Bay Drifter

 

AMERICAN PILSNER

4.5% ABV // 35 IBU // 11.3 P

bright + citrus + light body

Bay Drifter is an American Pilsner inspired by Bellingham’s first brewery, Bellingham Bay Brewery, founded in 1902. Obviously we don’t know what those beers tasted like back then but we did some research and came up with a beer that we think honors the time and tradition while still staying with the current flavors and ingredients. This pilsner is clean and bright with distinct cracker and white bread flavors paired with a grassy, lemony bitterness. We are extremely thrilled with how this beer came out and only a little bummed with how limited it is, only available on draft at all Aslan locations and in cans at Seattle’s local PCC community markets.

HOPS:
BSmaragd
MALT:
Pilsner, 2-Row, Corn

Pacific Cooler

 

DOUBLE IPA

8.2% ABV // 35 IBU // 16.9 P

fruit punch + melon + bold

Collaboration with Urban Family Brewing

In the daze of summer haze comes a nostalgic throwback of a label for us daydreaming of playing in the sprinklers, orange slices at a soccer game, and blow up floaties in the pool. Our homies at Urban Family are on the same page as us when it comes to a colorful and fun spirit… they nail it

Pacific Cooler has notes of melon on the nose, fruit punch (not from concentrate), and guava on the palate with a juicy, medium body.

HOPS:
Barbe Rouge, Mosaic, Nelson Sauvin
MALT:
2-Row Pale, Oats, Wheat

Evil IPA

 

IPA

6.66% ABV // 75 IBU // 14.5 P

pine + citrus + herbal

Collaboration brew with Evil Bikes

It doesn’t matter if it’s mountain, bike packing, touring, or commuting we’re just stoked to be on bikes! When the idea of brewing up a collab with our pals at EVIL came up, it was a no-brainer. We landed on a crystal clear IPA made for easy drinking while packing a mighty punch. An almost savory pine character dominates the aroma while citrus and herbal notes mingle throughout. Those characteristics transfer into the flavor and pair with a light mouthfeel and a smooth, drying carbonation. A perfect beer to pair with whichever form of biking you chose!

HOPS:
Amarillo, Azacca, Eureka, HBC 586
MALT:
2-row Pale

BKIND

 

HELLES

4.5% ABV // 20 IBU // 11.2 P

light + crisp + malt forward

Collaboration brew with Downtown Bellingham Partnership

B KIND is a campaign spearheaded by the Bellingham Downtown Partnership and in it’s essence it’s all about kindness and inclusion. We brewed this beer in collaboration with the BDP and we thought there was no better style to encompass those ideas than a Helles. This beer is easy drinking with a malt-forward presentation that is balanced with a restrained hop bitterness. Cracker, white bread malt characters give way to an herbal, citrussy, minerally hop profile. This beer is incredibly drinkable and designed to be consumed in a German beer hall, (if you can't find one, the Depot patio will suffice).

HOPS:
Hersbrucker, Strisselspalt
MALT:
Pilsner, Munich

Kernza® Lager

American Pilsner

4.5% ABV // 30 IBU // 11 P

lemon + earthy + bright

Our long-awaited collaboration with Patagonia Provisions is finally here! We’re proud to present to you, Kernza® Lager, a good grain collaborative between Patagonia Provisions and 11 breweries, including us!

Our organic Kernza® Lager is bringing the beer industry one step closer to more sustainable production through the use of Kernza® a Regenerative Organic Certified® perennial grain, growing roots up to 12 feet long and staying in the ground year after year, helping mitigate the effects of the climate crisis through ecosystem nutrient retention.

Kernza® Lager is a bright, easy-drinking, organic pilsner, with a slightly nutty malt characteristic provided by Kernza, perfectly balanced with the lemon-forward, earthy, and floral notes brought to the flavor profile by organic Chinook and Pekko hops.

1% of Kernza® Lager’s sales will benefit Surfrider Foundation’s Northwest Straits Chapter, our partner in making the Pacific Northwest a better, cleaner place to live, through the protection of the world’s ocean, waves, and beaches.

HOPS:
Chinook, Pekko
MALT:
Pilsner, Kernza®

 

Employee Feature: Nick S

Nick Shelly, the kitchen manager at Aslan Brewing, is a shining example of dedication and passion in his role. With just passing his two-year mark at Aslan, Nick has demonstrated his commitment to culinary excellence and has risen through the ranks to lead the kitchen with confidence and creativity.

 

Nick with his son, Asa

 

Starting his journey in March 2021, Nick initially joined Aslan as a line cook. He quickly learned the ins and outs of every station within the kitchen and moved up to a lead position. Most recently, about six months ago, Nick was promoted to Kitchen Manager, leading the entire back-of-house team in new recipes, scheduling, efficiency, and much more!

With a couple of months in this leadership position under his belt, Nick has started to feel more comfortable embracing the new responsibilities with enthusiasm and determination. He now enjoys the freedom to infuse his creativity into the menu and empower team members to develop their skills.

Nick learned everything he knows from working in kitchens and with chefs who inspired him and took him under their wings. His very first job was in a kitchen as a dishwasher, and since then, he has worked his way up, never leaving the world of kitchen jobs.

“I've always really enjoyed the work that kitchens are, the environment that you're in, and the people that you get to work with,” said Nick. “There’s a sense of camaraderie and how much we're all just doing our best to take care of each other. It was just what I craved in a career, and I never really looked back after I found it.”

During one of his first kitchen jobs, Nick worked under a Michelin-starred chef. From him, Nick learned many skills, from baking bread to achieving precise knife cuts and butchering meat. Nick worked with him for about three years, and during this time, he decidedly that this was the career path that he wanted to continue in.

Despite cooking for a living, Nick loves cooking for his family too! He enjoys getting creative with seasonal produce, and his fiancée specifically loves when he makes chicken parmesan. Outside of the kitchen, Nick finds joy in his family life. Born and raised in Whatcom County, Nick is engaged to his high school sweetheart, and they live together with their almost-two-year-old son, Asa. “He’s learning new words every day and getting into anything and everything! He’s definitely keeping us on our toes,” said Nick. His parents still live in Whatcom County, and his mom helps out a lot with watching Asa.

Nick’s favorite part about working at Aslan is getting to work with his team. He mentioned that he has never worked with a crew that works together so well and is able to have a ton of fun while also getting things done. He is particularly excited about continuing to develop the catering menu for private onsite events and creating a team to execute it perfectly.

At Aslan, we are excited to see what else Nick brings to the table (literally!) as he continues to develop and become more comfortable in his new position as Kitchen Manager!

Hefeweizen

 

Hefeweizen

5.0% ABV // 40 IBU // 12.3 P

clove + tropical banana + lemon zest

It finally feels like summer! We can’t think of anything better than sipping on a cold, refreshing beer during a hot, sunny day. We have the perfect beer for such an occasion. Our ode to summer is a traditional German Hefeweizen that has been double decocted for a deeper malt profile. Traditional German yeast is paired with noble hops creating an expressive bouquet of lemon, herbs, and clove and tropical banana. This beer finishes with a lightly prickling carbonation that dries the palate and encourages another sip. Cheers to summer!

HOPS:
Perle, Spalt Select, Hersbrucker
MALT:
Wheat, Pilsner, Caramunich, Carahell

Pinot Dojo

 

Fruited Saison

7.2% ABV

tannic + berry + effervescent

After an almost mythical existence inside our brewery, we're excited to finally release Pinot Dojo! Back in 2018, this beer rested on that year's harvest of Pinot Noir grapes from Medici Vineyards in Oregon for 6 months before being racked into neutral oak barrels, left to slumber for four years, before being bottled in 2022. This gave the beer ample time to extract the beautiful tannins from the skin of the grapes. Pinot Dojo is a lovely blend of wine and beer flavors but we wouldn’t call this a hybrid. The base beer is a Brett Saison with a light, citrusy acidity and mild, yet pronounced Brett funk. This is very much a beer but conditioning on the grapes allows for the native yeast and bacteria to do their work, giving more wine funk, acidity, and complexity to this beer while helping make it incredibly drinkable.

The Dojo series is an opportunity for us to work with amazing, local, and organic berry farmers and showcase the beauty of this growing region. All of the beers in this series have a base beer of a lightly tart Saison. Each fruit has different expressions, which gives us the ability to tailor the resting time and desired flavors to match the needs of each fruit. While most of the Dojos are beautifully different, it is most enjoyable to experience the similarities between them all side by side.

Rauch Bock Hell

 

Smoked Helles Bock

5.9% ABV // 25 IBU // 14.5 P

beechwood smoke + full bodied + smooth

*draft only*

SRauch Bock Hell is a smoked helles bock, created simply because it’s what our brew team wanted to drink this weekend to celebrate our 9th Anniversary. Beechwood-smoked malt creates a smoky flavor that’s undeniably the primary tasting note in this beer, but is well complemented by the rich and smooth characteristics of Vienna and Caramunich, lending to the ultimate balance in this malt-forward lager that we’ll be drinking all weekend long.

HOPS:
Hersbrucker
MALT:
Pilsner, Rauch, Vienna, Caramunich

Purrsuasion

 

Pale Ale

5.3% ABV // 40 IBU // 12.3 P

citrus + tropical + light bodied

To celebrate our 9th Anniversary, we really had to ask our team… “what’s most important to us?” The answer was unanimous-- our cats. A fun representation of the 9 years of Aslan (or 9 lives!), this SMASH pale ale is as simple as a pale ale can get. Using a single malt (pilsner) and a single hop (HBC 586), Purrsuasion has notes of pineapple and mango on the aroma. On your first sip, you’ll immediately taste citrus, specifically grapefruit, all the while maintaining a soft mouthfeel. Purrsuasion is simple, easy and fun, and the perfect nod to our 9th year of making beer for the people. Plus all the kitties on the label are modeled off of our staff’s cats!

HOPS:
HBC 586
MALT:
Pilsner

Jetski Referee

 

Hazy IPA

6.7% ABV // 60 IBU // 14.2 P

tropical + orange creamsicle + medium body

Spring has sprung, and Jetski Referee is here to keep the sunny vibes rolling. This bright, tropical hazy IPA is packed with flavors of pineapple and orange with more subtle notes of pine and coconut. Aside from being quite easy-drinking this beer is juicy and refreshing, which makes it a perfect beer for all occasions, sunny or not!

HOPS:
El Dorado, Sabro, Strata
MALT:
2-Row Pale, Oats, Vienna, Triticale

Hive Mind

 

Honey Dark Lager

4.3% ABV // 25 IBU // 12.1 P

honey + medium body + smooth

Collaboration brew with BottleWorks, Ponderosa Beer & Books, and Artivem Mead

What’s better than a low ABV dark lager on a sunny spring day? We don’t think there’s much better, which is why we are so happy to have Hive Mind on tap today! Brewed with our friends Artivem Mead, BottleWorks Beer, and Ponderosa Beer and Books, this dark lager was brewed with over 75 lbs of local honey to create a unique and enjoyable beverage! This beer is bursting with flavors and aromas of graham cracker, sweet sage, and (of course) honey. A lovely, clean lager finish helps showcase the more nuanced flavors that the honey has to offer!

HOPS:
Smaragd
MALT:
Munich, Vienna, Caramunich, Carafa

Frauenbier

 

SCHWARZBIER

4.8% ABV // 30 IBU // 12 P

dark roast coffee + toffee + slight bitterness

Created by and dedicated to the women of Aslan.

To celebrate International Women’s Day, we’re bringing back a favorite amongst our staff, Frauenbier- a schwarzbier made in collaboration with the women on our staff. Frauenbier is a full-bodied dark lager, with notes of roasted toffee, dark roast coffee, and rich chocolate, all while maintaining the drinkability of a lager thanks to a low ABV. A slight bitterness rounds out the depth of the dark malts, and sweeter flavors, making this a beer that can do it all… just like the women of Aslan! We’re so grateful for the women on our staff who make Aslan, Aslan. Whether they’re pouring you a beer, working on the canning line, or planning events, (the list goes on!) we have a truly amazing team of women to thank for making Aslan a success.

HOPS:
Perle
MALT:
Pilsner, Munich, Carafa, Caramunich, Chocolate

Rosé Sauvage

 

BIERE BRUT WITH RASPBERRIES

5.0% ABV // 10 IBU // 11.4 P

light body + berry + effervescent

We are thrilled to bring you Rosé Sauvage. A rosé champagne inspired beer with a fruity twist. This exceptionally drinkable beer was fermented on over 300 lbs of raspberry purree with a blend of our house ale yeast and a phenolic Belgian saison yeast. The drying carbonation accentuates the faintly tart berry and wine inspired flavors. This beer leaves us longing for those brisk spring evenings sharing a pint with friends on a sun drenched patio!

5 Deep

 

BLENDED MIXED CULTURE BEER

5.0% ABV

mineral + peach + barnyard

For our latest anniversary blend to celebrate five (five!) years of the Depot, the grand trifecta of Will (Depot GM), Jake (Barrel Manager), and Austin (Head Brewer) ventured into our maze of barrels to select the beers for this year’s blend: 5 Deep!

Inspired by the previous blends’ low alcohol and beguiling simplicity, and by Will’s undying fascination with lambic beer, 5 Deeps pours a pale copper and presents aromas of barnyard funk and stone fruit, backed by hints of minerality and cheese rind. On the palate, an oaky bitterness is followed by citrus pith and peach, finishing tart and dry.

The base of this beer is a combination of Saison and table beer, some of which have been aging almost as long as the Depot has been open. Fresh pale lager was blended in to brighten the palate and provide ample drinkability. Cheers to five years of funk!

Pairs well with: good friends, live music, Underberg, and living the dream.

Employee Feature: Nick L

Since 2015, this employee has been in the dish pit, the brains behind our menu, serving tables, and behind the bar at the Depot… Meet Nick (if you haven’t already!)

 
 

Nick started at Aslan Brewing seven years ago, right at the beginning of it all. He is currently one of the longest employees Aslan’s had, meaning that he knows all the ins and outs, and ups and downs of this place. He started in the kitchen as a prep cook and worked his way up to lead prep, then from a line cook to lead line cook, and eventually became the kitchen manager. Nick was the kitchen manager for two and a half years when he decided that he wanted something different: to work in the front of house. He then became a food runner, host, server, and bartender, and is now a front-of-house lead. So you can accurately say this guy knows his way around Aslan!

Nick wanted to switch to the front of house because he loves meeting and talking with new people and making their day with good service and a good beer. With all of his experience working in the kitchen, he’s able to describe Aslan’s food really well to customers and answer all questions about allergies on the spot. He’s also able to answer almost all customer questions about Aslan since he’s been around for most of its history!

Nick has watched Aslan go through many different phases of its life, but he says that throughout all those phases, it hasn’t really changed too much. Of course, the people here have changed, as well as a few core dishes, but the core values and fun that is had within this company has continued to live on. 

One of his favorite memories at Aslan is battling with lightsabers at a company campout a couple of years ago. “We all gathered in one big circle and put out all the campfires and all you could see was like the lightsabers swinging around trying to look cool and whatnot. It was so cool!”

Nick was born and raised in Bellingham. He left for a couple of years to go to college but found his way back to this town.

“Everything I like is here! The mountain biking is great, and the snowboarding and skiing are great. The brewery scene is one of the biggest scenes in all of North America right now, and the restaurant scene is blowing up. It’s right on the water. There are a couple of lakes and rivers as well. We’ve got it all!” he said.

He doesn’t see himself leaving Bellingham any time soon. (Which we are happy about!)

Outside of working at Aslan, one of Nick’s favorite things to do is mountain biking. Some of his favorite trails up at Galbraith are Atomic Dog, Mohawk, SST, and Double Down. He started mountain biking in ‘98 and has been doing it ever since! Other than biking, Nick enjoys time with his new pup, a Boxer Pyrenees mix named Obi-Wan, and checking out Bell’s restaurant scene with his partner Kathleen. Some of their favorite spots to hit are Storia Cucina, Nicki’s Bella Marina, and Old World Deli. 

Nick always brings a great attitude to work and continuously puts a smile on the face of customers and coworkers. We are so lucky to have you on our team, Nick!

Baya Gose

 

BAYA GOSE

4.5% ABV // 10 IBU // 10.5 P

sea salt + berry + coriander

We wanted to brew a beer with our new friends at the soon to be opened El Sueñito Brewing. We wanted to brew a beer with big flavors and a more "summery" feel. Baya Gose accomplishes just that, this beer leaves us dreaming of sunny summer days. With a blend of raspberries and strawberries, citrusy coriander and generous helping of sea salt, this beer is balanced and deep. No flavor over powers the others and the tartness blends with the prickly carbonation to dry the palate. Cheers to new friends and welcoming a new business to Bellingham.

HOPS:
Perle
MALT:
Pilsner, Wheat

ADJUNCTS:
Sea Salt, Coriander, Raspberry, Strawberry

Dunkel

 

DUNKEL

5.2% ABV // 25 IBU // 13.5 P

chocolate + nutty + cherry cola

This German-style brown lager has beautiful aromas of brown bread, roasted nuts, and garden herbs. The rich Munich malt brings with it flavors of dark bread, fig, and chocolate. While boasting bold flavors and aromas, this beer is exceptionally drinkable and finishes crisp.

HOPS:
Perle
MALT:
Munich, Vienna, Pilsner, Caramunich, Carafa

Bloom

 

FRESH HOP IPA

6.5% ABV // 14.2 P // 80 IBU

pineapple juice + spicy + bitter

Bloom is our final fresh hop of the season and is a complete study of Chinook hops. We used 500 lbs of fresh Organic Chinook from our friends Roy Farms. The resulting beer has major pineapple juice vibes to go along with all of the piney and resinous characteristics. The massive hop bill pairs with a light carbonation that leads to a lingering bitterness and a drying mouthfeel.

Artwork by Tyler Mead.

HOPS:
Chinook
MALT:
2-Row Pale, Oats

Beer Of Choice

 

DRY-HOPPED PILSNER

5.5% ABV // 12.5 P // 30 IBU

honeydew + drying + snappy

Collaboration with Wander Brewing

Fourteen Whatcom county breweries came together to find a way to support reproductive rights. We crafted a plan to brew 5 unique beers, released in 5 consecutive weeks during the month of September, Sexual Health Awareness Month.  We got together with Wander Brewing to brew a tasty Dry Hopped Pilsner.

Pouring a bright, golden hay color, this pilsner is intentionally unfiltered to express the delicate, nuanced flavors that the hops and the dry hop presented. The hop bill enlisted the help of entirely American hops, Azacca, Chinook, El Dorado, and Strata being the stars of the show. A hint of cracker and white bread holds up flavors of honeydew and candied strawberries. A generous dry hop presents aromas of pineapple, grass, and a hint of mint.

All of the proceeds of this beer go to The Afiya Center.

We are so grateful to be surrounded by a community and other awesome breweries that wanted to help support something we are so passionate about.

HOPS:
Azacca, Chinook, El Dorado, Strata
MALT:
Pilsner