1889 August | September 2018

food + drink
Cocktail Card
recipe courtesy of
ChocMo Chocolate Bistro
Nocino
Manhattan
2 ounces Black Heron bourbon
1 ounce Stone Barn Nocino
1 ounce Carpano Antica Formula
sweet vermouth
2 dashes Angostura bitters
Combine all ingredients in a
shaker. Stir vigorously and strain
into a martini glass. Garnish with
a Luxardo cherry and enjoy.
Beervana
A Brew with a View
written and photographed by Jackie Dodd
Rooftop Brewing offers good beers and great views.
CRAIG CHRISTIAN HAS a casual answer for why he won’t rent out his taproom
for private events.
“It would just be about the money, and that’s not why I’m here,” he said. That
shows you what his bones are made of. A group of fiercely loyal regulars who form
the pulse of the taproom, even on a typical drizzly Seattle day, matter to him in a way
that speaks volumes. “All on their own they started a Facebook group called Rooftop
Regulars,” he said, smiling like a proud parent putting an aced exam on the fridge.
Christian has instant likability that you feel the second you meet him. It’s not just
his disarming transparency, his quiet humility, or the way he creates a community
wherever he goes. What reminds you—more than anything—that the owner of
Rooftop Brewing is the sort that you want to run in the same circle with is how, even
when he tries, he can’t talk about himself or his accomplishments for more than a
few moments without turning the spotlight on someone else he adores. Maybe it’s
the way Ladro coffee roasts their beans, or how Counterbalance Brewing is raising
money for charity through the Beer Trumps Hate campaign (the one Christian
started), or the way the food from the Vietnamese food truck that makes the rounds
at Rooftop pairs so well with beer.
“I put a roof deck on an A-framed Tudor-style house that had no business being
there,” Christian said of Rooftop Brewing’s origin story. In reality, it all started in
London decades ago. Before he was of legal drinking age in the United States,
Christian found himself in the heart of the UK with a desire to learn how to brew
and a country that was ready and willing to teach him. Is it that he learned to make
beer in the hallowed ale-soaked terrain of England that makes his beer so good? Is
it the multiple degrees in science that make it so consistent and flawless? Maybe.
Or maybe it’s some other unidentifiable quality that keeps the awards coming and
the fan base growing. But the “why” of it all doesn’t matter once you’re up on the
rooftop of Rooftop with that cold Stargazer IPA in your hand. Don’t forget to grab
a banh mi sandwich while you’re there. Christian will be the first to tell you how
amazing they are.
1220 W NICKERSON ST.
SEATTLE
rooftopbrewco.com
20 1889 WASHINGTON’S MAGAZINE AUGUST | SEPTEMBER 2018