Supplemental Tippler Readings

here are two interesting articles from sources at opposite sides of the cultural spectrum.

Maxim magazine has released their list of 25 best new American beers. it's not surprising to see beer from some our favourite breweries like Deschutes, North Coast, and Brooklyn.

here is an interesting article from the New York Times about the autumn hop harvest and the brewing of fresh hop ales.

La Vache Folle (Mad Cow) Extra Special Bitter

Microbrasserie Charlevoix

I've been waiting far too long to drink this Christmas present from Tippler L.E. and after a month off the sauce, I've built up quite a beer thirst. a thirst that these mini cans of Asahi that were left in my fridge can't quench.I've looked in all of Vancouver's beer haunts and have yet to find any of Charlevoix's beers, so we're not likely to see this bottle of small-town Quebecois beer 'round these neck of the woods. this is a sad fact as La Vache Folle is delicious! is it delicious because it's the first beer I've had in a while or is it actually delicious? honestly, it's a bit of both.

as you can see by the photo, The Mad Cow rocks a pretty seriously thick, pillowy, root beer float head. the head lingered for a stretch and left some clingy lace in the glass. not surprisingly, this unfiltered Extra Special Bitter poured very cloudy. it's aroma is basically a marmite sandwich - yeast on top of yeast. most ESB's that I've tasted really lack a good dose of the promised 'B' - not the case here. the bitterness hits you right away with some spicy hops and yeast and continues with long lasting piny hops. I think that strong yeast smell tricked me as there wasn't a strong taste of it in the beer. the heavy yeast smell and the multiple hop tastes in this beer reminded me of the Unibroue beer, Trois Pistoles.
as I said earlier, delicious!

A-
500ml bottle, 6% alc/vol

Trader Joes!

check 'er out - Trader Joe's sells a Unibroue brewed dark ale for $4!

for those 'nucks that don't know, Trader Joe's is an American grocery store that carries it's own branded beer (most of which is sourced out to craft breweries).

w00t!

I also picked up this bottle of wine. it was selected purely due to the awesomeness of the label & name. if you can't tell, dr. drinkwell's hair & beard glitter in the light.

Happy New Year!

two years ago it was my New Year's resolution to replace each bottle of wine that I drink with two bottles until my wine rack was full. I'm proud to say that this goal was accomplished and I maintained a full rack (so to speak). however, something has changed in the last six months. my bottles of wine have slowly been replaced by bottles of vintage beer. most of these in the photo aren't exactly session beers as they average at about 8% alcohol. I think that I need to continue this resolution for 2010 with some added tweaks. my 2010 New Year's resolution is ... buy a second wine rack, continue filling it with wine and keep the first rack for vintage beer. I predict a lot of hazy 2010 mornings.

Happy New Year everyone!

Old Rasputin XII Imperial Stout

last night a few of us got together at the Alibi room to celebrate the holidays. we managed to crack the bottle of Old Rasputin XII Imperial Stout that I gave to Big Love for Christmas. I only had a wee lil' sample of it, but I was in love from the first sniff. there was loads of molasses and dark liquor in the nose. I tasted bitter chocolate while a couple of us said it tasted a little like port. alas, my 2 ounce sample was quickly gone. Big Love will have to elaborate on this one and I'll have to start busking outside Brewery Creek to afford another bottle.

anyway, Merry Christmas, Tipplers!

A Tippler's Roadtrip Part 2: Meandering to Mecca

After a couple of nights in Vegas and a couple in the Bay area, we started up the Northern Californian coast in attempts to be at North Coast Brewing for lunch. the road to Fort Bragg from San Francisco leads you through Sonoma County, which is California's other great wine region. it's a good thing that it was fairly early in the morning when we passed by the wineries as a glass of morning Zinfandel is not as appetizing as a cold afternoon beer. my Dad and I pressed on through to the town of Boonville which is home to Anderson Valley Brewing. I have tried a few of their selections during one of the previous Tippler's Night Out sessions, but I believe that we had limited ourselves to Anderson Valley's IPAs. AV Brewing was very impressive with a full selection of their beer on draught at the tasting bar, a store with beer glasses and accessories, a bottle filled fridge, a cool dog that hung out at the brewery, and an 18 hole FROLF course! of the few samples that my Dad and I selected, the standouts for me were Brother David’s Double Abbey Style Ale and Barney Flats Oatmeal Stout. my Dad really liked their Belk's ESB. if you can seek out a bottle of the David's Double, I highly recommend picking up a couple of bottles. it has really long-lasting tastes of rum and molasses and is high in alcohol, bound to keep you warm over Christmas.

after AVB, I took the reigns on the PAR car (yes, that is my golfing Dad's vanity license plate) to drive through the redwoods toward North Coast. it was on this short drive that my Dad revealed to me that my grandfather's last words before he died were, "bloody good beer". it was a response to my uncle asking why he preferred to go to the pub that further away from his house rather than the one that was across the street. can you believe that? he had never told me this before, and I thought it was an obvious sign that I was meant to be a Tippler.

by the time we got to North Coast it was lunchtime and we were ready to refuel. NC Brewing is in a touristy coastal summer town called Fort Bragg and the brewery & pub seem to be the hub of the town with buildings occupying 3 of the 4 corners of the main intersection. maybe I had built up this trip to North Coast too much in my mind as I was slightly disappointed that the pub didn't have any beers on tap that I have yet to try. that being said they had pretty much the entire North Coast line up on tap, except for a few of their limited releases. the pub always has one cask conditioned beer on the menu and I was lucky enough to be there for the last day of their cask condition Red Seal Ale (a JT fav). being familiar (very familiar) with this beer, I has happy to taste the differences between it's conditioned and bottled forms. the conditioning really brought out the smokey flavour that is much more subtle in the bottled version. the cask conditioning also mellowed out some of the hopiness and, of course, softened it's carbonation. I hit up the souvenir shop for some glasses and some bottles of brew and left North Coast a happy Tippler.

remember in the previous post, where I mentioned that Sierra Nevada was a great, widely available West Coast beer? well, in Northern California and Oregon, there is a second great beer that everyone seems to have - Deschutes. their Mirror Pond Pale Ale and Black Butte Porter were at every gas station that we went too and even at The Apple Peddler, the 24 hour pink neoned diner that was at our last stop of the trip, Crescent City. the Peddler had 4 beer choices, Bud, Bud Light, Mirror Pond, and Black Butte... all $2 each. awesome.

the next day of driving was a long one that found ourselves back in Vancouver by midnight. unfortunately the Tippler Trippler had no time to explore any of breweries of craft beer's homeland: Oregon. we managed to go quickly to the Rogue Brew Pub in Portland to pick up the remainder of my Canadian customs allocated beer supply. this consisted of me quickly picking up some bottles that I have never seen or tried before. I hope that I choose some good ones as sometimes Rogue beer is a bit hit & miss. it's too bad my Dad and I couldn't stay for a meal there as the brew pub was a highlight of a previous Oregon trip. come to think of it, I'm OK with missing out on the Oregon breweries, because that gives me an excuse to go back there in the spring. roadtrip anyone?

A Tippler's Roadtrip Part 1: Desert Draughts

I'm back from the pilgrimage with happy tales of tippling. the road trip with my Dad has come to a close after meandering through Arizona, Nevada, California, Oregon, and Washington.

the first stop on the 3273km beer run was Glendale, AZ, to go see the Phoenix Coyotes play. I now understand why this team is bankrupt and averaging a meager 8,000 fans a game. although the stadium is new and in a huge entertainment complex full of bars, restaurants, theaters, and stores, it's in the middle of nowhere. it's a one hour drive from most parts of Phoenix, which is like going to Abbotsford to watch the Canucks play. anyway, unlike most sporting events, the beer at the game was shockingly cheap. $4 got you a 22oz can of Bud, or if you're willing to plunk down another buck, you can get an equally huge bottle of Red Stripe. after the game, we headed to the Yard House to have a look at their legendary beer selection. my little Tippler heart sank as I gazed at their 130 taps of draught beer! overwhelmed by the selection and faced with the time limit of about 2 pints, I had to get my shit together and make some decisions. first up: Dogfish Head's 60 Minutes IPA. we've loved and reviewed this one before, so I won't go into how much I liked it, but this was the first opportunity to try it on tap. it did not disappoint, as the floral hoppiness really seem to mellow out in the keg. I went with Lost Coast's Downtown Brown as my next selection which proved to be a great smooth drinking nut brown ale. I can't remember much more than that as at this point I had been traveling all day and up for more than 20 hours.

I have always loved the craft brew selection in the Western States, but sometimes you're in a small town with less choice or need to get beer quickly at a 7-11 or a gas station. if you find yourself in this sort of situation, there's always trusty ol' Sierra Nevada to bail you out. you can find this stuff pretty much anywhere in the Western US and it's GOOD. it's usually the pale ale that is widely available, but this time I picked up 6 of their Torpedo Extra IPA and I was very pleased. it pours a beautiful amber/cooper colour with a just a little bit of a thin head. in the aroma I smelled grapefruit and of course some strong, pungent hops. I was expecting these hops to dominant the taste but I was gladly wrong. the hops managed to balance the full flavoured malt and was highly drinkable even for a beer showing up to party at 7.2% ABV.

after Phoenix, my Dad and I set out to drive back to the 49th parallel. after leaving a bit late, we were extremely lucky to be able to get to the Grand Canyon for sunset and then drive on towards Vegas. the Tipplerness of Vegas is dubious as the search of cheap or free drinks often outweighs the search for quality ones. a couple of 'go to' Vegas beer staples in the casinos are Heineken and Blue Moon (Coor's 'craft brew'-style wit). both are adequate and easy drinking and perfect for a night out in Sin City, although no amount of alcohol or drugs can prepare you for the psychedelic mindcuss that is known as Cirque du Soliel.

blerg ... time has crept up on me. the 2nd post of the trip, through California, will have to come tomorrow. 'ta 'til then.

Dogfish Head 60 Minute IPA
A- Draught, 6% alc/vol
Lost Coast Downtown Brown
B+ Draught, 5% alc/vol
Sierra Nevada Torpedo Extra IPA
A- 355ml bottle, 7.2% alc/vol

The Tipplin' Strikes Back - Tippler Kat

we had a second Tippler session last Saturday. I managed to pass out early, leaving my friends to fend for themselves (and leave notes on post-its all over my apartment). luckily, this isn't 1996, or I would have woken up with Jiffy marker all over my face. anyway, here's the first of the tasting notes. from Tippler Kat:
____________________________

The tippling session started with the Unibroue Chambly Noire. This beer looked dark, but didn't taste it. I wasn't sure how to describe it and this left me feeling a little dubious about the whole tasting process. Fortunately, we switched to Coney Island Blockhead, and my words came back to me. The Blockhead was memorable, but slightly off-putting (kind of like a trip to an amusement park that goes slightly awry). This red lager had no head to speak of, a rich red copper colour, and a hard-blooming sweet alcoholic taste. While other tipplers tasted caramel, I was reminded more of brandy (particularly that weird sweet brandy used to fill Christmas chocolates. Everyone felt a little sick and dizzy after a small glass, as if we'd eaten too much cotton candy and rode the teacups.

In contrast, the Southern Tier Jah-va Imperial Coffee Stout seemed like an exercise in restraint (it probably wasn't). This opaque brew smelled like coffee and boasted sweet malts with a delicious chocolaty aftertaste. Despite the 11% alcohol content, it didn't taste boozy at all. Probably because the Blockhead had melted my taste buds.



At this point, Big Love declared himself “pushed to the malt edge,” so we switched to the crisp and piny Anderson Valley Hop Oten IPA. This golden-brown ale was hoppy, but the bitterness was well-balanced and not overwhelming. As it warmed, it became more bitter, but never lost its appealingly bracing qualities.

The North Coast Le Merle had a fluffy head scented with citrus. The beer was hazy golden-brown and highly carbonated. I could taste distinct notes of grapefruit. The aftertaste was quick-fading.

Now determined to throw Big Love over the hops edge, we tried the night's winner, Half Pints' humulus ludicrous. The bright gold IPA offered a clean, smooth hops taste that was astringent rather than bitter. The delicious finishing hops turned it into an unusually beguiling IPA that coaxes and caresses instead of just punching you in the face (at least, that's what my notes say).

Slightly worn out by all the bold beers we had tasted, we took a breather with a can of Red Racer Pumpkin. This inoffensive ale was perfumy with the smell of pumpkin (and possibly bubblegum). It tasted convincingly like pumpkin pie, with spicy hints of cinnamon and nutmeg.

Then, Tippler Ben pushed us back onto the stout train with Moylan's Imperial Stout. At this point my memory starts to get foggy, but I remember a dark smooth chocolate taste that gripped the tongue. The full-bodied flavour was bitter but luscious. Yum!

At this point, my notes break down. We had all over-tippled and some of us were starting to tipple over. We tried at least three beverages after this, but since I can no longer the type of pizza we ate beforehand, my reflections are probably inaccurate. Although the night started dubiously, I would quite be happy to try Half Pints humulus ludicrous, Moylan's Imperial Stout and the Anderson Valley Hop Oten IPA again.

Pilgrimage to Mecca...

...otherwise known as North Coast Brewing in Fort Bragg, California. I'm finally getting a chance to go visit one of my favourite breweries and taste some of their seasonal offerings which aren't available in stores. the trip is still 3 weeks away, but I am one happy Tippler.

Inedit

Estrella Damm Brewery

I got a wee bit excited this weekend during a trip to the liquor store. okay, fine, that's nothing really new. I was searching, as always, for something new to try when I saw this nice and simple looking 750ml bottle. it had a promotional booklet draped on its neck that sold me in two words: Ferran Adria. for those non-foodies that are not familiar, Adria is a chef that associated with starting the molecular gastronomy movement. this movement deconstructs the ingredients of classic dishes and reinvents the dish by using the same ingredients but preparing them in an entirely new way. conversely, a classic dish can be made without using ANY of the original ingredients. if you've gone to a chichi restaurant and had asparagus or espresso or whatever "foam" on your plate, he is to blame for that too. anyway, Indeit was developed by Adria and his restaurant's chefs and sommeliers in cooperation with the Spanish brewery Estrella Damm to be "specifically paired with food". it is described as a brewed blend of lager and wheat beer styles. I'm a little skeptical of the quality of this beer as the Spanish beer that I have tried before were essentially the same as the previously reviewed Portuguese beer - lagers that are easy drinking. light lagers are not exactly my love in life, but I should give this one proper respect. so, I figured that having people over for dinner was a perfect excuse to sample this bottle of Inedit.

the Inedit pours a very light straw colour, with a healthy amount of pillowy head, and has the distinctive murkiness of a wheat beer. the aroma is equally light, but there is a faint candied lemon sweetness. on the first sip, I tasted slight notes of citrus and a little bit of yeast. Tippler Ben has said this of previous pours, but he got a 'gunpowder' taste from this beer. I'm not exactly sure what he means by this, but I like it - it makes the beer sound far more dangerous and risque than it actually is. Tippler Carlea enjoyed the easy-drinking and refreshing nature of the beer and I'd have to agree with her, so refreshing that you could quite easily finish the big bottle yourself. the big standout with this beer, was how it finishes extremely clean. this element worked well with dinner, in that it was a sort of palette cleanser for the next bite of food. personally, I prefer a beer to match the tastes of the food that I'm eating. I'm guessing that Inedit was crafted to be paired with more complex menu items in attempts to showcase the food. unfortunately, this beer, while perhaps showcasing our lasagne, didn't allow itself to shine. my contention is that a perfectly paired beer, will raise the level of both the food and drink.

everything about this beer, appearance, aroma, and taste, is minimal. I'm wondering if these elements were made gentle and subtle as to not interfere with food, or whether it's just gutless. I would suspect that "the world's greatest chef" would would have an equally great palette for both food and drink, so the former must be true. although Inedit is a thoroughly drinkable and refreshing beer, I expected something a little more experimental from the man that makes caviar from green apples.

B-
750ml bottle, 4.8% alc/vol

The Tipplers' Night In ... Review by Big Love

An outcome of being a procrastinator is that one often finds that one has the last word on a matter. This can be good or bad and, as it is unintentional, it rarely has any specific advantage. In this case, I find myself the fifth reviewer of the evening to register my thoughts, and, to tell you the truth (not that I would consider lying to any of you...really), I am unsure what I can add to the discussion. However, as a dedicated professional, I find myself compelled to at least try.

The evening featured a wide variety of styles and tastes. The 3 Monts was a great opener--the smell of apples and white grapes and the feel of champagne make drinking it very pleasant indeed. The Oro de Caladaza is a really odd beer, with complex Belgian-style yeast and a faint taste of sweet pickles (thanks for that, deebag). The Delerium Tremens had a lovely balance of sweet and sour, with a very short taste and virtually no aftertaste. The mahogany-hued Traquair House Ale brought out tastes of candy and caramel. I favour Traquair's Jacobite Ale slightly over this, but it is a wonderful beer nonetheless. The highlight of the evening for me was the Unibroue 17, which features a plethora of tastes--some spicy, some sweet, some savoury--which all slip out subtly from underneath a strong, sweet malt. The Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout was black, syrupy and almost impossibly sweet, with tastes of smoke, nuts, caramel and oak making it a truly complex brew. The Pike Tandem is a well balanced beer with a hint of fishiness. I was very intrigued by the Sara Buckwheat beer, which was, not surprisingly, very 'wheaty'. I flaked out after the Pelican Kiwanda Cream Ale, but not before marvelling at its bright, almost flourescent yellowness. It has a mild taste, but its subtleties (if indeed it has any) were lost on my well used palate by this point in the evening.

All in all, the event was a smashing success. It goes without saying, I suppose, that I very much look forward to part two...

The Tipplers' Night In ... Review by Deebag

it's been a week and a half since our epic beer-a-thon. I thought that since these various ales, wits, stouts, and porters were so good, I'd remember all the fine details and subtleties to them. unfortunately, after sampling 14 of them, my brainbox was left to rely on the progressively illegible notes that I had made that evening. the other Tipplers have weighed in, some more poetic than others (literally), but here's what I thought. (I'll do my best to get the beer names & websites correct):

3 Monts (Brasserie De Saint-Sylvestre) 8.5% alc/vol
the aroma was straight-up apple for me and was reminiscent of Strongbow cider. very light in colour with a dense, foamy head. a balanced taste that coats the whole mouth. sweet fruit and apple tastes. B+

Oro de Calabaza Artisan Golden Ale (Jolly Pumpkin Artisan Ales) 8%
I think that I ruined this beer for everyone. as soon as I tasted it, I yelled "PICKLES!", because that's all I could taste. loads of foam, very cloudy in colour (like real apple juice/cider). after the pickle taste, there was a bitter after taste that lasted and lasted. my notes say, "unique - not sure if I could do it again". B-

Delirium Tremens (Huyghe Brewery) 8%
a beer named after alcohol withdrawal that's packaged in a clay bottle with pink elephants and dancing sunglassed alligators on it?! Tom Cruise must've been drinking this stuff on the set of Risky Business. there was no head and loads of sediment - but, I should point out that I got the last pour from the bottle. the other Tipplers had far different pours than me. this one had the most substantial malt of the first beers sampled. with the heavier malt was a slight fish taste (in a good way). again, my profound notes just say, "yum!". A

Traquair House Ale (Traquair House) 7.2%
the aroma was of dark liquors such as rum with some maple syrup. the colour was the same as Dr. Pepper (which I believe is the same colour as Coke, Pepsi or any other cola. I'm not sure why my mind raced to the Doctor first). the comforting deep roasted malts tasted of chocolate. the hops balanced these malts off well and lingered for a bit. B+

Unibroue 17 (Unibroue) 10%
I've been holding on to this anniversary bottle since last Christmas and it was well worth the wait. it poured with just a little bit of head and had an undetermined sweet aroma. it wasn't a fruit aroma -- brown sugar, maybe? sweet at first, then some spice and then a yeasty mouth coating. loads and loads of malt, hops, and alcohol heat! the over-the-topness of the 17 reminded me of a Dogfish Head beer. this one is a true dark winter ale. A

Bourbon County Brand Stout (Goose Island Beer Co.) 13%
no head, no carbonation, and no light is getting through this - the motor oil of beer. all that I can say is malts, malts, malts - they are thick and heavy in this stout. this is where my favourite beer note was made. I wrote, "I'M PARALYZED - make sure to emphasize that in the review". B (but, I'd like to try a whole bottle to figure this one out as this was a small 355ml bottle split 5 ways)
my notes for the next 3 beers have very little info and are as follows (word for word):

Pike Tandem Double Ale (Pike Brewing Co.) 7.5% | ice tea colour; taste:fish (?)
Sara Buckwheat Ale (Brasserie De Silenrieux) 6% | aroma:weed; taste:Belgian beer for someone that likes Kokanee.
Limfjord's Porter (Thisted Bryghus) 7.9% | thick-ass head; aroma:smoke; taste:BBQ.

for some reason a bit of clarity came with the notes on the last two selections.
Blue Dot Double IPA (Hair of the Dog Brewing Co.) 7%
the aroma was HUGE on this one... ultra citrusy. the citrus continues right through the tasting. floral hops are thoughout the taste too - the start, middle, and finishing hops play very well with the citrus. a classic Westcoast IPA. A-

Kiwanda Cream Ale (Pelican Brewery) 5.1%
a treat after so many high-octane brews, this cream ale hit the spot. it has to be the strangest cream ale that I've ever seen; it's colour is golden like a lager. there wasn't much of note in the aroma. did Ben just pour a lager into this Pelican bottle and reseal it? hmm... I wonder. I liked the taste at the time, but this is as much a cream ale as Alexander Keith's is an IPA. anyway, I'd like to give this one another shot when I am less drunk, as Pelican's other beer is amazing.

The Tipplers' Night In ... Review by Tippler Kat

Here is a haiku about Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout:

Darkness drinks the light
and gives only the scent of
walnuts in return.

Kat's notes on the evening (also in the form of haiku):

Chris says “Pickles!” just
like I am thinking. I turn
and say: I know, right?

Evening of plenty!
Can't agree on “beers” or “beer”
Which is more dirtbag?

The Tipplers' Night In ... Review by Tippler Curtis

Curt's notes on Unibroue 17

Robust, hard candy
sweet and thoroughly
malty (I am told).

The Tipplers' Night In ... Review by Tippler Ben

Wow, I like how the comments I made became less informative as the night when on. In a way I found it easier to enjoy the beers that weren't the same and, on looking back, I really enjoyed the Pelican Kiwanda Cream Ale a bit more than the rest. It was the least over the top in comparison to the high calibre beers we had that night. On another night it probably would not stand out as much, but it had unique characteristics that I have never seen in a cream ale. Unibroue 17 was just as amazing as I remember and after tasting it, I feel it to be one of their best beers. The Goose Island Bourbon County Brand Stout was intense, though highly enjoyable. 3 Monts was a pleasure to finally try but, maybe because we tried so many Belgium style beers, I lost a little on the palate for all of them. Hair of the Dog Blue Dot was booming with it's over-proof alcohol and citrusy flavour, but it did make me long for Pliny the Elder in the same category. Limfjords Porter was a treat for the abstract. I usually detest smokey beers, but this one worked. I found it was less formidable and more fermentable (ha!). I had never had the Traquair House Ale before which was also a wicked treat. I think what was scariest of our fall line up was that the beers we had averaged 8%, which is dubious when sampling many beers in an evening. Thanks for hosting Deebag and when will we tackle the rest and more?