Cookies & craft in CdA

After three increasingly successful Spokane outings, the area Girl Scouts organization is taking its cookies- and-beer show to Coeur d’Alene.

The Lake City’s inaugural Craft Beer & Cookie Fest, on Thursday from 5 to 7:30 p.m. at the Midtown Bluebird bistro, 816 N. 4th, will feature six Girl Scout cookie styles paired with beers from three local breweries.

“It’s a boutique version of what we’ve done in Spokane,” says Bretta Walker, events specialist for the Girl Scouts of Eastern Washington and Northern Idaho. “It’s a much smaller venue, a smaller atmosphere for the first year.”

Attendance at the Spokane event, which will return Oct. 22, has grown from roughly 100 people the first year to 200 in 2014 and 300 last year.

“We’ve already got a buzz about it,” Walker says. “We think Coeur d’Alene is going to keep the momentum going.”

Thursday’s pairings (with participants voting on the winner) will include:

– Caramel-and-coconut Samoas with Slate Creek’s Salmon Run Irish red.

– Peanut butter Do-Si-Dos with Mad Bomber’s All-American Amber.

– Shortbread Trefoils with Slate Creek’s 6 Weight IPA.

– Lemony Savannah Smiles with Mad Bomber’s Fatman IPA.

– The classic Thin Mints with Daft Badger’s Kahlua Porter.

– Chocolate-covered peanut butter Tagalongs with Daft Badger’s Bourbon Stout.

Tickets are $15 in advance, $20 at the door, which includes a tasting mug, your first four 4-ounce pours and light appetizers, along with a box of cookies to take home. Proceeds support scholarships, camperships and leadership programs for local Girl Scouts.