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The Spokesman-Review Newspaper
Spokane, Washington  Est. May 19, 1883

Ale to the victors

Rick Bonino

Last year’s runner-up and an amateur who’s turning pro were the big winners at last weekend’s second annual Battle of the Homebrews at the Spokane County Fair and Expo Center.

Scott White of Priest River, who placed second in the people’s choice voting last year with his lightly spicy Kaniksu Gold Belgian-style blonde, won the popular vote this time around.

“I decided if it was good enough to finish second last year, I should give it a try again,” he says.

Finishing first in the new professional judges’ category was Cameron Johnson of Spokane’s Young Buck Brewing with his big, well-balanced Vanilla Bourbon Coffee Stout.

Each of their recipes will be brewed commercially later this summer, White’s by Waddell’s and Johnson’s in conjunction with Downdraft.

“As a homebrewer, that’s about the best prize you can have,” says White, a member of Sandpoint’s 7B Hop Heads brewing club (named after the area’s license plate prefix).

Johnson, who hopes to have Young Buck open in July as part of the brewery incubator going in at the former Spokane Public Market, says his will likely end up being a collaboration brew with Downdraft.

He was a little reluctant about his entry since a vanilla bourbon stout won last year, but figured the addition of coffee beans along with vanilla beans and bourbon barrel chunks would add another dimension.

“I like a balance of flavors more than having any one stand out,” he says. “I tried to add the minimal amounts of all three of those things to get the impressions across.”

The beer aged for about a month, and will get even better as it matures more, Johnson says. Some adjustments will be required to brew it on a bigger scale, he adds, such as using actual barrels or at least larger pieces of wood.

The professional judges’ panel included representatives from Waddell’s and Downdraft, as well as Trickster’s and Crafted Tap House.