March 23, 2015 · Exit133

Engine House 9 Tacoma: The Changing Face of Washington Brewing, Part One

Steve Body, writing as "The Pour Fool" at the SeattlePI.com has some very nice things to say about the beers Shane Johns is producing over at E-9. Then there's what he says about Tacoma ...

He calls Tacoma "one of the most unlikely places in the United States" for interesting beers, and goes on to describe Tacoma ("For those who have never been there").

Tacoma, Washington, is a step into a time machine; a slice of 1958 Seattle that broke off, rolled south, and got snagged on a tree root on the shores of Commencement Bay.

... its people are a wild mix of Northwest Gen-Xers, old hippies, the desperately poor, a thin stratum of Old Money, and the largest concentration of rednecks west of Alabama. It is a city that could be (and probably is) accurately pegged as a hotbed of wallet-on-a-chain monster-truck fans whose beer preference stops at whatever is the current outer parameters of Anheuser Busch’s watery lager continuum.

It goes on. This doesn't sound familiar to us, and the only thing we can figure is that Body has never gone to the trouble of getting off the freeway and spending any time in Tacoma. We've heard a lot of aggressively ignorant stereotypes about Tacoma in the last twenty years, but being the a hotbed of rednecks isn't one of them. Or maybe he's just trying to get us riled up.

Is this the Tacoma you know?

Read original on Seattle PI →

Filed under: Tacoma Business, Neighborhoods, Eating Local, Restaurants & Bars, 6th Avenue, Beer, Wine, Spirits

15 comments

Taco Man March 23, 2015

Why would you even parrot what this asshole has to say?
JDHasty March 23, 2015

Looking at the condition of the City of Tacoma's pavement, the impression that Tacoma is populated by a bunch of inbred inebriates just one generation removed from the hills and hollers of West Virginia is certainly not without basis.
thackerspeed March 23, 2015

Seattle represents the global retirement community of 1930's English boarding school exiles---a population chronically habituated to flogging and sexual detours.
Cheechmo March 23, 2015

According to Vox Media, Steve Body is a spirit animal who uses Google Analytics to create humanities of collaborating in home brewing.
Drock March 23, 2015

Somebody did their homework right before class. Let's throw some stereotypes up against the wall and see what happens. Too bad not much applies in reality.
ff.geek March 23, 2015

"whose beer preference stops at whatever is the current outer parameters of Anheuser Busch’s watery lager continuum." - I guess we do tend to enjoy Elysium Beers on occasion... when not partaking from one of a dozen local breweries. I wouldn't expect a guy from Seattle who just discovered E9 to have heard of Odd Otter, Tacoma Brewing, Pacific Brewing, Narrows Brewing, Wingman Brewing, etc. But then again, if her were to suggest to Seattle hipsters that they should come try some of our beer, our best watering holes would be too busy to support us (and I-5 would be even more full of drunks than normal). So, thanks for NOT talking up Tacoma, we don't need the Seattle crowd anyway. But, don't be surprised that we enjoy good beer and don't need to travel to Fremont or Ballard to find it.
Bill Johnston March 23, 2015

If we have all these "Rednecks" than why is Tacoma always ahead of Seattle is passing "Liberal" legislation...Why are the legislators from the 27th and 29th all progressives? Oh...and why is the Tacoma Police Department a community service and not an invasion force shooting down wood carvers and beating the hell out of people? Tacoma is a cool funky city ...wouldn't live anywhere else!
Jeff Lee March 23, 2015

Body is a blowhard, always has been. Can't believe he left his shining tower to grace us peasants with his presence. Let them think what they want, we all know the truth about Tacoma. Awesome community doing awesome things. The true crappiness is that it took away from a great tribute to a great dude and brewer, Shane Johns. Kudos Shane. You're killing it.
Russ March 24, 2015

When I saw that he seemed to really be into all the raspberry BS and other "infusions" into beer -- geesh -- I wonder if he likes Beer, not that stuff that is "flavored" with the fruit of the day!-- and I do not recognize Tacoma from his description -- not the one I see on 6th Ave, nor Proctor, nor downtown, Ruston Way, Pt Defiance, on and on -- what a Marooon!
- Russ March 24, 2015
  
  At least he got the "fool" part right in his name.
- The Pour Fool December 8, 2015
  
  [quote]When I saw that he seemed to really be into all the raspberry BS and other “infusions” into beer—geesh—I wonder if he likes Beer, not that stuff that is “flavored” with the fruit of the day!—and I do not recognize Tacoma from his description—not the one I see on 6th Ave, nor Proctor, nor downtown, Ruston Way, Pt Defiance, on and on—what a Marooon! [/quote] Yeah, and if you never get out of "6th Ave, nor Proctor, nor downtown, Ruston Way, Pt Defiance", that's all you ever will see. Way to give that view from the ivory tower, Bubba.
BBL April 10, 2015

Interesting the the author inserted an addendum to his original post following the outcry from those of us who Tacoma calling him out....
- The Pour Fool December 8, 2015
  
  [quote] Interesting the the author inserted an addendum to his original post following the outcry from those of us who Tacoma calling him out….[/quote] Yes, I did. Only the second time in 46 years of journalism and blogs. I did it without retracting a single thing I originally said and did it mainly because a tiny number of whiners were hijacking an attempt to give some much-overdue praise to a truly GREAT brewery and make the post All About Butthurt Tacomans. I even said in the addendum that it wouldn't appease those who complained and, well, here you are, still whining. I've now lived in Tacoma for four months and have found MANY things to like about the place. I also have found NO reason to retract anything I said in that original post. If those of us who write for a living can only mention Tacoma if we're willing to buy into your rosy little communal delusion about the place, I predict that you're going to be doing a lot more of getting your panties in a knot. Of the 150,000 people a month who read the two blogs, less than 3% are from this area. I don't write about anything here just for people here. I tell the truth as I see it about EVERYTHING in Washington and if some of it is not flattering, I'm not the chamber of commerce.
- Marris Otter April 28, 2017
  
  Pour little Stephen over here is nothing more than a common attention seeking reprobate. He recently flounced, incredibly dramatically, from a Facebook group he joined, rather than leaving quietly. In doing so, he's become a gigantic laughingstock and now he cries about persecution from people who are carrying the joke on in his view. It's really rather sad. If you want a laugh, here's his flounce message.
Willya April 28, 2017

I like Tacoma and I like Barleywine