Cross the Washington Cascades and tourists search for drooping plump vineyards, blooming orchards and labyrinthine wheat fields. Continue past the agriculture and travelers will hit the northeastern city of Spokane, the state’s second largest city of more than 209,000 residents and home to nine breweries (plus three in Spokane Valley and one in Cheney). This unassuming and propagating brewing Shangri-La is heralded by locals and beer-centric day-trippers, and is demanding the attention of its suds-sucking neighbors to the west.
Making a cozy home for itself in this valley of beer is Perry Street Brewing, a newer kid on the block, specifically at the corner of Perry Street and 11th Avenue South in Spokane’s South Perry neighborhood. A gated outdoor patio welcomes patrons in off the street, with the scent of hops, malts and barley brewing from within. Once inside, guests peer into a seven-barrel system brewhouse to see where owner/brewer Ben Lukes flexes his fermenting muscles—Lukes was formerly at Big Sky Brewing in Missoula, Montana and graduated from the science and engineering program at the American Brewers Guild prior to that.
A delicate and fickle flower in the beer world, a kölsch should not be taken lightly—especially in a state where lager patriarch Chuckanut Brewery still maintains the throne. Lukes and his Perry Street team take the craft seriously in this beer, which was one of the inaugural brews, and the results are well-crafted and extremely quaffable. Biscuity, near almond biscotti, and slight caramel malt aromas fragrantly rim the glass and lead to a creamy, clean palate with a crisp bitterness in the finish.
Follow on Facebook: Perry Street Brewing
Track on Twitter: @perrystreetbrew
