Beer and the Open

Where to get brew close to the links

By Weekly Volcano staff on June 11, 2015

Beer is good. Beer is great. And during the U.S. Open, there are a couple key places to stock up your rental fridge or pack the cooler for watching the tournament on TV (pretty sure you can't take it into the venue).

For brewpubs, Narrows Brewing on the upper end of the city overlooking the Narrows Bridge and the Puget Sound has you covered with a rustic space and lots of flavorful beers on tap.  And they celebrate their second anniversary soon.

Housed in a striking, 100-year-old building on pilings, walking into Narrows Brewing can knock you off your feet. It's huge. The sparkling clean 15-barrel brew house has large doors to receiving as well as the moorage house. The Narrows Bridge and surrounding waterway commands your attention in the high-ceiling tasting room, after you weave your way past three event rooms and 100 seats to get there. If you can veer from the gorgeous view, and not get lost in the contemporary wood beam architecture, six taps await. The tasting room feels pub-ish, large enough to host your after-work happy hour on a moment's notice. The taproom has a satisfying mix of regulars and new visitors since it opened two years ago.

The ownership sees the complex as more of a destination than a worldwide distributor. Tuesdays are live music, MindTap Trivia is Wednesdays, and Food trucks roll in Thursdays and Fridays.

Narrows Brewing's Giant Pacific Octopus IPA is the star beer at Narrows, in terms of volume sold.

Narrows Brewing is at 9007 S. 19th St., or visit narrowsbrewing.com.

Beyond local brewing, there is also a huge selection of local, regional, national and international beers in the cold case at Pint Defiance.  Hidden away in a strip mall on the edge of Fircrest, Pint Defiance, which will celebrate its third anniversary soon, is quickly becoming one of the centers of the local craft beer scene.

Pint Defiance is a carefully laid out bottle shop with a 50 foot long, 16-door wall cooler full of beer, meads and ciders and a small bar with 10 taps usually staffed by co-owner Barry Watson and his crew of experts.

When you browse up and down the cold case trying to select a few 22-ounce beers you maybe haven't tried yet, the staff at Pint Defiance inevitably comes up and asks you with concern if you need help. And that's what makes Pint Defiance beer heaven. They can help you decide among Belgian Trappists and Northwest IPAs, debate the merits of Sierra Nevada's Beer Camp 12-pack even though you don't drink milk stouts, and explain the new Washington state liquor laws, including SB 6442 allowing cider to be sold in growlers. And if you already have your mind made up, just let the staff know what you need, and they'll send enough 10 Barrel Brewery beer to keep your party rolling straight to the cash register where you wait to pay.