Tag Archives: North Vancouver

BC Beer Baron #116 – Black Kettle Kentucky Common

Posted on by
Reply

When the Sip Alliance visited Black Kettle Brewing in February, we weren’t sure what to expect, but they had a new and unique beer on tap that quickly caught my eye.

The Kentucky Common is a darker, stronger (6.5% ABV) brew, with a slight sweetness. It goes down easy though and is a very enjoyable beverage. As far as I know, the beer is only available on tap at Black Kettle’s home of operations.

Black Kettle Brewing

So, what is a Kentucky Common and how did it end up in BC? Well, it’s an ale (also going by the names Dark Cream Common Beer, Cream Beer, or Common Beer) that was popular pre-prohibition in Louisville, Kentucky. Apparently, it’s rare to find nowadays, so I’m feeling a little lucky that I had the chance to have a serving.

For those that haven’t yet checked out Black Kettle Brewing at their North Vancouver tasting room or elsewhere, I urge you to do so. Through early 2016, they have been my MVP of both a beer festival event and a brewery crawl. Here’s hoping they keep up the great work!

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

BC Beer Baron #57 – Hearthstone Graham Cracker Ale

Posted on by
Reply

Recently, the Sip Advisor visited Craft Beer Market in Vancouver’s Olympic Village, where I was lucky enough to stumble upon their $5 BC craft beer special. With such a nice price point, how could I not try this Hearthstone Brewing selection.

My only issue with the Graham Cracker Ale was that I didn’t taste Graham crackers like I thought I would. Don’t get me wrong though, the beer was still good, but I went into it with high expectations, believing it might be the alcohol version of a Teddy Grahams treat. The last sip from my serving was the best, so maybe the beer benefited from a little warming up.

Hearthstone Graham Cracker Ale

Hearthstone’s winter warmer uses spices, vanilla, and real Graham crackers to try and achieve its unique taste. It’s 8% ABV is noteworthy and should it still be available come summer, it might be a good product to have while sitting around a campfire.

On our recent trip to the North Vancouver brewing region, we were hopeful to pop into Hearthstone Brewing, but they have yet to officially open their tasting room. Too bad, as we had been lured in by some of the beers listed on their website, such as the Chocolate Milk Stout, Wyld Raspberry Berliner Weisse, McCool’s Hazelnut Porter, and, of course, the Graham Cracker Ale.

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

BC Beer Baron #56 – Deep Cove Scout Rye IPA

Posted on by
Reply

The final stop of our recent North Vancouver brewery crawl brought us to Deep Cove Brewing, where despite the lateness in the day and still having to make the trek back home, we made sure to enjoy our brief layover.

The Scout Rye IPA was my favourite beer amongst all the Deep Cove options we tried (one of everything is usually how we try to roll). I’m an IPA fan, though, so other drinkers – including the rest of my own crew – would likely not agree with the Sip Advisor. At 7% ABV and 82 IBUs, this brew (formerly known as the Star Struck Rye IPA) is not for lightweights. I’m finding more and more that I enjoy an element of rye, whiskey or bourbon in my beers, as an experience enhancer.

Deep Cove Scout Rye IPA

The beer’s can design features a logo used by hikers to mark routes through the North Shore Rainforest. The brewery writes, “Whether pinned to a tree or on the front of a can you can be sure it will lead you to a bold epic adventure.”

Deep Cove is one of the most active breweries I’ve come across, as far as planned events go. Live music is a regular fixture and they seem to be more involved in the community than many of their fellow operations. Deep Cove also distills their own vodka and gin, with both spirits being available in their North Vancouver tasting room.

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

BC Beer Baron #55 – Bridge Lonsdale Lager

Posted on by
Reply

For our recent tour of North Vancouver craft breweries, Bridge Brewing was marked with permanent ink, as we had plans to redeem a Groupon Cousin Sip had picked up, allowing for tasting flights and souvenir glasses for the four of us.

In picking a particular beer to profile from the North Vancouver brewery, I settled on the Lonsdale Lager, as sometimes that style of beer doesn’t get the love and attention it deserves, overshadowed by many of its ale cousins. That said, I was surprised to learn that the lager is a seasonal release for Bridge, rather than part of their year round line-up. The beer is only available in draught form and for growler fills, so don’t expect to stumble across six-packs or bombers out there in the marketplace.

Bridge Lonsdale Lager

For its part, the Lonsdale Lager is a solid beer (5.2% ABV and 17 IBUs) of the Helles variety. I don’t think it will blow drinker’s minds, but they won’t want to send it back, either. It’s a perfect beer (and one every craft brewery needs) to have as an option for that one person in your group who can’t stand anything hoppy or experimental and just wants something “normal”.

Our recent visit to Bridge was our first to their new location, having previously stopped at their former home a couple years back, as part of a Vancouver Brewery Tours route. I have to say that the move was a good one and their new tasting room is much more visitor friendly.

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

BC Beer Baron #54 – Black Kettle Tropic Thunder Saison

Posted on by
Reply

A true highlight of our recent self-guided North Vancouver brewery tour was popping into Black Kettle Brewing, a place I had wanted to visit since picking them as my MVP of the Tapped Vancouver event we attended in late January.

Their Tropic Thunder Saison was every bit as good as the movie that inspired it and made me go back and watch the film again. This saison was hoppier than most beers of this breed, but I think that is what I liked most about it. At 5.5% ABV, this experimental brew was a hit amongst our entire group and I think we’re lucky it was on tap when we happened to be there.

Black Kettle Brewing

On this visit to Black Kettle, we had a fantastic time with Philip (one of the founders of the brewery), who gave me the impression that he could very well be the Seth Rogen of BC’s craft beer scene. What was supposed to be just a drink each, turned into a much longer stay (trying everything they had on tap) and we only left because we had two other destinations on our itinerary with daylight running out.

For those also hoping to stop into Black Kettle’s tasting room, it should be noted that Google’s walking directions might not be very helpful, as they try to lead you through a marina with no exit; railway tracks that are technically private property and illegal to be traversing on foot; and Native reserve land, which in this case was maze-like. Don’t go chasing waterfalls, my little sippers, please stick to the main roads that you’re used to!

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

BC Beer Baron #53 – Green Leaf Burning Rock Ale

Posted on by
Reply

On the Sip Alliance’s recent jaunt to explore North Vancouver’s brewery scene, our first stop of the day was Green Leaf Brewing, which is located right as you get off the Seabus, after crossing over from Downtown Vancouver.

The Burning Rock Ale was among the brewery’s rotating taps when we stopped in and it was my favourite of the layover. The beer provides a nice mix of malts and hops with a caramel finish to boot.

Green Leaf Burning Rock Ale

The ale is inspired by fire and rock, or as Green Leaf puts it: “When red-hot granite meets beer wort that sears itself into the beer and then into the imagination. The taste of this beer is all about malt and the unique range of caramelized flavors that come from this most unusual process.” To check out that process in action, Green Leaf has posted a video to their page about the Burning Rock Ale’s production.

This was my first visit to Green Leaf’s Lonsdale Quay location, despite working in the area for the last half year. Now that I’ve finally been, I should make more of a point of popping into the tasting room and grabbing a treat for the road after a hard day’s work!

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

BC Beer Baron #31 – Black Kettle IPA

Posted on by
Reply

The thing I like best about beer festivals is being introduced to breweries I haven’t yet had the chance to experience or in some cases, breweries I’m being reintroduced to. Such was the case at the recent Tapped Vancouver at the Yaletown Roundhouse, where the Sip Advisor was able to get reacquainted with Black Kettle Brewing, after last trying their wares at July’s Tip N’ Taste in Langley.

As myself, Cousin Sip, and her husband approached our first booth of the night at Tapped Vancouver, we each picked one of the company’s options. I went with the IPA and found it to be a great starting point to my evening. I later returned for their two other selections (the Pale Ale and Scottish Ale), which will be profiled here at later dates. Where was Mrs. Sip, you might be asking? Well, she was running late, as is typical for her and with beer available, we weren’t willing to wait.

Black Kettle IPA

The brew comes in at 6.4%, but is lighter than most IPAs, while still being joined by the hoppy taste we’ve all come to expect from this variety of beverage. As an IPA fan, I will look out for this product when buying beers and suggest it to friends who also like their brews to have a little more of an edge to them.

I named Black Kettle my choice for MVP of the Tapped Vancouver event (not that this was an actual competition there) and it has earned its way onto our list of must-visit breweries when the Sip Alliance finally gets their act together and tours North Vancouver’s burgeoning brewery region. This little exploration can’t happen soon enough!

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

BC Beer Baron #21 – Bridge Uganda Sipi Coffee Brown Ale

Posted on by
Reply

As we continue to delve into the cask beers available at Big Rock Urban Brewery’s Winter Beer Hall (as part of the Dine Out Vancouver Festival), we come to Bridge Brewing’s contribution to the event.

The Uganda Sipi Coffee Brown Ale incorporates organic Uganda Sipi Falls coffee beans (hence the name) into the recipe. The cask serving was decent with a nice malty taste and bitter finish. Overall, I didn’t get much of a coffee flavour from this beer, but the brew’s description does note that the aroma will be “soft” and perhaps that goes for the palate, as well.

Bridge Brewing Uganda Sipi Coffee Brown Ale

Despite my dislike for coffee, I can find that flavour to work quite well in beers. As a result, I’ve been curious to try the Uganda Sipi Coffee Brown Ale, after coming across bomber bottles of the brew in BC Liquor Stores. I’m curious to see if the bottle experience of the beer differs from the cask.

Mrs. Sip and I have only been to Bridge Brewing once before and not since they moved into a bigger facility. We’ve been meaning to do a self-guided tour of the North Van brewing scene for a while now, but just haven’t had the time. Patience is a virtue here, my little sippers!

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