$5,000 – the rough amount that Chef Travis Kukull spent on the Gourmet Brewers’ Dinner. He spent around $540 on jams, $1,100 on beef cheeks and $1,100 on cheese. Kukull bought a lot of little blocks of gjetost cheese, worth over $500, from Whitehorse, which he drove to pick up. The dinner featured appetizers as well as five courses. Kukull said he worked 100 hours last week, with his staff all working full time. This was Kukull’s seventh time cooking for the Brewers dinner. “Back in the day, I used to do all this with my wife, mother-in-law and brother-in-law,” Kukull said. He said that because of the extra help, this year’s dinner preparation was more organized “than it’s ever been.” For Kukull, he said it was “a ton of math” and that you can either be over prepared or under prepared. Kukull estimated that between the Brewers dinner and running his restaurant Deer Heart, he believed “we served one third of all Beerfest goers visiting Haines.”
1,009 patrons – attended Saturday’s Beerfest. Of these, 180 were Haines residents. According to Jeremy Reed, president of the Southeast Alaska State Fair, 172 guests attended Friday’s Gourmet Brewers’ Dinner.
41% – the amount of Canadian participation in this year’s Beerfest. Alaskans made up a bulk of this year’s ticket sales with 43% percent of the participation.
25 – the number of people who paid a requested $20 camping fee. According to the Haines Visitor Center, this was the first year that the borough asked campers to contribute a fee to cover restroom maintenance and garbage disposal. The payment was conducted via the honor system and brought in $500.
30 gallons – the amount of beer that the Haines Brewing Company brought to Beerfest. According to owner Paul Wheeler, the spruce tip ale tends to be the popular pick. The spruce tips are gathered locally in Haines with the help of the community.
6 officers – total patrolled the fairgrounds, campsites, RV parks and townsite. The Haines Borough Police Department had all four officers on duty in addition to two Alaska State Troopers patrolling around town. According to police chief Jimmy Yoakum, because of the “combination of strong venue management and visible patrol presence” there were no “alcohol-related incidents over the weekend.”
1 traffic stop – was the only enforcement action from the Haines police department. Officers stopped a vehicle that was throwing water balloons. According to Yoakum, the officers had a number of “casual, positive conversations with event-goers.” He noted that an officer overheard a Beerfest participant comment on “how many police were around.” There was one motor vehicle crash that occurred over the weekend unrelated to Beerfest activities. The police department is conducting an ongoing investigation regarding a vandalism incident that occurred on Main Street. They ask that anyone with information about the vandalism contact the Haines Borough Police Department at 907-766-2121.
191 sausage rolls & 70 cookies – the amount of baked goods that Foundroot sold in Dalton City during the day-long event. Co-owner Nick Schlosstein was busy baking the sausage rolls that were flying off the warming rack inside the shop.
