Category: Beer

it's friday night!

11/8/2019

It's Friday night dammit - let's talk beer!

Maybe I need to make posts more often than just on Friday afternoon - I can't keep up.

We're checking out a smorgasboard of BC beers this time - I love tall can singles!

From Townsite Brewing of Powell River, BC, it's Suncoast pale ale. This was highly enjoyable with the great hop flavour you expect from a pale ale, but not too bitter.

I had only had one Townsite prior to this, and I didn't like it. But it was an IPA and a long time ago, so good thing I didn't let that stop me from trying another.

3.75/5

Twin Sails is on Murray St. in Port Moody, BC, home of five excellent breweries all within a three block radius. Front Lawn Bench Press does not disappoint; it's really hoppy and has just the right amount of bitterness.

Twin Sails has just great branding and they love to make the hazy beers. I would highly recommend hitting up Port Moody as everyone there is killing it.

4/5

This collaboration is the 10th Anniversary of the Vancouver Beer Week celebration, made by Four Winds Brewing, Powell Brewery, and Dageraad Brewing. It's a dry-hopped saison, very light but not highly flavourful.

This was certainly good, but it really didn't knock me over.

3.75/5

Time for some Huge Citrus from Moody Ales, our second entry this week from Murray Street. It's maybe the least hazy Hazy IPA I've ever had. Still, it tastes great.

You really have to wonder about the process when a brewery makes a hazy beer and it comes out this clear. Does this mean they screwed up? It tastes fine, but this is clearly not hazy.

(see what I did there?)

3.75/5

Four more great beers from BC - yawn.

Kidding of course - it's incredible how good the scene is here. And it's not just Vancouver either. Fernie, Nanaimo, Penticton, Kelowna, and Victoria are all home to terrific breweries. Even if you live in a remote area here, fresh beer is never far away.

Let's have another.

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it's friday night

11/1/2019

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It's Friday dammit - let's talk beer!

We moved from Edmonton to Osoyoos this summer, and essentially had an extended vacation there. I enjoyed some very good BC beers that were not so common in Edmonton - however - beers from Phillips were pretty hard to come by.

Fast forward to fall, we're in Kelowna now, and I'm catching up on all the stuff Phillips put out in the summer.

This is Bat As from Phillips Brewing, a Sauvin Spritzer session IPA. It's a lightweight for sure, but very tasty, and - ugh - crushable. If we could run the clock back to summer, this would be the beer to drink lots of in the pool.

I don't know what "Bat As" means, or where the name comes from, but "Sauvin Spritzer" I guess comes from Nelson Sauvin hops, and the current in thing, which is to make beers like white wine spritzers.

3.75/5

Lime Light Berliner Weisse from Phillips, and you'll have to trust me as I took a pic of the other side of the can here. I really liked the design. I love Berliner Weisees, I love lime, I love this beer! Very tart, great lime flavour.

Bring this back any time Phillips and I'll buy it.

4/5

Phillips Grainbow 18 grain IPA, their 18th Anniversary beer. It's another light and easy drinking IPA for the summer. Certainly enjoyable, if not necessarily memorable.

I haven't had a great deal of Phillips' Anniversary beers, but the Rice IPA and Bizarro Berliner Weisse have been my favorites by a long shot.

3.75/5

I bought it as Walkin' Around beer, and I don't think i even poured one in a glass. So if you're just dying to know how hazy this was, my apologies. It's a great walkin' around beer, but I've had much better NE-style beers, assuming that's what this is even.

As you'll see soon, I've had some hazy beers that aren't hazy at all. Words; how do they work?

3.75/5

If you gave me a choice between a NW-style IPA and a NE-style, I'm going to take the NW every time. Unless the NE-style you're offering me is from The Alchemist or Tree House. I've never had a NE-style IPA from one of OG brewers - I'm told they're very good. Apart from that, I prefer the bright and clear IPA stylings of the Northwest.

But, even though I keep saying the NE-style is not my thing, I keep buying them because my desire to try something new overrides my lack of enthusiasm for the style. And it's what brewers brew these days, so you just have to roll with it. I should talk to a brewer about the style though, because I've had some that have left a nasty burning sensation in my mouth. I've found this in at least three different beers, so it's not a bad batch - I really don't know what it is.

I've never gotten a sensation like that from a NW-style IPA though - just sweet sweet hops.

Let's have another.

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it's friday night

10/25/2019

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It's Friday dammit! Let's talk beer!

I feel a little like Homer Simpson when he was a food critic and he was told he needed to back off on just absolutely loving every place he went to. I've been on a really good run lately though, what can I say?

I have a lot to catch up on; a bunch of Phillips releases from the summer, excellent local Kelowna breweries, and this week's round up of dark beers.

Ladies & Gentlemen.

Parallel 49's Lost Souls Chocolate Pumpkin Porter. I like pumpkin, and there are some very good pumpkin beers out there. Plus it's been a few years for me, so I grabbed a couple this year.

I didn't get a great deal of chocolate from this, and the pumpkin flavour was mild, but I did like it. As usual with stouts and porters, I pretty sure I drank it too cold. It got better and better as I went.

3.75/5

It's Sunday Funday Breakfast Stout from Detonate Brewing of Summerland, BC. An oatmeal stout with hints of coffee and caramel. Excellent heavy bitter and flavourful stout. Detonate is a revelation!

I had never heard of Detonate before we moved to the Lower Okanagon, and I am very impressed so far. Their Call the Hops IPA is terrific, and this stout is excellent. Looking forward to more from these guys.

4/5

From Fernie Brewing it's Ghostrider Pumpkin Brown Ale. It's derived from the very nice First Trax brown ale. I do like First Trax, but this didn't really do much for me. Not much pumpkin, it was just a brown ale.

I love Fernie, but this is not their best. Certainly won't stop me from buying their other beers.

3.5/4

Race Rocks Ale from Lighthouse Brewing of Esquimalt, BC. Of course these days, when you see "ale." This is clearly not a pale ale, and it is awesome. Great toasted malt flavour and a very nice change of pace from the dominate pale ale style.

Lighthouse are maybe not considered in the same league as Victoria heavy hitters Phillips and Driftwood, but maybe they should be because they make great beers. They certainly know their way around IPAs.

4/5

So there you go; I don't absolutely love every beer I try, and I don't only drink pale ales and IPAs. Dark beers like these here are a refreshing change of pace. I really like porters, stouts, ESBs, and even Belgian ales a little.

Let's have another.

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it's friday night

10/18/2019

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It's Friday dammit! Let's talk beer!

Here's a couple more American beers before I go pretty much exclusively CanCon.

Not intentionally mind you, but American stuff just isn't very common here. The two best stores I used to visit in Edmonton carried lots of American craft options, but so far stores I've been to in BC really don't get into it.

I'm guessing it's because they don't need to, given the local scene.

Lagunitas Super Cluster! A heavy citrus and hop infused IPA from a California brewery. Heard that one before hey?

No question that brewers down there like to crank out the IPAs. But they're really good at it, Lagunitas especially.

This one is a beauty too. Very strong citrus and the right amount of bitterness.

4/5

So, when we lived in Osoyoos, on our first trip to Oroville, I nearly flipped out when the grocery store we went in to had Fremont Brewing's Lush IPA. Lush was one of the highlights of our visit to Seattle in 2018.

This is a serious West Coast IPA - hoppy bitter and lots of citrus. Something you'll probably want to work up to if you're not a big IPA drinker.

I am though, and it's a solid 4/5.

I said this before, but again here is evidence of a very different market for beer than you'll find in some Canadian cities. In California and Oregon, breweries pound out heavy IPAs like their lives depend on it. And I'm ok with that.

I'm ok with it because I get cravings for hops. Like I need them. This doesn't happen for any other style. There's so many things that can be done with an IPA though.

Let's have another.

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it's friday night!

10/4/2019

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It's Friday dammit! Let's talk beer!

Moving to BC has brought me much closer to so many great breweries. And therefore, a much better chance to experience more beer, which is always what I want. I recently discovered a solid selection of Category 12 brews at one of the liquor stores here.

So, here's two from one of my favorite breweries in Canada;

It's Skewed Data Sour Hazy IPA from Category 12 Brewing of Victoria, BC. If you've flown in or out of Victoria and not hit Cat12 on your way to or from the airport, you've missed out brother.

Given the choice, I'd much rather have a NW style IPA than a NE style, but I still keep buying the hazy ones. And this was a good one, throwing in some sourness for good measure.

3/75/5

Category 12's Vivid Data Pineapple Hazy IPA. I think all of the Cat12 "Data" beers are hazy NE style deals? I've kinda lost track of them, I need Untappd just to keep track.

This one is a real beauty though. Just the right amount of pineapple to spruce it up. It's perfect for poolside in this sun-baked valley I live in.

4/5

I love Category 12 right from the first time I heard of them. Their branding is just perfect. And the story of founder Michael Kuzyk dumping a career in microbiology and biochemistry to brew beer is just awesome. Plus check out these Commodore t-shirts - I need one!

However, the first few times I had their beer, it was meh at best. But they just looked so good, and their tap room is so cool, and the people there are so nice, I kept trying.

Thankfully, they just kept getting better and better. The black IPA is brilliant, their barrell aged stuff is great, and of course they're good with those trendy sours and hazy beers. They're a corner stone in the Victoria scene, and a must stop any time you're on the island in my book.

Let's have another.

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it's friday night!

9/27/2019

0 Comments

It's Friday dammit! Let's talk beer!

It's a ten minute drive from where I live to Oroville, Washington. There isn't a whole lot in Oroville - it's population was 1,686 in 2010 - but there is American beer. American beer is cheap! Or at least a lot cheaper than it would be in Canada.

And in fact, there are two breweries. I'm a little ashamed to admit I haven't been to either of them. I go down there to get beer that I would never see in BC, or anywhere else in Canada for that matter.

By the way, I use Untappd, and I am ClownyDaggers if you want to get into my beers more.

So let's check it out;

Here's an IPA from Pfriem Family Brewing of Hood River, Oregon. Of course people know Portland is beer crazy, but Eugene, Bend, Salem, Hood River - they're all on it too.

This thing just knocked me over on my first sip. Which is exactly what I was hoping for. I don't know what it is about Oregon, but they go hard on IPAs.

It was kind of like a fresh hop thing at first, but once I got used to it, it settled into some very strong citrus action. 6.8% and 65 IBU, which I laugh at a little as I've had 100 IBU beers with less bite than this.

3.75/5

Ecliptic Brewing is in Portland, Oregon, run by John Harris, previously of McMenamins, Full Sail, and Deschutes. So he's like the Bob Dylan of Portland brewing. In that he's been really good for a really long time. if that makes any sense...

Starburst IPA is 7.8%, 75 IBU, and doesn't knock your tastebuds on their asses like the Pfriem does, but damn it really tries to. More of a citrus pop here, but still very strong and not for beginners. I'd say it's pretty drinkable, but I'm not sure everyone would agree.

This is the kind of high-powered IPA that I get cravings for, and I sometimes find hard to find in Canada.

4/5

Two very similar IPAs from the same region, exhibiting exactly the traits I expect from Oregon IPAs. You know, I honestly think a lot of Canadian brewers are still afraid to make something like this because it's just too strong for all but the hardiest IPA drinkers. And that's ok, because you have to make money right? Make an Imperial for the weirdos like me, and a more sessionable IPA for all the rest.

I have no problem with that.

Let's have another.

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it's friday night!

it's friday night

it's friday night

it's friday night

it's friday night!

it's friday night!

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