Roll out the barrel

Guten tag, you’re it: Leavenworth, the faux Bavarian town in the Cascade Range, taps the keg on its Oktoberfest celebration over the next two weekends with plenty of Teutonic tunes, food and, of course, “bier.”

Go. Have a good time, but

remember guys, when you get to the point where you can convince yourself that you look sharp in shorts, lederhosen and a cap with a feather in it, you’ve had enough.

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Hip hops: Northwest hop growers are getting ready for changes in beer labeling laws that will require brewers who want to label their beer as “organic” to use organic ingredients, which includes the hops that give beer its distinctive bitter flavor.

And what better market for organic beer than the Northwest, where discerning beer drinkers will gladly pay a premium for a natural brew, uncontaminated by pesticide or fertilizer residue, to wash down a bucket of fast-food hot wings and Velveeta cheese dip.

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Stick to the light beer, Chris: New Jersey Gov. Chris Christie, R-Fence Post, who as late as Thursday referred reporters to past statements that he would not run for president, now is said to be reconsidering and could run, unnamed sources said.

Christie will have to make up his mind quickly; that fence he’s sitting on isn’t going to hold his weight much longer.

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