beernesday

here are my notes from yesterday's beer column on cbc radio one's on the coast: I sometimes bring in beers for Stephen Quinn and I to taste in the studio. This week I brought in not one, but four beers for tasting - but you won't find these beers at the liquor store or at a local brewery. These beers were brewed at home.  (We only got to the first three on air, but see below for my tasting notes on all four.) Whoa!   Isn't it difficult to brew beer yourself? Shouldn't we just leave it to the professionals? Hardly!  Brewing beer at home is actually quite easy and involves a minimal financial investment. You can purchase the basic brewing equipment in Vancouver at Dan's homebrew shop for $70, and you'll need a 19 litre stock pot (another $24) as well as the basic brewing gear.  A beer making kit of ingredients will cost you between $17 and $35. If you want to follow a recipe and put the ingredients together yourself you're lo...

i'll be on cbc radio one's on the coast with stephen quinn at 5:50 this afternoon talking about, and sampling some, home-brewed beers

winners at the 2013 bc beer awards vancouver is awesome, on 33 acres ways to piss of your bartender - don't do these things!! there is a new strongest beer in the world (probably quite appropriately called "snake venom") and new and delicious beers at legacy liquor store in vancouver: 2013 Brewery Creek Collaboration Spruce Tip Stout - $8.15   Craft Beer Month is coming to a close, but not without unleashing its collaboration beer to the clamoring masses. Employing the minds of Main Street Brewing, 33 Acres, R&B, Red Truck and Brassneck, this beer is not to be trifled with. Utilizing spruce tips and roast malt, all while boasting a more than sessionable ABV of 3.9%, this limited run brew should certainly not be missed (especially considering the fact the label is also a removable patch).   Evan Doan | Beer Team | Legacy Liquor Store St. Ambroise Vintage Ale Millésimée - $7.55   Brewed once a year by Peter McAuslan and brewmaster Ellen Bounsall, this beer i...

yesterday's beer fest was fun it's not the biggest beer festival around and there were not many beers being offered that i hadn't had before but it's a well-run festival and a great introduction to beer festivals for a newbie or a relaxing beer festival for an old hand caveat:  tourism harrison paid for me to stay two nights at the lovely harrison beach hotel, and entry for me and my guest to all three beer fest events.  i'm not going to lie to you about my impressions of the festival, but i may have had rose-coloured glasses on due to the sheer joy of a mostly-free weekend away at a beer festival in adorable harrison. i brought a newbie with me to the festival so while i spent my time pouring over the list for beers that i needed to cross off my "drank it" list i was also looking for beers i thought she would want to try for those who follow me, you'll know that i have one hold-out on full conversion to craft beer well, no longer! bri...

let me just begin by saying that harrison beer fest is adorable! harrison is a lovely little place and its beer festival is an equally lovely little thing caveat:  tourism harrison paid for my hotel for two nights and entry for me and my guest to all three harrison beer fest events.  i'm not gonna lie to you about my impressions of the fest, but i may be mildly swayed by the sheer joy of getting away for a mostly-free beer weekend! traffic was fairly kind to us, but we still didn't hit town until around 7 p.m. so we were at st. alice hall about an hour after the casks had been tapped and the night was in full swing the event was sold out because they wisely kept the numbers low to ensure that attendees got their beer's worth; the hall was full but by no means packed my first impression was that this is a very different festival than i'm used to people were sitting down, the noise level was fairly low and no one was drunk and that impression lasted for abo...

and i am now mere hours away from cask night at the harrison beer fest i hope traffic is kind to me!

i am two days away from a beer weekend in sunny harrison hot springs ! my oktoberfest outfit is packed already... the lovely folks at tourism harrison are putting me up in a hotel for the weekend so that i can enjoy all the fun (and craft beer!) that the harrison beer fest has to offer this will be my first time at the harrison beer fest and i'm very much looking forward to it! my fingers are crossed that the weather forecast of sunny and 17 C comes to pass (wish i was there today enjoying the sunny and 20C afternoon) for a couple of reviews of last year's inaugural fest, clicky on the linkys below for what i think of this year's sophomore fest, check back here saturday and sunday! - tourism harrison blog - the agassiz observer

if you missed my ode to autumnal beers last week on cbc radio's on the coast with stephen quinn you can go back and listen now ! it's the october 15th episode, at about the 2:20 mark for the beer column

sour beers are all the rage the beer wench sure does love her kegerators fall beer picks from vancouver beer geeks and some love for brassneck brewery ultimate beer infographic got even more ultimate in case you need 21 excuses to drink more beer  (again)

new and exciting beers at legacy liquor store in vancouver: Craft Beer Advent Calendar 2013 - $141.35 North America   Many of us remember the good old times, back in the days when we were kids, and Christmas time was fast approaching. In order to make us count the days leading up to Christmas Day, our parents or grandparents gave us advent calendars filled with small chocolate treats or toys. Now Craft Beer Importers Canada Inc. has recreated this great gift and made it suitable for the beer lover. No, this one is not filled with chocolate. Craft's advent calendar features 24 windows, and behind each window is one full-sized bottle of beer. These will go fast!     Moon Under Water "Harvest Ale" Pumpkin Pearzen - $8.75 Victoria, BC   Moon Under Water’s Pumpkin Pearzen Harvest Ale combines local pumpkins and pears with subtle banana and clove flavours. By celebrating the season and championing the local farmers that contributed, this brewery continues to impress. We...

HARRISON BEER FESTIVAL RETURNS ON OCTOBER 25 - 26, 2013 HARRISON HOT SPRINGS, September 19, 2013 - Harrison Hot Springs is celebrating Craft Beer Month with three must-attend events over two days: Cask Night, Harrison Beer Festival and Oktoberfest Dance. Beer lovers and weekend adventurers alike are invited to partake in the celebrations and stay for the weekend to enjoy scenic Harrison Hot Springs. The festivities begin on Friday, October 25th with Cask Night, a fun night of song and games with a warm and friendly British pub feel complete with evening piano music. Participating breweries include: Aldergove-based Dead Frog, Chilliwack’s Old Yale Brewery (Gold winner in the Canadian Brewing Awards), Penticton’s Cannery Brewing and local Mission Springs, whose brewery’s quirky memorabilia collection is worth a visit. Admission includes a complimentary sampling glass and three free tasting tokens. Tickets start at $18. On Saturday, October 26th, beer aficionados will compare the fines...

don't forget to get your ticket to saturday's bc beer awards there are still a few left, but they won't be selling them at the door, so go online now and get yours! hosted by cbc radio's stephen quinn this is going to be a very fun afternoon of beer sampling! 1-6 at the croatian cultural centre on commercial drive me, i'll be leading a vip tour group around the place early on then drinking liberally after that woohoo!

shameless self-promotion time check out my cbc website headshot they made me look good! (as in, don't expect me to actually look like this, ever)

my notes from yesterday's beer column on cbc radio's on the coast: It's officially Fall. That means its time to talk about autumnal beers.     Once the hot weather and long patio evenings of Summer fade into Fall people tend to put down the wheat beers and lagers and instead pick up a spiced ale, or a stout. Often lighter beers, in both presentation and alcohol content, make way for heartier and higher alcohol beers. We're not yet at the winter ales point, or very high alcohol percentages of barleywines; we're still adjusting to the colder temperatures and enjoying the leaves falling off the trees. This is an in-between season and that is reflected in the beers that are associated with Fall. We just had thanksgiving, a time which heralds the return of pumpkin beers to the shelves of liquor stores and the taps of bar-rooms. Pumpkin beers tend to hover around the 5% alcohol mark, but feature heartier malts and spices that evoke the harvest season and c...