Category Archives: Out and About-Sip Trips

Sip Trips #70: Brewers Row

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With Mrs. Sip away in Las Vegas, the Sip Advisor did not shy away from play and had a very busy weekend that went by way too quickly.

On Saturday, members of the Sip Syndicate attended the annual Deighton Cup at Hastings Racecourse. This is the city’s swankiest event of the year, with folks decked out in their finest threads, hats, fastenators and other duds.

Horse Racing

The day of races started off with a wonderful lunch, where options included a Smoked Bo Ssam Beef Brisket Sandwich or Korean BBQ Shrimp on Grits. I went with the beef brisket sandwich and absolutely loved it.

After a few good drinks and some betting wins and near misses, all seemed well, but the end of the event took a bit of a scary twist. On the home stretch of the final race, the horse I bet on crashed to the ground, injuring its jockey. I haven’t been able to find any info on the jockey, so I can only assume their injuries weren’t too severe. No news, might be good news, in this instance.

Early bird tickets to the Deighton Cup were $65, plus fees. I think the price was worth it just for the spectacle of the event, but a couple weeks prior to the big day, a Social Shopper deal came out that would have been nice to take advantage of. It offered the lunch, two drinks and gifts totalling $25, all for the same price of early bird tickets. It’s hard not to jump on tickets when they first come out, but you always have to worry about these great coupon deals becoming available later.

Early Bird Grumpy Cat

Following the races, we went for dinner at the Big Rock Urban Eatery. This was my second time visiting the restaurant in recent weeks and I have been impressed with their expanded food menu, compared to when the place originally opened. I tried their BRUeben sandwich, complete with scrumptious skinny fries and also shared some chipotle-buffalo wings with the group.

On Sunday, Cousin Sip and I travelled to Port Moody to experience their ‘Brewers Row’. The Row consists of Twin Sails Brewing, Yellow Dog Brewing, Parkside Brewing and Moody Ales, all within a five-minute walk. While I will leave beverage reviews to the BC Beer Baron project, here are some general impressions I had from our day out:

Twin Sails: Offering up Germanic brews (Kolsch, Gose, etc.), this is where Cousin Sip and I started our day. I liked their open garage door setting, with plenty of seats.

Yellow Dog: Here, we sat in the brewery’s backyard patio area, which had an abundance of picnic tables, amongst a serene shady setting (at least until a couple trains roared through).

Early Intoxication

Parkside: The newest addition to the Row also had wine and cider available to customers, as well as two guest taps, to supplement their own lineup. The brewery’s beer flights come on little benches, which are incredibly cute.

Moody Ales: Cousin Sip grabbed some delicious spring rolls from the food truck located outside the brewery, while I sampled a few beers, including a cask serving and a guest tap.

The Row, as a whole, appeared to be very family and child friendly (including pets), with a kid’s birthday going on at one location, while a baby shower was setting up at another. The beer at each establishment was very good and it’s hard for me to pick a favourite stop from the day. One thing is for sure, though: we will be back!

Sip Trips #69: Tasting Tipsy

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One of my favourite events of the summer, Langley’s Tip N’ Taste, took place last Friday and it was another very fun time with family, friends, and random strangers. Mrs. Sip and I first attended the annual beer fest in 2008 and while we haven’t returned every year, it’s definitely an occasion I look forward to each July.

While I won’t go into reviewing the brews I tasted, saving that for the BC Beer Baron project, I will say that I managed to score over a dozen tastings from breweries, including Be Right Back, Trading Post, Phillips, Mission Springs, Old Yale, Cannery, Howe Sound, Hathi, Kwantlen Brewing Program, Dead Frog, Lighthouse, and Old Abbey.

Drinking Friends Assemble

In past years, event attendees received five drink tickets and five food tickets. This year, the food was all-inclusive, which came with some ups and downs. On the plus side, there was great little meals from Dublin Crossing Irish Pub (mini Yorkshire puddings); Sammy J’s (short rib tacos); Brown’s Socialhouse (cauliflower mac n’ cheese, chicken rice bowls, and even chocolate brownies for dessert); and Original Joe’s (pulled pork sliders). Some food vendors even passed out gift cards or discount vouchers.

On the flip side, unfortunately, the meatballs from Rendezvous Pub ran out within the first hour, even though they brought 300 meatballs. That said, they handed out two to each person (perhaps a rookie mistake) and the ravenous crowd demolished their provisions. The group was long gone by the time I got to that side of the Convention Centre. I remember Original Joe’s, in their first year, generously giving two pulled pork sliders to each person before stock ran low, resulting in one slider for each person, until the restaurant was cleaned out.

And while they didn’t necessarily run out of supplies, it was very tough to get any pizza from Me-N-Ed’s Pizza Parlor. Massive lines would form anytime their pies were soon to arrive (they have a chain located near Langley’s Cascades Casino) and would be gone before most could get their hands on a slice.

Personal Pizza

Another disappointment was White Rock Beach Brewing and Russell Brewing not showing up. I was looking forward to trying the wares particularly offered by White Rock Beach and while I don’t know the circumstances of their absence, they missed a prime opportunity to share their beverages with a wide, thirsty audience.

One last con was there wasn’t as much available for wine drinkers as there has been in past years, which narrowed the options for Ma and Pa Sip. I realize that Tip N’ Taste is predominantly a beer tasting event, but it’s nice to have a bit of a mix for those who steer towards grapes.

Okay, enough of the griping and onto some positives. First, the breweries that did attend brought some really neat stuff with them and most companies had an array of products for sampling. Second, the organizers were able to pull together quite an impressive field of breweries (spreading from across the Lower Mainland to Vancouver Island), including a number of first-timers. Third, two folks from our extensive group won door prizes (which all looked pretty cool), so you can’t beat that.

prize or punch

A side note, Mrs. Sip and I had good chat with one of the Howe Sound reps about all the difficulties R&B Brewing is going through to set up their tasting room/restaurant. They were supposed to open on St. Patrick’s Day and are still in limbo thanks to the bureaucracy approving their license and launch. This has included being told to separate the growler station from the kitchen with a glass divide, then being told on a follow-up visit the glass had to be smoked, among other nitpicking. We hope things turn around for the project quickly.

To sum things up, tickets were $35 this year, which I believe is a $5 jump from 2015. That said, the event was fun with plenty of beer and food to go around. Sure, there are a few areas that could be improved, but all-in-all, Tip N’ Taste remains a favourite activity for the Sip Advisor!

Sip Trips #68: Wicked Wine Weekend

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Over the Canada Day long weekend, the Sip Syndicate returned to the Okanagan Valley wine region, this time setting up shop in Kelowna. We covered a lot of ground over our three-day stay, so let’s get right to the good stuff!

We chose to celebrate our nation’s birthday by touring the many wineries that were walking distance from our Airbnb accommodation, with our first stop being Beaumont Winery. Here, we were able to sample eight different products, with my favourites being their Pinot Blanc, Chilled Red, Pinot Noir, and Heritage. Our hostess was very friendly and the setting was fun with some live music even being served up.

Next up, was Volcanic Hills Winery, where we could taste four wines, among the winery’s extensive lineup. Again, the wines were good, with my preferred samples being their Chardonnay and Rose. The only downside was that our hostess wasn’t nearly as friendly as our first stop and seemed annoyed with our group, just because we were all selecting different wines to match our desired styles.

wine enthusiast

A quick 400-meter walk (although it seems to take forever when you just want more wine) brought us to visit number three at Mt. Boucherie Winery. At the Bouche (a nickname they have yet to verify and endorse), I liked a number of their releases, including the Semillon, Rose, Summit, Syrah, and Pinot Noir.

Moving on, our crew literally travelled through the vines to reach Little Straw Vineyards. After a tasting that yielded a bunch of very good wines (Rose, Cuvee Noir, Southern Cross, and Marechal Foch), we had a fantastic meal at their Barrel Top Grill bistro. While splitting a trio of tapas dishes, our host entertained us with an energy you’d expect at the start of his day and not the end.

We wrapped up day one of our vacation by popping into Grizzli Winery. This massive new facility just opened that day and staff were still figuring things out. The operation only had two reds and three dessert wines available, with whites to come later, but offered a complimentary tasting of three of those options. Mrs. Sip and I picked up their Cabernet Sauvignon to go along with our upcoming steak dinner.

one more bottle of wine

The second day of our trip was largely spent watching a Euro 2016 match (Germany vs. Italy) at Friends Pub and hanging out at the beach. We did manage to visit the Tree Brewing Institute for dinner, where the gang enjoyed a few of their beers, including the West Coast Pale Ale, Thirsty Beaver Amber Ale and Mellow Moon Pineapple Hefeweizen. The setting, along downtown Kelowna’s waterfront, was wonderful and the place had board and card games that patrons can play while they eat and drink.

Sadly, every long weekend away has to come to an end, but we made sure to cram in a few more wineries before making the trek home. Our first stop was to The Hatch Winery, which was a funky, kid-friendly place. The label work on their wines is great, although some bottles are quite expensive. Mrs. Sip and I took home their Reserve Chardonnay after trying four tastings each.

Next up, was Quail’s Gate Winery, one of the bigger players in the area. They do offer three complimentary tastings, before charging $5 for four more samples. Unlike other places, though, they only waive their tasting fee after buying two bottles, as opposed to the typical one bottle. Of the wines offered, I liked their Pinot Gris, Reserve Chardonnay, and Rose.

wine-ritual

We followed that up with Mission Hill Winery, undoubtedly the region’s biggest estate (hell, Michael Bolton has two upcoming shows at the colossal operation). The place was busy, but definitely a gorgeous, picturesque stop. Tastings here will set you back $8 per person and is only waived with purchasing two bottles, so Mrs. Sip went ahead with the sampling only.

Looking to have a nice meal before hitting the highway, we ended up at 19 Okanagan Grill + Bar at the Two Eagles Golf Course. Here, we each had a fantastic lunch (I ordered the trio of pulled pork sliders and a Caesar salad and Mrs. Sip asked for their grilled cheese and tomato soup combo), while throwing back a couple beverages and enjoying the warm, sunny day. The service here was awesome, with Mrs. Sip being given a full nine-ounce replacement of wine after the wind knocked a menu over, thus spilling her carafe… which she’d already drank three quarters of.

Our final stop of the weekend was Off the Grid Winery. This is a newer operation, but the location is cool and the pygmy goats and other wildlife they have on the site are a unique feature. Of their wines, I enjoyed the Pinot Gris, which we grabbed a bottle of to enjoy at a later date and reminisce about a wonderful journey through the Kelowna scene.

Sip Trips #67: On the Trail Again

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Last weekend, the Sip Family returned to the scene of the crime and tackled the Bellingham Tap Trail, once again. This summer voyage meant patio seating, open garage doors, and walking around in the fresh air, rather than relying on vehicle transportation.

Our first stop, was at Boundary Bay Brewing, which has long been home to one of Mrs. Sip’s favourite pub meals in their Tapenade. While she selected the brewery’s Wonderland Belgian Strong Golden to go along with her lunch, the Sip Advisor ordered their tasting flight, which features six brews, including their Blonde Ale, ESB, Amber Ale, Scotch Ale, IPA, and Oatmeal Stout. Of that sextet, I enjoyed the Scotch Ale the best, while Ma Sip and I shared the best Reuben Sandwich I’ve ever had.

Reuben Rye

Next up, was a short walk to the Schweinhaus Biergarten. When we were here in November, it was obviously chilly and they weren’t even able to turn their heat lamps on. That was no problem this time around, as the sun was shining and the music was rocking. I tried the Fremont Brewing Summer Ale, which was just right for the moment. Of note, was the best wine pours I have ever seen, as our server filled Stella chalices right to the top for both Ma and Pa Sip. While we didn’t play a round, the place also has a bean bag toss set up. The only downside was the outdoor attraction only has outhouses available to customers for bathroom use.

Another brief walk and we arrived at Aslan Brewing, where Mrs. Sip and I ordered their B’Ham Brown and Anniversary XIPA, respectively. For a little snack, we tried the brewery’s Gourmet Mac N’ Cheese, which included a bacon jam on top and broccoli within. We both enjoyed our pairings and had to fight each other to get the spoon back.

Our last stop of the day was our first visit to Structures Brewing. Mrs. Sip and I enjoyed a four ounce sample of each of their six offerings, including their Vivid IPA, Petronilo Coffee Stout, Destroyer of Light Black IPA, Recursion Simcoe Pale Ale, I See You Grapefruit-Hibiscus Saison, and Table Beer. To be honest, the whole lineup was pretty good.

Happy Liver Workout Day

Before Mrs. Sip and I made the journey back home on Sunday, we popped into one of the two Kulshan Brewing locations. Over a couple brews (Bastard Kat IPA for myself and Belgian Blonde for Mrs. Sip), we enjoyed their outdoor patio setting, which just doesn’t exist for the Vancouver craft beer scene. The brewery was hosting a run between their two sites, so live music was also featured, along with a couple food trucks.

This second trip to the Bellingham Tap Trail just confirmed how awesome the brewing scene there is. I’m looking forward to going back soon, perhaps starting a tradition of visiting every six months to sample the best of winter and the best of summer with each stay.

Sip Trips #66: Weekend Warriors

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While I’ve often dubbed Mrs. Sip and myself ‘Weekend Warriors, Weekday Legends’, this past weekend was incredibly busy, even by our standards. Things all got started – as most weekends do – with the need to procure some alcohol. The Sip Alliance had a member’s birthday Saturday evening and so the hunt was on.

Our first stop was 33 Acres Brewing, a favourite Vancouver location of Mrs. Sip and mine. There, we filled a couple growlers, making sure to try some of the new items to hit their board, such as the 33 Acres of Egress Belgian Grisette, which Cousin Sip elected to purchase.

Beer Growler

Following that, we were off to Storm Brewing, in search of the many odd concoctions the company is highly-regarded for. We sampled much of their ‘Brainstorms’ lineup, including a Chocolate Lavender Stout, Grapefruit Radler IPA, Blueberry Lemonade Pilsner, Pineapple Upside Down Cake Ale, James’ Liver Tonic IPA, Bangers and Sour Mash Ale, Raspberry Pilsner, and… wait for it… Margherita Pizza IPA! Some of these just might make an appearance in a BC Beer Baron article.

Our birthday event that night evolved (as these things sometimes do) from a laid back house party to a relatively laid back bar visit, as we headed out to East Vancouver’s Brickhouse. While the pub’s surrounding area is a little sketchy, the venue itself was pretty cool, with couches you could chill on, while waiting your turn to play pool or darts. The place also has quite an impressive menu of craft beers, mostly from Washington and Oregon.

On Sunday, for Father’s Day, we gathered up the whole extended family and made our way over to Township 7 Winery in Langley for their annual Wine & Swine celebration. Tickets were $30 and included three wine and pork pairings, with live music from LB 4 LB (Pound 4 Pound). The event was a total hit with our crew and I love what Township 7 has done with their patio area, changing it from a grassy area that easily got muddy in the often inclement BC weather to a tiered and tabled setting.

always-been-my-favorite-fathers-day-card

As we were wrapping things up, some of the Township 7 staff suggested we check out the nearby Fraser Valley Cider Company. I’m not much of a fan of the stuff, but others in our group are, while some were curious to try. We split a few of their tasting flights, which included house, dry, honey and elderflower varieties. The setting was nice and the people were very friendly, so it was a great ending to the evening.

While the work week has offered a rare bit of rest, this weekend Mrs. Sip and I (along with Ma and Pa Sip) return to the Bellingham Tap Trail and time will only tell what shenanigans we get up to on this expedition!

Sip Trips #65: Cowtown Capers

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Despite only being back from a month-long vacation in Asia for a week and a half, last weekend found us in Calgary, Alberta for a friend’s wedding. And you better believe Mrs. Sip and I got our craft beer on!

My first impression of the Calgary craft beer scene was that I was amazed by how much BC craft beer has infiltrated the province and comprises their industry. Half of the selection at restaurants, bars, and beer and wine stores are BC beers. This is partly due to taxes being lessened for BC and Saskatchewan products. Sadly, taxes were raised drastically for wares from outside western Canada, which some worry will kill the import of products from the rest of Canada, the US, and abroad.

Cursing Taxes

Our weekend began with a late Friday night arrival in Calgary and we immediately hit the streets to check things out. It didn’t take long for us to get the fun started, as we stopped into the 5 Vines beer and wine store, where we had a great chat with their purchaser. He provided us with samples of the Fahr Fahr Away Hefeweizen and the Dandy Chatty Chappy English Mild, both of which were quite good.

Next up, was dinner and drinks at Bottlescrew Bill’s Pub (also housing Buzzards Restaurant & Bar). Here, we delved into more Calgary based brews, including Wild Rose Electric Avenue, Buzzard Breath Ale (brewed by Wild Rose as the restaurant and pub’s house beer), Tool Shed Flat Cap Stout, and Village Wit. Bottlescrew Bill’s has a really neat beer passport idea where you have one year to complete an 80-beer international challenge, with prizes up for grabs for those who are successful.

The next day, we made our way to one of Calgary’s National Beerhall locations, where we greatly enjoyed hanging out on their Rooftop Beer Garden and throwing back a number of solid beers. Among them, were the Village Squeeze Lemon Berry Helles, Wild Rose Velvet Fog Wheat Ale and Wraspberry Ale, and Big Rock Lucky 13 Femme Wave Red Ale. Our server even offered to get us set up with a game of bowling in their basement, but we had friends to meet, prior to the wedding.

Bowling Ideal Sport

The next pre-wedding stop was Last Best Brewery, where Mrs. Sip and I shared a flight of tasters. On our board was the Dirty Bird Black Lager, Hefeweizen, Caramel Latte Beer, IPA#2 – The Contender, Mandarina Kolsch, and Dunkelweizen. My favourites among the bunch were the Caramel Latte Beer and the IPA #2 – The Contender.

The day after the wedding, we met the newlyweds for lunch at Native Tongues Taqueria, where I paired a mezcal-based margarita with some delicious legit tacos (chicken, pork, and beef). We also shared the restaurant’s salsa sampler, which had some very interesting tortilla chip enhancers.

With a few hours to kill before flying back to Vancouver, Mrs. Sip and I conducted our own crawl of the downtown core. Our first stop was Wurst, which is a haven for drinkers of European beer, as they watch football matches from the continent. We took advantage of happy hour, which offered $5 domestic and import draught. Our bevvy of choice was the Erdinder Weisbier, a favourite of both mine and Mrs. Sip.

happy-hour first responder

Next up, was Ship & Anchor, where legend has it one day the bar got fed up with macro breweries competing with each other and decided to banish them entirely from their menu. Here, Mrs. Sip tried their house beer, the Ship & Anchor Barnacle Pilsner, while I went for the Village Blacksmith, which was a very nice India Black Ale.

We wrapped things up with a stop at Briggs Kitchen + Bar for some food and drinks, having heard good things about the location from our fellow out-of-town friends. While splitting a delicious serving of Newf’s Poutine (that would be lobster, of course), we tried a couple of their interesting cocktails, including the Pepper & Tonic (Beefeater Gin, lemon, simple syrup, jalapeno and pineapple jelly) and The Finch (Jamesons Whiskey, St. Germaine Elderflower Liqueur, cucumber, simple syrup, lemon). Topping the meal off with the eatery’s Warm Chocolate Pot was the icing on the cake for this wonderful weekend away.

Given this was my first visit to Calgary in 15 years (and the first one of legal drinking age), as well as Mrs. Sip’s inaugural foray into the city, we only hope it doesn’t take such a long time to get back to Cowtown!

Sip Trips #64: Asian Antics (Part 2)

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With our cruise over, Mrs. Sip and I, along with her sister were on our way to Japan for two weeks of riding the rails, sightseeing and taking in the country’s fascinating culture.

I learned quickly that there were some craft beer options in Japan and picked up bottles and cans whenever the opportunity arose. Some of our favourites included releases from Cuedo Brewing (hefeweizen, IPL, pilsner, and a very interesting imperial sweet potato amber); Suntory (stout, IPA, weizen, amber ale, etc.); and what we can only call “frog beers” (saison and American wheat).

Japan Ready for War

Switching gears to the macro side of things, we were lucky to tour the Kirin Brewery outside Kobe, Japan. The shuttle that takes visitors from train station to factory is designed to look like a beer can, so things get off to a great start and only get better from there with a free tour and samples. Sure, you have to go through a tour that is only done in Japanese, but the sacrifice is well worth it!

In Osaka, we explored the Dotonbori area, known for its vibrant nightlife. Some research led us to the Space Station Video Game Bar, where drinkers can enjoy a beverage and a vintage video game. As expected, the drinks and shots available are themed after video games and popular characters. I had the Gin & Sonic (a G&T with Blue Curacao added to emulate the classic Sega speedster), followed by a Triforce shooter of Legend of Zelda fame. The owner made sure to get us set up with a great game called Ibb and Obb, while the bartender was very helpful with describing their extensive menu.

Our Air BnB in Tokyo was located just minutes away from the Golden Gai area of the city. Here, there are an estimated 300 little bars, some of which you would struggle to get more than a handful of people into. Some of these spots only welcome locals, while others may be open to tourists, providing they pay a cover charge. We tried to stick to bars that allowed foreigners (or gaijin as they are known) and didn’t have cover. We worked our way into four very unique settings, including one honouring classic movies; one where karaoke filled the venue; Death Match in Hell, which was a tribute to death metal and horror movies; and 5 Gallons, which was just straight up fun.

Japan Weird

The next night, we enjoyed a two-hour all-inclusive drinking experience on the 41st floor of the Park Hyatt, in their Peak Bar. Dubbed the Top of Tokyo, my strategy was to challenge the bartender to make her best cocktail with [insert liquor here]. It yielded some great results, such as a Cherry Blossom. This was joined by copious other beverages, including manhattans, mojitos, daiquiris and whiskey sours.

We wrapped up our Asian journey with a few days at the Tokyo Disney Resort. Drinks could be had in the Disney Sea park, which meant we spent a fair bit of time there. Mrs. Sip dared me to try their “Frozen” Kirin Draft, which translated into chilled foam at the top of the beer that kept it cooler, longer, but tasted as bad as you’d expect the head of beer to taste.

Japan Signs

We also enjoyed some quiet time in both of the park’s lounges: the Teddy Roosevelt Lounge and Magellan’s Lounge. At Magellan’s, Mrs. Sip and I enjoyed their wine tasting flight, which included a white, red, and port pour, along with meat and cheese nibblies.

Much like most of our journeys, I can’t say enough good things about the sites we saw, the people we met and the activities we experienced. I wouldn’t trade the trip for anything and urge all you little sippers out there to try it for yourselves.

Sip Trips #63: Asian Antics (Part 1)

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Mrs. Sip and I recently returned from a five-week vacation throughout Asia, which featured as much beer, wine and spirits as we could cram in. Here is part one of some of the notable experiences we enjoyed on our journey:

The fun all got started when we joined Mrs. Sip’s parents and sister in Singapore. Drinks in the city are very expensive and we had to work hard to find happy hour deals, where beverages could be had on a buy one-get one basis (or as they promoted it, one-for-one).

Happy Hour Savings

We also managed to track down some craft beer in Singapore, passing by the Red Dot Brewhouse, by chance. I ordered the Monster Green Lager, which was infused with spirulina and advertised as a must-try novelty beer, while Mrs. Sip asked for the Lime Wheat (brewed with local lime). The brewery’s name has an interesting story: the owner was touring South Africa in 1997 when he was first introduced to home brewing. When he visited a shop to bring some supplies back home, his options were for an ale or a lager… one marked with a red dot and the other not. The rest is history, as they say.

Our last night in Singapore was spent staying at the Marina Bay Sands. We splurged and booked one of their club rooms, which for the “low” price of $600, provided us with invitations to an afternoon tea, cocktail hour and breakfast. To justify the costly indulgence, Mrs. Sip and I made sure to drink $250-plus worth of booze during the cocktail hour! It was during this binge that I completed the four horseman challenge, consuming one beverage each featuring Jim Beam, Jack Daniels, Jose Cuervo, and Johnnie Walker (all doubles, of course)!

Next up was our 18-day cruise, with port stops throughout Asia. These stops included Bangkok, Thailand; Ho Chi Minh City and Da Nang, Vietnam; Hong Kong and Shanghai, China; Taipei, Taiwan; Nagasaki, Japan; and Busan, South Korea.

Cruise Ship Pirate

I’ve written about our booze strategies on cruises before, but we learned some new things on this trip. One of our first tasks was to purchase a wine package. We went with the silver-level 12-bottle card, which meant our nightly bottle with dinner would cost as cheap as $20 each, as opposed to the $29 price point.

Another savings we regularly took advantage of was the ship’s BOGO hours, where two drinks could be purchased with the second only costing $1. We learned early on that this could also be applied to beers (which we would stock up on and save for days at sea as we relaxed poolside) and even wine bottles. Speaking of beers, Princess Cruises has introduced a third brew to their burgeoning Seawitch craft beer line-up, adding a Blonde Ale to their IPA and Red Ale (my personal fave).

My one not-so-good drinking experience on the ship was ordering a specialty margarita to celebrate Cinco de Mayo. I asked for the Chili and Chocolate (Don Julio Reposado, White Creme de Cacao, jalapenos) option and the bartender had to look up the recipe. Shouldn’t that be a prerequisite of working the Margarita Bar? The drink was passable, but not as good as the previous serving I’ve had of it. The bartender used chocolate sauce in the margarita which made it look dirty and threw the flavour off.

Cinco de Mayo

As far as drinking off the ship, one of my favourite stops of the cruise was our two-day layover in Hong Kong. This gave us a rare chance to experience the city’s night life, which cruises don’t often provide. With Mrs. Sip having a couple friends living in Hong Kong, we had an inside edge and ended up at the Happy Valley Racecourse, which had its own beer garden. There, with a pitcher of Kronenboug Blanc in hand, I enjoyed our groups’ only betting win of the evening!

With the cruise over, we flew to Japan where we would spend the next two weeks trekking across the country… but that’s a story for another Sip Trips!

Sip Trips #62: Portlandia

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As the Sip Advisor and company packed up to celebrate the Easter weekend in Portland, we knew we were in for good times, but I’m still amazed at how many good beers I was able to cram into the short time.

Following a nice dinner at Mama Mia Trattoria (where I had a delicious Boneyard RPM IPA) on our first night, the Sip Alliance made our way to Tugboat Brewing, which claims to be Portland’s smallest craft brewery. There, we sampled each of Tugboat’s three own beers, as well as ordered some from their guest taps from around the state. As we enjoyed our beers, we were able to play one of the bars many board games, chat with the knowledgeable and jovial barkeep Linsel, and just take in the Portland scene.

Italian-Food

The Portland Spring Beer & Wine Fest is the main event of this yearly pilgrimage and while this year featured a mix of ups and downs, we all still had a great time. The first issue came as we tried to redeem our tickets. We each purchased the VIP package add-on, to go with the regular entry ticket bundle. Unfortunately, it seemed as if the ticket takers weren’t really trained on what kind of tickets they should expect to see, as it took a team of two to figure out that we had paid for both packages. With the regular ticket, visitors get entrance to the festival, a souvenir glass and 10 tokens. The VIP package provided an additional six VIP tickets to use on an advertised 20 special items.

Speaking of those special items, there only ended up being about a dozen to choose from, mostly comprised of cheeses and chocolates. One of the bonus beer items I had my heart set on was already unavailable, despite us all showing up at the very start of the second day.

In the end, it seemed as if there was absolutely no benefit to the VIP package and serious changes should be made to that option for next year, or it should be abandoned entirely. Admittedly, the Sip Advisor and Mrs. Sip ended up trading our VIP tickets in for normal tokens, just to get something out of them.

VIP NOT

Not to harp on the event too much, but one other disappointment from the festival was the elimination of info/pairing seminars. These have been a highlight of our past visits to the Beer & Wine Fest and I really hope they are brought back.

Okay, enough of the negatives, let’s finish with some positives. I tried a number of very good beers over the afternoon, including wares from StormBreaker, Snipes Mountain, Leikam, Coin Toss, Gilgamesh, Krauski, Unicorn, Elysian, Lompoc, Rusty Truck, Old Town, Natian, and Sai What.

My choice for best booth of the show was the Thomas & Sons Distillery, where Mrs. Sip, Sis-in-Law Sip and I spent a fair bit of time tasting each of the company’s tea-based liqueurs (I was particularly enamoured with their Smoke Tea Liqueur). This is where I used my one and only VIP ticket, trying their Boilermaker collaboration with Planktown Brewing. We also purchased one of Thomas & Sons liqueur sample packs for future cocktail experimenting.

Tea Kitty

The following day, we hit the town for a Portland brewery crawl, making our way to five different locations and experiencing the city’s public transportation (day passes were only $5!). Our first stop was Breakside Brewing, which has a few products that can be found on our side of the border. Mrs. Sip and I shared a flight of tasters, with my favourite being their Salted Caramel Stout.

Stop number two was Old Town Brewing, which we conveniently drove by en route to Breakside. Here, we ordered another flight, which was comprised of eight different beers. The tops among them for me, were the Law & Porter and Paulie’s Not Irish Red.

From there, we ditched the vehicles and hit public transport, where we first ventured to Burnside Brewing. I had another really good beer here, the Too Sticky To Roll India Red Ale. Next up, was Hair of the Dog, where I had their Adam beer, the brewery’s very first release. They even have servings available of that inaugural brew from 1994… which will only set you back $1500 (they call it the most sought after beer in the world).

Public Transit Weird People

We then rushed to our dinner reservation at Der Rheinlander, where our ravenous group destroyed as much schnitzel as possible to go along with some great German beers. The only disappointment here was that two of us ordered a “boot” of beer and were simply served giant mugs. That’s what I call flagrant false advertising!

As we arrived at Der Rhinelander, Mrs. Sip spotted Laurelwood Brew Pub just up the street, so we decided to pop in following our meal. Here, we had another awesome server, who took care of all our beer needs, while also charging a couple of our phones and setting us up with an Uber ride back downtown. I enjoyed their Rando IPA #11, while playing with their set-up meant for small children.

The night ended with some burlesque at Dante’s Sinferno Cabaret. While watching a number of crazy acts, I took advantage of Dante’s decently priced line-up of Portland-based beers. Before officially packing it in, we also managed a stop at Voodoo Doughnuts, which provided breakfast the next morning.

Before you knew it, it was time to return home. This weekend looks to be a little quieter, but every time I venture to say that, we end up going all out and comes across more than enough to document.