Tag Archives: Brewery Creek

BC Beer Baron #128 – Red Truck Midnight Run Dark Lager

Posted on by
Reply

When the sun vanquishes the winter darkness (even briefly), you can expect every single Vancouverite to declare that patio season has arrived. Mrs. Sip and I are among those fine folks and so we recently found ourselves at Tap & Barrel in the Olympic Village, enjoying the first glimpses of spring. There, I enjoyed a flight of beers that was highlighted by this Red Truck Brewing release.

The Midnight Run Dark Lager is a limited release of the brewery with stats of 4.9% ABV and 23 IBUs. There was a nice smoky finish, on top of this solid beer, which is available in bomber-sized bottles. I’ve become a big fan of dark lagers (sometimes called schwarzbiers), as they provide a welcome change to your typical brew.

Red Truck Midnight Run Dark Lager

Sticking with Red Truck’s theme of naming beers after vehicles and driving, this may be one of their best brandings and there’s even a story to go with it: “The stakes were high but the risk was even greater, and it went well, very well! We smuggled it out of the brewery right under our brewers’ watchful eyes and noses as they were saving this exceptional Dark Lager for their own personal stash… A Midnight Run was the only way to get it out without being apprehended. We took extremely high risks so you could enjoy our Dark Lager!”

The next time I’m able to visit Red Truck’s very cool facility in the Brewery Creek region of the city, I hope that this selection is on their menu, as I’d love to sit back and enjoy a full serving.

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

BC Beer Baron #127 – Brassneck Cherubesque

Posted on by
Reply

Trips to Brassneck Brewing are often met with disappointment. To be clear, that’s not the beer’s fault. It’s just so difficult at peak times to get into their uber popular tasting room. Sometimes you get lucky, though, as Mrs. Sip and I did on a recent tour through the Brewery Creek region of Vancouver.

During that visit, we tried the Cherubesque. This Belgian Strong Ale was first brewed in November 2013. At 8% ABV, it’s nice and strong and right up Mrs. Sip’s alley. For the record, I enjoyed it too.

Brassneck Cherubesque

In their description of the beer, Brassneck takes some shots at “beer nerds” everywhere, including themselves: “Beer nerds think they can get away with throwing a pair of e’s at the end of their adjectives to describe beers so why the heck can’t we. (After all, we are beer nerds!!). Bubblegum-ee, Stone Fruit-ee, Raisin-ee, Booze-ee, Chew-ee. We’d describe it as an Abbey Style Ale. We ferment with a mysterious blend of yeast strains to maximize the Belgian-ee-ness, then we hurl in some dark candy sugar to twist up the ‘je-ne-sais-quoi’ knob. Tastes good. Drink some.”

That last little bit sounds like a motto the brewery should be printing on their merchandise… so long as that doesn’t make getting into their tasting room even more challenging!

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

BC Beer Baron #126 – Odds N’ Sods IPA

Posted on by
Reply

A couple months back, the Sip Syndicate wound up at Main Street Brewing’s quaint location on a chilly Friday night, where the work week that was had to be drunk away and beer was the answer.

The Odds N’ Sods IPA was my first choice of the night and while we waited for some seats to open up (apparently we weren’t the only ones that needed some liquid relief), this 6.8% ABV, 55 IBU beverage welcomed me to the weekend with open arms and I embraced it back.

Just released in January, there’s a ton going on with the Odds N’ Sods IPA, including six different malts and another six hop variations, which sees the beer hopped a total of six times during the brewing process. Flavours and aromas in the brew include pine, resin, lychee, spice, passionfruit, peach, grapefruit, melon, lime, and gooseberry.

Main Street Odd N' Sods IPA

A search on UrbanDictionary.com revealed the following about the beer’s name:

  1. 1. A variation on the ubiquitous expression “bits and pieces” in the U.K. A miscellany of objects, tasks, or issues.
  2. A reference to a group of unnamed individuals who are related in some general way.

Well, I’m not sure if that’s a reference to the various ingredients that comprise this beer or to the random assortment of folks who may drink it, but what I am sure about is the IPA was fantastic and it would soon be joined by other options, as the night progressed.

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

BC Beer Baron #125 – 33 Acres of Sunshine

Posted on by
Reply

Mrs. Sip and I first visited 33 Acres Brewing on their first anniversary and ever since have enjoyed returning to the brewery, being very impressed with our most recent stopover while touring the Brewery Creek region of Vancouver.

The 33 Acres of Sunshine always seems to be among our favourites when we get tasters or bottles. This 5% ABV French Blanche has flavours of fruit (particularly orange), spices and even black licorice, making for an easy drinking experience.

33 Acres of Sunshine

The brewery describes the beer as: “Born of the sun, this unfiltered white ale has long been praised by the Belgians and revered by the French. Our dreamy Blanche beer is silky smooth and subspiced with orange peel, coriander and anise seed to pair perfectly with the golden days of summer.”

One of my favourite 33 Acres memories stems from planning a bike brewery crawl for a friend’s birthday last year. There was no way we were going to be able to get our large group into their popular tasting room, so we bought a few six-packs (33 Acres of Sunshine among them) and took them to a nearby park to enjoy some drinking in the great outdoors.

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

BC Beer Baron #124 – R&B Dark Star Oatmeal Stout

Posted on by
1

On two separate visits to R&B Brewing’s Brewery Creek location, I’ve enjoyed samples of this beer and feel the need to share it with all you little sippers.

The Dark Star Oatmeal Stout has flavours or rich chocolate and roasted coffee. I don’t often find stouts with a reasonable amount of carbonation, so this was a nice surprise from the brew. The 4.6% ABV, 25 IBUs beverage is available in bomber bottles.

R&B Dark Star Oatmeal Stout

Brewed in memory of R&B employee Jamie Kelly, this fall/winter seasonal release won a gold medal at the 2010 Canadian Brewing Awards in the Stout category. That sounds like a great homage to the brewery’s fallen friend.

R&B was set to open their tasting room on or near St. Patrick’s Day, but BC Liquor Board snags held that up. The site finally launched in April and one thing is for sure: the wait for R&B beers is more rewarding than R&B music!

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

BC Beer Baron #123 – Steel Toad Saison Sauvignon

Posted on by
2

From my earliest visits to the Steel Toad Brew Pub (Mrs. Sip and I were there on their opening weekend), this beer has been part of the company’s flagship lineup.

The Saison Sauvignon is a farmhouse-styled saison that is brewed with New Zealand hops, which result in the taste of white wine (sauvignon blanc) grapes. The beer is boozier than most saisons, coming in at 6.5% ABV. I’m not sure if that’s due to the wine attributes or something else in the beverage’s construction.

Steel Toad Brew Pub

Mrs. Sip and I both remember this beer from our earlier visits to the brew pub and with a change to its recipe (according to our server), it is now much more enjoyable. Mrs. Sip even picked it as her favourite of our most recent jaunt that way.

Located in the very recognizable red building on East 2nd Ave, Steel Toad comprises a network of breweries that are part of The Hoppy Hop (similar to Bellingham’s Tap Trail), allowing enthusiasts to tour the Brewery Creek region and win prizes after collecting answers to trivia questions at each stop.

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

BC Beer Baron #99 – 33 Acres of Ocean

Posted on by
Reply

The Sip Advisor wrapped up his evening out at the Library Square Public House with this fantastic beverage from 33 Acres Brewing.

The 33 Acres of Ocean is an American Pale Ale, with a strong hop profile and pine scent that has it bordering on the IPA perimeter. At 5.6% ABV, the beverage was refreshing and far from heavy.

33 Acres of Ocean

Resulting in the brew’s name, many of its ingredients were harvested near the Pacific Ocean, including the three hops varieties (galena, cascade and citra) that make up the recipe. I like the company’s tagline for the drink: “Typically consumed in good company amid the Pacific and pine.”

Mrs. Sip was recently won over big time by 33 Acres, after enjoying most of their line-up and particularly their 33 Acres of Euphoria Belgian Tripel, during a recent visit to the brewery and tasting room. This beer was another reminder to me, of how good the company is.

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

BC Beer Baron #98 – Callister Axis & Allies Rye Pale Ale

Posted on by
Reply

On a recent trip to St. Augustine’s, one of Vancouver’s finest craft beer restaurants, the Sip Advisor ordered a paddle of tasters to sample. Among them, was this release from Callister Brewing.

The Axis & Allies Rye Pale Ale was decent. I’m finding the addition of rye to any brew to be quite enjoyable, as it adds an element of strength to the recipe. The beverage comes in at 5.5% ABV and features notes of citrus and spice (and everything nice!) for a well-balanced drink.

Callister Brewing

Somewhat unique to Callister is that they also makes sodas. Their current menu includes Ginger Mint, Blueberry Lemongrass and Traditional Tonic. These sound like fun options for all my fellow mixologists out there.

I’ve only been to Callister Brewing’s collaborative facility once before and really need to get back there. The space is shared between Callister, Real Cask, Machine Ales, and Brewery Creek, which means lots of available beers. With spring arriving and summer just around the bend, bike season has also come upon us and a Yeast Van brewery crawl is definitely on the horizon.

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

BC Beer Baron #79 – Stag and Pheasant Imperial Stout

Posted on by
Reply

Each month, as part of this 366-day BC craft beer extravaganza that I will be sharing with you throughout 2016, I will highlight a specific style or theme of beers for a whole week of articles. Since March features St. Patrick’s Day and many of us largely associate the celebration with Guinness beer, the Sip Advisor thought it would be a prime month to highlight some of B.C.’s best stout beers.

In late January, the Sip Syndicate descended upon Main Street Brewing for some drinks and before we knew it, each of us was a couple beers deep before Mrs. Sip even arrived. When she did, I insisted she order this brew and get caught up to the rest of us.

The Stag and Pheasant Imperial Stout is definitely of the winter warmer variety. You do feel the 9% ABV, but I was surprised to see it come in at 65 IBU’s, as the hoppiness is nicely hidden. Tastes of chocolate, coffee and what the brewery calls “a touch of pine” are present with a “hint of smoke” on the back end.

Main Street Stag & Pheasant Imperial Stout.png

The stout is named after the Stag & Pheasant saloon, which existed in Vancouver’s Gastown neighbourhood in the late 1800’s. The establishment was owned by Charles Doering, who sold the business in 1888, in order to enter the brewing game. Doering would go on to co-found the Vancouver Brewery which all these years later has been converted into the home of Main Street’s Brewery Creek location.

Originally released in 2014, I look forward to future engagements with this beer, as well as returns to Main Street Brewing and its historical site.

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

BC Beer Baron #71 – Red Truck Cherry Porter

Posted on by
Reply

The fifth and final stop of our Brewery Creek crawl brought us to Red Truck Brewing’s ‘Truck Stop’, located where the original Vancouver Brewery did business, many moons ago.

Given Red Truck is known for their mixed pack of lager, ale, IPA, and ISA flagship products, I made it a point to order only selections I hadn’t tried before. Among my samples was their Cherry Porter, a dark and delicious beer that passed both my and Mrs. Sip’s taste test.

Red Truck Brewing

I’ve never tried any of Red Truck’s darker beers, but my enjoyment of this brew, along with their Irish Stout, makes me very open to changing that stance. Not that it was a stance, per se, but I’ll be more interested in releases I find at local stores, such as the Swamp Thing Stout.

Red Truck’s new facility may be one of the best tasting lounges in the province. Here, live music accentuates a truck stop diner feel, with great food to pair with tasty beers. Their attention to details in decorating the place will have truck lovers (and non-fans alike) searching for the finer features.

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