Say backpackers, ever had to leave a six-pack behind because it was too heavy?
Patrick Tatera has, and it's a pain he never wants to feel again. So the former chemist who once lived in Talkeetna decided to take things into his own hands, creating what appears to be the first concentrated beer through his company, Pat's Backcountry Beverages. Backpackers, canoeists or anyone looking to have a good time in the wilderness need not strain their backs carrying water, so long as they pack a carbonator (essentially a specialized water bottle, complete with a carbon-dioxide activator), plus packets of citric acid and sodium bicarbonate. A few pumps, a little shake and the reaction is complete. Add soda or beer concentrate, and get ready to get your drink on.
Tatera, who moved his family to Wheatridge, Colo., two months ago to start his beverage business, is a former chemist for Toyota who moved to Alaska 15 years ago to teach math in Galena, a Yukon River community of about 500 residents. After five years he moved to Talkeetna, where he worked as an assessment director for the Galena-based IDEA home-school program.
Patrick Tatera has, and it's a pain he never wants to feel again. So the former chemist who once lived in Talkeetna decided to take things into his own hands, creating what appears to be the first concentrated beer through his company, Pat's Backcountry Beverages. Backpackers, canoeists or anyone looking to have a good time in the wilderness need not strain their backs carrying water, so long as they pack a carbonator (essentially a specialized water bottle, complete with a carbon-dioxide activator), plus packets of citric acid and sodium bicarbonate. A few pumps, a little shake and the reaction is complete. Add soda or beer concentrate, and get ready to get your drink on.Tatera, who moved his family to Wheatridge, Colo., two months ago to start his beverage business, is a former chemist for Toyota who moved to Alaska 15 years ago to teach math in Galena, a Yukon River community of about 500 residents. After five years he moved to Talkeetna, where he worked as an assessment director for the Galena-based IDEA home-school program.
He's also an avid backpacker and longtime home brewer. It took a trip to Utah 15 years ago for him to realize how important concentrated beer could be. He and a friend left a six-pack of craft beer in their car, not wanting to haul the heavy booze into the backcountry. But once into the hike, he and his hiking partner realized a beer was the only thing that would make everything better. That meant a hasty retreat to the car to retrieve their stash -- and fresh thoughts about how to make beer lighter and easier to carry.
“It’s a sweet spot for me, to be honest. All my interests converged to a point of singularity,” Tatera said. “I get to incorporate the all my geekiness.”
Sketches on the backs of napkins eventually became Tatera's carbonator, which he claims is the first of its kind. Weighing just half a pound and not much bigger than a Nalgene bottle, Tatera said users can put any sort of treated water in the carbonator -- whether filtered or cleansed with iodine tablets. Follow the instructions and, presto, some trail ale.
“It’s a sweet spot for me, to be honest. All my interests converged to a point of singularity,” Tatera said. “I get to incorporate the all my geekiness.”
Sketches on the backs of napkins eventually became Tatera's carbonator, which he claims is the first of its kind. Weighing just half a pound and not much bigger than a Nalgene bottle, Tatera said users can put any sort of treated water in the carbonator -- whether filtered or cleansed with iodine tablets. Follow the instructions and, presto, some trail ale.
by Suzanna Caldwell, Alaska Dispatch | Read more:
