Love Good Beer

The Brockton IPA Launch

Saturday, April 25th, 2009 | Beer | 2 Comments

Erik and I attended the launch of Granville Island’s Brockton IPA at the GI Taproom last night.  For us, because we’ve both written about Brockton IPA before (Erik did a group taste test and I posted some general impressions last week), the night was less about the beer itself and more about having a good time.  But if you did want to know, we find Brockton IPA to be a decent beer, although somewhat lacking in balance and merely resembling a hoppy version of their pale ale.  It isn’t killer IPA, but it will definitely draw more Vancouverites to craft beer, and for that we are thankful.

When we arrived at the busy Taproom, we were asked whether we were with the press or from the liquor board.  We were press!  I suppose I should be less excited about that, but I had never been referred to as press before.  If press are commonly treated as well as we were last night, I wouldn’t mind being with the press more often.  We were given three pints of IPA, an excellent spread of food provided by a nearby culinary school, and a complimentary cab ride home.  Also, Almira of Jive Communications, who invited us, recognized Erik right away (not hard, he is a behemoth of a man and extremely good looking) and gave us a thorough welcome.

We were also lucky to meet Vern Lambourne, the brewer at Granville Island.  Vern perfects Granville Island’s recipes before sending them up North to Kelowna for production.  More importantly, Vern brews all of Granville Island’s seasonal beers on Granville Island.  I especially enjoyed his Porter and eagerly await next week’s release of GI Bitter.  Last month’s Ginger beer, although not to my tastes, was very popular and sold out fast.  Vern let us into the brewery for a quick peek and a picture, and also invited us back for a tour another day.  It is always awesome to meet brewers, not only because they make the delicious beverage we enjoy, but because they are always such nice, humble guys.  Cheers Vern, thanks for showing us around.

We also ran into the honorable Rick Green, who is always a pleasure to chat with.  Rick is the king of BC beer and always has the inside scoop.  He introduced us to Crystal Henrickson of Yelp, who is their sole Vancouver employee.  She is trying to build a Yelp Community in Vancouver and I hope she succeeds.  Yelp is a great site when it is well populated with reviews.  I’ve found it really helpful when visiting US cities, but Vancouver is still catching up on volume.  Crystal convinced me to go beyond consuming other people’s reviews and make some of my own.  I’ve now signed up and rated a few of my favorite places.

The launch of Brockton IPA was surely an experience, one which I enjoyed.  If any other breweries, or even restaurants, would like to wine and dine us press at future launch parties, we’d be more than happy to oblige.

Cheers,

Chris

Tags: bitter, Brockton IPA, ginger beer, Granville Island Brewing, jive communications, launch party, Porter, rick green, taproom, vern lambourne, yelp

After 25 years it is finally here: Brockton IPA

Friday, April 24th, 2009 | Beer, Breweries | 5 Comments

The Granville Island Brewing Company turned 25 this year, and to celebrate they released a new beer titled Brockton IPA. Granville Island Brewing is one of British Columbia’s first craft brewers – all BC beer fans, even those whose tastes are not always satisfied with Granville Island’s regular offering, owe a big thank you to this brewing pioneer.

Granville Island’s non-seasonal six-pack beer is generally speaking, not brewed to please the discerning pallet of a passionate beer drinker, but that is good. Not all craft beer needs to be challenging and thought provoking. Granville Island’s beer serves as a great entry point into the world of craft beer. This brewery has done a great deal of work in developing a market for craft beer in Vancouver. Although I am no longer a diehard fan of Granville Island English Bay Pale Ale, I still have a great deal of respect for this ale. Had this mild pale ale never existed I may not have been exposed to BC’s burgeoning craft beer scene – English Bay Pale Ale was one of the first craft beers that I tasted, enjoyed and began to purchase regularly.

To please fussier beer drinkers, such as myself, Granville Island Brewing offers a good selection of creative and flavourful seasonal beers. Unlike their regular offering, which is now brewed in Kelowna, their season beer is still brewed on Granville Island. To me, the true definition of a craft brewer is not how many liters a brewery produces annually, but whether or not a selection of seasonal beer is offered. Seasonal releases are a great way for brewers to challenge their customers’ taste buds and push the boundaries a bit. Having achieved success with a previous IPA seasonal release, Granville Island Brewing decided that now was the perfect time to release a milder version of their seasonal IPA.

Because I fall into the “fussy” beer drinking category, I assumed that Brockton IPA would not be for me. My assumptions were correct – there is nothing wrong with this beer and I believe it is a great IPA for those who have never experienced the full on flavour assault of an IPA, I just prefer a bigger, bolder IPA. Knowing that Brockton IPA was not for me, I decided to invite a few friends over, all who like beer to varying degrees, to sample the beer and offer their unbiased opinions.

Here is what they thought:

Brad Wiens:

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It is a good beer, but somewhat weak. Similar to other Granville Island Beer.

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Cheryl Wiens:

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It tastes like a pill that I tried to swallow and then coughed up

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Holly Wolfe:

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It is okay, but a bit too bitter. I prefer their Winter Ale.

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Rachel Richardson:

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Piney tasting – Where is the citrus flavour?

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Chris Richardson:

Chris has already posted his comments, but to reiterate:

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It tastes like a hoppier version of English Bay Pale Ale

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No one seemed to fall in the love with Brockton IPA, but aside from Cheryl, everyone did finish their beer. Subjective opinions aside, Brockton IPA is a great introduction to hoppier, flavourful beers and I am always excited to see a brewer release a new beer. I look forward to seeing what Granville Island brews next.

Cheers,

Erik

Tags: Brockton IPA, english bay pale ale, Granville Island Brewing, hops, IPA, Review

Granville Island Brockton IPA

Thursday, April 9th, 2009 | Beer | 2 Comments

When we started this blog we set out to learn a lot and have a good time, which we have done thus far.  It was also our hope to somehow achieve the level of celebrity that warrants free beer.  I think we are getting closer to meeting this goal.  This week we were contacted by the PR firm of Granville Island Brewing and invited to attend the launch of their recently released Brockton IPA.  This isn’t the first press release we have received, but is certainly the most applicable.  We are going to go to the launch on April 23rd and will definitely be writing a post about it.  What I find a tad funny about this launch party is that the Brockton IPA has been out for a solid two weeks now.  I picked up a six pack from Brewery Creek the day it came out in stores.  So technically the beer was already launched, but who doesn’t like a party?

 

Since I’ve already tasted Granville Island’s IPA, I can give you my thoughts on it.  I thought it tasted like their English Bay Pale Ale with extra hops. I really wondered if it was the same recipe with added grain, plus the extra hops.  It had the same vanilla taste (maybe imparted by their yeast strain?) that I associate with the other widely available Granville Island beers.  If you like Granville Island’s other beers and don’t mind the added hop bitterness, you’ll like the Brockton IPA.  If you are a serious IPA drinker, I doubt you’ll find this “finally a west coast IPA” anything special.  Don’t get me wrong, I enjoy this beer for what it is, but I’m not buying the marketing hooplah.  That doesn’t mean I think it won’t be widely successful, because I think Brockton IPA will be a big hit with Vancouverites.  Granville Island has done really well at positioning themselves as Vancouver’s beer, even though their main lineup is brewed in Kelowna.  Only their seasonals are actually brewed on Granville Island, and by a different brewer no less.  Apparently, the Brockton IPA recipe was taste tested by Vancouverites for Vancourverites before being put into production, a fact that will surely tickle the locals.

I really like it when breweries release new beers; it gives me something new to try and something to write about.  While I don’t think that the Brockton IPA is a truly special beer, I appreciate that Granville Island will be broadening the horizons of many macro swilling Vancouverites with a new craft beer offering, for many will find this new beer in their Minglers.

Cheers,

Chris

Tags: brewery creek, Brockton IPA, english bay pale ale, Granville Island Brewing, launch party

IPA Season

Tuesday, April 7th, 2009 | Beer, Breweries, Homebrew | No Comments

The spring season is finally here; the sun is shinning, the earth is slowly warming, the trees are beginning to blossom, my garden plants are sprouting and India Pale Ale is now is season.  My latest IPA that I started  six weeks ago has finally finished bottle conditioning and is now fit for enjoyable consumption, although it is still somewhat green and could use another three weeks to fully come together.

My IPA is not the only IPA of the spring season; many other brewers have used the early spring or late winter to launch their own IPA offering.  Central City Brewing, Russell Brewing, and Granville Island Brewing have all recently launched an IPA into the market to compete for the growing hophead  demographic.  I am most excited about Central City’s Empire IPA and, although it has been sitting on store shelves for quite some time, I have yet to pour it out of a can in the comfort of my own home.  Gary Lohin of Central City Brewing is one of British Columbia’s most talented brewmasters and he has yet to disappoint me.

I am less excited, yet still quite hopeful, about the Russell and Granville Island IPAs.  Both brewers have shown they know how to craft a delicious IPA, yet have a tendency to water down their beer to reach a larger market.  Granville Island’s past seasonal IPA was delicious and Russell’s IPA Cask served recently at DIX was flavorful and well hopped.  As previously mentioned, I am not a huge hophead and hope that both the Granville Island and Russell IPAs make great summer beers.

Granville Island’s IPA, named Brockton IPA, and Central City’s IPA have both been available for some time now.  Russell Brewing’s IPA has yet to reach liquor stores and I cannot provide a date when this new offering will be available.  I recommend visiting Rick Green’s Blog for updates on upcoming beer releases; Rick has an immense knowledge about BC’s beer scene.

As for my IPA, which as yet to be named, it is malty and not overly hopped, but sadly will only be available to those who stop by for a visit or to those who invite me over for dinner.

Cheers,

Erik

Tags: BC Beer Blog, Brockton IPA, Central City Brewing, dix, gary lohin, Granville Island Brewing, India Pale Ale, IPA, Rusell Brewing

Review: Granville Island Brewing Merry Monks Doppelbock – Aged

Friday, January 9th, 2009 | Review | 2 Comments

This is the first review of an aged beer on this site- there will be many more to come, but sadly we will have to wait at least six months for more beer to mature. For an impatient person such as myself, this is quite a challenge. During this waiting period, we will be busy stocking up our cellars providing updates about our most recent cellar additions in our new page The Cellar.

Year Brewed: 2007
Time in Cellar: 13 Months

This Christmas I poured the first beer from my cellar, Granville Island’s Merry Monks Doppelbock. I tried this big lager while visiting Granville Island’s tasting room November 2007 – it wasn’t my favorite beer that day. The malt flavour was intense, as a doppelbock should be, but the alcohol taste was overpowering. I put a single bottle of the beer in my cellar hoping that the alcohol taste would mellow and more complex flavours would develop.

The strong alcoholic flavour is still present, although somewhat more subdued after sitting for a year. The powerful malt flavour has mellowed a bit, taking on a rich toffee taste. As expected, the mild hop flavour present in the fresh brew is almost nonexistent in the cellared beer. The beer is smooth and almost creamy, but one year was probably not enough time in the cellar. Granville Island no longer brews this seasonal beer, if you happen to have one in your cellar I recommend letting it age for a few more years.

Erik

Tags: Aged, Beer, cellar, Granville Island Brewing, Merry Monks Doppelbock