Well, July was an interesting month, with about half of it spent living an alternative life without the wife and kids. Did the Sip Advisor get up to much trouble? Nah, I’m too much of a homebody, but I did manage some fun. Here’s how the month played out:

July began with the Sip Family arriving in Penticton for the second half of our Okanagan getaway. For one of our lunches, we ate at Saltys, where Mrs. Sip and I shared a pitcher of Rhino Watermelon Wheat Ale. I paired this with an order of Fish & Chips. The restaurant had a neat collection of cocktails and a great food menu for kids and adults alike.

Before leaving Penticton, we had our final lunch at Neighbourhood Brewing. Both Mrs. Sip and I took advantage of their 3 Tacos deal, with my selections being the Prawn Shop Shrimp Taco, Guy Fiery Buffalo Fried Chicken Taco and Cluck Kent Fried Chicken Taco, while Mrs. Sip ordered the Piggies Smalls Al Pastor, James Pond Baja Fish Taco and Cluck Norris Roasted Chicken. Sadly, they were tapped out of a few beers that interested our group, but I did enjoy my fallback choice Way of Life Hazy IPA and the taste I had of Mrs. Sip’s Sunshine City Passionfruit Wheat Ale. I liked that the kid’s meals come with chips and a churro for dessert.

For the second half of the month, I was left to my own devices, as Mrs. Sip and the Sipplings travelled to Italy. The quiet weekdays were a stark contrast to my very active weekends, making for a perfect blend of rest and getting off my ass. My first outing was attending a New Westminster Salmonbellies lacrosse game. Tickets are only $15 for adults and half that price for kids. My only complaint from the experience is they should bring in some New West craft beer for the games, rather than serving up Coors and Canadian.

The next night, a friend and I met for dinner at the Paddlewheeler Pub. We were greeted by live music and a delicious meal. I had the Crispy Chicken Burger, which I’ve enjoyed there before, and shared a pitcher of Okanagan Springs 1516 Lager.

After dinner, we hit a couple locations on my Columbia Street crawl list. Both bars, Judge Begbie’s Tavern and The Met, we’re first time visits for the Sip Advisor, which seems criminal after living in New West since September 2018. I liked both places, particularly The Met’s outdoor patio area.

Next up, a friend invited me to join him for a Vancouver Whitecaps soccer game. While attending the unfortunate loss for the team, I had servings of Goose Island IPA and Stanley Park Waypoint Hazy Pale Ale. The two 24oz brews set me back more than $40, but that’s what you get with stadium pricing.

To wrap the weekend, Pa Sip and I had tickets to watch John Fogerty of Creedence Clearwater Revival. Prior to the concert, we had a great meal at Devil’s Elbow Ale & Smoke House, which we selected to go with the southern theme of our concert. My drinks included the Dageraad Rainshine Blonde Ale and a pair of Jack Daniels and Cokes. To eat, I went with the Dirty Fries, as I didn’t have a huge appetite.

I ended July with style, attending the Cool Lager Fest at Another Beer Company (ABC) with Cousin Sip. The event was part of the brewery’s third birthday celebrations and beer tokens were $5.25 each with no entry fee. My original plan was to just get a few tokens, but ended up getting eight over the course of the afternoon, allowing me to get at least one beer from each of the breweries on hand: ABC, Steel & Oak, Four Winds, Luppolo, Red Collar, Slow Hand, and Studio. The ABC crew did their best to deal with the hot day, offering beer slushies for no extra charge and stringing up misters around the already tented seating. One of the planned food trucks never showed up (or at least hadn’t by the time I left), but there was food and ice cream on hand for those who wanted it.

With Mrs. Sip and the Sipplings returning imminently, life will get busy again. The highlight of August looks to be my and Mrs. Sip’s getaway to Boston to celebrate our 10^th wedding anniversary, but I’m sure other fun activities will pop up as the month progresses.