N.W. Beer GuideAtlas of Beer at CenturyLink Field 2016, Northwest Beer Guide, Seattle Seahawks, Seattle Sounders FC, Washington Beer GuideComment

Northwest Beer Guide: Washington Beer Guide: 2016: Atlas of beer at CenturyLink Field for Seattle Sounders FC Season

N.W. Beer GuideAtlas of Beer at CenturyLink Field 2016, Northwest Beer Guide, Seattle Seahawks, Seattle Sounders FC, Washington Beer GuideComment
image used via ShareAlike 2.0 Generic licensing, via SounderBruce's Flickr page
Baseball analyst and former ballplayer, Tim McCarver, once opined: "The best way to avoid ballplayers is to go to a good restaurant.". Although he probably wasn’t addressing the inadequacies of ballpark cuisine the quote is poignant when you consider who said it. Or to put it a different way, sports and fine dining are as compatible as a Democrats and Republicans.

But with the help of hospitality company Delaware North, the stereotype that football or soccer is best paired with a light lager and a hot dog is being updated.

CenturyLink Field enters into agreement with Buffalo's Sportservice
"In December, CenturyLink Field's management team chose Sportservice (a division of Delaware North Companies, a global hospitality and food service provider in Buffalo, N.Y.) as the stadium's new concessionaire, beginning operations with the 2013 soccer season. The company provides concessions and catering to more than 50 sports, entertainment and convention venues and has done so at the Olympic Games, the World Series, and baseball and NHL all-star games. It even operates Kalaloch Lodge in Olympic National Park." -source, "A Bite of Seattle, Seahawks-style"

 Not unlike the gladiatorial games of ancient Rome, many spectators will recall their favorite experience watching a slide tackle or sack. But many cannot recall their favorite beer or their favorite meal from that same stadium. With that in mind and under the guidance of Seattle-local Seisuke "Seis" Kamimura, the stadium sought to update the perception that a game of football is best enjoyed with a hot dog and a 'cold one'.

The Beer
The following breweries, who are distributed throughout Seattle, are on-hand for those looking for that alehouse experience while screaming from the stands. In some instances, a particular beer might not be available due to business justification (e.g. seasonal availability, discretion of Centurylink Field's management, etc.). We suggest you use crowd-supported beer app Untappd, for up-to-date check-ins at CenturyLink Field, by fellow drinkers like you.

Washington
  • 7 Seas Rude Parrot India Pale Ale 5.90% ABV (Sounders FC season, Seahawks season TBD) 
    • Rude Parrot India Pale Ale 5.90% ABV, 75+ IBU. "Loud, sassy, and relentless, the Rude Parrot has an insatiable appetite for hops! Brewed with Vienna, light Crystal, and a touch of Honey malt, this golden hued IPA is aggressively hopped with Simcoe and Citra hops. A big juicy, tropical fruit, citrusy hop aroma yields way to an off dry, pleasantly bitter finish." from 7 Seas Brewing Company in Gig Harbor, WA
  • Bale Breaker Field 41 Pale Ale 4.50% ABV (Sounders FC season, Seahawks season TBD)
    • Field 41 Pale Ale 4.50% ABV 38 IBU. "Don’t be fooled by the powerful hop aroma of Field 41 Pale Ale. Heavily dry-hopped with Simcoe® and Ahtanum™, this perfectly sessionable Pale Ale drinks easy with a smooth bitterness and is named for the hop field that is home to Bale Breaker Brewing Company. Light and refreshing, it’s the perfect beer for a day on the river or afternoon on the slopes." from Bale Breaker Brewing in Yakima, WA
  • Big Al Civ's Straight Red 6.00% ABV (Sounders FC season only) 
    • Big Al Civ's Straight Red 6.00% ABV, 26 IBU. "A sweet, caramel, roasty red lovefest Big Al style!" from Big Ale Brewing in Seattle, WA
  • Black Raven Trickster IPA 6.90% ABV (Sounders FC season only, Seahawks season TBD) 
    • Black Raven Trickster IPA 6.90% ABV, 70IBU "In mythology, the raven can play tricks or otherwise disobey normal rules, hence the name Trickster. This well-balanced IPA has a light fruit, citrus and piney hop aroma with a full hop flavor. With delicately balanced malt and hops and a 6.9% ABV, this beer has truly earned its name. Available year-round." from Black Raven Brewing Company in Redmond, WA
  • Fremont Interurban IPA 6.20% ABV (Sounders FC season only) 
    • Fremont Interurban IPA 6.20% ABV, 80 IBU. "Named after Fremont’s most famous outdoor sculpture, Waiting for the Interurban, Interurban India Pale Ale offers the adventurous beer lover a warm embrace of roasted pale malt swirled with a hand-selected blend of flavor malts and filled with the rich spice of Chinook, Centennial, and Amarillo hops. Interurban India Pale is eminently drinkable throughout the year." from Fremont Brewing Company in Seattle, WA
  • Georgetown Lucille India Pale Ale 7.00% ABV  (Sounders FC season, Seahawks season TBD)
    • Lucille India Pale Ale 7.00% ABV 85 IBU. "Darn tasty IPA" or "Floral, citrusy and awesome. Anything so innocent and built like that just gotta be named Lucille." from Georgetown Brewing Company in Seattle, WA
  • Georgetown Manny's Pale Ale 4.50% ABV (Sounders FC season, Seahawks season TBD)
    • Georgetown Manny's Pale Ale 5.40% ABV, 38 IBU. "Darn Tasty Pale Ale" or "A careful selection of Northwest hops, premium barley, and our unique yeast give this ale a rich and complex malty middle with a snappy hop finish. Crisp, clean and smooth with hints of citrus and fruit." from Georgetown Brewing Company in Seattle, WA
  • Ghostfish Vanishing Point Pale Ale 4.90% ABV *Gluten-free (Sounders FC season only)
    • Ghostfish Vanishing Point Pale Ale 4.90% ABV, 63 IBU. "For our take on the classic American pale ale, we decided to throw inhibition to the wind and jump in with both feet. With three types of artisan gluten-free millet malt and four varieties of Washington-grown hops, one sip will make your preconceptions about gluten-free beer Vanish into the great beyond!" From Ghostfish Brewing Company in Seattle, WA
  • Iron Horse Quilter’s Irish Death 7.80% ABV (Sounders FC season only)
    • Iron Horse Quilter’s Irish Death 7.80% ABV. "Created by the brewery’s founder, Quilter’s Irish Death is what we call a dark, smooth, ale. Any attempt at classifying it just ends up sending beer geeks into a style guidelines diatribe. So forget style guidelines. Is your pursuit of micro beer about tasting copies of a style that fit guidelines anyways? (Neither is ours) We lovingly refer to it as beer candy. While tempting to session this beer, the name is a necessary reminder that despite the surprising approachability, this beer weighs in at a hefty 7.8% ABV." From Iron Horse Brewery in Ellensburg, WA
  • Mac & Jack's African Amber 5.20% ABV
    • Mac & Jack's African Amber 5.20% ABV  "The Northwest’s original, unfiltered and dry hopped amber ale. African Amber’s pioneering and innovative style is proof that drink-abilty does not have to be achieved by sacrificing flavor. This beer erupts with a floral, hoppy taste, followed by a well rounded malty middle, finishing with a nicely organic hop flavor. Locally sourced two row grain and a blend of specialty malts give our amber its rich taste. Further complexity is achieved by leaving the beer unfiltered, providing exceptional flavor, as well as giving our amber its unique "cloudy" look. Lastly, we actually place a bag of fresh, locally grown, Yakima valley hops in each keg creating what has become the original, cult classic, northwest amber ale." From Mack & Jack's Brewery in Redmond, WA 
  • Silver City Ridgetop Red Ale 6.00% ABV (Sounders FC, Seahawks season TBD)
    • Silver City Ridgetop Red Ale 6.00% ABV, 15 IBU. “There’s a beer for everyone. Ridgetop Red is everyone’s beer. Full-bodied and smooth with a sweet caramel flavor balanced with Northwest Liberty hops for a refreshing finish.” From Silver City Brewing in Bremerton, WA
  • Snoqualmie Falls 405 Kolsch 5.00% ABV (Sounders FC season only)
    • Snoqualmie Falls 405 Kolsch 5.30% ABV, 24 IBU. "Enjoy our Kolsch at CenturyLink field at any Sounders FC home game. We got the prime location for the beer. It’s in the main beer garden in the north entrance.Brewed in the likeness of a style unique to Cologne, Germany, where dozens of breweries produce light ales with tremendous drinkability, our Kolsch is brewed with nothing more than Pale Malt, a bit of wheat, and Spalt hops." from Snoqualmie Falls Brewing Co. in Snoqualmie Falls, WA
Alaska
  • Alaskan Amber Ale 5.30% ABV (Sounders FC season, Seahawks season TBD)
    • Alaskan Amber Ale 5.30% ABV, 18 IBU. "The name of this beer style comes from the German word “alt” meaning “old”. This refers to the aging that alts undergo since they ferment more slowly and at colder temperatures than most ales. Slow fermentation helps condition the flavors in Alaskan Amber, contributing to its overall balance and smoothness." from  Alaskan Brewing Company in Juneau, AK
Additional options include:
The Food
For information associated with food visit CenturyLink Field's concession page, the Seahawks concession page, Sounders FC's page. For something fun, visit the Brougham Beer Hall to enjoy Uli's Sausage paired with a Elysian Men's Room Red or some wings and a Black Raven Trickster IPA. Also, the menu is subject to change, based on local availability of ingredients (e.g. local seafood, local vegetables). 


Where to find the beer.
During a halftime, end of the quarter, or just for the fun of it, here are places to go to 'wet your whistle' or recoup from a session of yelling.

image sourced, for the purpose of assisting commentary, via CenturyLink Field's website
Image sourced, for the purpose of assisting commentary, via CenturyLink Field's website.
Brougham Beer Hall: Located at in the Southwest corner of the Main Concourse near Section 128. The 'Beer Hall is an oasis from the roar of the crowd. Look for the following brewery beers available, poured side-by-side with concession items.

Section 103
Section 104
Section 105
"Pizza of Seattle" / "Papa John's" - Section 107
"Loud&Proud Fan Raves & Craves" / Craft House - Section 109
Section 110

"Kidd Valley" - Section 111
Section 112
"The Carvery" - Section 116
Section 118
Section 126
Section 123
Section 124

"The Cantina" / "Taco Ma's" - Section 131
Section 132

Section 133

Section 135

"Papa John's" - Section 137
Section 138


Section 141
Section 149

Section 185
Section 203
Section 204

Section 207
"Eye Bar" - Section 209
"Ciao Down!" - Section 210
Section 214

Section 230
Section 234

"Eye Bar" - Section 235
Section 240

Section 241

"12th & Clam" / "Bigfoot Hot Dogs" - Section 303
"12th & Clam" / "Bigfoot Hot Dogs" - Section 307
Section 309
Section 336
Section 337
"The Cantina" - Section 339
"12th & Clam" / "Bigfoot Hot Dogs" - Section 341
- FAQ -
Why craft beer?
We recognize that a glaring omission has been demonstrated associated with wine, non-alcoholic beverages, or cider. But given our focus on craft-made beer, we felt it would confuse our audience to list other options.

- Addressing omissions and authenticity - 
Regrettably, Delaware North and First & Goal did not respond to our requests to provide additional beers available during Sounders FC and Seahawks football games. We also regret to the exclusion of food options, designed by Chef Seisuke "Seis" Kamimura, as he was made unavailable to interview.

 We hope you enjoy your stay at CenturyLink Field.

Updates: 

  • Elysian Brewing Company has provided us with their current offerings at CenturyLink Field.
  • Delaware North reached out to us after noticing our article. We've included their comments within, including an update to food suggestions and an updated list of locations for beers.