Baron Brewing, Three Skulls Ale and the Pillagers Pub, Seattle, Washington.
Baron Brewing, Three Skulls Ale and the Pillagers Pub, Seattle, Washington.
Just north of downtown Seattle is the neighborhood of Greenwood and the location of The Pillagers Pub, home to Baron Brewing and Three Skulls Ale. The owner, Jeff Smiley, started Baron Brewing back in 2003 after falling in love with German beer and home brewing. Smiley is a jovial man with a long salt-and-pepper goatee, a hearty laugh and a healthy dose of optimism. He prides himself on the authenticity of his German-style beers: All of the Baron beers are brewed with proper imported German ingredients. “I really like my big German beers,” he says with a huge grin. But it wasn’t long before he had the itch to make big Pacific Northwest style beers.
“I really like my IPAs and Porters, and that’s why we started the separate brewery,” says Smiley, alluding to his recently launched Three Skulls Ale label. All of the Three Skulls Ales are brewed on the same brewing kit as the Baron Brewing line and, like Baron, the Three Skulls Ales are made with high-quality ingredients — in this case, All-American grains, hops and yeast. Not to be missed is the Baron Schwarzbier Black Lager, a classic German black lager with an essence of chocolate and a crisp finish. Another Pillager standout is the Three Skulls Ales’ Cut Throat Red: a deep amber red ale with a nice hop finish.
Sample all of these beers and more at the Pillagers Pub in Seattle.
