Jeff is enjoying Danish beers

Jeff is currently in Denmark for business and on his one day off, he was able to find a specialty beer store (of course he was).

In particular, he said this one, called Beer Geek Brunch from Mikkeller is "fantastic."

(Sorry about the quality of the photos - they're from his BlackBerry and I was feeling lazy and didn't want to edit them).

Beau’s Dunkel Buck

Oh goodness - no one tell Jeff I took a month to post this review! I'm a terrible wifey and an even worse blogger. But, good things come to those who wait, or so they say. Thanks for waiting for another review.

And happy Thanksgiving to our fellow Canucks.

OK - onto Jeff's review of Beau's Dunkel Buck.

Beau’s Dunkel Buck is their 10th offering in the Wild Oats Series.

Dunkel Buck is brewed in the dunkel weizenbock style (a strong, dark version of a Bavarian wheat beer). I love the reference to Uncle Buck in the name. The labeling also has Uncle Buck’s hat and the power drill with ridiculously long drill bit that Uncle Buck flashes to scare his niece’s boyfriend. Beau’s packaging doesn’t just make pop culture references, it also has a handy little tag that explains the style of beer, what flavours to look for and some food pairing suggestions.

The beer pours a hazy brown colour with a creamy off-white head. As the tag on the bottle notes, there’s plenty of banana and clove in the smell. I really like the mouth feel on this beer - its full and creamy and really goes nicely with the rich flavours. I get a boatload of caramel in flavour, along with the banana. The tag suggests chocolate and mocha but I’m only getting a little mocha and not much in the way of chocolate. But to be honest, that doesn’t bother me. The flavours work well together and are very satisfying. And while this beer is 6.8% abv, the increased alcohol isn’t noticeable.

All in all, this is a great beer.

Toronto Beer Festival - the beer

Our first two beers of the day.

So, after reading my last post about how I disliked the half naked ladies at the Toronto Beer Festival, you're probably thinking, "yeah, yeah, OK, but what we really care about is the beer!"

Sorry I haven't done that post - but I'm doing it now, so hold onto your hats.

As I said before, we stopped at the Great Lakes Brewery CASKapalooza first.

Up first for Jeff was the cask-conditioned Curry, Please. It was opaque yellow in colour and had a slightly spicy hop smell. "Inoffensive, but kind of bland. Not much hops or malt," he wrote in our notes (yes, we took notes - how else are we going to remember all this? BTW - the "notes" section in the back of the little guide book they give you, pfft, beer lover, please - clearly not enough room!).

Now, we haven't mentioned this before, but when we're trying multiple beers, we give them lightening bolts - much like how a movie reviewer gives a flick a certain number of stars. Only difference is, our lightening bolts don't have any upper limit.

So for Curry, Please - Jeff gave that two lightening bolts. (Jeff edit: I was hoping this would taste like curry - it would be crazy but I was disappointed that it didn't.)

I had the cask-conditioned Morning Glory Breakfast Stout. It was good. It was dark and just plain tasty. Four lightening bolts.

Jeff moved on the Canuckle Head on cask. He said it had nice, big bubbles on the head, tonnes of citrus on the nose, some malt and "a little citrus and lots of bitter on taste." Four lightening bolts.

(Four lightening bolts would set our upper standard on this particular day.)

Cask-conditioned Peach Pepper was up next for Jeff. A hazy yellowish colour, this wheat beer came as advertised - he could taste the peach and the pepper. He noted there was pepper on the nose (although it was "clouded by the smell of wacky tabacky," aka weed). Three lightening bolts.

I next went for the Mild Brown - cask. I liked it, but there wasn't much to it. Three lightening bolts.

Blonde Jager Bomb was the next one for Jeff and he was not a fan. He called it "a little medicinal. One lightening bolt.

I went up and asked for a Miami Weisse on cask, took one sip and declared it not for me. Jeff took a sip and informed me it wasn't what I had asked for (it was likely an IPA, not a weisse) - but he was a fan. There was "crazy citrus and bitter" and Jeff gave whatever that beer was four lightening bolts. (Jeff edit: I looked up Miami Weisse later on BeerAdvocate. Apparently Miami Weiss is supposed to have huge citrus and bitterness not typcially associated with a weisse. I do miss the clove and spice normally associated with a weisse.)

Jeff's last one at CASKapalooza was the cask beer Bright Star. He said it was roasty, and tasted of chocolate and strong coffee. Four lightening bolts.

At this point, the smell of pot and the dancing girls were starting to get on our nerves, so we moved on. I was pleased to see Niagara College there with their brew school. They had two offerings - a Campus Ale and a Campus Lager. Both Jeff and I chose the ale.

Perhaps not a surprise - there wasn't much to this beer. It's exactly what you'd expect new brewers to make. Jeff called the ale "approachable" although did wonder if it was served too cold. He said it had a decent bitter finish and wasn't a bad offering. As for me, it was OK. It didn't blow me away, but it was good. Jeff gave it two-and-a-half lightening bolts, I gave it one-and-a-half.

Right next to the college was Church-Key Brewing. I immediately went for the cranberry maple wheat and was so glad I did. This beer smelled and tasted like dessert. One was good - not sure I could drink it all night - but it was tasty, different and yet, was still beer! It would end up being the only other beer (besides the cask stout) that I'd give four lightening bolts to at the festival. So good.

Jeff got The Great Gatsbeer (Biere de Garde), and made a note, "Parmesan cheese." He said it was sour and sweet and "like no other beer I've ever had." he noted he'd never had that style of beer before. Like me and my dessert beer, Jeff said he wouldn't drink this one all night, but he liked it and guessed it would be good with food. Three-and-a-half lightening bolts.

He then had the West Coast Pale Ale. He said there was some citrus on the nose, caramel malt, and a "bitterness, but not the tonnes of citrus associated with west coast" beers. Two-and-a-half lightening bolts.

Then it was the Holy Smoke. It was "not as sasuagy" as Jeff remembered, but more smokey like a campfire.

"If you like peaty scotch, this beer is for you," Jeff said, giving it three lightening bolts.

For me, it was OK, but I wouldn't order a full pint - I could never finish it. But it was nice to try. Two lightening bolts.

We moved another stall down to Magnotta where Jeff had the Wunder Weisse. This filtered beer had some banana and close, but it was middle of the road. "Not bad - not great," he wrote, giving it two lightening bolts.

Then we wandered to the area of the festival called The Local (I hate this name, though. Why is the "the" there?). Along with all the local beers, this year there was a special booth for mash ups.

First up, we had to try the hometown brew - Wellington and F&M had created the Guelph Special Bitter. Jeff said it had a huge hop nose as well as lots of citrus. He also wrote, "Kate will be disappointed." I was - it wasn't the beer for me. But Jeff gave it five lightening bolts - his highest of the day.

He then tried Beau's and Black Oak's mash-up, which he said was only "meh." I'm not sure the beer had a name - their sign was just two coasters from each brewery - but I believe this was the raspberry beer. Jeff said the beer didn't play up to either's strength. Two-and-a-half lightening bolts.

In the middle of the mash-ups, I think on a trip back from the washroom, we stopped at the Spearhead booth. This is where the notes start going downhill. Jeff really likes this beer and wrote: "No plans yet for bottling? Why you glorious bastards?" Then gave the beer five lightening bolts. (Jeff edit: As well, I think I was becoming a little generous with the lightning bolts. Earlier beers may have been judged a little more harshly.)

Back to mash-ups and Jeff had the Devil Shaker - a mix between Great Lakes and Amsterdam. It had tonnes of hops and bitterness, but still had caramel on the front and the nose. Then he wrote, "Feel enamel melting away." I can't tell if that's a good thing or a bad thing. But he gave it four lightening bolts.

We moved on and discovered Granville Island was at the festival. Jeff grabbed their English Bay Pale Ale and said there was lots of caramel. He also says something about hot sauce and being OK ... I don't think those were related to the beer. Two-and-a-half lightening bolts.

We wandered over to Nickel Brook. As you've likely guessed by now, I stopped taking notes on my beers because I wasn't drinking that many samples. I did have to drive us home from the GO Station once we got back there, so I was attempting to be responsible.

At Nickel Brook, Jeff got the Headstock IPA. He said it had a good amount of citrus aroma, dark amber colour with cream coloured head, good caramel front, and a balanced citrus end. He did have one note for the brewery: "Distribute this outside GTA!" Five lightening bolts.

I do remember having the maple porter - and I remember it was tasty.

He also tried the La Triple from 3 Brewers. He said it had a little banana, and you could taste the alcohol. Three lightening bolts.

And that, folks, is where the notes end. We still made stops at other booths, like Beau's, Mill Street, Flying Monkeys, F&M, Wellington (and tossed a boot, too), as well as others.

While much of the Toronto Beer Festival is run-of-the-mill beers from big brewers, it is nice the craft brewers have a spot to call their own and we could spend all day there enjoying what they have to offer. Despite there being a lot of cubic zirconias of beer, we also found some real gems. And that's what made going worth it.

A few pictures to end us off:

The Sheepdogs

The Trews

My problem with the Toronto Beer Festival

Unnecessary in my opinion.

Jeff and I managed to score some free tickets to the Toronto Beer Festival on Sunday and we went.

Having gone two years ago, we were expecting a good time with lots of awesome beer. I knew going in there would be a lot of younger people who really were there looking to get drunk off cheap samples (i.e. the girl who exclaimed to her group of friends that they should go to a particular booth because their half sample was more like 3/4 of a full sample - OMG, you guys!).

There were a lot of girls wearing bikini tops as they walked around drinking, lots of men without their shirts on and their pants falling down (I realize at 32, I am starting to sound like an old man - but I don't care). I get it - it's hot - but really? We all can't wear tank tops or light cotton shirts?

There were, of course, the sexed-up girls standing in front of some booths. This is something that I hate, but I realize it's mostly breweries who really don't have much to offer on the craft beer front - so they have to use sexy ladies to sell their beer to men.

So I was surprised when we arrived at CASKapalooza - the tent for Great Lakes Brewery in Toronto.

Jeff and I made this our very first start for the whole day. We knew Great Lakes would have some new, unique beers to try and we weren't disappointed in the selection.

As we walked into the tent, I can't remember who saw her first, but both Jeff and I noticed a girl walking by wearing a bra and a barely-there skirt (the kind meant to show off panties). She was dressed in bright pink and black and had "stockings" that kind of look like they're fishnets, but way bigger holes.

I just shook my head. We went and got our first beers of the festival - I had the Morning Glory Breakfast Porter, Jeff had the Curry, Please - and stood under the tent and took in the scene. That's when I think Jeff noticed two more girls dancing on a fire truck, and the girl we had seen when we walked in was now dancing on a car.

As we had a few more beers, and I watched random guys walk up to the fire truck and get their photos taken with the girls dancing above them, I became more, well, disgusted that Great Lakes would think they needed girls to bring people to their booth.

So I took to my personal Twitter account.

"So many half naked chicks at @TOBeerFestival - disappointed in @Greatlakesbeer," I wrote.

Then added, "Let the beer speak for iteself @Greatlakesbeer @TOBeerFestival."

Tuesday, Great Lakes tweeted back at me.

"Don't be disappointed. We need the go-go girls & great retro tunes to lead people into #Caskapalooza," they tweeted. "The attention to #craftbeer at #CASKapalooza keeps them there."

Well, Great Lakes, I have to disagree.

Half-naked girls bring the wrong kind of attention to your brewery. It says, "We need hot chicks dancing in barely-there outfits to get you interested in what we have." I expect that kind of behaviour from the likes of Budweiser - not a reputable craft brewer.

Some of the people who go to a beer festival - I would hope - are somewhat interested in trying new beers. That's what's going to attract them to your tent and your vast array of beers - the best selection of the festival, in my opinion.

And, let's be honest: I'm a chick, I'm interested in beer. Half naked women do not interest me in the least and in fact, I won't say I was offended by them, but it certainly left me, as I said in my tweet, very disappointed in Great Lakes (like the way your mom is disappointed in you when you've done something bad and you really would prefer if she was just angry and instead, she just shakes her head and walks away).

I don't know if I need to go back to the Toronto Beer Festival. It was fun a couple of years ago, but being just two years older and not wanting to just get drunk on the Ex grounds, it's not the festival for me. I love the chance to try new and unique beers (a post about what we tried is coming up shortly), but I am not a fan of the atmosphere at the festival (this includes all the pot I could smell everywhere I went).

Ontario needs a beer festival where the focus is on the beer - not on what happens when you have too much of it.

Paddock Wood's 606 India Pale Ale and Czech Mate

Paddock Wood is Saskatchewan’s first and only micro-brewery - at least according to their website they are. Of course, I (Jeff) have no reason to doubt them as I’ve never really heard of any beer coming out of Saskatchewan.

The two beers available through the Beer Store are the 606 India Pale Ale (5.4% ABV) and the Czech Mate Pilsner (5.2% ABV). I have heard that these are also (or were at one time) available through the LCBO, although I’ve never seen them. I’m a fan of the labels and the name’s are pretty fun - well, Czech Mate’s anyways.

The 606 pours a beautiful amber with a nice thick head. The creamy cap of head takes quite awhile to dissipate and leaves the surface covered in a thin layer of bubbles. I smell caramel and citrus in the nose - it’s not going to club you over the head, but it is there. I find this IPA to be very well balanced: a good level of caramel and biscuity malt to match the citrusy hops. If you don’t like your beers super hoppy, but still want to know that they’re in there, this is a good choice. You get bitterness on the finish, but the beer doesn’t feel like its ripping your taste buds out on the way down.

Czech Mate pours a bright, bold yellow. The head is miniscule compared to the 606. After a couple of minutes, you’re left with a couple of islands head. It has the classic aroma of grassy hops for a Czech pilsner plus some notes of lemon. The taste is slightly bready, somewhat lemony and has grassy and floral hops. It leaves somewhat of a sour taste - but in a refreshing way. I’d say this beer is more accessible to the hop aversive than the 606.

Saskatchewan’s lucky that their only micro-brewery is this talented. Both of these beers are great additions to the Ontario market. The rest of the regular line-up sounds pretty good too - I’d be really interested in trying their Black Cat lager (a schwarzbier). Plus on top of that, they have nine special releases - although they’re only distributed in Alberta and B.C.

I wish the LCBO would make more shelf space for products like these instead of the newest MolsonCoors product - did we really need Molson M or Miller Chill Lemon?

Good news in Stratford?

The town is already famous for its Shakespeare festival (which we highly recommend), but I saw news this week the Stratford Brewing Company may be looking to expand.

The Stratford Beacon-Herald reports brewmaster Joseph Tuer and his wife Rebecca Hill may be moving into an old car dealership in the town.

"Hopefully with the new building and more space, I'll be able to hire a couple of people," Tuer told the newspaper, adding they'd also like to open a retail outlet.

Best of luck to them.

Wellington Ce'da Bitter Blue

I mentioned Wellington’s Ce’da Bitter Blue around Father’s Day. Wellington used it to help kick off Ontario Craft Beer Week. 

The intention was to get around to reviewing it before now, but I’ve been putting it off. 

The beer itself is an English bitter with blueberries and aged on cedar boughs. Certainly not your run of the mill creation. Also not your run of the mill name - I know Kate really hates the location of the apostrophe and really thinks it should be Ceda’ not Ce’da since they’re replacing the “r.”

The beer pours an clear orange colour. When I poured this beer there was absolutely no carbonation. I thought when I tried it back in June there was somewhat more - maybe not. I’m wondering if there was something wrong with the canning process. I did notice while looking through the beer there’s some sediment suspended in the beer - I think that’s leftover bits of blueberry.

Putting my nose in the glass I can smell some berries and flowers and maybe a touch of cedar.The first time I tried it, I don’t remember tasting any of the blueberry. I was curious if the blueberry flavour had developed at all.

Unless my memory’s playing tricks on me, the blueberry now is much stronger. And at the end of the beer, I get some bitterness and cedar. I’m not getting too much malt. The fact that it has that berry taste, is flat and there’s not much malt taste makes me think this is more like juice than beer. It’s not really working for me.

(Wifey note: I haven’t tried it since we bought it back around Father’s Day, but it didn’t work for me either. Fruit and beers rarely work, in my opinion).

Even though I wasn’t a fan of Wellington’s Ce’Da Bitter Blue, I’m happy they brewed it. I think it’s great that they’re trying out new beers every month and doing something different. Not every beer is gonna be a hit and that’s fine. I’m hoping they discover different things with each new brew - and that’s only going to lead to better beer in the future.

Amsterdam Oranje Weisse

Yet again, I'm at work, and Jeff has decided to have a beer. But he made a rookie mistake just after removing this bottle from the fridge. Read on to learn more!

Amsterdam has released a new beer called Oranje Weisse - in their words, “an unfiltered Flemish style white beer.”

Let me start off by saying I completely screwed up pouring this beer. After having poured the beer. I read this nice note on the side of the bottle: The Weisse Roll: Prior to opening, lay the bottle on its side and gently roll back and forth.

This isn’t the first weisse I’ve had out of a bottle but I’ve never done “the roll” before. A quick search on Google reveals that its suggested for pretty much all unfiltered wheat beers. So don’t do what I did and just pour it into your glass straight from the bottle - otherwise all that yeast stays in the bottom of your bottle and isn’t distributed through your beer. And that yeast provides a lot of extra flavour.

A quick side note: I know some people don’t like the yeast suspended in their beer. For some people it causes some intestinal problems - for those who want minimal yeast, not rolling your bottle will cut down on a lot of that.

Anyways, so the Oranje Weisse I poured (without the yeast) is a yellow straw colour. Had I included the yeast, it would be much cloudier. The head dissipates pretty quickly, leaving a small ring around the edge. The beer has a nice banana and spice smell. Even though I have next to no yeast in my pour, the beer still has lots of flavour. There’s banana, coriander, orange and clove. I think these beers (weisses, hefe-weizens, wits) are good beers to introduce to people who don’t like more run of the mill beers but like fruity coolers. Granted they’re not sickeningly sweet like most coolers, but they do offer that fruitiness and show off just how different beers can be.

I’ll likely be buying this beer again. I like the one I had tonight and I know its only going to taste better after pouring it properly (what a rookie mistake).

Brasseurs Du Temps

Ottawa didn’t have much in the way of brewpubs, but we did discover another brewpub in Gatineau called Brasseurs Du Temps (BDT). So we walked across the bridge from our hotel to the pub (maybe next time we’d take a cab - it was about an hour walk) to check it out.

Here, as usual, is Jeff’s take on the brewery and brewpub.

BDT is right on the water with a great patio for a hot summer day - which is what we were having when we were there. The brewery had 12 of their offerings on tap - not a bad selection. We ordered the “L’Horloge” (the clock) which is a tray of 3oz samples of each of their beers.

Et la Lumiere Fut! was the beer suggested to try first - a pale ale at 5.5% ABV. It poured a golden straw colour and had nice lacing. The beer had a pear nose which followed in to the taste with a touch of honey. The finish was dry and floral. This beer was very drinkable - but not bland.


Next up was Le Bouillon de la Chaudiere: A weizen at 5% ABV. It was a lighter straw colour and rather opaque because it’s unfiltered. I got clove and spice on the nose and the taste was undeniably banana. The beer menu said to notice ginger; I couldn’t find it but Kate could. I quite liked it and had another pint of it, but it was too spicy for Kate.

The ESB 1821, a 5.5% ABV extra special bitter, was the next beer in the list. It had a hazy apricot colour with a good amount of lacing. When I tasted it, I got a lot of bubblegum sweetness. It was too bitter for Kate. I thought the bitterness was lacking and couldn’t stop focusing on the sweet. This beer was a miss for both of us.

The patio.

The fourth beer was L’Allumante - a 5.5% ABV nut brown ale. It had an orangey colour with a hazelnut and caramel aroma. The hazelnut really carried through in the taste. There was a nice caramel that lingered at the end, but it wasn’t too sweet. It had a great mouthfeel and was another really drinkable beer.

Mille Neuf Cendre was a rauchbier at 5.5% ABV. The name is a play on words in French and alludes to the great fire in Hull in 1900. Since this is a smoked beer, it automatically smelled like summer sausage to me. On the upside, it was the most pleasant smoked beer I’ve had. The smoke taste wasn’t over the top and there was some honey to help balance out the smoke. Kate liked this one, I didn’t though.

The stout (a pint after the clock was done).

La Nuit des Temps is BDT’s 5% ABV stout. It poured a dark brown/black and smells roasty like a stout should. The taste didn’t disappoint with it’s delicious roastiness and coffee flavours. The bitterness from the hops finished the beer like black coffee. There was a little bit of nuttiness in there as well. It was Kate’s favourite of the twelve.

BDT offers a 5% ABV raspberry pale ale called La Framboyante. It had an orange-pinky colour to it. The beer screams raspberries in the aroma - as the name would imply. But to me it tasted like a cordial, not a beer. The drying finish was definitely like biting into raspberry seeds as the menu suggested. Kate absolutely hated it. I wouldn’t order it again, but I’ve also had worse.


By the time we go to Dumduminator, an 8% ABV doppelweizenbock, Kate was more than a little tipsy. I think she was dehydrated from walking to BDT in the heat. (Wifey note: What? Me? Tipsy? Never! And that was a long walk.)

Continuing with the Dumduminator, the beer poured an orangy-brown colour and a ring of lacing remained through to the end of the beer. Dumdum was all about bananas. When I smelled it, I thought I was diving into banana pudding. The beer tasted like bananas foster: Banana, caramel and alcohol. I was surprised by how much I enjoyed it - Kate didn’t like it as much and struggled to finish it.

The "clock" of samples.

The ninth beer on our beer clock was La Saison Haute (7.5% ABV). It had the colour of apple juice. And while the beer had been sitting outside for a solid 15 minutes already, lacing remained. The nose had pepper, floral and slight orange notes. I didn’t get the explosion of citrus the menu promised in the taste but I did get the pepper. I did notice some lemon on the finish - this wasn’t one of my favourite beers.

Trois portages was the next beer, a 9% ABV tripel. It poured a hazy orange colour. The nose was very fruity but not bright. It was more like drying fruit. The taste was super sweet. Way too sweet. The menu said there was some bitterness that kicked in at the end but I found no relief from the sweetness. It was like that episode of the Simpsons where Homer asks a Brazilian to make him the sweetness drink possible. This was absolutely my least favourite beer.

The penultimate beer was the first IPA on BDT’s menu: Au Pied du Courant - an American style IPA at 6.5% ABV. It poured a nice amber colour and even though it was the 11th beer, it still had lacing. The nose was promising with citrus and pine. But then I got pepper in the taste - not what I was expecting from an America IPA. There was some biscuit malt at the beginning and a bitter finish as expected, but that’s all it is: Bitter. There’s not much flavour in the end. I was disappointed and Kate couldn’t finish hers. At this point, Kate was pretty much sauced. (Wifey note: Hey! You’ll catch up to me soon enough in this post, sir. Jeff was sauced by the time we left.)

The last beer was a big beer: Diable au Corps, an imperial IPA at 9.5% ABV with 100 IBUs. I had been looking forward to this one all day. Could this IPA redeem the performance of the Au Pied? It was an apple juice colour that amazingly still had a cap of head after 30 minutes. I got citrus on the nose and had citrus for taste... and the end was bitter - but the 100 IBUs is counteracted with a wall of sweetness. And the sweetness lasts and lasts and lasts. Kate would not drink more than a sip. I was really looking forward to an imperial IPA and I was really disappointed. This was a close second for worst of the day.

Overall, the brewery has a great selection of beers: Twelve beers that cover a wide variety of tastes. Plus, they also have guest taps for other craft brewers - I like the sense of comraderie. The beers have what I think are a definitive Quebec spin to them. I’d recommend Le Bouillon, L’Allumante, La Nuit des Temps and Dumdum over the rest - and I’d avoid the IPAs if you’re expecting a west coast IPA. And like I said earlier, this place has a great atmosphere and it’s miles ahead of the Clock Tower Brew Pub - and only a couple of miles away.

So take the extra time and get to the Gat for BDT.

(Wifey note: If you’re going with a group, this pub offered this cool table at the front of the restaurant that had a tap at a table. We were both pretty impressed by that. As well, Jeff has decided “Get to the Gat” should be the new tourism slogan for Gatineau - but now that he’s put it in this blog, I don’t think anyone would pay him for his idea.)

A waitress going to the patio.

Black Tomato restaurant, Ottawa

Whenever Jeff and I go on vacation, I try to plan a couple of beer-related outings. Ottawa, for some reason, does not have very many brewpubs or breweries (which surprised me considering it's our nations capital and more than one of our politicians has been known to enjoy a drink now and then).

I called Hogsback Brewery - a new player in the city - but they don't have a brewery yet, they're just contract brewing (was super impressed the guy called me back and left a message after I contacted them, though).

Other than that, there was Kichesippi - but it was a bit far from our ByWard Market hotel and to be honest, neither Jeff nor I had a whole lot of interest in going there.

So instead, I searched for restaurants that had local beers and one that came up more than once was the Black Tomato. I saw several posts on different websites boasting about the restaurant's impressive beer list, so both Jeff and I were keen to have dinner there.

Too bad it didn't live up to the hype.

Don't get me wrong - the food was great, but the beer selection was lacking for what we were hoping for. We wanted to try different Beau's beers, but they only had the one (the one beer everyone has). Jeff was hoping to get some good eastern Ontario beers, or some from Quebec, but alas - no such luck.

He did have his Mad Tom IPA from Muskoka Brewery and admitted it changed his mind about the beer. In fact, I think he had two of them with dinner. He told me he felt he had been too harsh on the beer the first time around and it was really growing on him. Perhaps it's his new summer beer? (I was told maybe, but he'd been itching to try Garrison's Hopyard, and he's had that beer since we returned and I think he's now in love with that beer ... but that's for another post).

I had Neustadt's Mill Gap Bitter. It was awesome, as was expected - but I was a tad disappointed to get a beer that I can get any time we go see my family in Grey County.

Jeff tried Hogsback Vintage Lager and unfortunately said it was pretty forgettable. I think this could be because it's a new brewery trying to please - and it takes a few years and a few batches for breweries to really experiment. I expect to see more from this brewery in the future.

So, a bit disappointing on the beer front, but the food was excellent.

We did hear about a place called Vineyards, which also apparently has a huge selection of beers, but they don't come cheap (and, note, things like Bud Light appear on this list). We didn't make it there, unfortunately, but it might be worth a stop next time we're in the city. Something to look forward to, I suppose.

Clock Tower Brew Pub

Not a great photo - sorry it's blurry.

Over Canada Day weekend, we went to Ottawa. It was the first time celebrating Canada Day in the nation’s capital for both of us. Neither of us was ready for the crowds. But as is tradition on our travels, we made time to visit some brew pubs. 

The first one we went to was the Clock Tower Brew Pub - we stopped by the Byward Market location. Here's Jeff's take on the place.

Kate and I both went for the sampler of five beers: Raspberry Wheat, Kolsch, Wishart’s Bitter, Clocktower Red and Bytown Brown.

The raspberry wheat was served with a wedge of lemon. There was some head and strong carbonation. My first sip tasted like raspberry jam - that did not work for me as a beer. So I added a squeeze from the lemon; that worked nicely to brighten up the flavour. It was a refreshing beer... but I likely wouldn’t order it again.

The kolsch was the colour of apple juice and very clear. My glass had next to no carbonation while Kate’s had tons.The taste is inoffensive and a little bland: It is definitely light and the hops are VERY subtle (read: non-existent). Switching my glass with Kate’s, the beer tasted significantly better and the finish was a lot drier. Did I get a glass that was left out or something? (Wifey note: Aren't I nice for giving him my glass? I wasn't a huge fan of this beer anyway ...)

Wishart’s bitter was a caramel gold colour and had a malty biscuit nose. It had a good bitter finish, although not much in flavouring hops from what I can tell.

Clocktower Red had a nice ruby/brown colour. There was some pine and floral notes in the nose - finally some finishing hops. It had caramel malt flavour with some pine hops and finished bitter. This was my favourite beer so far ... Kate hated it. (Wifey note: It's true, I was not a fan.)

The Bytown brown was a deep brown colour as the name would suggest. The aroma and taste were pretty much the same: sweet and nutty. The finish was a little bitter to help offset the initial sweetness. This turned out to be Kate’s favourite - although I think she would characterize it as “least worst.” I didn’t think it was bad, although I wish they had been more aggressive with the flavour.

All in all, the beer was pretty forgettable. I’m not sure if it was a location thing (I don’t believe they actually brew the beer at this location) or if it was timing thing (maybe they were stock piling beer in preparation for the long weekend and we just got some old product) or what, but I was expecting better offerings.

Spearhead Brewery Hawaiian Style Pale Ale & Cheshire Valley IPA

When Kate and I were at the Wooly for Father’s Day, I saw posters around the bar announcing that Spearhead Brewery would have their Hawaiian Style Pale Ale available on tap at the Wooly starting June 23. I had heard rumours about Spearhead on the Bar Towel forums - at the time, all that was definite was that it was a new brewery opening. I made it a point to make it to the Wooly on the 23rd to see what this beer was all about.

Hawaiian Style Pale Ale is a west coast pale ale with the addition of pineapple juice. It’s naturally carbonated, unfiltered and unpasteurized. It’s relatively strong at 6.5% ABV and has a bitterness of 60 IBUs - not the booziest or bitterest IPA out there, but not a slouch either.

The beer was served in a tulip glass and had a thick, rocky white head. It was a beautiful hazy apricot colour. It was nice to get the beer served in an appropriate glass - the tulip glass really concentrates the aromas of the beer. I wish I had a proper tulip glass at home; it’s amazing how different a beer can taste from different glassware. My one complaint about the serving was that it was served too cold. It was excruciating to wait for the beer to warm up.

As I mentioned, the glassware helped appreciate the beer’s nose: nice pine and grapefruit with a hint of sweetness. The initial flavour was honey and caramel; the middle was a nice bitter zest taste; and the finish was decidedly bitter with grapefruit rind. I looked for the “tropical finish” the brewer mentioned but I couldn’t find the pineapple. It might be just too subtle for me. Although after drinking the pint, it seems pretty light on the tongue.

It is a very nice addition to the Ontario market.

The second beer, the Cheshire Valley IPA, was a total surprise find - I had no idea it was going to be on tap. I’ve had a couple of beers from Cheshire Valley - all beers are contract brewed at Black Oak Brewery - and every one I’ve had so far has been good.

The bubbles on the head of the CV IPA are much finer than on the head from the Spearhead. The head isn’t as thick but there’s a good amount of lacing and it sticks around until the end of the pint.

The Cheshire Valley was at a disadvantage in aroma due to the glass - it was a nonic pint glass. Plus, I had nachos in between which definitely affected my palate. I did get a subtle citrus aroma. The taste starts with a good amount of caramel malt flavour. That’s balanced out by a decent amount of bitterness and spiciness from the hops. The spiciness lingers after you’ve swallowed - I’m pretty sure that was the beer and not the nachos. Another solid beer from Cheshire Valley.

Yellow Belly Brewery's St. John's Stout

A friend of ours brought Jeff back a 1L swing-top bottle of Yellow Belly Brewery’s St. John’s Stout. Jeff was pretty excited about this one - here’s what he had to say.

My friend, who is from Newfoundland, knew I was a fan of trying new beers and figured I hadn’t had this one before. He was right, I hadn’t even heard of this brewery before.

The beer pours a deep brown, almost black, in colour. What little head there is quickly vanishes and leaves no trace. The beer has very little carbonation - almost flat. I know some people don’t like under-carbonated beer but for me, with some styles, I like it. I’m not sure if this was meant be a real ale - there’s very little information on the brew pub’s website - but I’m going to give the brewmaster the benefit of the doubt that it was intentional. The low carbonation makes it very drinkable.

The aroma is pretty straight forward - a nice roastiness with some vanilla. The taste is strong on coffee. There’s some dark chocolate in there as well to round it out as well. The finish is quite bitter, which I like with my stouts - it makes you want to take another sip to get that initial sweetness. As the beer warmed up, the coffee bitterness decreased somewhat and revealed some nuttiness. Be sure not to drink this beer straight from the fridge; let it warm up a bit.

If I have one complaint, it’s that the beer felt a little thin. I wish there had been just a bit more body to it.

Muskoka Brewery's Mad Tom IPA

Jeff was excited to try Muskoka Brewery’s Mad Tom IPA after really enjoying their Harvest Ale last fall. Here’s his review.

After enjoying the Harvest Ale, I was anticipating they’d do another great beer with this one and raise the bar again.

The beer pours a nice golden colour with about a finger or so of head. The head retention isn’t bad and when it dissipates it leaves a nice amount of lacing.

The description on the back of the bottle says: “this IPA has a vibrant aroma, depth of flavour and crisp citrusy undertow like no other.” I was a little disappointed with the aroma. I get some spicy floral on the nose but to me “vibrant” means it should be unmistakable. Instead, I found myself searching for it.

The taste has a good biscuity malt backbone to balance the hops - the bitterness starts with pine and leads into citrus. Each sip begins with a little sweetness that’s dragged back in - I think the use of “undertow” on the packaging was a good call. And as the beer warms up, I get more of an orange peel. Drinking it, I wouldn’t expect it to be 6.4% ABV. The alcohol content is integrated well into the beer.

As good as this beer is, I think I was expecting more. This beer’s a victim of its brewer’s past successes. It’s certainly a great addition to the Ontario IPA market - being one of only a few - and it’s better than several American craft brewed IPAs, but I think Muskoka could have reached a little further on this one. I would have liked to have seen this one unfiltered and unpasteurized. Maybe next time.

Father's Day at the Wooly

The Blackened IPA in an OCB glass.

Father’s Day we went to the Wooly to celebrate. 

Normally the Wooly puts on a beer festival. This year, though, it was going to be a beer pairing dinner. Unfortunately the dinner and beer pairing menu didn’t happen - but there was still some special beers available. 

The Blackened IPA

The Strawberry Blonde

Wellington brought their Ce’da Bitter Blue, which was on cask. F&M brought their Strawberry Blonde - I (Jeff) tried this for the first time last summer at the Wooly’s Ale Trail. Plus Wellington and F&M collaborated on the 777 Blackened IPA, also on cask.

Ce’da Bitter Blue was also available in cans at the Wellington Brewery earlier on Sunday. Kate and I picked up a few cans. We’ll put more up about it later. We didn’t have any at the dinner.

Kate had the Strawberry Blonde. The first time I had this was at the Wooly’s Ale Trail last Father’s Day. F&M took their light lager and added fresh strawberries. I’m not normally a fan of their light lager but the strawberries are a nice addition. The strawberry flavour isn’t over-powering and it isn’t too sweet. Strawberry Blonde is a nice summer patio sipper.

I tried replicating the Strawberry Blonde at home last summer. I took a package of frozen strawberries, wrapped them in cheese cloth and put that in a pitcher. I then poured some Stonehammer Light into the pitcher and let it steep. It wasn’t as good as F&M’s but it wasn’t bad - and seeing as F&M isn’t bottling it, it’s the best you can do when you can’t find it on tap.

I had the 777 Blackened IPA. I was impressed with the last black IPA I had that F&M was involved with. The 777, to me, had much stronger stout qualities than other black IPAs I’ve had: the coffee and roastiness flavour were undeniable. There is a ton of bitterness in the aftertaste - but there isn’t any citrus flavours imparted by the hops. I liked it but it wasn’t exactly what I was expecting - then again, I’ve only had 3 or 4 other black IPAs previously (Kate really liked it).

On a completely unrelated note, I saw on Facebook that Flying Monkeys released Alpha-fornication - the bitterest beer in the world. It clocks in at a ridiculous 2500 IBUs - I think the most bitter beer I’ve had up to this point was in the 90 IBU neighborhood. I wished I’d had a chance to try it.