Tag Archives: oregon

Belmont Station in Portland

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

Great beer at the corner store?

I spent this past BC Day long weekend at a cabin near the foot of Mount Baker, a short jaunt across the border from where I live.  Just before the cabin on the road to Mount Baker, there is a small grocery store called Nooksack Market.  I’d visited this market two years ago on a previous visit to the same cabin.  When my wife told me we were heading to here uncle’s place, all I could think about was getting back to this market.  Why?  Because they have a fantastic craft beer selection stocked with delicious Washington and Oregon beers that you can’t get at any of BC’s best beer stores!  It was really overwhelming shopping at that tiny market because I wanted to buy everything.  I ended up buying a lot of the Stone, Lagunitas, and Deschutes beers that you can’t get here.  It was a good weekend, but I drank too much.

A sample of what's waiting for us right across the border

A sample of what's waiting for us right across the border

On the way back to Canada we stopped at the Sumas Liquor store to stock up.  This liquor store is two blocks from the border, within clear sight of the crossing.  They too had a fantastic selection and I picked more of the same great beers, plus a few Laughing Buddha bottles.  An American reading this blog might think I am crazy, stupid, or both, but the beer selection right across the border is enough to get this Canadian beer enthusiast exited.  Curse our stupid liquor laws!  If trucks carrying this delicious beer can get to the border, surely they can get across too, right?  We’ll even pay double, which is pretty much what we pay anyway.  At least we get Health Care…

The Booze Bear at Sumas Liquor Store, ha

The Booze Bear at Sumas Liquor Store, ha

Also, I had a Bud Light Lime this weekend and I thoroughly did not enjoy it.  It tasted nothing like beer, but like malty sprite.  I still think Bud Light Lime is horrible and implore you fans of this perverse liquid to seek out and explore other light beers and alcoholic beverages.

Cheers,

Chris