Tag Archives: Surrey

BC Beer Baron #232 – Russell White Rabbit Hoppy Hefeweizen

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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. Mrs. Sip and I are huge fans of hefeweizens and witbiers. I mean, is there a better summer beer style? Let’s take a look at what BC has to offer in the field.

If, like the Sip Advisor, you appreciate both hoppy ales/IPAs, as well as delicious hefeweizens/wheats, has Russell Brewing ever got the perfect hybrid for you.

The White Rabbit Hoppy Hefeweizen has become a favourite of the Sip Advisor. The beer is perfect for hanging around Ma and Pa Sip’s pool, enjoying the summer sun with ice cold brew in hand. This 6% ABV, 65 IBUs beverage is not your typical hef. Sure, the flavours are reminiscent, but the potency and bite are game changers.

Russell White Rabbit Hoppy Hefeweizen

Borrowing from the White Rabbit character from the classic Alice in Wonderland story, Russell writes of the beer: “Brighten up your summer season with a White Rabbit! Let our White Rabbit lead you to golden wheat fields where the hops burst with flavour.”

This year’s version includes new packaging for the brew available in 650ml bomber-sized bottles. Although best enjoyed in summer (in my opinion), the beer is now available year round and can be found primarily at private liquor stores.

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BC Beer Baron #213 – Central City Red Racer Imperial IPA

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One of Central City Brewing’s most popular products and one that has introduced many to the company is the Red Racer IPA. It seems the company is looking to take that classic recipe up a notch with one of their most recent new releases.

The Red Racer Imperial IPA takes their traditional 6.5% ABV, 80 IBUs recipe and ups those stats to 9% ABV and 90 IBUs. Other alterations include dropping from three different malts to just one (UK Maris Otter) and completely starting anew on the hops end with Yakima Valley, as opposed to the four different styles used in the original brew.

Central City Red Racer Imperial IPA

The beer is available on tap and in bomber-sized bottles. South of the border, the Imperial IPA can be found under the Red Betty brand name. This was the result of Bear Republic Brewing filing a lawsuit against Central City and their Red Racer name, which they viewed as too similar to their Racer 5 IPA and Red Rocket Ale trademarks.

I came across this beer at Central City’s Surrey brewery, tasting room and store. Although I was at the location hunting for something else, I just had to try this supersized version of an old favourite.

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BC Beer Baron #173 – Central City Dark Cherry Stout

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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. Fruit beers may have some traditionalists up in arms, but if they only them a chance, they would see how good the beverages can be. In putting together this feature week, I tried to incorporate as many different fruits as possible, so let’s see what BC has to offer in this realm.

On one of our many trips to the Central City Brew Pub in Vancouver a couple months back, this tap menu item from their own brewery instantly caught my eye and I quickly ordered a serving.

The Dark Cherry Stout combined a few of my favourite things: cherries, chocolate and beer. This 6% ABV, 30 IBUs offering was fairly good. There was a reasonable amount of cherry flavour to the recipe, although I always like more when it comes to my beverages. In most cases, I want to know that taste is there, not just get a hint of it.

Central City Brewing

I’m not sure how easy it would be to find this stout, as it wasn’t even listed on the brewery’s website, at the time the Sip Advisor experienced it. I would assume it was available at Central City’s tasting room, as well as at their Surrey brew pub, but I can’t be certain of that.

As far as Central City stouts go, I’ve also tried their Habanero Stout, which I found to be quite enjoyable. If the Dark Cherry Stout has disappeared with the end of the winter season, I would urge all you little sippers to be on the lookout for it next year.

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BC Beer Baron #133 – Russell Angry Scotch Ale

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Out for dinner with Ma and Pa Sip the other night, we took our appetites to The Flying Pig in Vancouver’s Yaletown district. Amongst a meal of pulled pork poutine and Caesar salad, the Sip Advisor enjoyed this award-winning offering from Russell Brewing.

The Angry Scotch Ale (why do brewery’s always assume us Scots are so angry!?) is a dark and strong Scottish-style ale with a hint of smokiness, thanks to being made with Scottish peated malts. At 6.5% ABV and 30 IBUs, the beer will lift your kilt in no time.

Russell Angry Scotch Ale

From Russell’s ‘Brewmaster Series’ (small batch releases for the “unconventional beer drinker”), the beer has received numerous accolades, with 2010 being a very successful year for the brew. That year, it took home a bronze medal at both the World Beer Cup and BC Beer Awards and silver finish at the Canadian Brewing Awards. Not content to settle for silver, four years later, the Angry Scotch Ale grabbed the elusive gold at the Canadian Brewing Awards.

Available in bomber-sized bottles, as well as six-packs of regular bottles, the beer can be found at BC Liquor Stores and private retailers.

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BC Beer Baron #102 – Russell Punch Bowl IPA

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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. It may have taken some time, but IPA’s now rank among my favourite styles of beer. Let’s take a look at some of the best BC has to offer, among this acquired taste.

While researching which beers to feature as part of IPA week, I began licking my chops when I came across this Russell Brewing option. And that was before I learned it was a gold medal winner at the 2015 Canadian Brewing Awards, in the American Style IPA category.

The Punch Bowl IPA takes flavours such as stone fruit, berries, and melon and hops them up for a perfect blend of beer goodness. Part of the brewery’s Specialty Series, this Northwest IPA has all the right stats in all the right places, with a 6.5% ABV and 65 IBUs.

Russell Punch Bowl IPA

Russell has some interesting logic that went into the creation of this beer, writing: “India Pale Ale was a beer created to make the trip from England to India, Punch was a fruit drink introduced to England from India. So as tribute to full flavoured beer and to party drinks that can be spiked, may we present the Punch Bowl!”

On top of the typical 650ml bomber format, the Punch Bowl IPA has just been released in new 341ml bottled six-packs, available at BC Liquor Stores and other private locations. If you’re big into India Pale Ales (and who isn’t!), Russell also has the IP’eh!, which is about as Canadian as you can get with a beer.

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BC Beer Baron #89 – Big Ridge Vanilla Bean Porter

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While a Caskival featuring a particular beer type is still tons of fun, one’s palate can sometimes grow weary of tasting similar things. When a group spices things up with different ingredients, that can be amazingly refreshing. That’s exactly what Big Ridge Brewing did with their contribution to the event.

The Vanilla Bean Porter was a welcome change to some of the more traditional fare at the event. Using Bushmill Irish Whiskey in its recipe, the beer was definitely strong, but the vanilla was still able avoid being hidden. Vanilla is quickly becoming a favourite beer flavour of mine, as it is noticeable, but doesn’t overpower any of the beverages I’ve experienced it in.

Big Ridge Brewing

The 5.2% ABV, 34 IBUs offering rallied my senses for the second half of the Caskival event. The beer is an adaptation of the company’s Toll Bridge Vanilla Bean Porter, which is a collaborative effort between Big Ridge and Moody Ales.

Mrs. Sip and I haven’t been to Big Ridge for about a year now, last hitting the brew pub as part of our 13-year dating anniversary (although we’re now married, what’s wrong with celebrating as much as possible) for lunch and some beers, before heading out to play some mini golf at Castle Fun Park in Abbotsford. Now that’s how you remain young at heart!

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BC Beer Baron #78 – Central City Habanero Stout

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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.

If there’s anything the Sip Advisor likes more than a smoky beverage, it’s a spicy one and Central City Brewing has the answer to my wishes with this seasonal release.

The Habanero Stout is roasty, smoky and spicy – the triple threat! At 8.5% ABV, they aren’t messing around here. Despite the high alcohol content, it’s not noticeable. There’s also a nice balance between the overall sweetness of the stout and the chili spice of the habaneros.

Central City Habanero Stout

To go with the beer’s heat, the classic Central City Red Racer logo of a girl riding a bike has been adapted to being a she-devil (still on the bike), clad in red and complete with tail and pitchfork. You gotta love the company slightly altering their label to give the beer a little more shelf appeal.

I’ve always enjoyed popping into Central City’s Surrey brewery, tasting room and store, but on this visit I was completely blown away by the pricing of some of their available beers. I’m not sure if they were simply clearing stock, but I was able to pick up bombers of today’s feature beer for only $2 each. You just can’t beat that!

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BC Beer Baron #35 – Russell Farm Fresh IPA

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Located in Surrey, Russell Brewing is a larger operation than most craft breweries. I’ve enjoyed a few of their products before, so was eager to try this beer when the opportunity arose.

The Farm Fresh IPA uses Centennial, Cascade, and Chinook hops from Chilliwack Hop Farms. I had never tried or even seen this beer, prior to coming across it at Tapped Vancouver last month. Apparently, it is part of the brewery’s Specialty Series, which means it’s a limited release. The Specialty Series also features one of the Sip Advisor’s favourite brews, the Smokey the Beer Rauchbier.

Russell Farm Fresh IPA

As for the IPA, I found it to be pretty typical. That’s not to say it was bad or anything. It just didn’t wow me as I hoped it might. Given I only received a half-size tasting glass serving from the chintzy pourer at the Russell/Driftwood booth, I should probably still give the bomber a fair shot before completely moving away from this IPA. The beer has a 6.5% ABV and 48 IBU, which all seem like pretty fair numbers.

I wish the Russell establishment had a tasting room, but that is currently not the case. The brewery is located close enough to Ma and Pa Sip’s home that visiting would be a cinch. Apparently one is in development, but it can’t come soon enough!

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