In the Morgan Junction, loyal customers came together generously offering up generators to keep the doors open during recent wind storms. Friends gathered on communal couches in the English-style setting and toasted pints to the new year. Stories, laughter and the sound of clinking glasses from 'round the world filled the air.

Something's brewing at Beveridge Place Pub. And it's more than your average beer.

"We created this pub to be an extension of the community, a comfortable place where adults can relax and feel as if you've never left home," smiles Gary Sink, who owns the establishment with wife Terri Griffith. "And we have one focus - it's all about the beer here."

With 18 beers on draft including local brews such as Boundary Bay IPA, Manny's Pale Ale, Hood Canal's Agate Pass Amber, and more than 100 varieties of bottled beers made everywhere from Belgium to Brazil, it's apparent that a fair amount of frosty suds abound at Beveridge Place. But this two-time winner of Northwest Brewing News' coveted "Best Alehouse in the State" award is much more about quality than quantity.

"Our philosophy is to offer an ever-changing variety of craft-brewed draft ales and lagers on tap, focusing on those made in Washington," explains Sink. "The Pacific Northwest is recognized as the solid core of the microbrew movement and we want to support these talented local brewers."

In fact, the pub offers beer that is handcrafted right here in West Seattle - you can't get much more local than that.

Take for example the offerings of Schooner Exact Brewing Co., hand-crafted on Harbor Avenue by brewers Marcus Connery along with Matt and Heather McClung (a software salesman, high school chemistry teacher, and master's student teacher respectively). Named after the ship which brought the Denny party to Alki Beach in 1851 on that historic cold, rainy day, the brewers wanted to stray from calling out the obvious Westside landmarks and instead chose a name that reflects local history and encourages people to ponder the past as they sip away.

The pub is also hosting its fifth annual Barleywine Bacchanal March 2-10 featuring 30 of the biggest, boldest brews (aka barleywines) around ranging from "Northwest brews with over-the-top bitterness to traditional English styles with the maltiness of molasses."

And if, heaven forbid, you don't like beer, Beveridge Place Pub offers a fine wine list ranging from the cabernets of Prosser to the sauvignon blancs of Colchagua Valley, Chile - all selected with the same standards as the beer they're known for (quality, uniqueness, and value). The pub also offers foosball tourneys every Monday night starting at 9 p.m. ($5 entry) and Trivia Quiz Night every Wednesday starting at 8 p.m.

Later on in the year, keep your eyes out for Beveridge Place Pub to shift north by one door to the old Video Vault space. The new tavern will still feature the popular two-room layout (a front room pub with antique backbar, vintage d/cor, couches, and board games plus a backroom game area for darts, pool, foosball, video games and TV), but it will also include outdoor seating so you can take in the fresh air while enjoying a tall, cool one.

So if you're in the mood for a pint of something special, hop on by Beveridge Place - a pub that's brewing up a true appreciation for great beer.

(Information Box)

What:

Beveridge Place Pub

Where:

6451 California Ave. S.W. (look for the new location next door later this year)

www.beveridgeplacepub.com

(206) 932-9906.

When:

Hours are 3 p.m. to 2 a.m. Mon-Fri; 2 p.m.-2 a.m. Saturday and Sunday

Getting there (or home):

Walk, ride your bike, cab it, or take Metro Bus 54.

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