Once again, it is time to sharpen those artistic skills for a good cause. Oh, and you can bring your hophead friends.

Canteen and Steel Bender are teaming up for their annual series of adult coloring nights, complete with a special collaborative beer release, all in support of AGORA Crisis Center.

“Back in 2019, when we started this campaign with Canteen and High & Dry, the idea was to do more than just a collab beer,” wrote Shelby Chant, Steel Bender co-owner/marketing director, in an email response to our questions this year. “We wanted to be intentional about why we were supporting mental health. So doing something relaxing, creative — yes, even meditative — in our taprooms, that’s what we were going for. Our taprooms are already great spaces for people to connect or to enjoy some alone time with a sketchpad or book while still doing it in a welcoming, comforting space.”

As Chant noted, and some pictures show, the Crew has been attending these nights since the beginning.

“You’ve been to these, so you’ve seen it — a bunch of grown-ups zoning in on those pages, picking colors, selecting coloring sheets (we’ve got 12 of Abigayle’s illustrations this year!) chatting away or just tuning out the world and letting their minds wander for a bit,” Chant wrote. “While Adult Coloring Night is obviously not just for adults — kiddos are absolutely welcome — it’s refreshing to see grown ups, all of us carrying our own worries, get nostalgic, a little childlike, and give ourselves permission to turn it all off and play. It’s a lovely way to practice self care, and that’s exactly what we were hoping for.”

The beer will be released first, with Open Door West Coast IPA making its debut at both Canteen taprooms and Steel Bender today (Friday). Here is a synopsis of what to expect from one of the brewers who created it.

“We wanted to make something popular and fun,” Canteen head brewer Will Moorman wrote. “This was an opportunity to take a swing at modern West Coast IPA with our friends. Beer is ever-evolving and we should all take collaborations as opportunities to push the envelope, hang out with our friends and learn together. The hops were chosen based on what was available to us and how they could meld into a truly dynamic IPA.”

“Open Door is a modern West Coast IPA bursting with bright citrus, ripe mango, and resinous pine from layers of Citra, Mosaic, Azacca, and El Dorado hops, finishing crisp, dry, and clean with a firm 56 IBU bitterness at a dangerously drinkable 8.2-percent ABV.”

The two coloring nights will follow, first at both Canteen locations on Thursday, February 12 from 5:30 to 8 p.m. Alex Maryol will provide some soulful tunes at the main brewery from 6 to 8 p.m.

Steel Bender’s night will be Wednesday, February 18, also from 5:30 to 8. Mike Mares of The NOMS performs from 6 to 8.

AGORA provides compassionate, non-judgmental emotional support to anyone in need. This has become one of their most important annual fundraisers. They will have people on site at each coloring night and will accept direct donations.

“Even (during) SB’s first year open, we knew we wanted to do something annually around mental health,” Chant wrote. “When we partnered with Canteen and High & Dry, we chose two efforts: Breast Cancer Awareness Month (partnering with Pink Warrior House) and mental health. It was imperative to all three breweries that the organizations were local, because we wanted the money to stay here and we wanted the community to pull together to support their own. My dad is a recently retired adolescent psychologist, and he pointed us in AGORA’s direction without skipping a beat. 

“AGORA has spent decades providing compassionate, non-judgmental help. But there’s an important message built into their mission: anyone can reach out, you don’t have to be in a full-blown crisis to call or chat —  their door is open to anyone who is struggling, overwhelmed, or just needs to talk. Anyone.”

Otherwise, your support is pretty easy to provide. For a $10 donation, you get a coloring sheet, with seven designs to choose from that were created by local artist Abigayle Dawn. For another $5, you can get an additional sheet. All other supplies will be provided for free.

For those who will be indulging in Open Door or any other beer on tap, for $15 you can get a pint and a coloring sheet. Also, take note that for every pint sold of Open Door, $1 will be donated directly to AGORA. That will run from Friday’s beer release until March 6.

While this has been named Adult Coloring Night, as Chant noted families are always welcome at Canteen and Steel Bender, so yes, you can bring the kiddos and see if you can possibly keep up with their mad artistic skills.

This is one of those annual charitable efforts that truly is needed now more than ever.

“When the three of us started this effort in 2019, none of us could’ve imagined that a year later we wouldn’t even be able to gather in taprooms, which have always been about connection as much as beer and food,” Chant wrote. “I’m obviously not a professional, but I listen and watch, and I think a lot of people are still feeling the mental health effects all these years later, myself included. Baseline anxiety seems higher, and when you add continued uncertainty from world events, plus technology that connects us digitally instead of face-to-face, it becomes harder to really see how someone is doing.

“I don’t think anyone could argue that our collective mental energy has taken a hit. That’s why talking about mental health, making it normal to ask how someone’s actually doing, normal to answer honestly without fear of judgment, all of this seems more important than ever. I’ve said this to many, probably even to you … I sometimes feel like I should wear a sign around my neck that says, ‘Have you checked in with your therapist lately?’ And AGORA is there for that, again: ‘You do not need to be “in crisis” to call or chat with them.’”

We raise our glasses high in honor of Canteen and Steel Bender and thank them again for continuing this collaborative support of a great cause.

Keeping supporting local, and each other!

— Stoutmeister