beernesday

stone brewing is once again available in canada ! hooray! i attended the tap takeover launch at craft beer market on monday and i will be attending the tap takeover at stateside craft on friday unfortunately my life does have other things in it besides beer, so i am missing out on the collaboration brew day at bomber brewing (tuesday), the pairing dinner at blackbird (wednesday) and the biercraft beer dinner (thursday) half of the beer menu at craft beer market   paddle and a 0.45l pour in pretty branded glass

if i didn't have a damned day job taking up all my time, i would totally try to make something like this happen locally: Learn how to win friends, influence people, and have the best damn swagger on the block with Masters of the Universe. This 12-class course will teach you how to: Taste and appreciate beer Win your office sports pool Dominate your grill Defend yourself (and others) Workout at your desk Master magic tricks and illusions Make your own concert t-shirt Deliver fool-proof pick-up lines Conquer the art of shaving Create the ultimate survival kit Have a swagger like no other Classes will be held on the third Tuesday of the month at Flying Dog Brewery from 6 to 8 pm. The first hour will include an educational presentation from a guest speaker and master of that month's domain. The last hour will be reserved for beer samples, conversation, and comradery with future CEOs, ESQs, MDs, PhDs, DDSs, and DILFs. Thi...

endless simmer provides their top ten reasons to drink craft beer me, i think some of the best top reasons are:  r&b red devil pale ale cask at railway club - look how pretty it is!!! taster of nine beers at burnside brewing in portland you can brew your own! central city iced tea ipa cask at the railway club - omg, do you even know how tasty this is?? look how good the craft beer bottles look in a handknit cozy!

b.c. brews spring sampler packs released food republic's list of power craft breweries brewer's association beer can awards elysian men's room red now in six packs green flash goes retro: Fall 2012 marks our 10 year anniversary and Extra Pale Ale was the first-ever Green Flash success. A celebratory reminder of the beginning for us - and also about how much our style and craft beer culture has evolved over the past decade. While this early Millennium American-Style Pale is from a time less hoppy, we think our 2012 redux is the perfect summer vintage: crisp, refreshing and bubbling with nostalgia. Debuting on May 16th in the Green Flash Tasting Room and draught for national distribution! 

too many beers i wanted to try at beernesday at st. augustine's last night! had to have me two samplers to fit them all in look how well my iphone camera works when there is light whistler brewing cheakamus chai maple ale - 5%  this dark bronze ale is made with real maple syrup, added right to the mash.  then, a trace of chai tea is added during the filtration process.  the result is a highly complex, mildly spicy palette structure hoooo boy that is sweet!  it would be awesome in pancake batter or over ice cream a bit too much maple sweetness for me in a beer though, the chai notes were subtle, but appreciable chuckanut brewery pilsner - 5%  in 1842 a bavarian monk smuggled lager yeast from munich to the bohemian town of pilsn where they used the yeast with british pale malt, crafting a beer golden in color.  chuckanut pilsner is truly mouthwatering, deeply satisfying, and refreshing! i do love me a pilsner, and this one did not disappoint chuck...

at last night's beernesday the number of beers i needed to try was overwhelming that is why i thank dog every day that the taster paddle was invented! the star of the night for me was the two beers brewing evolutionary ipa elysian brewing rapture heather ale - 7.6%  a pound per barrel of high country heather tips in both the mash and toward the end of the boil give rapture floral and piney notes very floral, but oh so drinkable, definitely get some before its gone! elysian brewing idiot sauvin ipa - 6.3%  an ipa both fiercely fruity and floral, made with new zealand nelson sauvin hops. strong citrus and passion fruit aroma and flavor it is very floral, and bitter, and i'm just not sure how i feel about it.  possibly love, possibly indifference.  i look forward to trying a whole bottle of this brew to decide! two beers brewing evolutionary ipa - 6.2%  a dry hopped, deep copper coloured ipa brewed with yakima valley simcoe, amarillo and centennial hops...

at last week's beernesday at st. augustine's i was overwhelmed with amazing ipa choices on the menu so i had to have two samplers! (because they're like a beer buffet) the first featured beers i hadn't tried before the second was a bit of an "ipa off" between my faves it was a whole lot of win! sampler one: skookum brewery's olde tom:  6%  an ipa style balanced with a belgian malt lost coast big ass west coast ipa: 7%  full-bodied and fatty with tickling carbonation. the flavor provides heaps of malt and tons of juicy, citric, rindy hops - nods toward the bitter side of balance green flash hop head red ale: 6%  resinous hop character and bitterness balance the rich carmel malt base deschutes hop in the dark: 6.5%  can an ipa be black? semantics aside, this noir version has subtle coffee undertones born of a blend of oats with dark, munich and crystal malts. what emerges is something deeper, less orthodox, and all its own okay, yes, i have had...

beernesday is ba-ack! st. augustine's, every wednesday at 7:00 photos from the first of the season: katy is a recognized beer judge!! dani, server extraordinaire! good times, good friends, good beers and cheap wings! it just doesn't get better than that!

as is becoming a bit of a lovely habit, i was fortunate enough to be around when some specially imported beers were being shared around the first was a trappist ale of some persuasion (i had already had a few before the sampling began and didn't take any notes, so i have no details about what it actually was) that has no label it comes this way, directly from the monks i enjoyed it - not so belgiany that it made me wrinkle my nose very boozey, so you know its a special brew! the second was this troubadour obscura who knew the belgians could do a really delicious stout? sure, it was a mild one, but no blechy belgian yeast to be tasted!! i love an impromptu tasting!

had me a sampler the other night (ha, more like a week and a half ago...) at st. augustine's and so did amanda i went with hopworks' organic rise-up red, bear republic's peter brown tribute ale, lagunitas undercover investigation shut-down ale and sierra nevada's pale ale i loooved the undercover ale - bitter but not in that amazing northwest ipa way, it was actually kinda sweet, like brown sugar malty hoppy, which sounds like a weird combo but it was very much working for me! the sierra nevada is not the hoppiest pale ale, but definitely more hops than some of my friends would like! the rise-up red is a full-bodied wonderfully hoppy number, and i really like it! the peter brown tribute ale was malty as f*ck, roasty but not too sweet - molasses yay! very nice addition to my sampler!

while i'm not a fan of the pepper lime i am a fan of several of their other beers and encourage all y'all to hit up dead frog's open house in abbotsford on the 21st when they launch the summer mixer which includes the pepper lime alas i will be working while all the fun happens someone please go enjoy a free sample for me!

march 23, 2011 beernesday st. augustine's bit of a short beer menu this week... but short at st. a's is insanely long for most other places! began my evening with a sampler northcoast brewing scrimshaw pilsner st a's says: 4.4%  has a subtle hop character, a crisp, clean palate, and a dry finish i say:  pretty good.  not going to be a favourite, or even something i have a full pint of... elysian brewing co. men's room red st a's says:  5.6%  amber in color with a light hop aroma and toasty malt finish i say:  i like it.  red and hoppy!  its not an amber, its not an ipa, but it sure it their love child! taylor's crossing mad scow stout st a's says: 4.2% a dark irish ale having a rich, roasted coffee bitterness and a smooth creamy finish i say:  yes there's coffee bitterness, yes, its smooth and creamy but it feels kinda thin to me (gwen agrees) vista d'oro homestead estate cider st a's says: 7% an exceptionally dry and t...

from last week's beernesday at st. augustine's: i began my night with a sampler dead frog's christmas beeracle!  5%  a festive, rich, warm amber ale with a medley of spices including cinnamon, ginger and nutmeg. cannery's no jail pale ale:  3.05% a lower-alcohol beer with an authentic ale taste!  a clean, crisp ale with a bright hop finish and about 40% less alcohol than conventional beer salt spring's golden spike ale:  5%  voted "best golden ale" at the canadian brewing awards paddock wood's london porter:  5.3%  a dark ale based on a recipe from 1850 which lets chocolate malt take the lead.  smoother than stout, but still holds a deep roast profile i very much liked the christmas beeracle! gingery goodness (reminiscent of the steamworks ginger from last spring) and no vanilla!! i would definitely have this one again and i don't say that about many christmas or winter ales bridget liked it a lot too! the no jail was a little...

my camera broke after only a couple of shots at beernesday this week sadly the darned thing is still not working properly is it worth fixing? probably not looks like its time for a new one... chan likes to bastardize her beer with clamato juice, but we like her anyway

i have been remiss i just found my tasting notes from beernesday back on september 29th bad, bad beer blogger! i had two samplers 1. brooklyn brewery post road pumpkin ale:  5%  subtly spied, orange-amber color, warm pumpkin aroma, biscuity malt center, and a crisp finish 1. hopworks uban brewery ipa: 6.6%  100% organic. rich and resinous flavours of citrus fruit and pine.  the finest organic canadian pilsner malt and organic munich and caramel malts then bring balance to your new favorite beer 1. old yale brewing sergreant's ipa: 5.5%  uses special pale and crystal malts and loads of golding hops 1. storm brewing 12 year black current lambic: 7%  not for the timid! this beer is INTENSELY sour, dry and complex 2. red truck limited steam beer: 5%  a hybrid beer style brewing using ale yeast fermented at lager temperatures. the result is a full flavoured, yet surprisingly crisp beer 2. mt. begbie nasty habit ipa: 6%  a perfect balance bet...

over my last two visits to st. augustine's i tried seven beers in my samplers i've already blogged about the total eclipse of the hops and pumpkineater by howe sound the other beers i tried in my samplers are: - red truck's limited steam beer:  a hybrid beer style brewing using ale yeast fermented at lager temperatures. the result is a full flavoured, yet surprisingly crisp beer.  5% - driftwood brewery farmhand ale:  southern-belgian farmhouse ale uses a partial sour-mash and the addition of freshly ground black.  a unique strain of yeast from belgium adds further layers of complexity to this rare style. 5% - rogue ales john john hazelnut: a nutty twist to a traditional european brown ale.  dark brown in color with a hazelnut aroma, a rich nutty flavor and a malty finish. 5.6% - russell brewing's wee angry scotch:  a malty scotch ale with canadian two-row, crystal, chocolate and a touch of peated malt, and lightly hopped with willamette. 6.5% - cra...

i got the opportunity to try two of howe sound 's limited edition fall beers at st. augustine's the other day and had to have them again at beernesday! just to make sure i know what i'm talking about... total eclipse of the hops:  "A strong india pale ale brewed with 100% barley, six varieties of hops, water and yeast. Extra barley balances the large volume of hops in this brew. This is definitely for the hop lover. This beer is brewed in limited quantities as part of the John Mitchell series. As a highly hopped specialty this ale goes well with spicy cuisine such as curry and Mexican favorites. Also good with fried foods such as halibut and chip and hot wings." 8% 90 ibus 17 degrees plato comes in the 1L pot-stopper (and on tap at various fabulous establishments) totally worth waiting for - i'm in love with this beer! not totally clear definitely bitter, but not overly hoppy nose why oh why is this only a limited release? i want to drink it ...

i spent the labour day weekend in my little version of heaven i love san francisco! and this time my visit took me somewhere new which enabled my two loves, s.f. and beer, to mesh! lori's diner, on powell street, right where downtown and the tenderloin meet, has "over 100 world famous beers" to try so why wouldn't i go spend a sunny afternoon on her patio working my way through some of them? there's a draught menu, and a bottles menu which together added up to 93 not too sure where she keeps the rest of the over 100... they offer samplers of all the draughts you can try 3 or you can try 6 shockingly we all decided to try six... they cost us $9.95 and looked to be around 5oz each regardless of alcohol content, we got full pours (they advertise pour size being dictated by alcohol volume) so we scored! of the 93 beers listed on the menu, i know for sure i've had 21 of them i think i may have had a couple more, but didn't want to round...