brewery creek
First Ever BC Beer Awards by Brewery Creek
Tuesday, March 16th, 2010 | Beer | 1 Comment
Brewery Creek, Vancouver’s finest beer store, is putting on the first ever BC Beer Awards as part of Vancouver Craft Beer week. I’m told that 35 of BC’s breweries and brewpubs (almost all of them) will be entering over 190 beers (almost all of them) in ten categories. I don’t know what the categories are yet, but will let you know when I find out.
In the past I’ve expressed concerns about beer awards because I feel like they aren’t true selectors of good beer. Awards should be fairly and honestly given, especially when considering beer companies tend to use the awards they win extensively in their marketing. I’ve heard that winning some awards can be as simple as entering a beer into one of thirty or more style categories. That’s ninety medalists right there, and then we aren’t told who actually entered what beers into what categories. I’ve got it on good authority that almost every beer in BC will be entered into these awards and that the list of competing beers will be disclosed. When you consider that this blind taste test will be judged by beer, wine, and food writers with considerable palates, I’m encouraged to think we have ourselves a true competition that will select BC’s finest brews.
The blind tasting will take place next Monday at an undisclosed (super secret) location and the winners will be announced during Vancouver Craft beer week. All the pertinent details are in the following press release:
The Vancouver Craft Beer Week organizing committee is proud to announce the first ever BC Beer Awards by Brewery Creek. On Monday, March 22nd, an expert judging panel will review over 150 beers from all across British Columbia at [a location I'm supposed to keep secret]. Media are invited to join judges and volunteers at 9:00am to witness the judging process, as well as learn about the intricacies of craft beer and to find out more about the upcoming Vancouver Craft Beer Week.
The only blind judged beer competition in British Columbia, the BC Beer Awards judging panel boasts such beer experts as:
• Don Tse – A BJCP Certified beer judge, freelance beer writer and consultant, Don has been writing professionally about beer for seven years. His articles have appeared in beer publications such as All About Beer, Ale Street News and Beers of the World.
• Abram Goldman-Armstrong – A beer writer in Portland, Oregon, Abram has been a BJCP National Rank Judge since the age of 21, judging at competitions such as the Great American Beer Festival, the Okanagan Fest-of-Ales, and Portland’s Spring Beer and Wine Fest. He co-organizes the North American Organic Brewers Festival, the world’s largest organic beer festival.
• Megan Flynn – The publisher of Beer Northwest, a quarterly magazine covering beer, food, and lifestyle in the Pacific Northwest, Megan travels North America in search of the best beer and beer personalities, continuing to develop her pallet into one of the most diverse on the continent.
• James Nevison – Columnist for The Province newspaper, where his “Wine Guy” column appears weekly each Thursday. He is the co-author of five bestselling wine books, the latest is Had a Glass: Top 100 Wines for 2010 under $20, $25, and $30. Recently James was named a “Top 40 Foodie Under 40” by Western Living magazine.
Winners will be announced at the BC Beer Awards by Brewery Creek award show on Friday, May 14th, one of Vancouver Craft Beer Week’s signature events. For further information please contact:
http://vancouvercraftbeerweek.com
http://twitter.com/vcbw
Cheers,
Chris
Belmont Station in Portland
Saturday, March 13th, 2010 | Beer, Pubs | 3 Comments
I went to beer mecca Portland last weekend. I’d never been there before and I was pretty impressed. I’d liken the city to one big Commercial Drive, at least the places I saw. What impressed me most about Portland was the constant selection of fantastic beer and food. Everywhere we went we had an abundance of local craft selection sold at extremely low prices, as little as $3 per pint. We went to a lot of cool places in Portland, but my favorite place we visited was Belmont Station.
Belmont Station is an epic beer store stocked with an enormous selection of amazing beers from around the world. The closest comparable we have here is Brewery Creek, but our liquor laws and taxes prevent them from competing as well as they’d like to. I was overwhelmed when I walked in to Belmont Station. I wanted to buy everything, but was obviously limited as to what I could bring back across the border after a two day trip. I picked up some Russian River brews I’d never seen anywhere else before. I also bought Aphrodisiaque, a cocoa vanilla bean stout brewed by Quebec’s Dieu du Ciel. I’d never seen this beer in BC before, which I find upsetting. You’d think we’d be able to procure some of Canada’s finest? Another notable purchase was Chatoe Rogue Dirtoir Black Lager, which is made from Rogues home grown barley and hops. There were others, but these were the notables of consumed and enjoyed so far.
If you can believe it, Belmont Station also has an attached beer bar with 22 taps of top notch beer. We all ordered something different and all received something wonderful. For me, it was my first chance to drink the legendary Pliny the Elder. It stands up to it’s reputation as being one of the greatest beers in the world. Erik and I were actually angry at how amazing and affordable Belmont Station is. Why can’t we have something like that here? Any future trips to Portland will involve a visit or two to Belmont Station. If you love beer, you must go.
Cheers,
Chris
Iceholes, Beer Wars, Stone, Oh My
Saturday, February 6th, 2010 | Beer | No Comments
Some beer notes from this week, each not enough for a post, but worth posting about:
- Beer Wars On Demand – I missed the Vancouver screening of Beer Wars last weekend, which I’d heard was a really good time (could have been the ten or so kinds of beer available). At the screening, it was announced that Beer Wars would be available on demand from your cable provider. I watched it last night at my convenience and it only cost me $5.99 from Shaw. I really enjoyed the explanations of the three tier distribution system, the beer lobbyists in Washington DC, and the plight of craft brewers like Dogfish Head’s Sam Caglione, which made the movie worth watching. I also found the documentarian Anat Baron insufferable. She eventually gets into the movie after enlightening us as to how great she is for ten minutes or so. She also describes her experience in the beer industry with Mike’s Hard Lemonade. Wait, what?
- Stone! – At the same Beer Wars Screening, Stone Brewing’s Greg Koch did announce that Stone would be making a one time shipment to BC. I was mostly right in my prediction, but I’m pretty choked at the one time part. Brewery Creek got their shipment in on Thursday, what followed was my single most expensive beer purchase of all time. I got one of everything, those being their Imperial Stout, Old Guardian Barley Wine, Smoked Porter, Vertical Epic Ale, Ruination IPA (six pack), Pale Ale (six pack), Levitation Ale (six pack), and Oaked Arrogant Bastard. If you want to buy any of these, it would be best to get to your local independent purveyor of fine beer as soon as possible.
R&B Iceholes Celebration Lager is now available! Colbert can suck one.
- Syrup Sucking Iceholes – I was the first person on the entire internets to write about R&B’s Iceholes Celebration lager, but now the bigger sites have gone and stolen my SEO. Oh well, who wants to be the first search result on Google anyway? R&B launched the beer last night at Capones in Vancouver and the Pumphouse Pub in Richmond. I managed to get a bottle last week. I haven’t had it yet, but I’ve heard it’s a good pilsner. Apparently Iceholes will be available at Capones and independent beer stores this February only. And it has reportedly been arranged for Colbert to suck as many Iceholes as he pleases.
- Olympic Beer Selection Fail - Since Molson is the official sponsor of the Olympics, the only beers available at anywhere affiliated with the Olympics will be Coors Light, Molson Canadian, Molson Ex, and maybe Rickards (sometimes, if you’re lucky). And get this, venues that used to server other, better beers can no longer do so. Lame.
Cheers,
Chris
Stone Brewing soon to be available in BC
Thursday, January 28th, 2010 | Beer | 9 Comments
Last week I speculated that the attendance of Greg Koch, co-founder and CEO of Stone Brewing, at Vancouver’s Beer Wars Screening this Sunday might mean that Stone’s beers were soon to be available in BC. Today, I can proudly announce that I was correct in my speculation. I laid eyes on the order form that confirms the arrival of Ruination IPA, Levitation Ale, Oaked Arrogant Bastard, Smoked Porter and others. We, the thirsty beer enthusiasts of BC, will be able to purchase these beers from Brewery Creek and other fine beer stores early next week. I’ll be heading straight to the store as soon as I get the word and you’d best be staying out of my way, elbows could fly.
Cheers,
Chris
CAMRA Vancouver Award Winners
Monday, January 25th, 2010 | Beer, Events, Favorites | No Comments
The CAMRA Vancouver Award winners were announced last week. I was pleased to see many of my nominations amongst the winners. I’m extremely proud of CAMRA Vancouver and its members for rewarding true attention to and passion for craft brewing. Unlike many beer awards, these were given out by beer enthusiasts, which makes them more legitimate in my mind. The winners:
Best Local Brewpub
Gold: Central City Brewing
Silver: Steamworks
Bronze: Dix Barbecue and Brewery
Best Local Beer Cafe, Pub, or Restaurant
Gold: Alibi Room
Silver: The Whip Restaurant & Gallery
Bronze: The Railway Club
Best Local Liquor Store
Gold: Brewery Creek Liquor Store
Silver: BCL 39th & Cambie
Bronze: Firefly Fine Wines & Ales
Best Local Cask Night
Gold: Dix Cask Thursdays
Silver: The Whip Real Ale Sundays
Bronze: Yaletown Making it Real (Ale)
Best Local Beer Event
Gold: Alibi Room 100th Beer Menu Rotation
Silver: Dix X-mas X-treme
Bronze: CAMRA on a Mission to Mission
Best BC Brewery
Gold: Phillips Brewing
Silver: Driftwood Brewery, Red Racer aka Central City Brewing (tie)
Best BC Beer
Gold: Red Racer IPA
Silver: Phillips Longboat Double Chocolate Porter
Bronze: Crannog Back Hand of God Stout
Best BC Seasonal Beer
Gold: Driftwood Sartori Harvest IPA, Phillips Crooked Tooth Pumpkin Ale (tie)
Bronze: Phillips The Hammer Imperial Stout
Cheers,
Chris
CAMRA Vancouver Award Nominations
Wednesday, January 6th, 2010 | Beer | 5 Comments
The CAMRA Vancouver AGM is coming up on January the 17th, which is where the CAMRA Vancouver awards will be announced. Beforehand, each CAMRA member is able to nominate three of their favorites in each category. Those garnering the most nominations are then voted on by members. The trouble I am having is coming up with three nominations in each category. In some categories I find myself wanting to only nominate what I consider to be the one clear winner. In others (best BC beer for example), I find there are just too many choices. I’ve settled on at least one nomination in each category, which I’ll share below:
Best Local Brewpub – Big Ridge! Why? Because the few brewpubs we have in the lower mainland are fairly similar (they are all pretty good) and Big Ridge is close to my house.
Best Local Beer Cafe, Pub, or Restaurant – Alibi Room! Why? Because they have the largest and most interesting beer selection around. It is also has a cozy atmosphere and delicious food.
Best Local Liquor Store – Brewery Creek! Why? The best beer selection and the most knowledgeable staff. Gerry and Chester are rad.
Best Local Beer Event – Dix Caskival! Why? The best selection of delicious, creative, and fresh craft cask beer under one roof.
Best BC Brewery – Driftwood! Why? Because they set out to brew interesting beer when they started not long ago and they haven’t wavered. Their beer is also delicious. This was a tough one, Central City and Phillips will likely be my other nominations.
Best BC Beer – Central City Red Racer Pale Ale! Why? Because it is a wonderful session beer that enthrals serious craft beer and macro drinkers alike. Another tough one to call, so many good beers in BC.
Best BC Seasonal Beer – Driftwood Old Cellar Dweller Barley Wine! Why? Wow, this is good stuff. Complex, hoppy, bold, and delicious.
Who would you nominate?
Cheers,
Chris
Brewdog Brews World’s Strongest Beer at 32% ABV
Tuesday, December 1st, 2009 | Beer | 7 Comments
Brewdog, a very young Scottish brewery, has brewed the world’s strongest beer at 32% ABV. I really like Brewdog, mostly because they brew very interesting beers and have very funny labels. You’ll know what I mean if you get your hands of any of their beers, four of which are available at Brewery Creek in Vancouver.
If you are into beer, or even if you’ve read the paper lately, you might have already heard of Tactical Nuclear Penguin, the new 32% ABV beer. What you might know and might find interesting, is how they made it. Turns out they took some of their Paradox Imperial Stout that had already aged in oak barrels for 15 months and froze it at an ice cream factory, periodically draining off the unfrozen liquid. Alcohol freezes at a much lower temperature than water, meaning the unfrozen liquid was higher and higher in alcohol content each time it was drained. Check out this hilarious video of the process I found on Brewdog’s blog:
The question remains, why would Brewdog try to make the world’s strongest beer? The answer is probably because they could and were curious, which is reason enough for me. Or maybe it was for the attention, which they have received in spades. I, for one, am not sure I’d like Tactical Nuclear Penguin. That isn’t to say I won’t buy some if I can get some. I think I’d probably find it a bit too alcoholic, which is likely considering that I find some 12-15% ABV beers too alcoholic, where 15% is the highest ABV beer I’ve ever tried.
Cheers,
Chris
Montreal
Wednesday, September 9th, 2009 | Beer | No Comments
I’m back from my trip to Quebec and I feel more Canadian the ever. My wife and I spent the past week drinking local Quebecois beer, gorging ourselves on the delicious Canadian food group known as poutine -they put pretty much anything imaginable in their poutine – eating cheese, pouring maple syrup over just about everything that is eaten before 12:00 noon, and walking over the ground where some of Canada’s most defining moment took place.
The first half of our trip was spent in Montreal, and the remainder of our time in historic Quebec City. As I previously commented, Quebec is an amazing beer destination, and I have quite a bit to post about. This first post will focus on Montreal, the second, which should follow shorty, will focus on Quebec City.
Montreal
The people of Quebec are incredibly proud of locally produced products, which makes for a great beer culture. Most restaurants we visited in Quebec featured a number of local craft beers. Unlike in Vancouver, good beer is available just about anywhere. Although the style of beers available in Montreal is quite diverse, most breweries tend to brew with a yeasty Belgian flair.
While in Montreal we visited a number of brewpubs – Brutopia, Dieu Du Ciel and Les 3 Brasseurs. For anyone planning a trip out Montreal in the near future, avoid Brutopia, they claim to be Montreal’s premium brewpub, but their beer is terrible – the other two pubs served great beer.
After landing in Montreal and a confusing hour spent on public transit on our way to our hotel, we sat down for our first meal in Montreal at Les 3 Brasseurs. This establishment belongs to a chain of brewpubs headquartered in France, and they offer four beers on tap (Wit, Blonde, Amber and Brown) and a maple syrup bottle conditioned Belgian style ale. We started out with a taster of all four ales – all were delicious, but the brown ale was my hands down favorite. To end the evening we tried the bottle conditioned ale, which was great, but nothing overly impressive. I just don’t think that maple syrup and beer work all that well together, many people I’m sure will disagree.
The best brewpub in Montreal, and possibly even Canada, is Dieu Du Ciel. They offer 18 beers on tap and a limited menu of bar snacks. We were only able to try 6 of the 18, but all were impressive. Dieu Du Ciel’s beer is clearly brewed with passion, care and creativity – three critical element necessary to create great beer, and food for that matter. The styles available range from German kolsch to a rich espresso imperial stout. The only beer that I thought they could improve was the India Cream Ale – I just don’t think brewers east of the rockies can match the fantastic hop flavors that west coast brewers have perfected.
Brewery Creek in Vancouver carries a number of Dieu Du Ciel’s beers, I recommend trying all of them at least twice.
Cheers
Erik
BC lacks Porter
Monday, August 24th, 2009 | Beer, Favorites | 2 Comments
I love porter; it is one of my favorite beer styles. I find porter to be quite easy and enjoyable to drink, which might be due to the moderate alcohol levels and pleasant roasty and chocolate flavors one finds in porter. What I don’t like about porter is its relative scarcity in these parts. I can’t think of one BC brewer that regularly sells six packs of porter. You’ll sometimes find 650ml bottles of porter from BC craft brewers available in BC Liquor Stores, but these examples are often brewed with an additional element such as chocolate, coffee, coconut, or other fruit. While I definitely like these beers, what I’d really like to see is a widely available six pack of quality porter from one of BC’s many fine brewers. In the mean time, Deschutes has recently made its way into BC. Thank heaven for their Black Butte Porter, which is definitely one of my favorite beers! I picked some up from Brewery Creek last week and, with a few friends, made quick work of them. With craft brewing gaining ground in BC, I can only hope that a widely available porter is on the horizon. I’d suck one, or six.
Cheers,
Chris
Beer Ice Cream and other tidbits
Sunday, July 19th, 2009 | Beer | 3 Comments
I went to La Casa Gelato in Vancouver yesterday. This famed ice cream joint has 218 flavors in store, and I’m told they have even more flavors in reserve. I happened to notice one flavor in particular that I just had to try, that being Guinness Draught Beer Sorbetto. I was surprised to find that it tasted exactly like Guinness, not generally resembling stout or beer, but very specifically like Guinness! I’ll be honest, I didn’t love it, but finding this beer so convincingly adapted to ice cream got me thinking. Can I make my own beer ice cream out of one of my favorite beers? This article is the best I’ve found on making your own beer ice cream, something that I’ll have to try. If I have any success, I’ll definitely post my results.
Guinness Draught Beer Sorbetto from La Casa Gelatto
Some other tidbits:
- Erik convinced me (wasn’t hard) to go to Brewery Creek with him yesterday. It’s a good thing we went because we managed to snag the last few Great Canadian Beer Festival tickets. I was going to wait until Monday, which would have been bad. I’m hearing that all tickets available in the lower mainland are now sold out. If you want to go to the GCBF this year, you should get on the case now.
- We also hit up Bosa Foods. It was my first time there and I was very impressed. It is the best gourmet food store I’ve been to in the lower mainland. I was particularly impressed by the butcher shop. I’ve previously written about beer and meat and beer and chicken; I do believe I’ve finally found the place to buy quality meat. They sell organic free range redbro chickens from Polderside farms, as well as a great selection of lamb, pork, and beef cuts. I was impressed by the color (deep red, not bright red), texture (moist, but not wet looking), and marbling of the beef steaks, as well as the colour of the pork (pinkish, not grey). I will definitely be buying my meat there from now on.
Have a great rest of the weekend.
Cheers,
Chris