Blog Archives

In Which We Want You to Come Hang Out!

9/27/2023

Hello again! We're back for more bloggin' action but first we should mention one more time that if you somehow haven't read/heard about our Very Unpleasant Situation then you probably want to get up to speed on that (tl;dr things are very bad in new and exciting ways) and if you have heard about said Situation then we would very much like to thank you for all the kind words and support. It truly means the world that there's so many rad people out there who love this place as much as we do, and it really did help to have a reminder of that while we're going through something that sucks BIG TIME. You guys are the best.

Butanyway enough about that (for now) because today we're here to Move Forward and Look Ahead and talk about tasty beers and fun things to do because in the end that's what it's all about, so let's get to it!

And first on up is our trusty Thursday cask! This one's a bit of a "sneak peek" at a beer we'll be releasing very shortly, but we'll get to that bit in a paragraph or so. Back to the point, the beer in question is Unholy Water and it's a damn tasty oatmeal stout with some interesting fruity notes that'll make it pretty much the tastiest thing to drink on cask, so come on out and grab some!

And speaking of Unholy Water, we'll be releasing Unholy Water in cans on Friday! It's an oatmeal stout (I mentioned this) that we brewed in collaboration with Death Ray Vision and it's heck of tasty (I believe I mentioned this as well) and once it's out you can do a "side by each" comparison between the can and the cask (which we think is really cool because we're nerds) and anyway come drink some!

And movin' on to the "fun times" portion of this here blog, we've got some fun times on Thursday in the form of more trivia! This one is "The Office" Trivia: Extremely Difficult Edition and I really hope it's gonna be nothing but questions about Creed (either the character or his real-life counterpart and maybe also the band of the same name why not) but more likely it's gonna be something that actually makes sense but you're gonna have to come out to find out!

Then on Friday the show that we were supposed to have is still cancelled (boo) but the bands are all gonna come by and do a good old-fashioned Band Hangouts (yay)! They'll be settin' up and hangin' out and slingin' merch and we'll be puttin' their tunes on the taproom speakers and also we did a collab beer with one of the bands (Death Ray Vision, as you might have guessed) so we're gonna drink a bunch of that and it's gonna be a good time!

And on Sunday we've got our regularly-scheduled sushi classes which are as fun as they are regularly-scheduled, so come check one out if you haven't already!

And then lookin' forward a bit we've got Halloween Music Trivia next Thursday and then next Friday we've got Adam McGrath & Stephen Brodsky performing a special set of Cave In songs, plus Marquis Lavoie of Actor Observer, Hall Monitor, and T. Bloodhound playin' acoustic sets in the taproom and it's gonna be fun! We haven't done much indoor music with the setup we've currently got so it might have a smidge of a "basement show" vibe about it but we're all about makin' the best we can outta what we've got, so come check it out!

An Important Update (But Not, Like, the Fun Kind)

9/26/2023

We’ve been dealing with a Very Unpleasant Situation around here for pretty much the entire year and we’ve had to mostly keep mum about it (for reasons that we may someday be able to fully get into - keeping this under our hats has been eating at us for months). But, things have progressed to a point where we feel like we can/should talk about this in public at least enough to give you all an update about how the Very Unpleasant Situation may be affecting you, our valued customers/supporters/friends.

Without burying the lede too much, you may have noticed that we stopped posting any kind of Expansion Updates on the blog; and those of you who have asked about the expansion in person were told something along the lines of “there are lawyers involved now, so it’s not going great.” That’s all still true…but it’s continued from there.

Just to reiterate The (briefest possible) Story Of The Expansion: since August 2021, in one form or another, we have been working with our landlords to expand our footprint within the building to one that includes the unit next to ours along with part of the lobby and some to-be-built bathrooms. Progress crawled in 2022; by, say, February 2023 the status of the buildout lingered at “some studs and a hole in the ground.” Walls were then knocked down and put back up, some work was done, until it wasn’t again. As of now this expansion that we have been talking about for two years still isn’t complete. On top of all that, for reasons we’re still not entirely clear on, our landlords have informed us that they no longer wished to keep us as tenants and may have started taking actions to remove us from the building.

There’s obviously a lot more to it than that, but that’s what we’re currently dealing with. I really wish there was some sort of conclusion or definitive statement to be made, but this is still ongoing. In the hopes of clearing up any (some) questions that might have been raised, we’re gonna continue FAQ style:

Holy shit.
Yeah no kidding.

Are you guys ok?
Not even a little bit! We’re only able to be so matter-of-fact about this because we’ve had months to process the information (plus we’ve had a heavy helping hand from the Magic of Editing).

More to the point, this brewery has consumed our entire lives for the past seven-plus years and during that time we’ve poured everything we’ve had (mentally, physically, emotionally, financially) into it and in many ways we really do see it as an extension of ourselves. Or rather, it’s an extension of ourselves at its core but it’s grown to something so much bigger than that; it was completely devastating to have somebody threaten to just take it away, and when they started trying to act on that threat… well, you get the idea.

I don’t understand why this is happening.
We... don’t really either. We’ve speculated amongst ourselves, but we can’t really do that here. We assume there’s a reason, but we’ve come to accept the fact that we’ll never know what it truly is.

What does this mean for the future of Bone Up?
Nothing is set in stone so we can’t give you a straight answer to that question (as much as we wish we could), but things aren’t looking particularly rosy at the moment. There’s been a lot of real-but-hard-to-quantify disruption done to our business over the course of the year - repeatedly changing the access to the bathrooms isn’t great for business (when directions to the bathroom is a multi-step explanation that starts with “go outside,” I would think/expect it’s not uncommon for people to opt to go elsewhere instead), nor is removing a bunch of our seating (by removing the walls that it’s attached to), and the fact that we’ve had an expansion that’s perpetually in-progress with no known end date is at best not a good look for us (it turns out when people keep hearing “I don’t know” when they ask about the progress of the buildout, they eventually lose interest and decide to come back if/when we’ve gotten our shit together). Dealing with all of those issues has been problematic enough for us, and then the city forced us to cancel some (a bunch of) live events which really felt like a “kicking us while we’re down” move, even if they didn’t intend for it to be that (honestly the licensing board has been great to work with, we’re just very frustrated about this one thing). To be frank, we’ve been preparing for the worst, because things have been going steadily downhill for months.

Wait, are you closing? It sounds like you’re closing.
Not yet, anyway, but it’s a lot more likely than it seemed at the beginning of the year. We’re still making and serving beer and doing everything we can to keep this ol’ train rollin’, but - at the risk of repeating myself - things are shitty in several ways at once and we’re struggling.

What can I do to help?
Come out, enjoy the brewery. Have fun. Bring people. Remind us about all the good parts of doing what we do - making and sharing great beer with great people, maybe getting into some low-key shenanigans every once and again. It’s incredibly tacky to say “we’re in trouble, please spend money,” but we are in trouble and we figure this is the kind of thing you get to say once. This isn’t the first time we’ve had genuine, realistic concerns about the future of the business (it’s the... fourth? Depending on how you count? But I digress), but it is the first time we’ve felt able to talk about it as it’s happening. We were trying to bring this around to a hopeful note but we turned it into a downer again (sorry) so we’re just gonna awkwardly segue into mentioning that we’ve got lots of stuff available in bottles at the moment and our bottles tend to keep for quite a while (not that we’re exactly understocked on cans or kegs, but you get the idea). Seriously though, everything about this situation sucks and there’s nothing we’d like more in the short term than to get to hang out with the people who made this place as magical as it’s been (that would be you). We (Liz and Jared, and also our wonderful bar staff) are gonna be behind the bar and/or in the taproom as much as we can be in the near future, so come find us and hang out for a bit. Even if we haven’t really hung out before, come say hi (or ask for us, we’re usually somewhere) and we’ll hang if we can (we’re not shy about answering questions about this whole stupid fiasco, but we’re also not gonna say no to a distraction either). Either way, we’ll keep you posted - ain’t no way to close this pandora’s box now.

In Which There Are... Times

9/20/2023

Hi friends! While we don't like needing to start this ol' blog with a buncha annoying horseshit (again), sometimes we gotta start the blog with a buncha annoying horseshit on account of how said horseshit effects you as well as us (and in this case it's at least loosely
tied to a much larger shitshow, but that's a topic for a different day).

Anyway, rather than bury the lede any further, we have been asked by the City of Everett to stop all outdoor live music until we can meet with the licensing board. The given reason was that "Code Enforcement has been receiving several noise complaints" which is... unusual especially considering we've only ever gotten/heard of one noise complaint (and that was relayed to us by the police,* not city hall), but our hands are tied for the time being which means we need to cancel our remaining outdoor shows (and move that acoustic show indoors, which is sure to be cozy).

So to be clear, the Punk Rock Picnic (scheduled for 9/23) is cancelled, the Death Ray Vision show (scheduled for 9/29) is cancelled but we'll see if they want to do a Band Hangouts event instead, the Stephen Brodsky/Adam McGrath show (scheduled for 10/6) is still on but it's moving indoors (we're working on trying to figure out where to put people), and the Ghastly Gala Art Market (scheduled for 10/21) is still on because it doesn't incorporate music (but it will probably be outside, which is why I mention it). Anything else that's indoors is still on the schedule, unless they manage to unleash some new fresh hell upon us (which is possible but not currently likely).

This should go without saying, but we are Displeased with this situation to say the least. A lot of thought and care went into planning these events, and to see all that work go to waste is heartbreaking. These were gonna be really cool events and I think a bunch of y'all were gonna have a lot of fun, but there's nothing we can do.

And from that we transition to a logistical note that's not really a bummer but also not particularly exciting, which is that we're ending our summer hours starting Monday September 25th. So instead of being open 3-11 Monday thru Thursday, we'll be open 5-10 on those days (later on Thursdays if trivia runs long).

Anyway, enough with all that. Time for good times! First stop on the Good Times Train is cask! This week we've got taproom favorite Extra Naked back on the ol' beer engine and we dumped in a hefty handful of Mackinac which might actually be our favorite hop these days? Anyway it's gettin' tapped on Thursday so come on by and grab a pint!

And speaking of beer, we're set to have a new beer out next week (our first new release after the post-anniversary dry spell always feels so special), so keep them eyes peeled for some sweet deets!

And getting back to Thursday for just a moment, we've got Bonsai Bar back in the house on Thursday! These events look hella fun and the people that run them are completely nice as hell, so come on out and get into it with some tiny trees!

Then on Friday we've got some (acoustic, indoor) live music! This week it's Travels with Brindle who plays "ukelele rock" and that... completely rules? We're of the opinion that the ukelele is a severely underappreciated instrument so we're stoked to get some uke goin' in the taproom and you should join us!

Then on Saturday we've got Nirvana Yoga happening in the morning (it starts at 10:30) and then we've got Code 1 BBQ comin' by in the afternoon and dammit we WILL have a good time even though the bands got screwed over so come on out and hang out and maybe we can vent our frustrations together or whatever (or just hang out and have a nice time, that would also be great).

And, of course, Sunday brings the return of our regularly-scheduled sushi classes which you should absolutely sign up for if you haven't already, but you knew that.

* For a while we were under the (apparently naive) impression that if there were issues with the neighbors or whoever then somebody would try to... talk to us? Like people? But that's apparently not how things work.

In Which There's Cask and Cool Collabs!

9/13/2023

Hey there, kiddos and squiddos! We're back! And since we had to dish out the deets on some annoying nonsense last week, we figured we'd pull out as many* stops as we could for fun things this week, so here goes!

First up is the triumphant return of cask! We're kickin' things off with a cask of Kelly and normally we go "straight up" for the season's first go 'round the beer engine, but BEN got some "big ideas" because he "likes things that taste good" and he "wants to share them with you" and anyway the point is that this cask has been "goosed up" with some oak chips that have been soaking in some ginger liqueur and we're damn interested (DAMN interested) in gettin' our hands/mouths on some of that because we bet it's gonna be tasty and we're gonna have to wait until Thursday to find out and you should join us!

This ain't Kelly but you get the idea. CAAAAASK!

Next up is news that's a bit "farther afield" and that's a cool collab we did with Cambridge Brewing Company! Their head brewer Will has been one of our beeroes** for a while, so it was pretty much an honor to get to join him and the rest of their brew crew and brew*** up a tasty-ass kettle sour with cucumber and lime that got aged on some gin-infused oak for a while and that's a downright PoMo beer concept so they're callin' it Dada Processing and anyway we think you'll enjoy it thoroughly (we've certainly been enjoying the hell out of it) and they've got it on tap right now so go getcha some!

Obligatory series of Beer Friends photos

And then movin' right along to the Fun Times portion of this here website or whatever, we've got some fun times lined up for y'all! First up is on Thursday and that's Simpsons Trivia, and the theme this month is Season Seven!

Then on Friday we've got more music! This one's another solo set and this time around we've got new-to-us Josephine With a Cause swingin' through the stage for some acoustic punk 'n roll, so come on out and show some support!

Then on Saturday we're "playin' it cool" at home base, but we will be reppin' at two different fests! The "closer to home" option is Pemberfest at Pemberton Farms which we've never been to but Ol' Pembies**** is one of our favorite spots around (we're particularly fond of their beer/cheese/fancy snack selections) so we think this one's gonna be good! And then a little (a lot) farther out we're gonna be at Blackburn Brew Fest in Gloucester! We did this fest last year and it was easily one of the better fests we've poured at (and also it has a killer view) and it's gonna be happening rain or shine, so come on out and say hi!

Then on Sunday in addition to our regularly-scheduled afternoon sushi classes (taught by the delightful Chef Harold) we're startin' the day with Beatles Brunch! A ticket gets you a flight and a waffle (specifically a Liege waffle, the best kind of waffle) and a presentation/Q&A with Beatles expert Erik Taros and it's gonna be a fine way to spend the morning so come on by!

I am taking caption suggestions for our weekly roundup images, because there's only so many ways you can say "come to the fun thing"

And then looking forward to the future we've got Bonsai Bar next Thursday and a "Ukelele Rock" set from Travels with Brindle next Friday and then Punk Rock Picnic (featuring Baabes and Muzzins and The Grommets) next Saturday and then we've of course got sushi classes next Sunday and anyway the point is that you should come out to all this stuff too!

* Two
** I'm sorry I'm sorry I'm so sorry
*** We also got to taste some barrel samples in their (actual literal) barrel cellar, but we were the sole benefactors of that experience so there's no point in mentioning it here
**** Nobody calls it that. I don't know why I called it that.

In Which We Get Our Harvest On!

9/6/2023

Hello again! It's time again for fun times and we're in the middle of our self-imposed* "new beer hiatus" so let's get right on with it and get on to all the cool stuff we've got for you!

But first! We've got a deeply annoying Logistical Note that we should probably address: as many of you have already noticed, there's a ballet studio moving into the old Crossfit space in our building and they're remodeling the lobby bathrooms, which makes things... complicated at best for those of us who need those bathrooms (like us, for instance). And to make things even more fun, we actually learned this week that those bathrooms are part of their lease, which definitely does not raise any further questions (we have some ideas on why/how this came to be, but that's a long and frustrating story that we'll save for another time). Anyway, now that an already-annoying situation has been made even worse (for at least the second time this year), the moral of the story is that you should probably just check in with the bar staff next time you're in because they know which restrooms are/aren't active construction sites and/or blocked by weird debris.** As always, we're very sorry that you have to deal with this crap, but it's beyond our control and we're doing everything we can to make this less of a pain in the ass for you (and for what it's worth, the people from the ballet studio have been very accommodating, despite having been promised exclusive use of the space containing the lobby bathrooms).

Oh and also apparently most of our street is closed at night for the week? But our lot is still accessible (or at least, as accessible as it ever is), so if you're driving from Santilli Circle you just need to take Tileston to Williams St (and if you're coming from any other direction things are actually not really different I don't think), just FYI.

But wait! To counter all this annoying nonsense, we've got some beer-related good news! Remember when I said we wouldn't have any new beer this week? That's still true, BUT we HAVE been tappin' up some "old favorites" that have been kickin' around in the ol' cold room (and also we've restocked All the bottles if you haven't noticed) and we're gonna have a few Blast From The Past kegs on tap for a little while (kind of like when we had Dark Humor on a couple weeks ago until Sam managed to spill it all over the ceiling) and currently we've got Quadless Leg Monster! If you need a bit of a memory jog, this is a Belgian quad that we've aged in some kind of barrel (the original was apple brandy, this one is Short Path Whiskey) and I'm pretty sure this is the last keg of it that we've got (there would have been more, but Justin put a bunch of it into a blend by mistake) and anyway it's on tap right now and you should drink some while it's still around!

Anyway, getting back to all the cool fun stuff we have for you to enjoy, things start gettin' good on Thursday with KISS Trivia! Matt's gonna be dishin' up the clever queries on Gene and Paul and all the other people that are and/or were in the band and anyway it's gonna be fun and you should come hang!

Then on Friday we've got live music! Coma Hole and Adapter Adapter and Eight Foot Manchild and Trub are all gonna be playin' some tunes for the evening and we're gonna have Craig Mac 'n Cheese servin' up some tasty-ass cheesy goodness and things are gettin' goin' on the early side so come rock out with us!

Then on Saturday we've got our Harvest Market! We've got a buncha cool local vendors like Forestopia (nuts, flour, teas) and Lizard Mill (hot sauce) and Open Fire (seasoning/rubs) and of course Light of Day Records (vinyl) and we're gonna have some more live music, this time from Bad Idea USA and Children of the Flaming Wheel and Wicked Dead AND we've got Code 1 BBQ servin' up some tasty-ass eats so it's gonna be one hell of a fun time and you should come check it out!

Then on Sunday we've got Yappy Hour Pet Portraits in the house doing custom pet portraits! Bring in photos of your pets (or your actual pets and have her take a photo) and you'll get a custom mini portrait painted while you wait! (Or you can get it shipped for $5 if the wait starts to get too long - it takes about 15 minutes per portrait, so the line can fill up if you're not quick on the draw).

ALSO on Sunday we've got the return of our weekly sushi classes! We've felt a real absence in our lives not having Chef Harold here for the past few months (trust me, you do not want to fill our side room with raw fish in the middle of summer) but now he's back in action and the classes are fun as hell, so sign up for one already!

And then looking into the future we've got Beer Mug Painting with Inebri-Art next Tuesday and Simpsons Trivia next Thursday (Chris may have told me the theme but I forgot) and tunes from Josephine With a Cause next Friday and then Beatles Brunch next Sunday and the point is that we've got some cool stuff lined up for Future Times too!

* By "self-imposed" I mean "we're out of space in the cold room"
** Among other things, the common hallway ("murder hallway" if you're down with the lingo) now contains: a piano, two (2) car doors, part but not all of a pool table, and an assortment of fishing gear. I really wish I was making any of that up.

In Which We Want You to Come Hang Out!

An Important Update (But Not, Like, the Fun Kind)

In Which There Are... Times

In Which There's Cask and Cool Collabs!

In Which We Get Our Harvest On!

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