BY MATT STEVENS for WEEKLY VOLCANO | 9/25/2026
One of the primary owners of Engine House No. 9 made a donation to Let’s Go Washington, a conservative political action committee, in an effort to overturn the Millionaire’s tax at the ballot in November. Let’s Go Washington is also funding several other ballot initiatives and campaigns, including a disgusting campaign to force schools to perform genital inspections of all female athletes to ensure that no trans athletes compete in high school athletics.
E9 has long been known as a welcoming place for all types of generous souls, including gay, lesbian, trans, and any other type of individual who is finding themselves in need of community. The pub on Pine Street was where I learned to love beer and to associate a pub with a welcoming, loving family.
Xitco insists that he has no hatred of trans individuals; he simply wanted to fund opposition to the new tax that would hit him. Xitco backed up that claim with two $5,000 donations to the Rainbow Center and Oasis Youth Center, two Tacoma nonprofits that help youth in any sort of need.
Recently, the Grit and Grain podcast interviewed some staff who discussed how the organization isn’t just welcoming of queer and trans individuals; it celebrates them and lets people be the best versions of themselves.
Several restaurants in Tacoma and throughout the region have declined to sell E9 beers, and the collapse in business is worrisome, extremely worrisome for the employees of E9 as they see their customer base collapse and a different, antagonistic, and unsupportive customer base trickle in.
When someone screws up and then they take accountability, we need to let them take accountability and change.
Destroying a Tacoma institution 40 years in the making over $1,250, when that institution has donated hundreds of thousands of dollars to important, inclusive, welcoming organizations, is cutting off your nose to spite your face. Art on the Ave is not the same without E9’s support. E9 is regularly present at community-building events, from the Downtown Block Party to Parks Tacoma events.
When sales tank, the people who are hurt are not the hands-off owners. It’s the young, blue-collar, progressive, queer, and allied staff. If the brewery downtown and the pub on Pine fail, they’ll lease the space out to a new restaurant or newly branded brewery.
When the local pubs and Seattle bars pull E9 off the tap list and insult the owners and employees of E9 on Instagram, they are participating in a circular firing squad shooting down at someone who can’t defend themselves. The ownership response has been too little and too late for a proper crisis response. The $10,000 donations are a crap response showing that we need this tax. The owners should have known the other disgusting causes that Let’s Go Washington is involved in and should not have made that donation.
I urge you to get into one of the pubs or ask for some E9 on tap next time you find yourself at a bar in Tacoma. I hope to see you on Wednesdays at the Pine St. location; I would love to discuss some beer tastings with you over some trivia.
While I was at E9 this week thinking about the slow trickle of customers, I tried the Double Blueberry Sour. It pours a bright yellow; sadly, no blueberry is present in the initial pour. The normal, big, fluffy white head for a sour was a little thin. The aroma is quite funky, with hints of barnyard and horse blanket; this is all in a good way. The flavor is wonderfully sour, with hay and horse blanket, but I’m not getting a ton of blueberry. It’s nailing the Gueuze flavor profile (sour, tart, horse blanket), but I wish the blueberry came through a bit more.
On the mouthfeel, there is a healthy amount of tartness, but it’s enjoyable. Overall, it’s a great beer. One is enough, and I moved on to a delicious IPA.
The Blueberry Sour is on tap at 611 N. Pine St., Tacoma. Other beers are available at the brewery at 2506 Fawcett Ave., Tacoma.
