Author Archives: Daniel Wilson

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About Daniel Wilson

I love making drinks for my friends and family, and, of course, sampling my concoctions myself! Finding and playing around with recipes is a favourite past time of mine and I hope to share that passion with all my readers.

BC Beer Baron #278 – Trading Post Captain Cooper’s Cranberry Ale

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A couple weeks back, Mrs. Sip and I learned of the TAPshack, which has two chains in downtown Vancouver. For a friend’s birthday, we visited the Coal Harbour location, where the Sip Advisor enjoyed this Trading Post Brewing product, among my drink selections.

The Captain Cooper’s Cranberry Ale is tart, but leaves a nice, slightly bitter cranberry taste on the palate with each sip. At 5.9% ABV, the beer has a stronger alcohol content than many sour beverages I’ve come across, while being very light on hops, with an IBU count of only seven.

Trading Post Brewing

I had previously tried a sample of this brew when Mrs. Sip and I first visited Trading Post on its second day of existence. Having a full serving reminded me of how good and unique the drink is. The American-style wheat ale is constructed with local cranberries.

The beer’s namesake, Captain James Cooper, was an employee of the Hudson’s Bay Company, a former fur trading operation and current day Canadian department store. Cooper was a wheeler and dealer in the cranberry market of early BC.

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BC Beer Baron #277 – Boombox/Real Cask GoldenRye

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Prior to heading out for a night on the town to celebrate a friend’s birthday recently, we met up for a drink at the hotel where they were staying. That’s where I got to try a serving of this Boombox Brewing and Real Cask Brewing collaboration release.

The GoldenRye is a very good beer. A Rye Pale Ale, it comes in at 7% ABV and uses Idaho 7 hops, also known as 007 hops, perfect for the theme of this product. The rye content brings the alcohol up a few notches, which the Sip Advisor has never shied away from.

boombox-brewingReal Cask Brewing

The beer’s name, of course, is a play on the classic James Bond movie and even better video game, GoldenEye. Most guys my age spent countless hours hunting down their friends, settling minor squabbles in the virtual world thanks to this awesome first-person shooter.

While this brew is the first product I’ve had from Boombox, I can say without hesitation that it’s the best thing I’ve had from Real Cask. Both companies operate out of the Callister Brewing space in East Vancouver, which is the first collaborative brewery in Canada, offering space to tenants on a yearly basis.

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BC Beer Baron #276 – Brassneck Stockholm Syndrome

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You never know what to expect when you pop into Brassneck Brewing’s tasting room in the Brewery Creek region of Vancouver. Their lineup of beers is quite eclectic and changes regularly.

On our most recent visit, their Stockholm Syndrome was among the Sip Advisor’s favourite. This 6.5% ABV Farmhouse Saison was first brewed in December 2013 and I can understand why it has returned to the brewery’s rotating taps routinely. The strong and flavourful brew is perfect for the more experienced drinkers out there, looking to try something unique.

brassneck-stockholm-syndrome

Brassneck has some really great material for describing their beers and the brewing process it takes to make them, but this has to be one of their finest: “We kidnapped a Saison, held it hostage for several months in our Foudre, letting it sit and condition on Brettanomyces. The more time passed the more it started to like us. It rewarded us by tasting delicious. Stockholm Syndrome can be a beautiful thing.”

As previously eluded to, I have to give credit to Brassneck for having one hell of a Beer Archive. Just scrolling through it has my mouth watering and makes me wish I could fill a glass straight out of the computer. Seriously, some scientific research money should go to a cause like this an venture capitalists should get behind this invention pronto!

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BC Beer Baron #275 – Mt. Begbie Cream Ale

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While meeting up with the rest of the Sip Syndicate to discuss plans for our upcoming tour of Ireland together, the Sip Advisor was offered a glass of this Mt. Begbie Brewing release. A fitting refreshment for the occasion.

The Cream Ale was the company’s original flagship beer, dating back to first being brewed in 1996. That makes it a 20th anniversary edition now. The beverage is light in both alcohol content (4.7% ABV) and hops (12 IBUs), featuring flavours of honey and fruit.

mt-begbie-cream-ale

The product’s label features Sir Matthew Baillie Begbie – aka ‘The Hanging Judge’ – as well as the image of a noose. Legend has it the former BC judge had a penchant for ending trials with the statement, “hang ‘em”, even delivering it once after an acquittal. Of course, Mt. Begbie is named after the former Chief Justice.

Available in bomber-sized bottles in both BC and Alberta, the drink pairs best with various pastas and pizza. It was rewarded a gold medal at the 2013 Canadian Brewing Awards in the Cream Ale category and a third place finish at the 2012 BC Beer Awards in the Session category.

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BC Beer Baron #274 – Main Street Belgian Bonsai

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On one of my and Mrs. Sip’s trips to Main Street Brewing, while showing visiting friends the Vancouver craft beer scene, this is the tasty beverage I selected.

The Belgian Bonsai is a single hop Belgian ale that is bold and full of flavour. Main Street calls the Belgian Bonsai their “little beer with the big roar!” Thus, it’s fitting that the label for the brew features a lion looking like it means business.

main-street-belgian-bonsai

Stats of 6.9% ABV and 70 IBUs also prove this point. First released in August 2014, the seasonal product features Sorachi Ace hops, while being a hybrid of Belgian and North American styles. That’s quite the combination of international representatives.

The Sip Advisor has always been impressed with all the different options Main Street Brewing has on their menu. This includes cask variations of their popular products, as well as frequent new creations.

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BC Beer Baron #273 – Dageraad De Witte

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When it comes to Lower Mainland breweries, there are few the Sip Advisor has yet to visit. Dageraad Brewing, based in Burnaby, is one of them and while I must atone for my transgressions, that hasn’t stopped me from enjoying their beers. Such is the case with this release, which I recently tried as a guest tap option.

The De Witte is described by the brewery as a sour-fermented Belgian-style spiced wheat ale, thus checking off some of my and Mrs. Sip’s favourite beer criteria. The 5.2% ABV beverage is quite tasty and perfect for summer drinking. It’s suggested that drinkers carefully pour this brew and try to leave as much of the yeast sediment in the bottle.

dageraad-de-witte

Available in bomber-sized bottles, the De Witte has brought home a few accolades over its lifetime. This includes a silver medal at the 2014 BC Beer Awards in the Belgian/French Ale category and a bronze medal the following year in the Sours/Wild Ale class.

For those curious about the brewery’s name (as was the Sip Advisor), it is an homage to the Dageraadplaats, a square in Antwerp, Belgium. There, beer culture is prevalent and the owner/brewmaster of Dageraad (meaning daybreak or dawn) hopes to bring the Belgian style to BC drinkers… a style he likes to call Burnabarian!

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BC Beer Baron #272 – White Rock Beach West Beach Fruit

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For quite some time, the Sip Advisor has wanted to sample the wares of the White Rock Beach Brewing. Some near misses occurred, such as the brewery no-showing this year’s Tip N’ Taste. Finally, it took a visit to the Fuggles & Warlock tasting room and a guest tap to get the job done.

The West Beach Fruit is an American Pale Ale that is described by the company as being a Pacific Northwest-style English Bitter. The fruit in the 5% ABV, 36 IBUs brew’s name comes from flavours of citrus and grapefruit, which occur thanks to the use of Centennial hops.

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The beer is available on tap at the brewery for glass servings and growler fills. I would love to try some of the company’s other beverages, including the East Beach Nut (American Brown Ale), Border Porter and Pier IPA. The whole lineup collectively describes the features of the quaint beachfront community.

The Sip Advisor has always had a soft spot in his heart for the White Rock area, as Mrs. Sip and I spent some of our first dates walking along the beach promenade and pier, as well as eating at some of the local establishments. This included our one-month dating anniversary!

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BC Beer Baron #271 – Tin Whistle Stag Apple Scotch Ale

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While the government-operated BC Liquor Stores are a great resource for craft beer drinkers across the province, private retailers often carry a wider product base and have become a reliable source for the Sip Advisor. That was the case recently, with my discovery of this Tin Whistle Brewing release.

The Stag Apple Scotch Ale is a great beer, with flavours of apple and cinnamon spice joining the caramel notes one would expect from a Scotch Ale. I’ve become a huge fan of Scotch Ales over the course of this BC Beer Baron project and this 8% ABV beverage was a strong addition to my checklist.

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First released in 2013, the brew is available in bomber-sized bottles. The beer took home the top prize at the 2014 BC Beer Awards in the UK Ales category, as well as a bronze medal at the 2013 Canadian Brewing Awards in the Scotch Ale class.

I really wish Tin Whistle would launch its own website. While somewhat active on social media, such as Twitter, I feel its criminal in this day in age to be operating a company and not be established online. Beer this good deserves more of a presence.

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BC Beer Baron #270 – 33 Acres of #Bajab33r

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While meeting up with the guys for an impromptu brewery crawl a couple weekends back, our first stop was a collective favourite in 33 Acres Brewing.

Every time I visit this popular location (which is often), I’m amazed at how there’s always something new on the menu. This time around, I ordered the 33 Acres of #Bajab33r, a Northwest Pilsner. What sold me on the brew was its stats of 5.7% ABV and 40 IBUs, which jived nicely with my thirst at the time.

33 Acres of #Bajab33r.png

I feel like the name of this beer is some sort of code, given its rare use of a hashtag and 3s in place of Es. The drink was apparently inspired by a 10,000 km road trip to Mexico and back. If these are the results, the crew should try to get out of town more often!

One of my favourite things about drinking at the 33 Acres quarry tasting room is that you can get 24 oz servings, trumping your typical pint. This release is only available on site at 33 Acres, in various glass and growler sizes.

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BC Beer Baron #269 – Persephone Brew the Change

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With some time to kill in New West (story of my life anytime I’m supposed to be meeting Mrs. Sip) I popped into the 8th Street Liquor Store, which has become a place of solace for the Sip Advisor. There, I found and purchased this intriguing Persephone Brewing collaborative release.

The Brew the Change is about so much more than simply beer. It’s an industry statement from 10 certified Benefit Corporation breweries (“for-profit companies who meet higher standards of social and environmental performance, transparency and accountability, and who choose to use their business as a force for good”).

persephone-brew-the-change

This across North America conglomerate includes breweries from Washington State (Aslan), Portland (Hopworks), California (Bison and North Coast), Colorado (New Belgium), Michigan (Vivant), North Carolina (Bull City), Ontario (Beau’s), and New Brunswick (Picaroons).

What originally lured me to purchase this beer was its description of key ingredients: honey, cranberry juice and yerba mate. The 7.1% ABV, 14 IBUs beverage is available in bomber-sized bottles. Suggested food pairings include rich charcuterie; hard cheeses, such as cheddar; and French honey spice cake.

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