from David Cross' latest stand-up album, Bigger & Blackerer.
Monday, September 20, 2010
Saturday, September 18, 2010
The Courier on Beer
There's a good article on Vancouver's micro/craft brewery scene in Friday's Vancouver Courier. Along with interviews with the guys from R&B Brewing and Nigel from the Alibi Room, there's an interview with John Mitchell, who created North America's first micro-brewery in Victoria's Spinnakers.
Read the article here:
http://www.vancourier.com/entertainment/Tapping+taste/3539598/story.html
Read the article here:
http://www.vancourier.com/entertainment/Tapping+taste/3539598/story.html
Saturday, September 4, 2010
Homebrewin'
So I have been brewing beer for a few years now, casually, with Tippler Alex. It all started when he received a homebrewing kit as a xmas gift some years back. I think I helped him bottle his first batch (as he lived nearby me at the time). It was surprisingly drinkable, we agreed, and we conspired to continue brewing as a source of cheap beer.
Over the years since then, we made some pretty good beers. Moving away from the prepackaged ingredients to a more intermediate step (we use a pre-made liquid malt which we supplement with some dry grains), we have made some passable brews--a Belgian double comes to mind, as well as a Liberty Ale clone which we dry-hopped.
Over this time, the experience, from start to finish, has remained fun--from choosing a recipe, to drinking while we work, to worrying that we are going to kill our yeast starter, to sanitizing our mouths with Potato vodka before we syphon--and it is in this spirit that we have continued through the years.
Recently, we decided to brew new batches on the same day that we bottle the last batch. This saves us some cleaning and me an extra trip out to Coquitlam, and means that we are making beer a lot more often.
In response to our newfound dedication, we have decided to make one in every three batches an experimental recipe. We are nearly set to bottle our first such experiment--a monster brew with a Scotch ale's maltiness and an imperial IPA's hopiness (with a little fresh basil thrown in for good measure).
Our next big step will be to make all of our own malts from dry grains. This will give us pretty much total control over every aspect of the taste of our brews (so far all of our beers have had some similarity as a result of the premade liquid malt we use), but will require some extra work on our parts(which, to be honest, is the primary reason we have yet to make this step).
Upon deebag's suggestion, I decided to blog about our homebrewing experiences here--in hopes that some fellow homebrewers might find it interesting and/or helpful. I will endeavour to make it as coherent and entertaining as I am able.
Over the years since then, we made some pretty good beers. Moving away from the prepackaged ingredients to a more intermediate step (we use a pre-made liquid malt which we supplement with some dry grains), we have made some passable brews--a Belgian double comes to mind, as well as a Liberty Ale clone which we dry-hopped.
Over this time, the experience, from start to finish, has remained fun--from choosing a recipe, to drinking while we work, to worrying that we are going to kill our yeast starter, to sanitizing our mouths with Potato vodka before we syphon--and it is in this spirit that we have continued through the years.
Recently, we decided to brew new batches on the same day that we bottle the last batch. This saves us some cleaning and me an extra trip out to Coquitlam, and means that we are making beer a lot more often.
In response to our newfound dedication, we have decided to make one in every three batches an experimental recipe. We are nearly set to bottle our first such experiment--a monster brew with a Scotch ale's maltiness and an imperial IPA's hopiness (with a little fresh basil thrown in for good measure).
Our next big step will be to make all of our own malts from dry grains. This will give us pretty much total control over every aspect of the taste of our brews (so far all of our beers have had some similarity as a result of the premade liquid malt we use), but will require some extra work on our parts(which, to be honest, is the primary reason we have yet to make this step).
Upon deebag's suggestion, I decided to blog about our homebrewing experiences here--in hopes that some fellow homebrewers might find it interesting and/or helpful. I will endeavour to make it as coherent and entertaining as I am able.
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Sunday, August 15, 2010
I'm better than Kathie Lee Gifford
well.... for at least one evening I was. after seeing Kathie Lee drink Dogfish Head on the Today Show, I had to treat myself by drinking some high end beer. did I accomplish this task? you're damn right I did - one evening and three beers all rated in the 97th percentile or higher on RateBeer.com. first up was Alesmith's legendary Speedway Stout. only a myth until now, this 12% chocolaty stout lived up to the hype with a well balanced, yet uber-flavourful beer. the more it warmed up the bigger the taste was. I tasted chocolate, coffee, toffee and some vanilla. it was delicious from start to finish, but unfortunately this bad boy hasn't been brought into any of the Vancouver specialty stores, so you'll never be able to contradict me.Tippler Ben was riding the stout train, so I hopped on board with him and tried some Mikkeller's Beer Geek Breakfast. all I can say is, "choo, choo!". I've had this one once before, but I forgot how great it was. while Alesmith makes a stout with loads of flavours, Mikkeller makes theirs focused on one - coffee. and they do it very well. if I had more money, I would dedicate a fridge shelf to it. but, at $10 a bottle, I'll have to settle with
having it on special occasions.last up was Brooklyn's Sorachi Ace. this is a saison that uses just one hop varietal; Japanese sarachi hops. all the saison characteristics were there, pale yellow and a thin head, wrapped up in cloudy unfiltered goodness. there was some lemon and a bit of banana in the taste, but what I remember most about it was this beer's incredibly dry finish. Tippler Ben may be able elaborate a little more on this one as, for some reason, my memory of this one is hazy. I do recall stating that Big Love would love this beer.
there we go. three awesome beers in one night... I'm waaaay better than Kathie Lee.
Alesmith Speedway Stout - 750ml, 12% alc
Mikkeler Beer Geek Breakfast - 500ml, 7.5% alc
Brooklyn's Sorachi Ace - 750ml, 7.6% alc
(I think I'm going to to abandon the A to F school grading system for these ones as they're all exceptionally good beers.)
PS. I just remembered that we had some Stone IPAs afterward. that's another one hundred percenter on RateBeer. Kathie Lee and her Dogfish Head look pretty damn lame now.
Tuesday, August 10, 2010
am I drinking crazy juice?!
I turned on the tv this morning and through my sleep deprived eyes I saw Kathie Lee Gifford on the Today Show drinking Dogfish Head beer! is it a bad sign that Kathie Lee drinks better beer than I do? I couldn't find the actually video of her drinking the Dogfish Chateau Jiahu, but here's photographic proof that I don't dream of 60 year old beer drinking talk show hosts.
Tuesday, August 3, 2010
Michelada -- Tastes Like a Sweaty Redeye!
have you ever had a Redeye before? that's when you add a couple ounces of Clamato juice to a lager. to anyone overseas that is reading this, Clamato is a mix of tomato juice and, yes, clam broth. from what I understand Clamato is a primarily Canadian mixer, usually used to make another Canadian classic- the caeser. anyway, 
the addition of Clamato juice into a pint of substandard lager can be somewhat refreshing at times. I won't go as far as advocating it's use on a regular basis, but when your in Dundurn, Saskatchewan, do as the Dundurnians do. so when Big Love and I stopped at a Mexican restaurant for lunch on the weekend and I saw that one of their signature drinks, a michelada, mixes beer with a "traditional spice mix juice", I had to try it. our waitress said it was a mix of lime juice, Maggi seasoning, and other stuff. she had me at 'other stuff'.
a couple of ounces of 'spice mix juice' was delivered to the table in a salt rimmed sleeve with a bottle of Negra Modelo beer. after pouring the beer into the mix, it looked like a chunky, frothy beef stock. now, the taste can only be described as sweaty. real sweaty - not exactly the refreshing bevvie that I was looking for. the salt from the rim masked some of the initial foulness. to be fair, after the initial sip, the drink was passable for a moment. but, as it started to warm up, I could no longer trick my brain into thinking that I was enjoying a beer as the taste was replaced by what can only be described as a sort of soy saucey, beefy, sweaty mixture. delicious.
the addition of Clamato juice into a pint of substandard lager can be somewhat refreshing at times. I won't go as far as advocating it's use on a regular basis, but when your in Dundurn, Saskatchewan, do as the Dundurnians do. so when Big Love and I stopped at a Mexican restaurant for lunch on the weekend and I saw that one of their signature drinks, a michelada, mixes beer with a "traditional spice mix juice", I had to try it. our waitress said it was a mix of lime juice, Maggi seasoning, and other stuff. she had me at 'other stuff'.a couple of ounces of 'spice mix juice' was delivered to the table in a salt rimmed sleeve with a bottle of Negra Modelo beer. after pouring the beer into the mix, it looked like a chunky, frothy beef stock. now, the taste can only be described as sweaty. real sweaty - not exactly the refreshing bevvie that I was looking for. the salt from the rim masked some of the initial foulness. to be fair, after the initial sip, the drink was passable for a moment. but, as it started to warm up, I could no longer trick my brain into thinking that I was enjoying a beer as the taste was replaced by what can only be described as a sort of soy saucey, beefy, sweaty mixture. delicious.
The Dog Days of Summer - Granville Island Belgian Wit (Limited Release)
Granville Island Brewery
breaking up the relatively mundane selections of Granville Island's arsenal of beer are their more interesting seasonal limited releases. past releases have included, a ginger beer, a Scottish ale, a pumpkin ale, the Jolly Abbot (their version of a Belgian tripel), and a Christmas ale that I look out for every year. this summer's release from Granville Island is their Belgian Wit.
this beer pours like you would want a wit to pour, very pale yellow, cloudy, with a thin head. usually wits like this have a banana aroma that I'm obsessed with, sadly the smell of GI's Belgian Wit doesn't fuel this olfaction obsession of mine (what kind of music would a band called Olfaction Obsession play?) . there are, however, some strong lemon notes at first that die quickly. I'm disappointing with the taste, as the is no evidence of orange peel and coriander - two classic white beer ingredients. I wouldn't be disappointed if GI hadn't specifically noted on the beer's label that these are what were used to flavour the beer. what I do taste is some tart lemon. the minimal carbonation provides a nice, smooth drink, but it is a bit dry and yeasty - leaving me with an remarkably average white beer to drink. BUT that being said, it was a nice fresh relief on a scorching hot Vancouver day (yes, we get one or two of those per year).
[*the happiness of the dog is not representative of my love of the beer in particular, just my love of cold beer on a hot day.]
C+ 650 ml, 5%
breaking up the relatively mundane selections of Granville Island's arsenal of beer are their more interesting seasonal limited releases. past releases have included, a ginger beer, a Scottish ale, a pumpkin ale, the Jolly Abbot (their version of a Belgian tripel), and a Christmas ale that I look out for every year. this summer's release from Granville Island is their Belgian Wit.
this beer pours like you would want a wit to pour, very pale yellow, cloudy, with a thin head. usually wits like this have a banana aroma that I'm obsessed with, sadly the smell of GI's Belgian Wit doesn't fuel this olfaction obsession of mine (what kind of music would a band called Olfaction Obsession play?) . there are, however, some strong lemon notes at first that die quickly. I'm disappointing with the taste, as the is no evidence of orange peel and coriander - two classic white beer ingredients. I wouldn't be disappointed if GI hadn't specifically noted on the beer's label that these are what were used to flavour the beer. what I do taste is some tart lemon. the minimal carbonation provides a nice, smooth drink, but it is a bit dry and yeasty - leaving me with an remarkably average white beer to drink. BUT that being said, it was a nice fresh relief on a scorching hot Vancouver day (yes, we get one or two of those per year).
[*the happiness of the dog is not representative of my love of the beer in particular, just my love of cold beer on a hot day.]C+ 650 ml, 5%
Friday, July 30, 2010
Monday, July 26, 2010
Little Creatures Pale Ale
Little Creatures Brewery
I received an awesome book for my birthday a few months back called 1001 Beers You Must Taste Before You Die. if you haven't figured out by the fact that I have a blog dedicated to this wonderful elixir and that my last three vacations have centered around brewery tours and brew pubs, I love beer. that being said, of the 1001 beers in the book, I've sadly only just drank past the century mark. I felt like a beer novice after discovering this measly number, until I read that one of the book's contributors, who has been a beverage journalist for 20 years, has only tried 250-300 beers of the book's 1001. my mission over the next
few months is to stick to the book and get drink off some of my beer bucket list.
one such beer on the bucket list is the Pale Ale from Australian brewer Little Creatures. I have previously passed up this beer in the aisles of Brewery Creek for two reasons. first, BC only sells it by the single bottle and charges $4 a pop. secondly, it's Australian. I know that Ozzies are great drinkers, but with only Foster's and VB to form my outright opinion of an entire nations beer existence, I just figured that Australians were great at drinking crappy beer. like with most things that I form an unreasonable opinion over, I was wrong.
the pungent floral hops of the LC Pale Ale hit your nose right when the cap is cracked. light citrus aroma comes along with those floral notes. she poured an amber/honey colour with a decent amount of a foamy head. I tasted some fruit at first and then the hops cut through that sweetness and settled into my mouth. although lingering, the hops are toned down a lot in this Pale Ale allowing some of the sweet tastes to mingle. after being in Portland and being subjected to some over the top Pales and IPAs using traditional west cost hops (Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, etc), it was nice to have a beer using these same hop strains to a much mellower effect. as the beer warmed up, the fruit came out a little bit more. this is my ideal summer beer - lots of flavour, a nice bitter bite, and one that you will make you skip to and from your fridge a few times over the course of a night.
B+ 355 ml bottle, 5.2%
I received an awesome book for my birthday a few months back called 1001 Beers You Must Taste Before You Die. if you haven't figured out by the fact that I have a blog dedicated to this wonderful elixir and that my last three vacations have centered around brewery tours and brew pubs, I love beer. that being said, of the 1001 beers in the book, I've sadly only just drank past the century mark. I felt like a beer novice after discovering this measly number, until I read that one of the book's contributors, who has been a beverage journalist for 20 years, has only tried 250-300 beers of the book's 1001. my mission over the next
few months is to stick to the book and get drink off some of my beer bucket list.one such beer on the bucket list is the Pale Ale from Australian brewer Little Creatures. I have previously passed up this beer in the aisles of Brewery Creek for two reasons. first, BC only sells it by the single bottle and charges $4 a pop. secondly, it's Australian. I know that Ozzies are great drinkers, but with only Foster's and VB to form my outright opinion of an entire nations beer existence, I just figured that Australians were great at drinking crappy beer. like with most things that I form an unreasonable opinion over, I was wrong.
the pungent floral hops of the LC Pale Ale hit your nose right when the cap is cracked. light citrus aroma comes along with those floral notes. she poured an amber/honey colour with a decent amount of a foamy head. I tasted some fruit at first and then the hops cut through that sweetness and settled into my mouth. although lingering, the hops are toned down a lot in this Pale Ale allowing some of the sweet tastes to mingle. after being in Portland and being subjected to some over the top Pales and IPAs using traditional west cost hops (Cascade, Centennial, Chinook, etc), it was nice to have a beer using these same hop strains to a much mellower effect. as the beer warmed up, the fruit came out a little bit more. this is my ideal summer beer - lots of flavour, a nice bitter bite, and one that you will make you skip to and from your fridge a few times over the course of a night.
B+ 355 ml bottle, 5.2%
Thursday, May 13, 2010
Molson..."Trust Me, That's Just the Beginning"
I guess that I missed a lot of entertaining morning television when I skipped town for the olympics. this one's for Tippler A-Bomb and her favourite beer, Phillips Brewing's Blue Buck.
hey, at least they're showcasing some decent beer through the veil of crappy TV.
Visit msnbc.com for breaking news, world news, and news about the economy
hey, at least they're showcasing some decent beer through the veil of crappy TV.
Wednesday, May 12, 2010
Hop Circle IPA: One Man's Hopinion
Dear Phillips Brewing,
With the introduction of your Hop Circle IPA, you have, in my humble opinion, really established yourself amongst British Columbia's finest breweries. This is a stand-out West Coast IPA--from its wonderful floral aroma, to its muscular hoppiness, to the delicate balancing effect of
its malt and the pleasant, not too bitter finish. In fact, it is so immediately endearing one might argue that it sells itself.
Why, then, did you give it such a stupid name? And such a ghastly label? Were you trying to prove this theory?
I know that many fine and well-regarded microbrews have elements of Sci-fi kitsch and puns on the word "hop", but this does not make it right. You had a chance, here, to set a higher standard. To take the high road. I, for one, wish you had taken it. Because this is a classy ale. It doesn't need to be dressed in flourescent clothing and adorned with bad puns.
I suggest you rebrand it, quickly and quietly, so that it doesn't embarrass you in a few years.
I'll likely be drinking it either way, because its good. And I like good beer, even more than I dislike ugly, corny marketing.
Sincerely,
Big Love
B+
With the introduction of your Hop Circle IPA, you have, in my humble opinion, really established yourself amongst British Columbia's finest breweries. This is a stand-out West Coast IPA--from its wonderful floral aroma, to its muscular hoppiness, to the delicate balancing effect of
its malt and the pleasant, not too bitter finish. In fact, it is so immediately endearing one might argue that it sells itself.Why, then, did you give it such a stupid name? And such a ghastly label? Were you trying to prove this theory?
I know that many fine and well-regarded microbrews have elements of Sci-fi kitsch and puns on the word "hop", but this does not make it right. You had a chance, here, to set a higher standard. To take the high road. I, for one, wish you had taken it. Because this is a classy ale. It doesn't need to be dressed in flourescent clothing and adorned with bad puns.
I suggest you rebrand it, quickly and quietly, so that it doesn't embarrass you in a few years.
I'll likely be drinking it either way, because its good. And I like good beer, even more than I dislike ugly, corny marketing.
Sincerely,
Big Love
B+
Sunday, April 11, 2010
The Ups & Downs of Delirium Tremens
good night of drinking starts with finding a bar that has great Belgian bee
r on tap, specifically Delirium Tremens. the night starts to decline when you decide to steal the awesome pink elephant glass that it's served in. the night picks up again when you decide you're above that and you're not nearly drunk enough to do that. the night then lessens when you realize that you had the perfect opportunity to steal a great pink elephant glass but you're going home empty handed. then the night elevates when you stumble across a hobo's street sale where you buy said glass for $2.
r on tap, specifically Delirium Tremens. the night starts to decline when you decide to steal the awesome pink elephant glass that it's served in. the night picks up again when you decide you're above that and you're not nearly drunk enough to do that. the night then lessens when you realize that you had the perfect opportunity to steal a great pink elephant glass but you're going home empty handed. then the night elevates when you stumble across a hobo's street sale where you buy said glass for $2.
Saturday, April 10, 2010
Québécois Beer & Italian Pubs - Tipplin' in Ottawa!
in general, finding good beer in Ontario is harder than it is in BC. sure, it’s slightly cheaper, but The Beer Store is more for getting your twofour on rather than imbibing some quality beer. the great thing about Ottawa, is that the city borders Quebec, so you can skip The Beer Store and head straight to the supermarché. ah, La Belle Province - where the beer is cheap, there’s loads of selection and it’s sold everywhere. to my delight, Tippler Ellie and Tippler Jeff had stocked their fridge to the teeth with a hug
e variety of beer, namely ones from Montreal’s Brasserie Dieu du Ciel!. all four of the beer that I sampled from this brewery* were absolutely delicious. the two that really made my taste buds do a double take were their hemp ale, Fumisterie [Smoke Screen], and their bottle conditioned hibiscus white, Rosee d’hibiscus [Pinkish Hibiscus].
about ten or twelve years ago, a number of local breweries were putting out hemp beer. I remember buying them, drinking, and enjoying them, but I don’t really remember
them being anything of note. if these beer had been anywhere near the quality of BDC!’s Fumisterie, I would've started a campaign for Bowen Island Brewery to bring back their Hemp Cream Ale (remember when Bowen Island had decent beer?). anyway, Fumisterie has a very nice velvety mouth feel and buttery taste. I don't mean that the taste was smooth like butter, it actually tastes of butter. very pleasant and very luscious. the Rosee d'hibiscus is the other beer from BDC! that I really enjoyed. this delicate wheat ale is brewed with the petals of hibiscus flowers that give it a beautiful pink colour. the pink hue is more evident due to the cloudiness of this unfiltered ale. the obvious floral tastes balance out the citrusy ones that are present and common to whites like this. truthfully, the crisp, floral taste was a bit tiring by the end of the bottle, making me not want a second one. but, this isn't a session beer. this is a once in while, palate cleansing beer.
I wish that I could tell you a lot more of the following Ottawan drinking institution, but I went to Pub Italia after a multi multi multi course meal at Atelier and was struggling to ingest anything more. I can tell you that the bar seems to have a bit of an identity crisis as it's an Italian pub, with a shamrock logo complete with a Belgian abbey to drink in - not that I'm complaining! I can also tell you that the liquid selection on their "beer bible" is awesomely overwhelming, boasting 35 taps and 20 or so pages of bottles. I tried out the cognac infused X.O. Beer from France, which (from what I remember) was just okay. it's an 8% beer that tastes like a 10% one and the taste of cognac just flat out doesn't do it for me. I have no regrets in choosing this one as I figure how often are you able to choice a beer that's been infused cognac? I tried a little sample of Mikkeller's Beer Geek Breakfast, a coffee stout from Denmark. I just had a taste, but was really surprised and pleased that the mega dark malts and high level of coffee didn't overpower this stout. the mellowing hops really balanced it out. I'll be nagging my local beer store to start stocking this one.
Fumisterie A- 355ml bottle, 5.5%
Rosee d’hibiscus B+ 355ml bottle, 5%
X.O. Beer C+ 355ml bottle, 8%
Beer Geek Breakfast A 500ml bottle, 7.5%
*the other two were Blanche du Paradis [Paradise White] and La Paienne [The Pagan]
e variety of beer, namely ones from Montreal’s Brasserie Dieu du Ciel!. all four of the beer that I sampled from this brewery* were absolutely delicious. the two that really made my taste buds do a double take were their hemp ale, Fumisterie [Smoke Screen], and their bottle conditioned hibiscus white, Rosee d’hibiscus [Pinkish Hibiscus].about ten or twelve years ago, a number of local breweries were putting out hemp beer. I remember buying them, drinking, and enjoying them, but I don’t really remember
them being anything of note. if these beer had been anywhere near the quality of BDC!’s Fumisterie, I would've started a campaign for Bowen Island Brewery to bring back their Hemp Cream Ale (remember when Bowen Island had decent beer?). anyway, Fumisterie has a very nice velvety mouth feel and buttery taste. I don't mean that the taste was smooth like butter, it actually tastes of butter. very pleasant and very luscious. the Rosee d'hibiscus is the other beer from BDC! that I really enjoyed. this delicate wheat ale is brewed with the petals of hibiscus flowers that give it a beautiful pink colour. the pink hue is more evident due to the cloudiness of this unfiltered ale. the obvious floral tastes balance out the citrusy ones that are present and common to whites like this. truthfully, the crisp, floral taste was a bit tiring by the end of the bottle, making me not want a second one. but, this isn't a session beer. this is a once in while, palate cleansing beer.I wish that I could tell you a lot more of the following Ottawan drinking institution, but I went to Pub Italia after a multi multi multi course meal at Atelier and was struggling to ingest anything more. I can tell you that the bar seems to have a bit of an identity crisis as it's an Italian pub, with a shamrock logo complete with a Belgian abbey to drink in - not that I'm complaining! I can also tell you that the liquid selection on their "beer bible" is awesomely overwhelming, boasting 35 taps and 20 or so pages of bottles. I tried out the cognac infused X.O. Beer from France, which (from what I remember) was just okay. it's an 8% beer that tastes like a 10% one and the taste of cognac just flat out doesn't do it for me. I have no regrets in choosing this one as I figure how often are you able to choice a beer that's been infused cognac? I tried a little sample of Mikkeller's Beer Geek Breakfast, a coffee stout from Denmark. I just had a taste, but was really surprised and pleased that the mega dark malts and high level of coffee didn't overpower this stout. the mellowing hops really balanced it out. I'll be nagging my local beer store to start stocking this one.
Fumisterie A- 355ml bottle, 5.5%
Rosee d’hibiscus B+ 355ml bottle, 5%
X.O. Beer C+ 355ml bottle, 8%
Beer Geek Breakfast A 500ml bottle, 7.5%
*the other two were Blanche du Paradis [Paradise White] and La Paienne [The Pagan]
Tuesday, April 6, 2010
Mardi Gras & Micro Brews - Tipplin' in Vermont!
when planning my trip to visit Tippler Ellie in Ottawa, we decided on doing an American beer tour as Ottawa is a relatively short drive to both New York and Vermont. a quick Google search led us to the obvious conclusion of going to either Burlington, Vermont or Lake Placid, NY. seemingly, these towns are both hotbeds of craft beer in that neck of the woods. since my trip was spawned from a need to get out of Vancouver during the Olympics, I didn't want to go to another Olympic town - so, Burlington it was. initially, we were going to try to tour some of Burlington's breweries and then do some sampling, but soon after arriving, a couple of Burlingtonians informed us that we had arrived during Mardi Gras weekend and that we should get ready to give'r.
although we didn't end up doing any tours of breweries, we tried to sample a lot of different beer - mainly ones from Vermont. it seemed as if every restaurant/pub that we went to had a minimum of a dozen beer on tap and many had cask conditioned offerings. our first stop was for burgers and beer at the Scuffer Steak and Ale House which boasts 15 taps and 50 different bottles. we tried a few Vermont brews including the citrus hopped Wolavers IPA and the floral hopped and sweetly malted Long Trail Pale Ale, but the standout here was from neighbouring NY - Brooklyn Brewing's Cookie Jar Porter. with an initial sweet, vanilla aroma, this porter had lots of deep dark chocolate tastes and a creamy body. I guess with all that sweetness, it shouldn't have been a surprise to find out that it was rocking a 8% ABV punch, but I would have never known if I hadn't read the menu. before heading to one of our preplanned beer destinations, we went to some townie bars and loaded up on $2 Rolling Rocks. this light 'extra' pale ale is one of my guilty drinking pleasures when I travel stateside. they're very easy drinking and sometimes that's the name of the game. after being refused a round of Jagerbombs at the townie bar (due to the bar's potential legal ramifications from people chipping their teeth), we headed towards the Vermont Pub & Brewery.
we had tried to get into the VPB earlier in the evening, but there
was a 45 minutes line up and our beer thirst couldn't handle that length of time being unsatisfied. we got there later in the evening to have a couple before last call. VPB makes all there own draughts, which at the time, had an arsenal of 10 with 3 more being cask conditioned and ready to be pulled. they did 3oz sampler bats here, so I went with their Dogbit Bitter, Citra Pale Ale, Bombay Grab IPA, and the Vermont Smoked Porter. although they were all great, 2 of the samples really stood out. I could tell you that VPB smoke their own malts over apple, maple and hickory wood chips to recreate this 7th century style robust porter, which is how the menu describes this superb porter, but it was late and I was drunk so my tasting notes just read, "this Porter tastes of campfire and beef jerky!" sadly, that's really my best description of it's taste. the other standout beer was the Citra Pale Ale. golden in colour, very citrusy in aroma, this pale ale had a beautiful citrus bitterness that overwhelmed and then faded quickly. the short lasting bitterness, made this 60 IBU beer a lot more drinkable than a lot of it's highly hopped counterparts. so much so, I ordered another pint. I didn't realize this until now, but the Citra PA is very similar to a Yaletown IPA that is being poured at the Alibi room right now (more on that one in a few posts time).
the next day we sampled a couple of different beer at Magic Hat's tasting room, but soon realized that everyone was
getting ready to head into town to take part in the Mardi Gras parade. after filling up on brekkie, we decided to follow suit. a few walkie poppies later and we were on Church Street ready to see some floats and catch some beads. it was loads of fun, but my beer critiquing cap had gone back to the haberdashery from where it came from. in fact, I think (and by 'I think', I mean 'I know') that I ended up at an afternoon dance club, listening to Lady Gaga with a bear couple that Ellie met and drinking (not enjoying) a Bud Lite with lime. hey - don't judge me! they were $2 and I'm half Scottish. to salvage some respect, that I have obviously lost in your eyes, I can tell you that the day ended with a pint of Farmhouse Ale at the American Flatbread Tap Room. this 10% ABV Belgian-style ale wasn't the wisest choice to end a long day drinking session with. I literally went with the first choice on their extensive list of 11 house brewed zero gravity beer, 8 'guest' taps (3 of which were cask pulls), and 80+ bottles. rereading the menu now, I'm really kicking myself for not having the stamina at the time to pay more attention to it. the menu easily has 20 beer that are on my bucket list. I guess that was my punishment for drinking a Bud Lite with Lime.
although we didn't end up doing any tours of breweries, we tried to sample a lot of different beer - mainly ones from Vermont. it seemed as if every restaurant/pub that we went to had a minimum of a dozen beer on tap and many had cask conditioned offerings. our first stop was for burgers and beer at the Scuffer Steak and Ale House which boasts 15 taps and 50 different bottles. we tried a few Vermont brews including the citrus hopped Wolavers IPA and the floral hopped and sweetly malted Long Trail Pale Ale, but the standout here was from neighbouring NY - Brooklyn Brewing's Cookie Jar Porter. with an initial sweet, vanilla aroma, this porter had lots of deep dark chocolate tastes and a creamy body. I guess with all that sweetness, it shouldn't have been a surprise to find out that it was rocking a 8% ABV punch, but I would have never known if I hadn't read the menu. before heading to one of our preplanned beer destinations, we went to some townie bars and loaded up on $2 Rolling Rocks. this light 'extra' pale ale is one of my guilty drinking pleasures when I travel stateside. they're very easy drinking and sometimes that's the name of the game. after being refused a round of Jagerbombs at the townie bar (due to the bar's potential legal ramifications from people chipping their teeth), we headed towards the Vermont Pub & Brewery.
we had tried to get into the VPB earlier in the evening, but there
was a 45 minutes line up and our beer thirst couldn't handle that length of time being unsatisfied. we got there later in the evening to have a couple before last call. VPB makes all there own draughts, which at the time, had an arsenal of 10 with 3 more being cask conditioned and ready to be pulled. they did 3oz sampler bats here, so I went with their Dogbit Bitter, Citra Pale Ale, Bombay Grab IPA, and the Vermont Smoked Porter. although they were all great, 2 of the samples really stood out. I could tell you that VPB smoke their own malts over apple, maple and hickory wood chips to recreate this 7th century style robust porter, which is how the menu describes this superb porter, but it was late and I was drunk so my tasting notes just read, "this Porter tastes of campfire and beef jerky!" sadly, that's really my best description of it's taste. the other standout beer was the Citra Pale Ale. golden in colour, very citrusy in aroma, this pale ale had a beautiful citrus bitterness that overwhelmed and then faded quickly. the short lasting bitterness, made this 60 IBU beer a lot more drinkable than a lot of it's highly hopped counterparts. so much so, I ordered another pint. I didn't realize this until now, but the Citra PA is very similar to a Yaletown IPA that is being poured at the Alibi room right now (more on that one in a few posts time).the next day we sampled a couple of different beer at Magic Hat's tasting room, but soon realized that everyone was
getting ready to head into town to take part in the Mardi Gras parade. after filling up on brekkie, we decided to follow suit. a few walkie poppies later and we were on Church Street ready to see some floats and catch some beads. it was loads of fun, but my beer critiquing cap had gone back to the haberdashery from where it came from. in fact, I think (and by 'I think', I mean 'I know') that I ended up at an afternoon dance club, listening to Lady Gaga with a bear couple that Ellie met and drinking (not enjoying) a Bud Lite with lime. hey - don't judge me! they were $2 and I'm half Scottish. to salvage some respect, that I have obviously lost in your eyes, I can tell you that the day ended with a pint of Farmhouse Ale at the American Flatbread Tap Room. this 10% ABV Belgian-style ale wasn't the wisest choice to end a long day drinking session with. I literally went with the first choice on their extensive list of 11 house brewed zero gravity beer, 8 'guest' taps (3 of which were cask pulls), and 80+ bottles. rereading the menu now, I'm really kicking myself for not having the stamina at the time to pay more attention to it. the menu easily has 20 beer that are on my bucket list. I guess that was my punishment for drinking a Bud Lite with Lime.
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