Sipping With Smoth: Getting Guinness and Understanding Stouts
Approaching a stout can be off-putting for the average lager-swiller. The dark, roasted malt is as unfamiliar to most as a cup of black coffee is to a double-double drinker. Over the years, I’ve developed a deep love and respect for these black beverages, and…
In Defense of Pumpkin Beer
It’s no secret that the subject of Pumpkin beer tends to be divisive among beer drinkers. There are some who wring their hands anxiously as autumn approaches, eager to get their lips on a bottle simmering with cinnamon and notes of nutmeg. On the other…
3 Great Spots To Stop for Craft Beer on Toronto’s West Side
If you like cities and beer, you’d be hard pressed to live in a better spot than Toronto. A thriving craft beer community has sprung up, and nowhere is it making more of an impact than on the west side. Naturally, as a west side…
Big Change Announced at the 2017 Ontario Brewing Awards
As the Ontario craft beer industry continues its unprecedented ascent, the Ontario Brewing Awards have grown in kind. In previous years, it was held at more modest venues, which didn’t accommodate quite the audience the Ontario Brewing Awards was attracting. Starting last year and continuing…
Ransack the Universe Restores my Faith in IPAs
It’s been a long time since I had a “go-to” beer. By that I mean, when you get in the habit of trying to fluff your Untappd with unique beers, you get in a cycle of trying different brews constantly without ever returning to your favorites….
The Rare Barrel Makes the Best Sour Beer I’ve Ever Had
I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again — the best part of blogging about booze is all the friends who want to share a drink with you and talk about it. Recently, I had a very good friend return from California with some…
Beau’s Brewery Launches Rwanda Craft Brewery Project
There’s just something about Beau’s and brilliant ideas. The last time I interviewed Steve Beauchesne, co-founder of Beau’s Brewery, it was about the nifty project called “B-Side Brewing,” a craft beer label that looks to sign foreign breweries and collaborate to make unique beer. While…
Highlights from the Ontario Craft Brewers Conference 2016
Yesterday saw the greatest gathering of well-bearded folk in all of Toronto — the Ontario Craft Brewers Conference & Suppliers Marketplace. Taking place at the Allstream Centre, this conference was to inform, educate and network, all while drinking the seemingly endless supply of good Ontario craft…
Non-Alcoholic Beer: What’s the Point?
I know what you’re thinking — this article’s about non-alcoholic Budweiser, there’s simply no way it could be positive right? Mostly wrong, actually. I tried a free sample at the supermarket. And to be blunt it tasted exactly like Budweiser, which is to say “pretty…
What Makes a Great Lager? 3 Speed vs. Captain’s Log
What makes a great lager? I wish I knew for sure. It’s a bit tricky. Lagers are renowned worldwide for their drinkability, their simplicity and — perhaps unfairly — their mediocrity. They are the beers your sports-loving uncle drinks. They’re the cheap pints, and the cans…