Should you find yourself smack-dab in the center of Little Bavaria—aka Leavenworth—for the Timbrrr! Winter Music Festival this weekend, you’ll find it impossible not to think of two supremely important things: beer and bands. What delectable local brew might you sample while listening to the retro-pop sounds of Seattle’s Prom Queen, one of the weekend’s 14 performers? What German-style bier will you quaff before the Sisters show? These questions are surely racing through your mind—as they should be. Having attended last year’s event, I’d like to introduce you to some of Leavenworth’s best pints and offer you a guide to bands to pair them with. While some of these suds will be on tap this weekend (especially those at Icicle Brewing Company, an official Timbrrr! venue), I can’t predict exactly where you’ll find them all. Hey, I can’t do all the work for you.

Red Fang with Ninkasi’s Sleigh’r Ominous and dangerous: These words precisely describe both band and beer. There’s a heaviness to the group’s music, complemented well by this double-dark ale inspired by ’80s thrash-metal group Slayer.

Sol with Icicle Brewing Company’s Priebe Porter Sometimes you want one thing and you want it perfect. If you have only one pint at Timbrrr!, let it be a rich, full beer befitting this socially conscious rapper.

Deep Sea Diver with IBC’s Crosscut Pilsner Clean yet nuanced with a great fizz, these two are a match made in snowy heaven. DSD paired with the Leavenworth pilsner is classic.

Hobosexual with IBC’s Bootjack IPA Rugged and quintessentially Northwest, this rock band has lyrics like “Make my daily grind chopping down trees.” What better group to drink a hoppy IPA to?

AAN with 10 Barrel’s Pray for Snow Ale At Timbrrr! you want snow. Additionally, assuming you’re over 21, you want the whole thing to be a big, boozy snow globe. AAN will soothe you with its dreamy songs as the snowflakes fall, so gear up for the set with this delicious winter ale.

Prom Queen with IBC’s Dark Persuasion German Chocolate Cake Ale Decadent: That’s the first word associated with a chocolate-cake ale and with local chanteuse Prom Queen. Her sound is colorful, sweet, deep, rich, and—yes—dark.

Bellamaine with Spaten Optimator Sometimes all you want is a dependable brew, something on the lighter side with a good, lingering finish. If you find yourself in this mood, try the Optimator right before you catch this Anacortes dream-pop group.

Legs with Hofbrauhaus Munich Lager Glimmering and bright, this German-style beer is fit for this Brooklyn-based dancey band. The carbonation will hit your nose like the notes hit your eardrums, and you’ll grin the whole way through.

Sisters with IBC’s Snowbockalypse Doppelbock Creative and funky, you can’t put your finger on what specifically makes this band and beer sing, but it’s something special indeed. At times reserved, at times bold, sipping this special pairing is like a museum experience.

Courtney Marie Andrews with IBC’s Timber Town Brown American Ale Go ahead, just try not to think of the great American landscape and dirt roads when listening to this songbird. No one will notice if you get a little wistful; just take a big swig of this brew and tell ’em it was sweat from your glass.

Dude York with IBC’s Lil’ Willy American Stout Stouts are big and bold, yet have a very unique, precise flavor. For this reason, this American stout goes perfect with Dude York’s sound: big, unruly garage rock with simple, focused rhythms.

T

he Banner Days with Elysian Night Owl Pumpkin Ale There’s something autumnal about The Banner Days, which makes them the prime complement for a pumpkin ale. Their sound is a tree falling into a bed of dead leaves, a forest undergoing change. Keep the feeling with a malty, autumn pint.

Planes on Paper with IBC’s Dirtyface Amber Lager This band is as American as Simon and Garfunkel, and harmonize just as well. Like this beer, the duo has a brooding undertone—as in their melancholy “Iron Boat,” with the lyric “When I was young, I knew a boy who only loved what he destroyed.”

ADD ODE with Paulaner Salvator Toasty with a bit of sweetness, the Salvator is a great German beer to rev up your engines before going to hear the curiously emotive songs of ADD ODE.

music@seattleweekly.com

TIMBRRR! WINTER MUSIC FESTIVAL Most performances at Leavenworth Festhalle, 1001 Front St., Leavenworth, Wash., timbermusicfest.com. $30 and up. 21 and over. 5:15 p.m. Fri., Jan. 9 through Sat., Jan. 10.