanksgiving, Christmas, New Year’s,
Barleywine Festival, or Super Bowl Sunday.
Stop by and pick a syllabus
Midnight Sun’s Coho-ho Imperial IPA was a
huge hit. The pin only lasted 45 minutes and the Spicy Chicken Pie only was
around for 30 minutes. Next up on October 21st,
will be the Double chocolate pumpkin stout, with who knows
the food pairing. But it will be something
good. I promise!!!
Also, we will be holding the BJCP
classes here starting Nov. 1st
If anyone is interested, stay tuned to this
site and I’ll be updating with more info. PLEASE do not call me here
as most of the people working here do not
have the information. I’ll give the phone numbers as soon as I receive
more information.
Or you can stop here and try some
We presently have Kassik’s Kenai Brew Stop represented on tap.
The IPA is a more traditional English
style.
And the Porter is a very well orchestrated
beer.
Hopefully we’ll get Kenai River Brewing
beer on tap shortly.
I was there a few weeks ago and the beers are excellent.
I’m not afraid to have any of the beers on tap, it’s just a matter
of being able to get it here.
Laurence Livingston is taking on the
challenge of making fine honey wines.
We had the raspberry cyser on tap but ran
out. Now we have the regular
cyser, (apple and
honey). I keep trying to get more of it here, but, again
it’s a transportation
thing. I’ll be giving Laurence a call this week….
In the meantime, we have my totally favorite beers
on tap.
Grotten Brown, Rodenbach, and Delirium
Tremens
So, in case you think we don’t have enough to
do, just come
down
and help us in
evaluating these great barley-pops.
Tell them I sent you, and be prepared to run really fast…..
Later, Ken