Taking the red pill, this is Nerd Alert, the Weekly Volcano's recurring events calendar devoted to all things nerdy. I myself am a Star Wars fan, mathlete, and spelling bee champion of long standing, so trust me: I grok whereof I speak.

Last week Oly police arrested a woman for drunk driving, then found she was cruising the streets with a blood-alcohol content of 0.322. In a related story, scientists have discovered a human who cannot be killed by alcohol.

FRIDAY, OCT. 24

I'd like you to step into the WABAC machine with me and return to the spring of 1999. Our average reader was probably in grade school, but if you're closer to my age, you vividly remember the fever-pitch excitement over a certain science-fantasy prequel. The Phantom Menace was due out in less than two months. Already you wondered which would be your favorite new hero. Would it be preteen Anakin Skywalker, or that all-CG character Jar Jar Binks? He seemed charming. Only one thing was sure: with 17 years of build-up, this movie had to be amazing. Then some techy-looking Keanu Reeves actioner came out, and you thought, "Oh, what the hell, I've got a 10-spot burning a hole in my pocket. I'll eat some wait time by checking out The Matrix." Two and a half hours later, you picked your jaw up off the popcorn-strewn carpet and staggered into the world a changed geek. The Matrix not only stole Lucasfilm's thunder, it represented the absolute state of the art in movie technology, told a riveting and thought-producing story, and still marks the pinnacle of cyberpunk cinema to this day-not that its sequels put up much of a fight.

Of course, that was 15 years ago, a more innocent time, when we feared the non-threat of Y2K more than the non-threat of airborne Ebola. A new Star Wars episode is 14 agonizing months away, you carry cyberpunk technology in your pocket, and there's a pre-Hallowe'en weekend to kill. Who should appear on the movie horizon but your old pal, Wyld Stallyns' co-lead guitarist Keanu Reeves. Whoa! His new actioner is called John Wick, and let's be honest, you don't give two hoots in a hurricane about it.

Except its Tomatometer score at time of writing (which, granted, is a week early) is a whopping 100 percent.

How did that happen? Did only one or two fanboys review it? Nope, it's earned upward thumbs from Forbes, IGN, Screen International and Drew McWeeny of HitFix among lesser evaluators. It's said to be dripping with style, a solid example of world-building, and is that most overused of all critical metaphors: a rollercoaster thrill ride. (Save theater hours waiting in line by reserving a FastPass.) Apparently Keanu brings the noise, popping a cap in everyone and everything while rocking the latest in skinny men's fashions. It could be fun; and besides, what else were you gonna do, play with your on-the-card Jar Jar Binks action figure? Mesa no tinken so!

Of course, you could watch TV instead. It's a big night for entertaining nonsense on NBC. At 9, Grimm returns for season four, so fans of ludicrous cop dramas set in worlds of pure fantasy need no longer content themselves with Hawaii Five-O. At 10 comes the debut of Constantine, a series based on the DC Vertigo horror comic Hellblazer. This adaptation, however, has nothing to do with Keanu or his 2005 movie version, and everything to do with Welsh actor Matt Ryan and a crap ton of CGI. Y'know how sometimes you wake up and discover that the terrestrial plane of which we think we're the masters is in fact crawling with invisible demons and ghosts, and now it's your job to send them off to divinely mandated afterlives? No? Well, now you understand why you don't have your own show on NBC, then.

MONDAY, OCT. 27

Out of curiosity, are there any Benedict Cumberbatch fans in the house? Pretty much all of you? Great! Now, how about classic horror icons? Yes? Quite a few of you? OK! Any huge admirers of the National Theatre in London? (Crickets.) Fine, but what if I told you Benedict Cumberbatch got pretty much naked in the National Theatre's 2011 production of Frankenstein, directed by Danny Boyle of Trainspotting and Slumdog Millionaire fame? Aha, I see some of you sitting up straighter. Happily for you and your shameless depravity, that production was videotaped. Even better, it'll be shown in American cineplexes Monday, as, for example, at the Regal Martin Village in Lacey at 7. Then the event repeats two days later ... with the roles of Dr. Frankenstein and the monster reversed! Cumberbatch switches roles with Jonny Lee Miller of Trainspotting! I know! And I'm not gonna tell you which day Cumberbatch plays which part, either, because that I do not know! Check Fandango.com for further details as the date of each screening approaches. It's alive! Exclamation points! Wizard, Annie!

Until next week, may the Force be with you, may the odds be ever in your favor, and may Episode VII be Gungan-free.

SATURDAY, OCT. 11 2014 >>>

1. Olympia alt-bluegrass band The Pine Hearts, Tacoma old timey meets folk-punk band The Cottonwood Cutups and rustygrass band The Rusty Cleavers will pitch a tent inside Bob's Java Jive at 8 p.m. It will be a cacophony of spirited group-singing and hoops and hollers. Read Kevin Knodell's feature story on Forest Beutel, singer and banjo musician with The Rusty Cleavers.

2. The Tacoma Arts Month Studio Tour is this weekend. There are 61 artists within 37 studios to visit and only two days to accomplish the task. Luckily, almost all of the studios are within Tacoma city limits, and a map is available online to assist you on this free, self-guided tour. These private sanctums of creativity will be open to the public Saturday and Sunday, Oct. 11 and 12, and some will offer hands-on activities. For those who don't want to plan their tour, Duchess of Downtown Tours, best known for the Tacoma ART BUS, will be visiting eight diverse studios for $11, or $22 if you want the VIP swag bag.

3. Top Rung Brewing Co.'s Hoptober party will consume its taproom, front patio and the large parking lot behind the brewery from 2-9 p.m. Expect barbecue food, games such as cornhole, ladder toss and Jenga. As mentioned previously in the New Beer Column, Top Rung's Trashed Pumpkin Ale will be released at the party. Bluegrass trio The Outlanders will perform three sets beginning at 6 p.m. There isn't a cover charge.

4. Spectrum Dance Theater LOVE is Tony-nominated choreographer Donald Byrd's exploration of the most complicated of human emotions. LOVE returns Byrd to the grandness and aesthetic beauty of pure dance, with leaps, lifts, and extensions. Backed by a minimalist stage, the performers create the rawness of LOVE and all that it encapsulates with their motions - frailty, comfort, jealousy, passion, and more - the dance is an ever-evolving view of LOVE. See LOVE at the Tacoma Armory beginning at 8 p.m.

5. Their most recent Jesus Rehab LP, The Zoo At Night, is described by band members and brothers Jared and Dominic Cortese as being about "mind-reading lizards, chubby 10-year-olds, and what its like to grow up in a world where no one is as they seem" - a fanciful and emotional description that, along with the heavy guitars and crashing drums, reminds once again of the Flaming Lips of the early '90s. For a two-piece, the Cortese brothers do an admirable job of creating an enormous sound that bounces and skips when it's not slashing and burning. The nimbleness of their minimalist setup means that the Jesus Rehab are free to careen anyplace, anytime. Read Rev. Adam McKinney's full feature on The Jesus Rehab in the Music and Culture section, then catch the band with Back From Hiatus, Terrapin and Trevor Peach at 8 p.m. in The New Frontier Lounge.

LINK: Saturday, Oct. 11 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

You know that Facebook friend who's always sharing videos with such status updates as "SOOOO cute!" or "Fluff ball awww"? (Yes, these are real quotes from real Facebook friends.)

Come Friday night, all of those people can go AFK and head for the Lacey Timberland Library, which will be hosting an Animal Video Festival and Photo Contest.

The event's celebrity guest is Will Braden, creator of the Golden Kitty-winning 2012 "Henri 2: Paw de Deux," starring Henri, le Chat Noir, aka Henry, Braden's laid-back cat.

Braden of Seattle has made a career of the animal video craze; having taken the Golden Kitty at the first Internet Cat Video Festival, he now curates and hosts the festival, the original animal video festival and the inspiration behind the local one, developed by librarian Kelsey Smith.

The library will show compilations of mostly funny and occasionally aww-inspiring videos, announce the winners of its animal photo contest and offer a photo booth where people can pose with cutouts of animal celebrities.

Smith is including all kinds of animals in the library festival, though cats do have a prominent place.

The event will even include a guest appearance by Cal, the office cat of Joint Animal Services. Accompanying Cal will be Joint Animal Services director Susanne Beauregard, who as host of TCTV's "Best Friends Animal Adoption" is something of animal video star herself.

Henri will not be attending the festival. One might guess that's because he turned up his nose at the inclusion of non-felines.

"Yes, your cat thinks of you with disdain," he recently tweeted (and posted on his website at henrilechatnoir.com). "But it's not because of anything you've done. You simply had the misfortune of being born a human."

ANIMAL VIDEO FESTIVAL AND PHOTO CONTEST, 7-9 p.m. Friday, Sept. 26; Lacey Timberland Library, 500 College Ave. SE, Lacey; free; 360-491-3860 or trl.org

WEDNESDAY, AUG. 20 2014 >>>

1. Smooth jazz isn't just for sick people in medical-office waiting rooms. Besides one of the nicest guys you'll ever meet, Darren Motamedy blends jazz with pop, funk and blues to create a contagious sound. Grab a lawn chair for his 6:30 p.m. show in Steilacoom's Pioneer Park.

2. The public is invited to spend an afternoon at the Lacey Museum, located at 829 Lacey St. SE in the historic neighborhood of Lacey, from 4-6 p.m. Want more Lacey? The Lacey Historical commissioners will be in the house, the house being the Lacey Museum. A presentation will be given on the current status of the new museum project, the "Lacey Museum at the Depot," beginning at 5:15 p.m. Lacey, get to know it ... all of it.

3. Pint Defiance is hosting a Mini Hop Fest with Laurelwood, as the Portland brewery takes over half the beer and taproom's taps with their hop-centric brews. On draft from 5-7 p.m. will be some of Laurelwood's hoppiest concoctions including Pale Pony ISA, Workhorse IPA, Green Elephant IPA and a rare appearance of Megafauna Imperial IPA.

4. They say never talk politics at the bar. The Black Angus in Lakewood encourages it. With the dismal low voting in the recent primary, there is bound to be some interesting conversations beginning at 6 p.m. Drinking Liberally Lakewood is an informal gathering of like-minded left-leaners and true hardcore lefties who want to trade ideas, get more involved, to rant, or just share each others company ... over drinks.

5. What happened to Freckles Brown? The Olympia quartet is now Ko Ko Jo, will perform rock and country covers, as well as their own tunes, at 7 p.m. in Sylvester Park.

LINK: Wednesday, Aug. 20 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

WEDNESDAY, JULY 30 2014 >>>

1. There are times when our music picks write themselves, which is helpful as some of us drink. This is one of those welcome moments, because Jazzbones is having one stunner of a week. It began with crooners Color Me Badd Saturday - hell, yes, they still wanna sex you up! - followed Sunday by Georgia rapper Warren Anderson Mathis, better known as Bubba Sparxxx. Save room on your musical plate, though, for Igor & The Red Elvises, a mind-blowing rockabilly combo whose members hail from former Soviet states (or, in one case, the Minnesota gulag) but met in California, with Psycho 78 at 8 p.m.

2. The Swiss hosts Military Appreciation Day, a.k.a. Warrior Wednesday, a fundraiser for Pat Tillman Foundation (Official) with portions of every Jack Daniels sale going to charity. The downtown Tacoma restaurant will have $5 drink and food specials for those with military ID.

3. The Puget Sound Partnership's Science Panel will meet from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. in the Commencement Bay conference room at the Center for Urban Waters. The panel includes some of the top scientists in the Northwest and advises the Partnership's efforts to develop a science-based comprehensive plan to restore Puget Sound. These meetings are open to the public and all are welcome to address questions or provide comment about the regional effort to restore and protect Puget Sound. We imagine the whole ordeal is like the montage scene in a Hollywood movie, in which a schlubby male is transformed into a veritable Renaissance man as the clock ticks from 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. You arrive dehydrated from the night before and leave looking for a "green" Chardonnay and someone to discuss Xenobiotics in the Urban Water Cycle.

4. Thurston County Fair starts at 10 a.m. and provides five days of activities including musical entertainment, home arts demonstrations, 4-H and FFA events, rides for kids of all ages, and the always-fabulous fair food. A little history: The first Thurston County Fair was in 1871 and was located where the present day 4th Ave Tavern is. The event was a way to support agriculture and immigration in Thurston County. The fair has grown over the past 130 years and has jumped from location to location, including the now Tumwater Safeway and Lacey Post Office, before settling in to the present day fairgrounds in 1958. Bonus: The fabulous Artesian Rumble Arkestra headlines the grand opening ceremony at 5 p.m. tonight.

5. A couple of beer tastings are going down tonight. The Puyallup River Alehouse hosts Schooner Exact with beer, giveaways and prizes from 6-9 p.m. Jhon Gilroy with specialty beer importers Merchant du Vin will hang at 99 Bottles from 5-7 p.m. Pick his brain, drink his beers and enjoy a $2 happy hour.

LINK: Wednesday, July 30 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

SATURDAY, JULY 26 2014 >>>

1. It was a cool July night in the City of Grit. My fedora pulled down low over my eyes, I peered out through a haze of cigarette smoke as I slunk down South Tacoma Way. Maybe that's why at first I didn't see the hep cat in the zoot suit. He was layin' back deep in the shadows and burnin' a cancer stick of his own. "What's the haps, brotha man?" I asked, meanin' to breeze past. "You lookin' sharp."

"You see that?" he asked, pointing a long dark finger at an open space near Stonegate Pizza. "I'm tellin' you, they's some crazy bidiness 'bout to go down on this block, and that's the stone truth. This scene gon' be 18-karat come this weekend."

"This block here?" I repeated. "Lay it on me, Jack."

"This here where they puttin' together the Jazz and Blues Festival this year, son. That ain't no applesauce."

Read Christian Carvajal's interview with the mysterious hep cat about the Tacoma Jazz and Blues Festival in the Music and Culture section, then enjoy the festival from 1 p.m. to midnight at 56th and South Tacoma Way.

2. We here at the Weekly Volcano think it takes a real man to wear a skirt and wear it proudly.  That's why we're piling into the Weekly Volcanomobile and heading to the 68th Annual Pacific Northwest Scottish Highland Games at the Enumclaw Expo Center to watch some manly men flash their legs and flip some freakin' big logs in the Heavy Field Events and Caber Toss. If all that testosterone gets to be too much, we'll head for the Parading of the Clans or dancing, piping and drumming competitions. Honestly, there are a lot of events going down at the thing between 7:45 a.m. and 9 p.m., including dancing demonstrations, pipes and drums galore, food and rockin' Ockham's Razor.

3. If you've ever been to a mushroom festival - particularly the Pacific Northwest Mushroom Festival, which this year runs from 10 a.m. to 6 p.m. today and tomorrow at the Thurston County Regional Athletic Complex - you already know that mycologists ('shroom experts) are in a league of their own. Mushroom festivals are the strangest, funniest and, not so incidentally, most educational experience you're ever likely participate in. And, no, hippie: Pacific Northwest Mushroom Festival does feature "magic" mushrooms (psilocybes and otherwise). What it does include are featured speakers, chefs, cooking demonstrations, farm tour, children activities, entertainment, vendors, mushroom tasting, Grow in the the Dark 5K and a Saturday evening mushroom and wine event during the Lacey festival.

4. Two big beer events go down today. The official merging of Harmon's two St. Helens neighborhood sister restaurants Harmon Tap Room and The Hub into one giant beer complex. In celebration, a "Progressive Party" will be thrown from 1-6 p.m., where those who pay $15 may meet head brewer Jeff Carlson and his crew, drink specialty beers, taste the new menu, sample desserts from Harmon's new in-house baker and, of course, hug a Harmon employee. Space is limited; grab your tickets at The Hub and Harmon Tap Room. Harmon will also unveil its Hop Coffee enterprise at the party. If that wasn't enough, the party will also take time out for the Harmon and Tacoma homebrewing supplier MASH to hand out awards for their homebrewing competition, Aroma of Tacoma. The Parkway Tavern hosts a "79th Birthday Partay" including a "Badass Tacomacentric Beer Line Up," a beer garden in its backyard, Chad's BBQ out front, punkgrass band Rusty Cleavers jammin' around 3 p.m., Mr. Gibson's FroYo Wagon pulls up around 4, plus the release of the new ParkWay hoodies.

5. 1. Campfire Cassettes was started by Jonathan Buchanan as a way of getting pesky songs out of his head. Sometimes he performs with a full band, but the tour he's on finds him performing solo, with an assist from his tourmate, Todd N Todd (AKA Todd Daniels). The first song on the Los Angeles-based Campfire Cassettes' upcoming LP,GOSLEBROCK, features this line: "My sister Mary got everything. She got a brand new horse when she was 17. My sister Mary got everything. When I was 17, I got an STD." It's this sort of downer self-deprecation and outer bitterness that defines Campfire Cassettes It'd be depressing if it weren't so hilarious. Read Rev. Adam McKinney's full feature on Campfire Cassettes in the Music and Culture section, then catch Buchanan and Daniels at 7 p.m. in Metronome Coffee.

LINK: Saturday, July 26 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

On the heels of the Washington State Department of Transportation's public presentation of ideas to fix the traffic hell outside the Joint Base Lewis-McChord gates comes a trifecta of public meetings centering on the JBLM Joint Land Use Study. The South Sound Military & Communities Partnership has released the dates. ...

Lakewood, WA - Joint Base Lewis-McChord (JBLM) is changing, and so are the communities in the south Puget Sound region.

Now, the organization that's working to ensure effective communication and collaboration between the base and its neighbors is looking to engage the community in planning for the areas surrounding the base. The project, called the JBLM Joint Land Use Study (JLUS), focuses on the region's long-term land use plans, with goals of supporting the military mission at JBLM, ensuring public health and safety throughout the region, and protecting the neighboring communities' abilities to plan for development.

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MONDAY, JUNE 2 2014 >>>

1. The Dukes of Swing, official stage band of Elks Lodge #593 Aberdeen, first played at lodge functions during the late 1940s. Over the years, the Dukes have been the featured band for many National Elks Convention Grand Balls. Under the watchful eye of bandleader Dave McCrary, the Dukes have expanded their repertoire to include more modern arrangements, but their book has plenty of the classic tunes from the '30s and '40s. Catch the band at 8 p.m. in the Rhythm and Rye club in downtown Olympia.

2. The Civil War, as anyone with access to a history book can tell you, got its official start on April 12, 1861, when Confederate forces attacked the U.S. military base at Fort Sumter, S.C. Earlier, seven states had declared their secession from the Union in advance of the March inauguration of President Abraham Lincoln, whose Republican Party had campaigned against expanding slavery beyond its then-current boundaries. Although we often forget that the American Civil War involved the entire nation, not just "the East," people in Washington Territory were deeply involved in its issues. Should nonwhites live in Washington? Should Washington become a separate nation? How should the government deal with political dissenters? Join historian and speaker Lorraine McConaghy for an interactive, living theater program that reveals the varied opinions voiced during our state's own Civil War history at 1 p.m. in the Lacey Timberland Library.

3. Get out your dancing shoes and join in the whimsy of a country western shuffle dance, hosted by the Evergreen Country Dancers. What is a shuffle, you say? It's the country western version of polka - the primary difference being that the style of shuffle is less hoppy than the polka - and there's nothing wrong with that. The feet hit the Olympia Elks Lodge floor at 6:30 p.m.

4. Jazz and blues band Maia Santell & House Blend will perform at 8 p.m. inside The Swiss.

5. Remember back in the day when you were in your first apartment and spent a memorable night with your friends just blaring the record player and singing along to random selections from your album collection? Toss in a pitcher of PBR and extreme lighting and that is 9 p.m. karaoke at Bob's Java Jive.

LINK: Monday, June 2 arts and entertainment events in the greater Tacoma and Olympia area

On his Saturday morning walks through Joint Base Lewis-McChord's Memorial Park, Col. Louis Zeisman pauses to honor the base's fallen heroes

"My family and I walk through here," the commander of 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team, 2nd Infantry Division, recently said.

"It's a way to remember, and we treat it as a place of honor."

In the park are monuments honoring the 3rd and 4th Stryker Combat Brigade Teams, 42nd Military Police Brigade and the 555th Engineer Brigade.

What Zeisman does not see is a memorial honoring the brigade he commands.

That will soon change.

"Currently, our memo to build a memorial is at the Pentagon," he said.

Comprised of two tall pillars of granite, the names of the fallen will be etched in stone. In between the pillars will be a bench with footsteps walking away.

"When you see the footsteps walking off by themselves, it touches everybody," Zeisman added.

>>> More than 200 bikers rolled by the diagram showing the memorial 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team and the Lancer Soldier and Family Fund want to build to honor those lost in Afghanistan. Photo credit: J.M. Simspon

The brigade deployed to Afghanistan on two separate occasions.

Some history is in order.

5th Stryker Brigade Combat Team deployed in 2009 thru 2010.  Thirty-seven soldiers did not come home. 

In 2010, 5th Brigade reflagged as the 2nd Stryker Brigade Combat Team.  It deployed to Afghanistan from 2011 thru 2012.  Eight soldiers lost their lives.

The memorial will honor the fallen from the brigade's two deployments to Afghanistan as well as those who died in training.

Leading the effort to build the memorial is the Lancer Soldier and Family Fund, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit organization.

Connie Dotson, wife of 2nd Brigade's top enlisted soldier, Command Sgt. Maj. Tim Dotson and the chairwoman of the fund, said the organization has worked for over a year to raise funds.

"We've got $13,000 in the bank," she said this morning as more than 200 motorcycles roared to life at the Northwest Harley-Davidson in Lacey.

The daylong event also featured food, music and a number of vendors. All proceeds went to fund the memorial.

"We need $60,000 to complete the memorial and fly the family members of those lost out here for the dedication," Dotson explained.

The granite for the memorial has already been delivered. All the Lancer Soldier and Family Fund group need is to receive an OK from the Department of Army and finish its fund raising.

"I'm confident we will make our goal," Dotson said.

"We expect to have the memorial finished by May of next year."

>>> Pfc. Kevin DeJesus, 1st Battalion, 17th Infantry Regiment, holds up his shirt before the "Ride in Remembrance," May 16. Photo credit: J.M. Simpson

Dubbed "The Ride in Remembrance," hundreds of motorcycle riders - most of whom active duty or veterans riding Harley-Davidsons - and thousands of soldiers, family members and community leaders showed up to support the fund raising.

"It's an honor to be here today and ride in support of the memorial," said Sgt. 1st Class Matt Collins, 2nd Battalion, 1st Infantry Division, as he fired up his Harley.

"No one should be forgotten."

For more information about 2nd Brigade's memorial and fundraising efforts, visit www.lancerfund.org.

Columbia Brewing Co. first occupied the building along the 2100 block of South C Street in 1900. Beer made at the facility gained national attention for its flavor and smooth aftertaste in the early 1920s, prompting the brewery to double in size and increase capacity by the mid-1930s.

Success at the plant received the attention of another brewery, Heidelberg Brewing Co., which purchased the Columbia plant in 1949 and set out for another round of remodeling. The facility was bought yet again a decade later by Carling Brewery, making it the only West Coast holding of the otherwise East Coast beer company.

Fickle beer drinkers began to snub Tacoma's home brew, and the plant closed in 1979. There have been efforts to revive the brewery in the passing years, but the natural spring that bubbles water to the surface on that end of town isn't as mountain pure as it once was.

That's just a snippet of what you'll most likely hear when University of Washington-Tacoma Art and Architecture Professor Julie Nicoletta leads a tour through Tacoma's Brewery District from 5:15 p.m. to 6:30 p.m. Wednesday, May 21. Sponsored by Downtown On the Go, the 1.5-mile Walk Tacoma UWT/Brewery Walk will start at the base of the UWT stairs at South 19th and Pacific Avenue and end at the Harmon Brewery and Eatery for light appetizers and a beer tasting. Then at 8, stop by the corner of South 19th and Jefferson Street as I will lead my own tour talk called, "Bushes I Fell In Between the Heidelberg and The Swiss During the 1990s." OK, I'm kidding about my tour (kind of), but the part about the Brewery Walk is absolutely true.

Nicoletta's tour will highlight the historic Brewery and Warehouse Districts, including locations of old breweries, the Swiss Building, the Streets and Grounds Maintenance Division's Barn, and the development of the Prairie Line Trail along the old Prairie Rail Line. There is no need to pre-register for the event, simply join Downtown On the Go at the meeting spot. 

The Harmon has its T-town Blonde, Chambers Bay Scottish Ale and the new drINK THIS IPA lined up for the tasting.

BEER NEWS

To celebrate its 20th anniversary, Dick's Brewing Company will release a special 20th anniversary beer, Dick's Midnight Ride, July 18. Dick's Midnight Ride is a trip to the dark side. The robust, Northwest-style CDA will burst with Cascade and Centennial hops, perfectly balanced with a rich dark malt profile. Think rich, dark and malty like a porter but with a hop IPA profile. Dick's will throw a 20th anniversary bash at its Centralia home Saturday, Oct. 25.

BEER HERE

Tuesday, May 13-18

American Craft Beer Week - May 12-18 - is more of a Midwest thing. All the Northwest craft breweries are hip wader deep into Seattle Beer Week. Ninkasi Brewing Company, for instance, has 13 events lined up for the 11-day Seattle Beer Week, which ends May 18. A few South Sound beer-centric entities are celebrating the Emerald City beer bath, such as Pint Defiance taproom and beer store with its 26-beer Northwest beer punch card. The RAM Big Horn Brewery is waving the American Craft Beer Week flag, highlighting one of its gold medal winning beers a day, offering an 18-ounce pour for $3.25. The Big Red IPA is on the pedestal today. Tomorrow, its Washington Blonde receives the spotlight, followed by the Disorder Porter and a Hefeweizen salute Friday.

Wednesday, May 14

The ladies of Pike Brewing have developed a beer with some of the proceeds going to Planned Parenthood. Kris Blondin, owner of STINK Cheese and Meat and neighboring STINK Tank wine bar, holds the Pike Brewing crew in high regard. STINK will pour samples of Pike's seasonal Morning After Pale Ale from 5-8 p.m. For every pint sold, Blondin will donate a dollar to Planned Parenthood.

The 10 Barrel Brewing Co. is on the move. The Bend, Ore., brewery is opening a third brewpub in Portland's Pearl District this summer - the other two are in Bend and Boise. The Portland site will include a pub and a brewhouse, which will brew small batch and one-off beers. Speaking of 10 Barrel small batch beers, several will be available May 14 when 10 Barrel visits the Puyallup River Alehouse. The downtown Puyallup house of beers will serve hot dogs, tacos, giveaway prizes and pour a bunch of 10 Barrel beers.

Saturday, May 17

The Bacon and Beer Classic will consume Safeco Field in Seattle May 17. The traveling greasy, hoppy fiesta visits baseball fields around the country, drawing thousands of attendees to sample craft beer and bacon-based dishes from regional restaurants. Adding to that already winning combination will be performances from local bands and cooking demonstrations. Chef Hudson Slater of Maxwell's Restaurant teamed up with the mad scientists at Wingman Brewers to create a Tacoma bacon beer for the Seattle festival - Gratzilla Bacon Smoked Wheat Beer. It's a light, sessionable and smoky wheat beer - and on tap at Wingman, too. By the way, Wingman is now open 2-9 p.m. every Sunday.

Top Rung Brewing Company in Lacey gives nod to the American Craft Beer Week with a tour of its brewery beginning at 3 p.m.

St. Patrick's Day celebrations aren't easy. You must practice to prepare yourself for the zaniness that goes down every March 17. Doyle's Public House knows this. That's why they host monthly St. Practice Day parties, of which happens Saturday. The party begins with Doyle's Guinness Club toast at 5:17 p.m. All the members gather before Grand Poobah Russ Heaton, who recognizes members who have hit milestones, such as 500 pints of Guinness, while the other members tear up. After the announcement, Heaton raises a glass of the Irish Mother's Milk and toasts the members. At 5:25 p.m., some will board a bus for the Sounders game. Those who stay behind will work on their membership goals, until funky Afrobeat band Rippin Chicken bumps them silly at 9:30 p.m.

>>> Doyle's Public House lines them up Saturday at 5:17 p.m.