Tag Archives: Vancouver

BC Beer Baron #158 – Parallel 49/Cannery Gimme Shelter Apple IPA

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For the second consecutive year, Parallel 49 Brewing has joined forces with 12 different BC craft breweries to release a package of unique beers, dubbed Brews Brothers Volume 2. The Sip Advisor figured spending the first chunk of June reviewing these releases would be a great idea. So, let’s get on with things.

I’m a fan of the work Penticton’s Cannery Brewing is doing (also love visiting their tasting room, whenever Mrs. Sip and I are lucky enough to be in the area) and when I first saw the label to this beer, I was ready and raring to get it into a glass.

Parallel 49 & Cannery Gimme Shelter Apple IPA

The Gimme Shelter Apple IPA is a really well-crafted, complex offering. The mix of a strong (7% ABV) IPA, with notes of sour green apples makes for a very enjoyable drinking experience. The beer was constructed by combining a witbier base with saison yeast. Add two hop variations and you have the complete package.

Each beer is named after a classic rock song, with this track coming from the legendary Rolling Stones. I will admit that I find the Rolling Stones long archive of releases to be hit and miss, as far as my music appreciation goes, but I do like Gimme Shelter, especially its use in the opening scenes of The Departed, starring Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon, Leonardo DiCaprio and so many other great talents.

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BC Beer Baron #157 – Parallel 49/Category 12 Comfortably Numb Rye Old Ale

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For the second consecutive year, Parallel 49 Brewing has joined forces with 12 different BC craft breweries to release a package of unique beers, dubbed Brews Brothers Volume 2. The Sip Advisor figured spending the first chunk of June reviewing these releases would be a great idea. So, let’s get on with things.

Victoria’s Category 12 Brewing has been a bit of a revelation for the Sip Advisor this year and I was happy to see them participating in this project. It figures that a brewery owned and operated by a doctor of microbiology and biochemistry would be up for some experimentation.

Parallel 49 & Category 12 Comfortably Numb Rye Old Ale

The Comfortably Numb Rye Old Ale features a very nice hit of booze with each sip. It might not be the best beer to start your drinking night, but after a few warmup brews, you should be good to go. At 8.9% ABV, one could certainly numb their pain with a few of these bad boys. There’s even a spicy cherry note to the beverage.

Each beer is named after a classic rock song, with Pink Floyd’s iconic Comfortably Numb getting some feature time here. The original version of this tune is amazing, but you have to check out this live performance the group put on at the Live 8 concert in London’s Hyde Park in 2005. It’s simply chilling how good the music is!

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BC Beer Baron #156 – Parallel 49/Doan’s Thunderstruck Sticke Alt

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For the second consecutive year, Parallel 49 Brewing has joined forces with 12 different BC craft breweries to release a package of unique beers, dubbed Brews Brothers Volume 2. The Sip Advisor figured spending the first chunk of June reviewing these releases would be a great idea. So, let’s get on with things.

Next up is Doan’s Brewing’s turn at the collaboration collection. Earlier this year, I was really impressed by Doan’s Rye Stout and that gave me great hopes for the two East Van breweries coming together for this effort.

Parallel 49 & Doan's Thunderstruck Sticke Alt

The Thunderstruck Sticke Alt was a pretty good beer, but I found it to be a slight drop off from the first few beers I’d sampled from the pack. The only mark I could really give against it, however, was that it had a slightly bitter finish that turned me off from an otherwise decent brew. The 6% ABV pilsner features notes of chocolate malt.

Each beer is named after a classic rock song and today we get to one of my all-time favourite pump-up jams, AC/DC’s Thunderstruck. I can still remember being a young hockey player and doing pre-game warmups with this song thundering (no pun intended) over the arena sound system. It made a little guy feel like a pro, if only for a few minutes!

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BC Beer Baron #155 – Parallel 49/Barkerville Run to the Hills Golden Strong Ale

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For the second consecutive year, Parallel 49 Brewing has joined forces with 12 different BC craft breweries to release a package of unique beers, dubbed Brews Brothers Volume 2. The Sip Advisor figured spending the first chunk of June reviewing these releases would be a great idea. So, let’s get on with things.

Today, we look at Barkerville Brewing’s collaborative efforts with P49. To date, the Quesnel-based operation hasn’t received nearly the amount of coverage it deserves on this site, but that will surely change in the months to come.

Parallel 49 & Barkerville Run to the Hills Golden Strong Ale

The Run to the Hills Golden Strong Ale was another hit for the Sip Advisor, mixing a robust base with a surprisingly fruity finish. The 8% ABV beverage is reminiscent of Belgian tripels and quads and these have become among my and Mrs. Sip’s favourites. My chivalry knows no bounds, letting my better half enjoy a taste of the beer, although I could have easily hogged it all to myself.

Each beer is named after a classic rock song, with Iron Maiden’s heavy metal anthem Run to the Hills playing that role, here. I recently saw this song top a list of the best songs to run to. That’s all fine and good, but it’s far better to laze around and drink to!

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BC Beer Baron #154 – Parallel 49/Axe & Barrel Paranoid Oat Wild Pilsner

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For the second consecutive year, Parallel 49 Brewing has joined forces with 12 different BC craft breweries to release a package of unique beers, dubbed Brews Brothers Volume 2. The Sip Advisor figured spending the first chunk of June reviewing these releases would be a great idea. So, let’s get on with things.

Like the first post in this series, yesterday, I wanted to include this beer early on, as I haven’t had a chance to include Axe & Barrel Brewing yet as part of the 366-day BC Beer Baron project. Also, while I’ve certainly tried pilsner brews before, I can’t unequivocally state that I’ve never had an imperial variation (translation: stronger and boozier… or are those the same things).

Parallel 49 & Axe & Barrel Paranoid Oat Wild Pilsner

The Paranoid Oat Wild Pilsner had this beer package going two-for-two in the success category. I really enjoyed the strength of the beer (8.5% ABV) and found that it didn’t overwhelm, which is always a concern when beverages enter “imperial” territory. Brewed with sake and chardonnay elements, no wonder the drink packs a punch. Based off of this work alone, it looks like Mrs. Sip and I have yet another stop to add to our ever-growing Victoria craft beer itinerary.

Each beer is named after a classic rock song, and this one is quite appropriately an homage to the Black Sabbath classic Paranoid. The track appears on a number of greatest songs lists, including spot #250 on Rolling Stone’s 500 Greatest Songs of All Time.

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BC Beer Baron #153 – Parallel 49/Crannog Ales Suspect Device Gruit

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For the second consecutive year, Parallel 49 Brewing has joined forces with 12 different BC craft breweries to release a package of unique beers, dubbed Brews Brothers Volume 2. The Sip Advisor figured spending the first chunk of June reviewing these releases would be a great idea. So, let’s get on with things.

First up, I wanted to take a look at this partnership with Crannog Ales, as I have yet to include the brewery as part of the 366-day BC Beer Baron project and I don’t believe I’ve ever tried this style of beer.

Parallel 49 & Crannog Ales Suspect Device Gruit

The Suspect Device Gruit (which means an herb mixture used to flavour beer) was quite good. This gruit was comprised of a mix of organic heather flowers, juniper and dry-hopped fresh ginger. Dubbed a mild rye ale, this 5.5% drink was full of complex tastes, finished with a boost of boozy strength.

Each beer is named after a classic rock song, but I have to admit this is one of only two tunes among the bunch I’m not familiar with. From the band Stiff Little Fingers (hailing from Belfast, Northern Ireland), the punk anthem is actually pretty rocking and reminds me of work from the likes of The Ramones.

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BC Beer Baron #151 – Central City Scotch Ale

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On our most recent trip to Central City’s Brew Pub in Downtown Vancouver, Cousin Sip’s husband ordered this brew, but didn’t expect how smoky it would be. Always hunting for smoky beverages, I agreed (out of the kindness of my heart) to swap him my drink – ironically, a light on the smoke Smoked Porter – so he could enjoy his experience.

My reward was this Scotch Ale, which surprised me with how flavourful it was. Already rocking the prerequisite notes of caramel/toffee, the smoky finish wrapped the beer up in a nice, neat package.

Central City Brewing

The 6.1% ABV, 34 IBUs ale takes much of its composition from peated malts, an ingredient the Scottish seem to have specialized in and perfected. Scotch Ales have been growing on me lately, thanks to the Sip Advisor coming across the paths of a number of good ones, in recent times.

On this venture to the Central City Brew Pub, we had trouble getting many of the beers we wanted, as we visited at a time when the restaurant was changing a number of kegs and menu items over with the spring season in mind. Still, with a large list of prospective brews, we were still able to stumble across diamonds in the rough, such as the Scotch Ale… we just had to have our choices narrowed down for us.

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BC Beer Baron #147 – Granville Island Cypress Honey Lager

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With some gorgeous weather hitting the west coast, it was time to find a patio with a nice view and enjoy being outdoors after another long winter cooped up inside. We found this at Mahony & Sons near the Vancouver Convention Centre and there, I enjoyed this Granville Island Brewing beverage.

The Cypress Honey Lager is a light and refreshing beer with a sweet honey taste, coming from Fraser Valley honey. Keeping with the brewery’s tradition of naming their beers after BC landmarks, this release represents Cypress Mountain on the North Shore.

Granville Island Cypress Honey Lager

The 4.7% ABV, 15 IBUs beer is available year round in bottles and can, as well as on tap at numerous locations around the province. It is also often a member of Granville Island’s summer Mingler variety case, which makes for really good camping packing.

Suggested food pairings include lighter seafood, such as white fish or shellfish. The ‘perfect pairing’ is said to be grilled halibut or grilled spot prawns. The brewery also notes that the brew goes really well with “a thirst for adventure!”

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BC Beer Baron #134 – Dockside Railspur IPA

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On a recent quiet Sunday afternoon, Mrs. Sip and I ventured to Granville Island’s Dockside Restaurant, which houses their own brewery amongst one of Vancouver’s finest locations for patio enjoyment.

There, I ordered the Railspur IPA, which was a decent hop-forward brew with a nice amber colour to it. The 5.7% ABV, 55 IBUs beer is available on tap year round at the restaurant. Drinkers can even fill a growler with the beverage.

Dockside Railspur IPA

Railspur refers to a district of Granville Island that features a cobblestone street and is a hub for local artisans, whether they be creating alcohols at Liberty Distillery, jewellery at Hammered and Pickled, or even brooms at the Granville Island Broom Company. It is also home to the Arts Club Theatre Company.

My, how things have changed. Every time Mrs. Sip and I return to the Dockside Restaurant, we always reminisce about our very first visit there when we were still in our teens. Back then, we were money-conscientious students whose food preferences didn’t extend far beyond chicken strips and fries. A mutual friend of a visiting guest suggested the restaurant and upon our arrival promptly ordered appies for the entire table, without giving us a chance to decline. Nowadays, we sit back and laugh at our younger selves… over drinks and fine dining.

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BC Beer Baron #132 – Driftwood Entangled Hopfenweise

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One of my taster selections on our recent trip to St. Augustine’s Craft Brew House and Kitchen was this beauty of a beer from Driftwood Brewing – a company which seems to move up my list of top breweries with each release I try.

I’ve seen the Entangled Hopfenweise described as a merging of hefeweizens and IPAs (my two favourite styles) and Belgian and Northwest brewing styles. That sounds about right to me and it works really well with this beer. The Hopfenweise comes in at 7% ABV and can be found in bomber-sized bottles. I couldn’t find any IBU info for the ale, so never you worry about that.

Driftwood Entangled Hopfenweise

Drinkers can expect a number of different fruit flavours, such as banana, guava, passionfruit and mango. Aside from the great taste, I think Driftwood has some of funkiest artwork for its labels and this product is no different. Packaging isn’t everything, but when you start strong and deliver in the end, the entire experience is that much better.

The beer is part of Driftwood’s Special Release lineup, which means the brew is on no set schedule, but could pop up at any time and should be taken advantage of before it disappears again. Might I suggest enjoying the beer while watching Tangled? Sorry, that was the Disney geek in me peeking out for a brief moment!

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