Island Trails Network, Kodiak Brewing Team on Spruce Tip Hefe

Jay Barrett/KMXT

Another local nonprofit organization is benefiting from the custom beer-making of Kodiak Island Brewing Company. A couple years ago the brewery made a Russian Imperial Stout as a fundraiser for the Baranof Museum. This fall, brewmaster Ben Millstein has created a Spruce-Tip Wheat Wine for the Island Trails Network.

— (Spruce 1 24 sec "Makes us feel like more a part … it’s a local ingredient.")

Island Trails Network founder Andy Schroeder said Millstein approached him with the idea:

— (Spruce 2 31 sec "He’s been a member of … spruce tips to make a batch.")

Schroeder said that in early summer his crew would pick spruce tips while out building and maintaining trails around the island:

— (Spruce 3 20 sec "They appear in early summer … just before they sprout.")

Though it’s called a wheat "wine," Millstein says the beer is more akin to a strong Hefeweizen (heff-eh-visen):

— (Spruce 4 25 sec "The name comes from barley wine … you’d be destroyed.")

The alcohol content is about nine percent, where a regular beer is four to six percent.

For every growler of the Spruce Tip Wheat Wine that is sold, the Kodiak Island Brewing Company will donate $2 to the Island Trails Network.

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