Mt. Index Brewery & Distillery

Stayed at a cabin nearby and this was the only brewery around. but I’m glad it was! Had a good conversation with the Bartender/​Brew Master and he even gave me a couple of local apples he had picked. Oh, and good beer as well!
Only complaint is that they didn’t have food, but it’s soon to come (they say).

These guys are fun, and the story they have to tell might not be new, but it’s always a good one to hear. It’s the old saw about a couple of guys who got better and better at homebrewing and finally decided to go pro with it, starting from the ground up, with a little help from friends and family when needed. Two brothers from up in the mountains have reclaimed an old building with some faux-​chalet appeal – they’re right on Highway 2 at the turn to Index, and they have a great view of some craggy peaks in… pretty much every direction.
This building had been vacant for some time, and they came in to reclaim it for the good of the brewing and distilling worlds. As far as they know, they’re the first brewery/​distillery combination in Washington. Others have since followed in their footsteps (or at least announced plans). But these guys are carving out a little room for themselves up here on the shoulder of the Cascades, and it’s fun to watch.
You’re trundling along highways for quite a while to get here – it’s a little past Wallace Falls, or maybe you’re out here for another hike, or white-​water rafting on the Sky. Or you’re just willing to drive a long way to try a beer (cough).
They’re still putting the building back together to some extent. They have everything up and running, with separate productions facilities and tasting rooms for the brewery and the distillery (this is required by law, though as far as I know, these days, it doesn’t do much other than create hassle and expense for the producers). The brewery tasting room is around back, where there’s a medium-​sized raised deck with a few tables and chairs. Inside, there’s a flat-​screen TV with a few more tables and chairs, and a small bar.
Behind the bar are 8 faucets, pouring whatever is currently on rotation. They stay pretty busy operating two businesses between the small crew they have here, and keep the tasting rooms open 7 days a week (the brewery tasting room is only open part of the week – Thursday through Sunday as of this writing). When we visited, they had the Chocolate Coffee Stout pouring, which showed a lot of good coffee flavor, but could have stood to show a bit more chocolate sweetness to balance it out. They also had their ginger beer, which had great ginger sweetness without the harsh bitiness that sometimes comes with ginger. This beer could have used a little bit more carbonation but was very refreshing nevertheless.
They have a ton of interesting ideas for both the distillery and the brewery side, and they’re fun to talk about what they’re cooking up. They readily admit when something didn’t pan out – as curious as I would have been to try their salmonberry liqueur, they said they hadn’t been happy with it and it wasn’t available. They have coriander vodka and coffee liqueur available as of this writing, and all kinds of other stuff in the works as well. They’re really doing interesting things, and it will be fun to try their new offerings as they become available. They’re making a gin soon, and offered us a taste of the sloe berries that will become the basis of it. They’re really tart and tangy and it’s fun to see what serves as the starting point for the final product. They had a million ideas for how they could turn these and the local berries into cool beers, too.
Nobody is really making a truly local beer in the sense of using an ingredient that’s unique to the Puget Sound region. These guys have a fondness for some of the local berries (some of which I had never even heard of), and were musing over the possibility of brewing up something with one of them. I hope this comes true.

Just expanded Sukha Bardo to Index and decided we needed to venture out and check out the local spots. Lucky for us, we stopped here. They had two beers on tap, a ginger beer and chocolate porter, we decided on the ginger after they let us sample both.
They also offered up pretzels and peanuts if we wanted a little snack with our beer, nice touch!
The ginger beer was delicious. They also let us sample the coriander vodka, gin, and coffee liquor they had in the distillery. What an awesome experience, we are excited to be a part of this community!

Coriander Vodka! What’s not to love? Wait, I hate coriander. But I love the fact that this place makes it. Other lovely vodka too. Surely, if it’s this silky and pleasant, it is good for you. Mt. Index Brewery $ Distillery: you make me proud of the neighborhood.

After a day of aid climbing at Index we decided to check out the local brewery and are so glad that we did. We really enjoyed chatting with the owner/​brew master, Charley, while sharing a pint of his silky smooth stout.
It’s a small operation so he only had the stout on tap today, but normally has a variety of beers available. He was excited to note that he is currently working on a Trappist style beer, which will be available soon.
The tap room is small but has some great small town character. Outdoor seating available in nice weather. Owner says Rico’s pizza will deliver here if you want a bite to eat while enjoying your pint.

Local distillery features vodka. Gin, whiskey, and ale coming soon. We enjoyed meeting the proprietor and talking shop. He’s been brewing 20 years and has just gone pro. We enjoyed his vodka and wish him success!