Geoff and Marcy Larson.

On a weekly basis, the co-founders of Alaskan Brewing Company tromp into the muskeg on Douglas Island with their dog, Tango, to hone the retriever's trailing skills. A SEADOGS volunteer hides in the brush, and Tango sniffs them out. The exercise keeps Geoff and Marcy Larson and their pooch ready for when Alaska State Troopers call for help to locate a missing person.

"It's sometimes a very traumatic period for a small community," Geoff says, "but it's amazing to see how small communities pull together."

The Larsons have been together since 1979. He was a chemical engineer and she was a photojournalist, although Marcy switched to bookkeeping so she could earn a steady paycheck. They married in 1985, and a year later they used a Prohibition-era recipe to create Alaskan Amber. They now distribute beers in more than twenty other states, as far east as Ohio. By sales volume, it's the 19th largest craft brewery in the country.

Yet the Larsons still have time to devote to Tango--and to the puppy they adopted last summer, now in training as their newest search dog.

Alaska Business: What do you do in your free time?

Marcy Larson: What free time? [Geoff laughs] The time that we do have [outside of work] we dedicate to search and rescue.

Geoff Larson: I'd also say people. When we have free time, we probably search out people; we go and enjoy others' company.

AB: Is there a skill you're currently developing or have always wanted to learn?

Marcy: We're always working on teamwork because that is so crucial in so many things.

AB: What's the most daring thing you've ever done?

Marcy: I've jumped out of an airplane...

Geoff: A perfectly good airplane!

Marcy: ... a hundred times. So how 'bout that?

AB: What's your favorite local restaurant?

Geoff: My kitchen. Why? We have so much fresh seafood here. We enjoy crabbing.

Marcy: And he's a great chef, I will say.

AB: Dead or alive, who would you like to see perform live in concert?

Marcy: Hobo Jim. Really miss that guy. He was awesome.

AB: What's your greatest extravagance?

Marcy: We were able to invite all of our nieces and nephews [for their birthdays] to come up and experience Alaska with an...