Beer Thread V2?3?4?

[Cain]

Originally Posted by northcrunk

Best off the top of my head:

Last Best - Tokyo Drift

This is by far and away my favorite in calgary. I'm actually not all that impressed by most of the others. They aren't bad, just don't appeal to me the way tokyo drift does. However, they seem to often run out of it, so please drink responsibly and save a bunch for me.

I find most of the beers here have a super light and boring grain bill/are filtered a ton. I like a lot of complexity in that area and unfortunately it doesn't seem like that is the norm.

[TomLeeMC]

Originally Posted by northcrunk

We have some amazing beer in this city now:

Best off the top of my head:

Blindman - NE Pale Ale
Dandy - T2G-IPA, Bright Young Thinks, My Boy Lollipop
Wild Rose - High Harvest
Zero Issue - Nemesis
Town Square - Megawatt
Annex - Any NEIPA. Or any limited edition IPA

I agree with all of the above and would include to the list, though may not all be available in Calgary :

Wild Rose - IPA
Born Colorado - IPA and IPYEA
Cold Garden - This must be the IPA
Bench Creek - Apex Predator
Snake Lake - IPA and Taco IPA(if you had a chance to try it)
Bent Stick - all the switch the hops beers

I'm a huge IPA fan East Coast, West Coast, Hazy, English it doesn't matter I have a soft spot for em.

Originally Posted by Cain

I find most of the beers here have a super light and boring grain bill/are filtered a ton. I like a lot of complexity in that area and unfortunately it doesn't seem like that is the norm.

When it comes to IPA's you want to stick to a simple grain bill as to not muddle up the hops flavours. IPA's are all about the hops.

[Flabbibulin]

Fyi- Collective Arts Life in the Clouds seems to be the only canadian IPA to crack the top 80 in Paste Magazine’s recent list of best IPAs. It is available at a lot of liquor stores in Calgary, particularly Co op. That said, Ive mentioned it before that the best IPA Ive had in recent times is Apex Predator double ipa from Bench Creek. Damn good.

[TheSutterDynasty]

Does Cold Garden sell anything but growlers?

Maybe I need to get into the growler game. How long do they last (ie still "fresh") unopened and how long opened?

[Wormius]

Originally Posted by TheSutterDynasty

Does Cold Garden sell anything but growlers?



Maybe I need to get into the growler game. How long do they last (ie still "fresh") unopened and how long opened?

I think they are best if consumed within a day or two. I suppose it depends on how much the carbonation affects the beer / cider. Worst case is you use the flat beer for baking or sauces.

[TomLeeMC]

Originally Posted by TheSutterDynasty

Does Cold Garden sell anything but growlers?

Maybe I need to get into the growler game. How long do they last (ie still "fresh") unopened and how long opened?

From my experience as long as the growler is filled and sealed properly it should last at least a week unopened in the fridge, I've even heard they can last up to 3 weeks but I've never kept one full that long.

If opened you've got 24 hours at the most before it'll lose its carbonation.

[Ducay]

You can also grab a few of the 32oz half growlers and open as needed. They'll last a bit longer unopened, but even then you're talking less than 5 days staying carbonated.

[ken0042]

A few places are also doing Crowlers. 32 ounces like a Howler, but packaged as a can. Supposed to have a shelf life of several weeks, but I haven't been patient enough to test that yet.

Two good places for Crowlers:
Wine and Beyond- https://www.wineandbeyond.ca/Beer/Growler-Bar
Brewer's Apprentice- https://www.thebrewersapprentice.com/on-tap

[CofR]

Originally Posted by ken0042

A few places are also doing Crowlers. 32 ounces like a Howler, but packaged as a can. Supposed to have a shelf life of several weeks, but I haven't been patient enough to test that yet.

Two good places for Crowlers:
Wine and Beyond- https://www.wineandbeyond.ca/Beer/Growler-Bar
Brewer's Apprentice- https://www.thebrewersapprentice.com/on-tap

The taproom at Wild Rose does Crowlers as well

[Puppet Guy]

so I've just had something called a "Rauchbier", which is made with smoked malt. This is the most unique beer I'e ever tasted, and that's not meant as a bad thing - it's robust and REALLY smoky, like if a Scotch distiller took a shot at brewing beer. Went well with the smoked salmon I had for dinner. This particular one was made by Ribstone Creek Brewery in Edgerton (near Wainwright) and is called Prairie Pirate (I admit I bought it solely based on the name). Anyone else have any rauchbier recommendations?

[CofR]

Originally Posted by Puppet Guy

so I've just had something called a "Rauchbier", which is made with smoked malt. This is the most unique beer I'e ever tasted, and that's not meant as a bad thing - it's robust and REALLY smoky, like if a Scotch distiller took a shot at brewing beer. Went well with the smoked salmon I had for dinner. This particular one was made by Ribstone Creek Brewery in Edgerton (near Wainwright) and is called Prairie Pirate (I admit I bought it solely based on the name). Anyone else have any rauchbier recommendations?

Wild Rose made one as a seasonal last year, I haven’t seen it in a liquor store for awhile but they may have some at their taproom still.

[CliffFletcher]

Common Crown's Blonde Ale is one tasty beer. It's been my choice of beverage for the last few months. The woman who gave out the samples at Co-op has earned Common Crown hundreds of dollars already.

[Hemi-Cuda]

So Whistler's Chestnut Ale is my favorite seasonal brew and I'll be indulging as long as it's around, but when it's gone I'll miss it terribly. Can anyone recommend other 'nut brews to try? (there's no good way to phrase that)

[ken0042]

You can't go wrong with Belching Beaver Peanut Butter Milk Stout.

[Hockeyguy15]

I have a couple 5L corny kegs with a painball tank co2 adapter, I wonder if a place would fill them for me.

[Wormius]

What does “Untapped Craft Imports” refer to on the LiquorConnect site? I have been looking for this cider, “Rev Nat’s Sacrilege Sour Cherry”, but that’s all that shows up for stores.

[Saint Troy]

Originally Posted by Hemi-Cuda

So Whistler's Chestnut Ale is my favorite seasonal brew and I'll be indulging as long as it's around, but when it's gone I'll miss it terribly. Can anyone recommend other 'nut brews to try? (there's no good way to phrase that)

I love the Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar...

https://www.rogue.com/beers/hazelnut-brown-nectar

[FireGilbert]

2018 was a very good beer year for me. A move took us to an area of Sydney that not only has a great bottle shop but is within walking distance to a part of town with the highest concentration of craft breweries in Australia. Brewery crawls became regular and to top it all off I received a craft beer advent calendar. Overall I likely drank my highest amount of beer since university and the beer was definitely much greater quality now. I thought I would share my thoughts on a good year of beer:

IPAs are so good right now. West Coast, New England, English, Australian.. I don't care I love them all! There is a lot of great stuff going on in this space right now exploring hop combinations while staying refreshing and balanced. There are great things going on too with regular Pale Ales and XPAs but IPAs are definitely my beer of choice right now.

I once avoided fruit in beer like the plague but am slowly coming around. I am still skeptical of citrus additions and feel like the brewers could get similar tastes with hops but there are some other creative and delicious brews lately that have been appealing to me. A local does a Watermelon Pilsner and Cucmber Kolsch both of which I could drink all day.

Speaking of fruitier beers the big trend I noticed in the past year was the rise of Sours. I can't say I'm a fan of my beer tasting sweet and sour. I can see this market increasing though as it is something my wife likes and seems to appeal to people who do not typically like the taste of beer.

Finally, it is getting harder and harder to determine what is actually craft beer these days. Multi-nationals are producing their own "craft" brands, independents are being bought with varying degrees of corporate control, and foreign craft brands are being produced locally under license. You really need to do your research. I personally try to procure most of my beer from local independents but will sometimes go for the craft brewery that sold out if they are still producing a quality beer.

[Hemi-Cuda]

Originally Posted by Saint Troy

I love the Rogue Hazelnut Brown Nectar...

https://www.rogue.com/beers/hazelnut-brown-nectar

Ya I like that even more than the Whistler Chestnut, but you can only find it in the big bottles at $10 a pop, far too expensive for a daily drinker

[CofR]

Tried Rorschach last night, Annex’s Milk Chocolate Stout. Highly recommend if you enjoy the style.