Tag Archives: Victoria

BC Beer Baron #225 – Lighthouse Broadside Northwest Ale

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While I appreciate whatever a company brings to a tasting event, when they provide an opportunity to sample something new or unique, that is optimal. Such was the case with Lighthouse Brewing at Tip N’ Taste in Langley.

The Broadside Northwest Ale is the brewery’s newest release. At 4.3% ABV, it won’t knock your socks off, but there is some strong hop flavour in this refreshing beverage. The product is available in six-packs.

Lighthouse Broadside Northwest Ale

The brew is part of Lighthouse’s Explorers Series, which is aimed at “adventurous craft beer lovers looking to discover more flavour, more complex nuances, and more unique characteristics in their beer”.

I appreciate the brewery’s nautical naming scheme and this beer is no different. Broadside refers to the side of a ship where all the cannons are situated. Broadside is also a measurement of a ship’s maximum simultaneous firepower.

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BC Beer Baron #211 – Phillips Short Wave West Coast Pale Ale

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A family friend will often bring over a six-pack of beer when visiting Ma and Pa Sip’s place and whatever is left over, is often gifted to me. Through this, we’ve developed a bit of an unwritten beer trading deal, with our latest swap resulting in a couple bottles of this Phillips Brewing beverage.

The Short Wave West Coast Pale Ale is citrus-infused with a refreshing, balanced finish. Part of the Phillips full-time lineup, the 5.2% ABV product is available in bottled six-packs, as well as 473ml tall cans.

Phillips Short Wave West Coast Pale Ale

The beer’s name is an homage to short wave radio frequencies. Phillips writes of the brew: “Scan through static and tune in to the Short Wave.” They also hope that drinkers will the frequency frequently.

I first sampled this beer back at the Tapped Vancouver event earlier this year. With a full dosage and a better understanding of the brew, I think it works better in the summer months.

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BC Beer Baron #198 – Spinnakers Hollie Wood Oyster 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. With so many brewery options out there, a game of one-upmanship sometimes occurs and from that, the world is treated to some very unique experimental releases.

When I first came across this Spinnakers Brew Pub release last summer, I was hesitant. The adventurous side of me prevailed and I grabbed a bottle. Then I let it sit for some time, as I tasted another brewery’s (which shall remain nameless) Oyster Stout and figured my purchase had been a huge mistake.

I should have had more faith, as the Hollie Wood Oyster Stout was actually quite good. Brewed with three additions of fresh oysters from Fanny Bay (BC’s Hollie Wood Oysters), the beer has the usual roasted malts of traditional stouts, but features a light briny finish, thanks to the sea creatures. For those doubting the recipe, Spinnakers writes: “The world is yours. And yes, there really are oysters in this beer!”

Spinnakers Hollie Wood Oyster Stout

The stout maxes out on the dark side of Spinnakers colour scale and features stats of 7.6% ABV and 20 IBUs. The brew is available in bomber-sized bottles at BC Liquor Stores and I personally prefer the aphrodisiac in liquid essence form, rather than swallowing them whole. I wonder how pairing the two would work out…

This was the first Spinnakers beer I had ever tried and it instantly made me a fan of their wares. My reasoning? If they can make a good beer out of oysters, then everything else has to at least be decent! I’ve since tested this theory and found myself (as usual) to be quite accurate.

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BC Beer Baron #194 – Lighthouse Jackline Rhubarb Grisette

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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. With so many brewery options out there, a game of one-upmanship sometimes occurs and from that, the world is treated to some very unique experimental releases.

In the Sip Advisor’s mind, there are only two acceptable ways to consume rhubarb: in pie and alcohol forms. Luckily, Lighthouse Brewing has taken care of the latter half of that theory.

The Jackline Rhubarb Grisette is brewed with organic Fraser Valley rhubarb juice, resulting in a refreshing beverage with sour notes of rhubarb on the finish. For those unfamiliar, a grisette is similar to a saison and shares some attributes with wheat/hefeweizen beers.

Lighthouse Jackline Rhubarb Grisette

Part of the brewery’s Explorer Series, this 5.5% ABV is available in bomber-sized bottles, as well as part of Lighthouse’s Bounty variety case. The pack also includes their Bowline Pilsner, Race Rocks Ale and Tasman Pale Ale.

So, what exactly is a jackline? Well, after conjuring up all of my nautical knowledge, I have the answer (much thanks to Wikipedia!). A jackline is a rope or wire that stretches the length of a ship – from bow to stern – allowing the crew to clip onto and move about safely.

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BC Beer Baron #190 – Hoyne Summer Haze Honey Hefe

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Back for another summer, this Hoyne Brewing selection is one of the handful of bombers I picked up while the Sip Syndicate was recently terrorizing the Kelowna wine region and I’m very glad I did.

The Summer Haze Honey Hefe is not as sweet as you’d expect, which is a good thing. All too often, I find beers that include honey to be overly sugary and off-putting. The 5.1% ABV, mildly hoppy beverage features flavours of wheat, citrus, and honey, of course. It’s very easy drinking and perfect for beach days, as Hoyne advises.

Hoyne Summer Haze Honey Hefe

The brewery has some pretty wacky descriptions for their products and the Honey Hefe is no different: “On a sunny summer day, just like today, the Great and Wonderful Oz set sail in his hot-air balloon. As ballast, some say, his basket was loaded to the brim with Hoyne Hefeweizen. After lift-off, his thirst gathered like a summer storm. Quenching it, he lightened his load, and found himself carried delightfully away. The rest, as they say, is his story.”

Interesting (perhaps bizarre is a more apropos term) accounts aside, the Sip Advisor is a big proponent of Hoyne and their lineup of brews. Their Dark Matter is among my favourite BC beers, while their Devil’s Dream IPA is also a solid release.

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BC Beer Baron #181 – Spinnakers Dragonfly Rye Spring Saison

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One of my favourite things about doing this 366-day BC craft beer project has been discovering places I either never knew about or had only had a brew or two from previously. One company that would fit in that category would be Spinnakers Brewing in Victoria, BC.

Most recently, I picked up a bomber of their Dragonfly Rye Spring Saison, which I shared with Mrs. Sip. She enjoyed the beer, noting it went from creamy to a slightly bitter finish. I had to echo her sentiment about the 6% ABV, 25 IBUs beverage.

Spinnakers Dragonfly Rye Saison

The seasonal release is available at BC Liquor Stores and I was pleasantly surprised at how inexpensive the product was, coming in at under $5, before taxes. Good deals can still be had, if you know where to look.

I’ve found that I really like rye in my beers, which give the drink an extra boost of booze on each sip. Saisons have also shot up the charts for me (I’ve dubbed this the ‘Summer of Saisons’), as I like their blend of spice and fruit, reminding me of a more potent hefeweizen.

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BC Beer Baron #167 – Vancouver Island Sabotage India Session Ale

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Last weekend, we hosted a big shindig at Ma and Pa Sip’s place to celebrate Ma Sip’s retirement. In order to get my party face on, I picked up Vancouver Island Brewing’s Summer Pod Pack.

The feature beer in that set was the Sabotage India Session Ale (ISA), which uses three different hops in the brewing process. The beverage is light (5% ABV) and refreshing and provides a nice entry point for those interested in trying hoppier beers, but who are reluctant to dive headfirst into an Imperial IPA or something of that ilk.

Vancouver Island Sabotage India Session Ale

The ISA was a really good beer and a nice compliment to a solid Pod Pack. I should know, I killed off almost the entire thing during the retirement party and I was uncharacteristically selfish and not very open to sharing. The summer version of the Pod Pack also includes Vancouver Island’s Piper’s Pale Ale, Sea Dog Amber Ale, and High Trail Honey Ale.

I have to say that I wasn’t overly impressed with the breweries various mixed packs when trying to pick something out the other day. I narrowed my choices down to VIB and Dead Frog, before going with the island option. Perhaps I was being too picky, but I feel there used to be more experimentation in the mixed packs and a more noticeable line-up change when going from winter to summer sets.

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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 #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 #150 – Moon Under Water Creepy Uncle Dunkel

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As has become tradition whenever we hit a milestone along the road of this 366-day BC craft beer project, we will celebrate by reviewing a favourite beer of the Sip Advisor. For this momentous occasion, I’d like to share one of my preferred beverages from Moon Under Water Brew Pub.

The Creepy Uncle Dunkel isn’t creepy at all… it’s delicious. It was one of the first beers to ever take me to the dark side of the brewing world and show me just how good things could be there. The brew’s stats come in at 5.4% ABV and 18 IBUs, so it’s a very drinkable recipe.

Moon Under Water Creepy Uncle Dunkel

Moon Under Water describes this beer as: “Pilsner’s creepy uncle. Dark and complex, the most misunderstood of all lagers. Dark Munich malts and a little roasted wheat give this brew a rich, vanilla, and nutty-sweet palate with a dry, rounded finish. Unfiltered as always. Maybe it’s the long decoction mashes or the five-week lagering time spent alone in the cold… or maybe he’s just a complicated dude?”

When the Sip Family was heading to Germany in 2014 for a family reunion-type gathering, Mrs. Sip came up with the great idea of bringing some BC beers over to share with our relatives. At the top of our list was the Creepy Uncle Dunkel, which was one of the biggest hits with the German family, amongst the half dozen bombers we brought over for an international tasting experience.

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