Exploring Juneau through Craft Beverages with Alaska on Tap

Peter Nave, co-owner of Alaska on Tap in Juneau, returns to the pod to talk with Jennie about the craft beverage scene - alcoholic and non alcoholic in Juneau and how guests can experience it.

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Transcript

 Welcome to the Alaska Uncovered Podcast with me, your host, Jennie Thwing Flaming, my occasional co-host and full-time husband, Jay, and I bring you accurate, helpful, and entertaining information about Alaska Travel and life in Alaska.



Today we've got another wonderful episode about Juneau, one of my favorite places in Alaska. Before we dive into this episode I wanted to make sure everyone knows about my email list. I have in the past been accused of not telling you about it often enough, I send an email every week.

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My guest today is Peter Nave. Peter is a born and raised Juneau White, and along with his wife Katie owns the beer focused tour company in Juneau, Alaska. On tap. Peter, welcome back to Alaska Uncovered. 

Thank you. Thanks for having me. 

Yeah, it was great having you.

So, um, Peter also does, um, guided bear viewing in Juneau. So if you missed that episode, which was back in January, definitely go back and catch that one too. So it's good to see again, Peter. 

Thanks. 

So can you, uh, just remind everyone who may have missed, uh, the previous episode? Tell us how you got to Alaska.

Um, well I was born and raised in Juneau. And I grew up in AK Bay, which is a little north of the downtown area of, of Juneau, and it's a really beautiful part of town. Uh, it's where the Tlingit, um, aqua people live before the Gold Rush era and all of that. And it's a, it's a very special place, definitely very near and dear to me, and it's not a, an area many people get to see.

, I was born and raised there and I, I left for college and all that and came back,

that's awesome. So tell me a little bit about how you and Katie met and like how you came to start Alaska on tap. 

Uh, well Katie is my wife and we met in, uh, Vancouver, British Columbia, where we were both, uh, college kids.

She's my college sweetheart. 

Aw. 

Um, and then over the years we moved in and out of Alaska doing seasonal work. Um. Moved in and outta Japan actually several times for, for also seasonal, guiding work that I do in the winter. And then back and forth to British Columbia where we lived, uh for a while.

And Katie, she and I are partners in Alaska on tap and she has a MBA in sustainable business strategy and she really has brought that into our family businesses. 

That's 

awesome. It was actually her finishing that grad school program and getting hired to do some sustainable tourism work here in Juneau that brought us back to Alaska from Canada.

Um, and then we have both, and, and especially myself, have worked in a number of, uh, beer and brewery focused places over the years. Mm-hmm. Uh, whether it was in the off season, between other types of guiding or just. When I was new to town and needed to meet some new people, uh, worked at a, a few different breweries and, and definitely developed and encouraged a love of beer that way, so 

That's awesome.

So obviously this episode is for beer lovers, and if that's not you that's okay. Um, but it's fun. Like Alaska has some really great. Beer and it's kind of a fun way to see the state. So, um, can you talk a little more Peter about like what you feel like people should know about Alaska's beer scene and also folks, Alaska is enormous.

Do you know? Is one place right? So, um, to the degree that you wanna talk about Alaska's beer overall, that's great. Or you can just stick with Juneau 'cause it's a big state 

I think that's a good, good way to preface it is state, you know. Um, a lot of anything that happens in Alaska is happening in Anchorage, um, because that's our big population center.

So I think Anchorage is, is a big part of the statewide brewing scene, but it really started in Juneau. Mm-hmm. Um, you know, in the post prohibition years, in the early years of craft brewing in the eighties, the Alaskan Brewing Company started. 

Yeah. 

Um, and that's really. The state of Alaska's first craft or at the time, micro Brewery.

Yep. 

And that's when, you know, Sierra Nevada was relatively new, like other big national, uh, brewery organizations and, and now chains in some cases. 

Yep. 

Um, were all new and Alaskan was in the ground floor of that. 

Yeah. 

And they. Uh, it was a local Juneau couple, Jeff and Marcy, and, uh, they still own Alaskan Brewing, um, and are very involved live in Juneau and are very involved in the, the community.

Um, and they started with a couple of beer styles, one of which was a recipe they actually found in some old, old brewery notes from the Gold Rush era in Juneau. When they would've, yeah, when there would've been a bunch of little breweries serving fresh beer to the, yeah. People from all around the world who were working in the mines in, in Juneau at the time, uh, and that that kicked off their Alaskan Amber, which is their flagship beer.

I think they sell more Amber than like all the other beers combined. 

Yes. 

, And is still, still wildly popular. And then they also followed up with some really exotic beers like the Smoked Porter, which is also one of the ones that we serve on the trip. Um, and so they're really like the history of the tour.

As it relates specifically to brewing, and they're really the history of, of modern brewing in Alaska. 

Yeah. 

And so having them involved is fun to kind of showcase that and the depth and the gold rush connection. And it, it goes much deeper than what I've just sort of glossed over. Yeah. Um, but, but that's a big part of what makes Juneau brewing relevant at a larger scale and as a,

yeah.

As a, at a state scale. Um, because even today, Alaska Brewings one of the top. You know, producing breweries in the, in the country. So, 

yeah. And people will find , Alaskan brewing beers on tap, like all over Alaska, but also all over the Pacific Northwest. And many, if not all the cruise ships have Alaska brewing beers on board.

I think that's true. Um, I think especially like the Amber is, is probably on most ships and I think they, Alaska 

and Amber. Yeah. 

Yeah. And I think they distribute their beer to like half of the states in the us so 

yeah, 

it's, it's definitely the most recognizable. Yes, probably beer from Alaska in general.

Yeah. 

Um, is the Alaskan Brewing Company beer and then more recently, um, so Alaska has some. Complicated liquor laws. Yes, it does. And uh, and part of that was it was very difficult to own small scale, um, brewery or distillery,, and serve your own alcohol, within your facility without having a regular bar liquor license, which are pretty hot commodities in Alaska.

Yes. 

Um, and so in my recent lifetime that. Legislation changed. 

Yeah. 

And that really allowed for, brew pubs essentially. Yeah. And things kind of more on that scale, more genuinely micro breweries. And so there was sort of a wave of breweries and distilleries that started about a half a dozen years ago.

Um, give or take. Some of 'em started before the legislation changed. Trying to drive the, the, the change. Um, and Juneau, we have now three other breweries and a distillery, all of which are fantastic. 

They are? Yeah. 

Yeah. We go to Alaskan Brewing, uh, which is sort of, we call it Midtown, but it's kind of in Juneau's industrial area.

'Cause it's a big industrial brewery. 

Yeah. 

Uh, it's near Costco. It's not somewhere most tourists would go. 

Yeah. 

Um, but they have a lovely tap room, so we go. We go to Alaskan and we also go to Devil's Club Brewing, which is in downtown Juneau. Um, it's usually the first stop. 

Yep. 

And that, that is actually owned by some of my childhood friends.

I, um, helped them get it off the ground. , There's like half of Juneau is a 1% owner in the brewery it seems like. 

Yeah. 

Um, and it's in an old theater building that's like a historic building in Juneau that they renovated to be a brewery. And it's a really fun and charming space. Uh, and then there's one that's near and dear to me.

Um. Because it's in OC Bay, it's in the part of of town that I, I grew up in, and I think it's really special. Yeah. And I think a lot of what we have to offer guests, in addition to the beer and the stories that our, our guides tell, and the couple of scenic stops that we intentionally make along the way, is that we take folks out.

A bay. And then, so doing really kind of show our guests what Juneau is really like and, and what it looks like outside of downtown or outside of, , where you might be directed as part of a, a tour. And so the Forbidden Peak Brewery, uh, has a beautiful waterfront harbor view, and a yeah, 

a 

beautiful patio.

Definitely the best in Juneau, um, out in a bay. And that's often where our tours sort of culminate. 

Yep. 

Um, and at and at all of these places you get a varying. Varying degree of kind of behind the scenes look and, and the owners will kind of pop in and out and people involved kind of come and chat you up and it's really a fun sort of community vibe.

Yeah. 

Um, but they're each very, also very distinct and kind of part of this mosaic of what brewing and craft anything is like in Alaska and certainly what it's like in in Juneau. 

Yeah. Love that. Okay. I wanna ask you a little more about the tour in a moment, but before we do that, could you share just a little bit about some of the ingredient, you know, you were talking about this like local connection, and I know a lot of Alaska, not only in, do you know, craft breweries use various local ingredients to make these kind of unique.

Concoctions, um, either of beer or like, I'm also thinking about like frontier soda, which is in Anchorage, so that's a whole different thing. Or Amalga distilling. Um, you know, I know they use a lot of local things in their, um, in their creations. So can you talk a little bit about what maybe a couple of those are and, um, why they're kind of unique?

Yeah, absolutely. Um, so the. Like regionally, things that people will mix into. To craft products like this, um, are things that can be foraged usually. Mm-hmm. So, 

yep. 

There's a, a food company in Juneau, um, that's also owned by some friends, and we actually serve some of their products that makes food out of kelp.

Yes, barnacle. 

, And they, their headquarters is near the Alaskan Brewery, so we, we serve their kelp as a snack. 'cause nothing goes, nothing goes with beer like chips and salsa. Um, yeah. Uh, and so big picture, there's lots of different forage products like that.

Mm-hmm. 

Um, more. Alcohol specific. I know Amalga and probably some other places use rhubarb. 

Yeah. 

Um, most, most popularly uh, and different kinds of berries. 

Yeah. 

Um, and to flavor their, their different liquors. 

Mm-hmm. 

Um, and, and just in crafting of the drinks that they make, even outside of the liquor. 

Yep.

Um, and then specifically the breweries. Um, you know, a lot of brewery flavor profiles are kind of combining tart and sweet and sour, and so there's a bunch of different natural ingredients you can use to, to do that. Um. I would say statewide spruce tips. 

Yeah. 

Have, they were kind of one of the longer used, um, ingredients.

I, I remember first being aware of it in Alaskan Brewings Winter Ale. Yeah. Um, which is both rich in vitamin C and it gives a citrusy flavor and it functions as a, a, a light preservative. 

Mm-hmm. 

. I think like antibacterial properties, I know people use it in solves for that reason.

I don't know if they transfers to the beer, but, um, beer is 

a, beer is health food. 

Yeah. There you go. But it's, uh, but it's got a, a nice and like, pretty distinct flavor and definitely regionally that's caught on. 

Yeah. 

Um, in other communities like Sitka and Skagway, their breweries make great, uh, spruce tip beers.

Yes. Um, so that one's popular. It's been around for a long time. A lot of breweries experiment with that, and it's pretty easy to get spruce tips. Spruce tips are just the new growth on spruce trees, which in a rainforest like Juneau, are literally everywhere. 

Yeah. 

And there's a variety of berries that you might use.



Yep. 

Um, and then. There was one other one. I had some really good, uh, uh, devil's Club specifically makes different sour beers where they're aging often heavily fruited beers. 

Yeah. Um, 

aging it in oak casks for like over a year. Uh, and they'll actually even use some bacteria.

Um. Has has a process that makes it taste sour specifically, and some of that bacteria can be naturally harvested as well. Um, and so you'll see they have the big ars in the brewery, which are neat. They're very beautiful oak, um, oak casks. Then they'll serve these different fruited beers, uh, or sour, sour and fruited beers.

Uh, and some of that is made with purees that are, are local and a lot of it is are fruit purees that come from all around the world. Um, but those are some of the more unique flavors that we, um, uh. Experience on like a, on a regular tour. 

Yeah. 

Um, and then, you know, even on the small scale at Forbidden Peak, they have a cranberry base beer, a cranberry, raspberry, lagger, yum.

Um, and the cranberries are actually a locally picked, uh, highbush cranberry that the owners children go out and pick. 

Amazing. 

And so, yeah, and this is a pretty big brewery and this is like one of the more popular beers. So. I can only imagine what that must look like. Right. There's a broad, you know, I would say diversity of forage foods.

Some of 'em are, are really regionally specific that can work their way into beer, um, or, or liquor or food. And I think one of the beauties about beer and alcohol is that. You can take something that's seasonally abundant and put it into your product, and then that can be experienced year round. Yes. Unlike, you know, serving it fresh as part of a, a restaurant dish or something, which case you get it that week and then, and then that's it.

Right. So, 

yeah. So you mentioned kids, so that's something else I wanted to ask you about. And as you mentioned, Alaska's. Liquor laws are complicated and probably not worth completely understanding, but from a visitor standpoint, um, where can and can't you go with kids? And do you allow kids on your tour?

Yeah, we do. Generally our tours, we ask the kids be at least 10 years old. Yeah. , And then. The rules for the breweries are that, um, minors are allowed as long as they're accompanied by a parent or legal guardian. 

Mm-hmm. 

And you're supposed to be able to prove that you are. Um, so it hasn't come up lately.

But technically if there is a minor with you. You know, their parent or their guardian, whether it's an aunt or uncle, like a legal guardian has to be with them. 

Yep. 

And we do get a lot of families. Mm-hmm. Um, like, you know, three or four generation deep groups, which are really fun. 

Yeah. 

If you have a big group like that and you know, you have some kids that are maybe pushing that 10-year-old mark or, or maybe younger, uh, we do private.

Trips. 

Yeah. 

Where you can just rent the van. 

yeah. 

Um, and we do sell a different price ticket for youth 'cause they're obviously not participating in the tasting. 

Yes. 

It's essentially minus the, the price of the tasting. All of the different breweries have, especially these days, um, have a really nice selection of non-alcoholic beverages for both adults and, and minors.

Yeah. 

And it's great. Like some making their own root beer. Thai iced tea. Yeah. You know, just slightly flavored soda wire. Like it's a whole spectrum. Um, yeah. And some non-alcoholic beer, which I didn't appreciate years ago, but it's very difficult to make. And so these things are all on offer, uh, as well for, for people who either just, you know, wanna not drink

Yeah.

Or don't, don't wanna do the tasting 'cause they're not a beer. Um, fan or they'd rather have the hard seltzer at one stop or whatever. So, yeah. 

Oh, that's great. Thanks for explaining that. 'cause I know that's something that can be really confusing and every state is kind of different with what they allow and don't allow.

And you're right, like the variety of non-alcoholic options. Is really increasing, which is pretty cool because more people can participate. Yeah. Um, okay, so Peter, tell us a little bit about the tour that you offer and like, why should somebody take a beer tour, especially in Juneau? 

Yeah, I mean, I think Juneau is a, is a really interesting place geographically where you have downtown.

It's got this great history, it's really compact. All of the ships arrive, cruise ships arrive to downtown. And a lot of folks, they enjoy just getting out and walking around. I think it's really nice to experience that.

But then there's also so much more happening in Juneau. Um, yes. So many more areas that look and feel totally different. Mm-hmm. And I think, um, when a lot of us travel, we want to experience a place, not just see the canned version of it. Yeah. And so one of the ways, and I, I wouldn't say it's the only way, but one of the ways that can be done is definitely on our trip., We have really amazing local guides. They're great storytellers. They know all the stories of, of Juneau and the beer and downtown Juneau and the history. And so our trips start in, in downtown. We pick up the guests, usually at the cruise docks. Um, we'll go to the first brewery is usually the downtown one, so pretty short drive.

And then we'll spend, we spend 45 minutes at each brewery. So the downtown one being downtown has its own unique flavor and vibe, and they make some of the more adventurous beers. So it's kind of nice to. Taste some of the more unique flavors, um, early. And then we do make a short drive out to the next brewery, which is, you know, halfway out the road, as we like to say in town.

Alaskan Brewery. And that is in a more industrial area where 

Yeah, 

you know, you, you see a lot more in common with where a lot of people are from. There's a Costco, there's a Home Depot. Yes. There's, you know, people working, yep. And, and it just feels very real. Yeah. Um, and then you step into their tasting room, which is a kind of an oasis.

It's, it's beautiful inside. And, um, they're definitely the biggest facility. And then we again, spend 45 minutes there and it's there that we usually do the, the kelp salsa and chips, which is made right down the street. 

Yes. 

Um, and it's a local product that is really neat and people usually. Get really into, and they sell it at the gift shop at that particular brewery.

So people are always stocking up on it. I think by the end of the year we, we bought them out. And then we go on to the, to, uh, or towards the next location, which is out in a bay. It's kind of the farthest from town. Uh, and that's our big working harbor. And it's the area that was traditionally inhabited before.

Um, you know, gold miners and Europeans and Westerners came to the Juneau area and it's just a really beautiful, natural area. And on the way we will stop at the Menon Hall River, um, there's a. A established viewpoint for looking up the river, which itself is beautiful. 

Yeah. 

And in the distance you see the big peaks of the ice field and you know, in most nice days you can see that a bit of the men and Hall glacier.

Yep. 

And so that's just a, a photo stop because it's a brewery tour, it, you're seeing town. But part of town is definitely that. We have these beautiful mountains. Yeah, that's great. And the glaciers. And so we definitely stop and experience that and folks, you know, get outta the van. There's a few places you can walk around and explore the bridge and the view area and takes, take some pictures, take some group photos, , and then onto that third brewery.

And then on our way back to town, we'll stop once more just sort of as you come into downtown, um, there's a park. That is a bit of a walk for most folks from where the actual cruise ships are. And there's a really beautiful, , life-size bronze whale statue. It's also part of a fountain. It's 

so cool.

Yeah, it's really, really neat. And that was a big effort. I know some of my family friends were big in the fundraising and construction of this many years ago. Um, and it's a, it's just a really neat thing. It's definitely one of the most popular sightseeing stops in, in town. , And it's on our rope. So we, we stop there,, like we do for the glacier view and take some photos, and you're at this point, you've been to three breweries and everybody's.

Pretty comfortable with their photos they're having together. And it's, it's just like a nice way to end the trip. And then we take people back downtown. And a lot of folks they, you know, head back, if they're on a ship, they'll head back on their ship for dinner and other folks will ask you, you know, where they can go to.

Find another restaurant or bar or something to, to pop into where I'll just full of suggestions. So 

yeah. That's awesome. Cool. And then as far as booking Peter can, do you, um, if someone is on a cruise, can they book this tour through the cruise line or do they only book direct with you? 

So, uh, both. We don't work through all of the cruises.

We have specific times that we can take people to the breweries. They're not open, you know, 24 hours a day. 

Yes. 

And so it's only certain ship arrivals that work. Yeah, within that. 

Yep.

But you can, you can definitely also book it on our website. We do two times, two departures a day, every day, all summer. Awesome. Um, and then there's other places you can find it as well, 

, I'll put that information in the show notes as well. . So Peter, when you were here before we talked about your favorite restaurant in Juneau.

What is your favorite place to eat in Juneau? You can give a different answer this time if you wanna.

You know, I'm, last time I said, um. In Boca Alpa, which is a lovely sit down Italian, uh, restaurant. 

Yeah. 

But I'm gonna have to say for a different meal, you know, for not dinner. 

Yeah. 

I actually really like the Devil's Club brewery. Mm-hmm. So the first place that we stop on the trip. 

Yep. 

Um, they make, they're some of the fastest, uh.

Made to order meals that you can get in downtown Juneau. It's super popular with the lunch crowd of office workers in downtown. 

Yep. 

Um, it's really consistent and they've got a great menu. 

Mm-hmm. 

And, we have a lot of guests who, who order up, even though it's the first stop, um, will order something and, and they're quick enough that there's time to get it and eat it in that 45 minutes.

And I probably eat there more than anywhere else in town. 

Yeah. Yeah, that's a good tip. I agree with that. And you know, any cruise port in Alaska or probably anywhere else too, but for sure in Alaska, you know, things just get so busy and take a long time. So those places where you can get something quick are are really awesome.

Yeah, 

yeah, yeah. And it's not right on the. There's definitely, uh, two parts of downtown Juneau. 

Yeah. 

There's the part that is understandably right in front of where the, the ship's birth,

uh, and then there's the year round part of Juneau and.

There's, it's pretty clear when you pass that threshold, you sort of, all of a sudden you're surrounded in bars that look like they were out of a Western movie. 

Yes. 

And then after that, they're all office buildings and so on. And so it's, into that part of town that, that the, the Devil's Club brewery is.

Mm-hmm. Um, and there's now actually another brewery didn't, they weren't open when we started offering the tour, uh, but there is another brewery in town that's totally worth visiting called Harbor Mountain Brewery. Um, and we don't bring guests there just because there's not time to, to stop it for breweries.

Yep. 

But we do always tell guests about it 'cause they make some Yeah. Some fantastic beer also. And it's, , just about a block away from, from Devil's Club there. 

Yeah. Perfect. Okay, so finally, Peter, what's. Biggest piece of advice for people coming to Alaska for the first time. And actually since we did ask you that, or I did ask you that question before, I'm gonna change it slightly since many people, most people who are visiting Juneau are on a cruise.

I'm curious what your like biggest piece of advice is for cruise travelers, specifically in Alaska.

I would have two, two pieces of advice. One would would just be broad advice, which is, you know, get out and see, see the town, you know, even if you just walk around town. We, we, I've been involved in tourism in Juneau for almost 20 years, and I hear so often. From guests that I'm, I'm working with, that a big chunk of their party didn't get off the ship or didn't make it very far from the ship.

Each community, Juneau included, has so much to offer. Even free things to offer, uh, within walking distance that get out and enjoy it. Would be my biggest piece of advice. And then my second piece of advice would be. Um, be realistic about the weather.

We get a lot of people, um, who, you know, you can always tell when the weather was, was poor enough that the helicopter excursions, you know, didn't run that day or, uh, whale watching was canceled because of rough seas or something. Um, because everyone's packed in all the bars. But definitely, have a backup plan

about the weather and know that at some point in a week long trip there'll probably be some kind of disruption. And some trips are, more weatherproof than others. Yeah. And even if it's not, plan B would be to go on a brewery tour, but like Plan B could be, to go to the state museum 

Yep.

Um, or see something, you know, like that. 

Yes. Yeah. And Juneau in particular, I feel like has some really good indoor. Or somewhat indoor options you mentioned like, like the brewery tour and like the state museum and the Seal, Alaska Heritage Institute, like those are all places that aren't busy and are indoors.

Um, great rainy day. Yeah. 

Juneau is a good place to have a rainy day activity planned. Um. Especially because, I mean, not everything, but a lot of activities can be done in multiple ports , few, few places are as rainy as you know.

Yes,  📍 it's true. Except maybe ke a can. 

True. 

Well, Peter, it's so great to talk to you again. Thanks for coming back and sharing about beer and Juneau with everybody. 

Yeah, thanks. Thanks for having me. Hope to chat with you again.