Sip Trips #87: Holiday Wrap

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I’m not going to lie, my little sippers. The Sip Advisor is a little down in the dumps with the holiday season coming to a close. I know there are some amazing things on the horizon and these feelings will pass. Let’s take a look at how the Sip Alliance finished 2016.

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On Friday, Mrs. Sip and I visited Rogue Kitchen & Wetbar for a little date night and to celebrate the last working day of the year. When we had tried to eat there, following our trip to the Vancouver Christmas Market, they were hosting a private event, but we were given two drink coupons to entice us to return. While we split a meal of their Short Rib Beef Dip and Chicken Tenders, Mrs. Sip ordered the Elderflower Radler, while I enjoyed a pint of R&B Brewing’s Shake Yo Fruity Milkshake IPA (featured in the original Beer of the Week post). We also sampled the Central City Brewing Southern Cross Kiwi Sour, which I had heard was a very popular beer from the company’s Seasons Greetings advent calendar.

To ring in the New Year, the Sip Alliance made our way to Craft Beer Market for their Best of 2016 Brewmaster’s Dinner. The event featured a four-course meal with beer pairings, with the menu, as follows: Mushroom, Bacon and Bean Ragout with Delirium Tremens; Salmon Crudo with Steamworks & Craft Collaboration Kitchen Gose Mad; Braised Chuck Flat with Four Winds IPA; and Dark Chocolate Terrine with Phillips Longboat Chocolate Porter. The main course of braised chuck flat was delicious and paired nicely with the IPA, while the dessert and porter were also very good. I felt so-so about the two opening dishes, but the beers were both nice. As for pricing, early bird tickets were $65 and I thought the price was worth it… we certainly had a lot of fun throughout the evening.

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Finally, last night, I got to enjoy one of my Christmas gifts, going to the Vancouver Canucks-Arizona Coyotes game with a friend who snagged me a ticket for a Secret Santa present. Prior to the contest, we met for drinks at the Devil’s Elbow Ale & Smoke House, which has a number of culinary items I wish to try in the coming months. On this visit, the Sip Advisor paired a couple pints of Howe Sound Brewing’s Father John Winter Ale with their Southern Fried Chicken Sandwich, which was incredibly good.

As for the game, the Canucks won 3-0, with one of those goals coming on a penalty shot, which was quite exciting. Drinking wise, craft beer is hard to come by at Rogers Arena. While the stadium has been required to have 10% of their beer sales be of the craft variety, they do have a contract with macro-brewer Molson and that’s why a majority of the products available fall under that banner. Oh well, like my beloved Canucks, you can’t win ‘em all!

Beer of the Week #1 – R&B Shake Yo Fruity Milkshake IPA

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While the BC Beer Baron project has ended, I still want to dabble in the province’s craft beer scene. Therefore, each week I will feature something I’ve been drinking over the last seven days, with today’s selection coming from R&B Brewing.

With a name like Shake Yo Fruity Milkshake IPA, I wasn’t sure what to expect. I think the word ‘milkshake’ is a bit misleading, as it made me expect a smoothie-like beverage. That said, the beer was creamier than your average beverage.

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The 7.3% ABV, 38 IBUs drink is a pretty solid release. I really enjoyed the hop content of the brew. The limited release is only available for a short time at R&B’s Ale & Pizza House and other craft beer-centric restaurants and taphouses.

Shake Yo Fruity, of course, is a clever reference to the classic “Shake Your Booty” by KC & The Sunshine Band, which has been featured in too much media to count. This version is highlighted by flavours of citrus, such as orange and grapefruit.

For more Beer of the Week articles, please visit our main page…

Mixer Mania #1 – The Good Doctor

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One of my favourite pops – or sodas for the American audience – is Dr. Pepper. With that in mind, today, we look at those folks out there who are better known as doctors, despite having never earned a doctorate.

Doc Holliday

Although he left his career as a dentist for the wild, wild west, the nickname stuck and John Henry ‘Doc’ Holliday became a legend. Holliday is most famous for his role in the Gunfight at the O.K. Corral, where he joined with lawman Wyatt Earp and company to battle a group of outlaws in Tombstone, Arizona.

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Dr. Death

Professional wrestling is full of great nicknames and one of the best went to Steve Williams. The name came from William’s high school wrestling days, when he was forced to wrestle in a hockey goalie mask and his coach dubbed him with the moniker. Sadly, Williams died in 2009, following a battle with throat cancer.

Dr. J

Also known by his real name, Julius Erving, the Basketball Hall of Fame member was known for being a trailblazer in the art of slam dunks. The Doctor was a nickname given to Erving by a high school friend who he called The Professor. Other names, such as ‘The Claw’ and ‘Black Moses’ just didn’t stick as well as Dr. J.

julius-erving-doctor

Dr. Seuss

Born Theodor Geisel, he used the pen name Dr. Seuss, dating back to his college days. Among his most popular titles are How the Grinch Stole Christmas!, The Cat in the Hat, Horton Hears a Who!, and The Lorax, all of which have been adapted into films. Seuss won a special Pulitzer Prize in 1984 for his life’s work.

Dr. Dre

The rap icon, with hits like California Love, Still D.R.E., and Forgot About Dre to his credit, cut his first name, Andre, in half and added the Dr. portion at the front. Today, Dre is still kicking it, with his popular ‘Beats by Dr. Dre’ headphones. His son has followed in his footsteps, adopting the rap nickname Hood Surgeon.

Mixer Mania #1: The Mud Pie

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  • 1.5 oz Root Beer Schnapps
  • 1 oz Dark Rum
  • 3 oz Hot Chocolate Mix
  • Top with Dr. Pepper
  • Garnish with a Maraschino Cherry

That wraps up the first Mixer Mania. Join us every Monday for 2017, as we delve into the mayhem of 52 different drink mixers. Should be a lot of fun!

Sip Advisor Bar Notes (3 Sips out of 5):
I was really curious to see how hot chocolate mix would pair with a fizzy drink. While the taste was good, mixing the hot chocolate powder and Dr. Pepper created a volcano effect that was hard to turn around and the only way to drink the cocktail was through a straw. Perhaps pre-mixing the hot chocolate, prior to adding the other ingredients would work better, but this looked cool.

Sip Trips #86: Best of 2016

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Each year, the Sip Advisor fondly looks back at the best drinking nights (in order of occurrence) of the previous calendar… at least what he can remember of them. Join us as we take a moment to dissect and celebrate 2016:

Libational Learning

When a night ends with the Sip Advisor passing out on the couch, sans clothing, you know it’s been a good one! The Science of Cocktails extravaganza was a fascinating and booze-fueled evening. We wanted to return this year, but Mrs. Sip has a trial starting the next day, so that doesn’t seem to be in the cards. #Responsibilities

Family Day Festivities

Over the Family Day long weekend, the Sip Alliance explored both the Fraser Valley and North Vancouver craft beer regions, hitting more than a dozen locations. Many of these, were first time stops for our group and it opened our eyes to all the wonders that exist outside of Vancouver.

family-time

Crawling Around

Just one day after the Portland Beer & Wine Festival, we were back at it, hitting the streets of the City of Roses and searching out some of its most popular breweries. Over the course of the day, we worked our way through a half dozen tasting rooms. Eventually, we ended the journey with an Easter-themed burlesque show and Voodoo Doughnuts… because why the hell not!?

Lion City Leisure

With three nights in Singapore to start our five-week Asian adventure, we decided to spend one of those nights at the swanky Marina Bay Sands. Our hotel package included their evening happy hour, which in true Mr. and Mrs. Sip fashion, we rocked until they kindly asked us to leave. We followed this with swimming in the resort’s rooftop pool, 63 floors above the city.

The Happiest of Valleys

The fun didn’t stop there, as our cruise made a two-day stop in the vibrant city that is Hong Kong. This allowed us the chance to enjoy some nightlife, helped along by Mrs. Sip having a few friends living in the city. Coincidentally, it was also Wednesday race night at the Happy Valley Racetrack. Over a couple pitchers of beer, the Sip Advisor even picked a winning horse and took home a small prize.

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So Many Options

Arriving in Tokyo, Japan, we chose to stay near the Golden Gai district of the city. For those unfamiliar with the area, it is home to approximately 300 little bars, within a six-block radius. Our exploration led us into a few uniquely-themed watering holes, such as the one centered around horror movie and metal music cultures.

Drinking Sky High

Our fun in Tokyo didn’t stop there. The moment Mrs. Sip discovered that this attraction existed, we knew it would be a highlight of our stay in the city. At the Park Hyatt, their Peak Bar offered visitors the chance to drink all-inclusive during sunset hours, while looking down at the bustling city below, from the 41st floor. We ended up sitting next to a couple from Australia and spent the night drinking with them, as I challenged the bartender to make me her best drink with each different alcohol available.

Tipping N’ Tasting

Among my favourite annual beer festivals is the Tip N’ Taste event in Langley. It provides a chance to sample brews from companies based more in the Fraser Valley region of BC, as well as other entries from around the province. This year, we stayed overnight at the Convention Centre Hotel, which hosted the event. That meant the after party quickly moved to our room!

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Island Wedding

While on Prince Edward Island for a friend’s wedding, Mrs. Sip and I were introduced to a number of great people, who we partied away the weekend with. Following a meet-and-greet barbecue on the eve of the wedding, we accompanied our new associates back into Charlottetown for an impromptu night on the town, which ended much later than we had anticipated.

All You Need is Love

The Made with Love cocktail competition has become an annual tradition (three years running) for Mrs. Sip and I. It’s always a fun night out, trying the drinks of some of Vancouver’s most popular bartenders. Best of all, we get to play a role in picking the winning entry, although none of our personal favourites ever seem to come out on top.

Cruise Credits

To celebrate Sis-in-Law Sip’s birthday, we booked a one-day cruise from Seattle to Vancouver. Over the course of the evening, the Sip Advisor took in parts of four bottles of wine, a half-dozen beers, a couple cocktails, and a bottle of bubbly to boot, won through a ‘Finish the Song Lyrics’ quiz.

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Irish Blessings

Over the last couple years, I’ve been incredibly lucky to have celebrated my birthday in Hawaii, aboard a cruise ship, in Southern Africa, and now Ireland – although it was a couple days after the actual date. The Sip Syndicate was along for this ride and we celebrated in true Irish style with shots of Jameson Whiskey and pints of Guinness.

Fear and Loathing

Our trips to Disneyland nowadays typically include enjoying the sights and sounds (and lines) of the park with a cold beer or glass of wine in hand. In October, we were also primed for Universal Studios’ Halloween Horror Nights, which involves getting a good buzz going, prior to entering. Once that was accomplished, all we had to deal with was psycho killer clowns, a rogue’s gallery of baddies and even some Jabbawockeez!

Award Season

My first year attending one of BC’s best craft beer shindigs proved why I had missed out in previous years. Unable to attend because of vacations and other commitments, we finally made it to the BC Beer Awards, where the Sip Advisor was able to sample about 20 different beers from the wonderful breweries that make up the province’s craft industry.

awards-season

Diamond Celebration

To commemorate Ma Sip’s 60th birthday, the entire family ventured to Disneyland, which also recently celebrated the same milestone. Mrs. Sip’s aunt also had her 50th birthday on that weekend, so there was much to revel in. That included a fair bit of drinking at the park and in our hotel rooms, as we made the change from day to night wear.

Traditional Tidings

To celebrate Christmas this year, the Sip Family stayed in Leavenworth, Washington, which is famous for being a little slice of Bavaria, hidden in the mountains. The town is a haven for Christmas lovers, and it’s here that we explored the many wine tasting rooms, a couple breweries and exuded as much festive spirit as one is allowed to, by law.

2016 was an amazing year… at least drinking wise. I can’t wait to see what 2017 has to offer, even though it has quite a bit to live up to!

BC Beer Baron #366 – Longwood The Big One IPA

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Much like for Christmas, the Sip Advisor was looking for the perfect beer to profile on New Year’s Eve. While that didn’t come as easy as its predecessor holiday, I did come across this product, courtesy of Longwood Brewing.

The Big One IPA is constructed using hops and malted barley grown locally. At 6.5% and 65 IBUs, this beverage is sure to measure on your Richter scale and is available in 568ml extra-tall cans at private liquor stores around the province.

longwood-the-big-one-ipa

Sure, the beer was designed as a reference to the massive earthquake predicted to hit this part of the world sometime in the future, but I thought it was an ideal selection for the end of this BC Beer Baron project. This is the ‘big one’!

The Nanaimo-based brewery is also home to a brew pub, which I would love to visit on a future trip to Vancouver Island. The location has become “one of Nanaimo’s premier destinations” and that’s good enough for me.

For more BC Beer Baron articles, please visit our main page…

BC Beer Baron #365 – Red Truck Red Pilsner

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Upon returning from our Christmas holiday in Leavenworth, Washington, Mrs. Sip and I hosted a visiting friend and we ended up at Romer’s Burger Bar for a bite to eat. There, I ordered a pint of this Red Truck Brewing product.

The Red Pilsner is “an amber twist on the Czech Pilsner tradition.” The 5% ABV, 25 IBUs beverage is solid in taste and aroma, featuring malted wheat and black malt, which combine to give the beer its flavour, as well as its red appearance.

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This beer is a favourite of Cousin Sip’s husband (despite its hop content) and is available in six-packs at BC Liquor Stores. It is also the winter seasonal feature in the company’s Craftmaster Mixer Pack, joined by an IPA, Ale, and Lager.

I wish Red Truck would incorporate a more varied mix of brews into their case, which has always stuck to more traditional recipes. That said, the brewery’s motto is “no preservatives, no pasteurization, no compromises, no bullshit.”

For more BC Beer Baron articles, please visit our main page…

Sip Trips #85: Leavenworth Love

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Over the Christmas break, the Sip Family returned to a familiar destination: Leavenworth, Washington. That said, it had been about 10 years since we last vacationed in the Bavarian-themed town for the holidays and so much has changed since.

The journey started with a trip to BevMo, shortly after crossing the Canada-US border. Here, I picked up a collection of mini liquor bottles to give out as part of our stocking stuffer exchange, where each person was responsible for a small gift – around $5 – for each of the other 10 family members. I tried to select a perfect spirit for each person, including Jameson Whiskey for Father-in-Law Sip, Sailor Jerry’s Spiced Rum for Pa Sip, Peach Schnapps for Cousin Sip, and Chambord for Mrs. Sip.

We arrived late Friday night in Leavenworth, allowing us a full day to explore on Christmas Eve. We began by popping into a couple of the wine tasting rooms that line the very busy Front Street, before taking refuge at Icicle Brewing at the end of the road. Although we could only find seating outside, this was a definite highlight of the vacation for the Sip Advisor, as it made me feel as if we were enjoying a true European Christmas market.

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As for drinks, I started with the Bootjack IPA, while Mrs. Sip enjoyed a serving of their Christmas Spiced Altbier. I then moved on to what would become my favourite beer of the trip: the Dark Persuasion German Chocolate Cake Ale. I mean, does it get much better than sitting in a Bavarian-inspired town, drinking beers outdoors, and having one of them be of the German Chocolate Cake variety!? On another visit on Boxing Day, we also ordered pints of the brewery’s Colchuck Raspberry Wheat and Timbertown Brown.

For celebrating in the room, I picked up New Belgium Brewing’s Folly Pack. Included in the set was their Fat Tire Amber Ale, Citradelic Tangerine IPA, Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ale (a collaboration with Ben & Jerry’s), and 2-Degree Below Ale. I really liked each of the brews in this collection and particularly enjoyed the Chocolate Chip Cookie Dough Ale, which had the neat aftertaste of both chocolate chips and cookie dough.

Our stocking stuffer exchange was a lot of fun, including such gifts as a can of Big Rock Winter Spice Ale, can of Iron Horse Cozy Sweater Ale, flashlight, photo frame, lotto scratchers, Pez dispenser, mug, shot glass, and Starbucks gift cards. I look forward to doing this again in future years. As far as Christmas gifts with a boozy spin goes, Ma and Pa Sip provided me with a BC Liquor Stores gift card, while Mrs. Sip stuffed a bomber of Barkerville Demi-Mondaine Dunkelweizen in my stocking.

stocking-stuffer-present-appetizers

For Boxing Day, we did a bit of a drink crawl, which included another wine tasting room and the aforementioned secondary visit to Icicle Brewing. As we left Icicle, we serendipitously were approached by a family looking for Blewett Brewery. We decided to help them out in finding the place we didn’t know even existed and ended up at another great tap house.

While at Blewett, I tried their Winter Warmer Ale, while Mrs. Sip opted for the Belgian Wheat Ale. Ma Sip even grabbed a glass of one of the cider’s they had available. We also tried a taster of their Cinnamon Vanilla Bean Imperial Stout and chatted with one of the co-owner’s, Kyle, who mentioned the operation had only been open for a few months.

The vacation provided a wonderful way to get away from the usual Christmas pressures, while also allowing for a great deal of family time in one of the most amazing settings to enjoy the winter season. I would recommend anyone check out the area at some point in their life and particularly if you want a genuine Christmas experience.

BC Beer Baron #364 – R&B Ursos Arctos Russian Imperial Stout

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On a recent visit to R&B Brewing’s Ale and Pizza House, the Sip Advisor was able to try this heavy hitter, which immediately caught the eye of myself and my drinking buddy. Much thanks to the server who encouraged us to venture into unchartered territory.

The Ursos Arctos Russian Imperial Stout is perfect for the winter season with its chocolate and coffee flavours and aroma and high alcohol content. At 10.4% ABV and 85 IBUs, this drink is not for the faint-hearted and is probably why it comes in 12 oz. pours.

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The beverage has recently been released in bomber-sized bottles, available for purchase at private liquor stores around the Lower Mainland, as well as at the brewery’s retail store. Suggested food pairings include aged cheeses, dark chocolate and chocolate desserts.

The R&B Ale and Pizza House has quickly become a favourite Vancouver stop for myself and members of the Sip Syndicate. It’s laid back atmosphere, tasty pizzas and diverse beer selection will keep us coming back time and time again.

For more BC Beer Baron articles, please visit our main page…

BC Beer Baron #363 – Brassneck Sticks & Stones Rye Saison

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On a recent outing to the Brewery Creek district of Vancouver, a friend and I were looking for one more beverage as last call approached. We both settled on this Brassneck Brewing option, thanks to its combination of styles.

The Sticks & Stones Rye Saison spoke to both of us for its rye content (through the addition of rye malts), while saisons have become a favourite brewing family for the Sip Advisor. The 6% ABV beverage was a good nightcap choice.

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First brewed in April 2014, the company has a number of saison options that are rotated through the taps. Some of these alternatives include the Sunny Disposition Single Hop Saison and Loose Agenda Wheat Saison.

One of the things I love about Brassneck Brewing is how varied their lineup is every time I visit. No two stops at their Vancouver tasting room are the same and this makes the popular brewery worth the wait to get seating.

For more BC Beer Baron articles, please visit our main page…

BC Beer Baron #362 – Spinnakers Jolly Hopper Imperial IPA

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Perfect for the holiday season and all the celebrations that come with it, this Spinnakers Brewing product was quickly scooped off the shelf by the Sip Advisor. To boot, the beer is fairly red in colour, making it more than festive!

The Jolly Hopper Imperial IPA comes exactly as advertised, with a hearty 8% ABV and a whopping 100 IBUs. Despite the strong hops content, I didn’t find the brew to be too bitter and even Broski Sip (a less experienced beer drinker) liked the taste.

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The release is available in bomber-sized bottles at BC Liquor Stores. The Sip Advisor’s process for purchasing drinks includes weighing alcohol percentage and cost, with beverage IBUs and style also playing a smaller role in my decision making.

I really enjoyed the pirate theme of this selection.  The beer’s label states: While the Jolly Roger is flown to identify that pirates are about to attack, our Jolly Hopper signifies an imminent attack on your tastebuds… Surrender or walk the plank.”

For more BC Beer Baron articles, please visit our main page…