Southern Ontario Road Trip Day 1: It was Great When it all Began

Finally getting around to writing about my trip down into South Western Ontario. I used to live out that way prior to beginning the blog and well before the craft beer scene took over. While I would not be so grandiose as to call them "my old stomping grounds," I did enjoy living out that way, even for the short time I was there. If nothing else I just enjoyed travelling through the endless farmer's fields and dodging Mennonites on their buggies. I had pre-planned a few stops to try and maximise our trip, beer-wise. The Queen of Pint Jockey Headquarters graciously drove so I could sample. We started out a little late, I was hoping for lunch at our first stop but it became more of an early dinner.

Cowbell Brewing Company

Cowbell Brewing Company

More Cowbell!

The small town of Blyth, Ontario has long been famous for its eponymous theatre festival honouring the theatre of Southern Ontario and Canada. But as of 2017, it has also been home to Canada's first destination brewery, built specifically for tourism. Cowbell Brewing Company is also The world's first "Closed Loop" breweries where all wastewater is retrieved and recycled. It is also North America's first Carbon Neutral Brewery. I must say the building is beautiful, purpose-built to really drawn in a beer tourist. The building is built to emulate some of the more elaborate barns from the area, including some post and beam work in the main dining hall. Everything is open concept and from your seat in the restaurant, you are treated to views of the kitchen, the bar, and the brewery. The Queen had a falafel burger and I had a meat lovers pizza that was baked in the wood-fired pizza oven. The food was average, I'm not a food critic but I am a chef, and sadly I was not impressed. I wish I could say better things because I was looking forward to going to Cowbell. We need more places like Cowbell in Ontario to highlight the amazing craft industry we have. Onto the beer, more on my thoughts later.

One of the Largest Post and
Beam Constructions

Wood Fired Meat Lover's Pizza

The Tasting Bar

Falafel Burger

The Tasting Flight, near to far:
1. Renegade Series # 021 Cherry Weizen
2. Renegade Series # 019 Abbey Braggot IPA
3. Gravel Run Session IPA
4. Lorna Bray Fly Girl Nitro Oatmeal Stout

Beer # 441: Renegade Series # 021, Dry Hopped Cherry Weizen
ABV: 5.0%    IBU: 15

Poured a red-orange and cherry colour with a thin white head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is fruit and cherry with wheat and bready notes and a hint of almond. Starts off with spicy notes, cherry clove, cinnamon, almond biscuit and wheat. Aeration brings out a finish of fresh green hops


Beer # 442: Renegade Series # 019, Abbey Braggot IPA
ABV 6.6 %  IBU: 50

Medium gold in colour with a thin off-white head made up of tiny bubbles. Nose is dominated by honey followed by hints of malt molasses clove and nutmeg. First sip is massive Amounts of honey wheat and biscuit, toast and molasses, Very sweet. Aeration brings out a finish of bitter green hops.

Beer # 443: Gravel Run, Session IPA
ABV: 4.5%  IBU: 25

Pours a clear gold with a thin skiff off an off-white head. Aroma is massive amounts of pine and citrus. Hints of huacatay and orange. Malty with a finish of bitter green hops. Not a lot of flavour development.

Beer # 444: Lorna Bray Fly Girl, Nitro oatmeal stout  
ABV: 5.1 %   IBU: 20

Black in colour with an off-tan head made up of super-fine nitrogen formed bubbles, mild cascade. The nose is coffee smoke and leather. First sip is dark roasted malt and oatmeal cookies, chocolate coffee and hints of almond. Sweet vanilla with hints of caramel, smooth and super creamy.

Final thoughts:

Cowbell is a beautiful person all dressed up and no-where to go. So much effort has been put into a forward-thinking, socially responsible, dynamic brewery destination; that somehow the beer and the food got lost along the way. Average is the best way I could describe it. Granted they have only been open for a year, and often I have tasted beer from a new brewery and not liked it, but then revisited them a few years later and they seem to have hit their stride. Please Cowbell, let this be the case. Perhaps in your growing pains, you will discover hidden gems and start producing beers worthy of your stellar home.

Half Hours on Earth Brewing Company

Next on our list was another brewery I was so very excited to visit as I have heard so many wonderful things about them. And honestly, you could not invent a better juxtaposition for Cowbell than Half Hours on Earth. Situated in an old defunct agricultural building on the (literal) wrong side of the tracks. (seriously the parking lot butts up against a disused rail line with a rusting grain car carelessly left behind. Unlike the pristine and carefully planned Cowbell, Half hours is an industrial, haphazard, dare I say afterthought of a tasting room. Down a quick flight of stairs, you are met with the tasting bar some folding picnic style tables merch, storage, barrels and a little bit of everything else needed to run a brewery. No branded glassware here. Plastic dixie cups with the initials of the beer you are tasting written on them. Somehow, this is much better. The hosts are easy going, chatty but not intrusive. There was no AC, so the doors were open leading to the only distraction in the place. A couple of flies that decided they wanted to lick beer off of the tables. It's a cow town... what are you going to do?

The outside of Half Hours on Earth The brewery is behind the small grey door to the right of the red van.
(image captured from Google Earth)

Tasting Room/Storage?

Check out the size of these Graduated Cylinders!

Half Hours on Earth takes their music as seriously as they do their beer. Pretty much everything is named after a song or song lyric. The brewery name comes from the band "Silver Jews'" song "Trains across the Sea."  -- half hours on Earth/ what are they worth/ I don't know.

Rad Flux

Beer # 445: Rad Flux Dry Hopped Sour Ale with Grapefruit
ABV: 4.0%    IBU: ?

Cloudy light blonde/beige with a sour citrus and bright floral nose. First sip is grapefruit, very juicy sour and clean. There is a hint of minerality or saltiness that makes it taste like a greyhound cocktail. Very drinkable.

Nothing but Flowers

Beer # 446: Nothing but Flowers, Sour ale with Flowers 
ABV: 4.3%    IBU: ?

Salmon pink with a light pink head, first sip is very light fruity and floral. Chamomille and hibiscus with sour cherry and grassy notes.

Yalla Yalla Mosaic

Beer # 447: Yalla Yalla Mosaic, Dry Hopped Farmhouse Sour
ABV: 6.5%    IBU: ?

Very light blonde in colour with a fine beige head. Wheaty, biscuit, toast, banana, and clove. Hints of Sour tart candies, citrus and fresh green hops.

Control Bored

Beer # 448: Control Bored
ABV: 6.5%    IBU: ?

Beige in colour with a super-fine head. Chamomille tea on the nose. First sip is sweet chamomile tea with honey and lemon. Toasty biscuit and almonds with tones of cherry pie.









Final thoughts: Half Hours on Earth is awesome, well worth the drive. The beers are light and ethereal. It's no wonder why the brewery gets the attention it does. I only wish the beers were more available, but I guess that would take away from the uniqueness of them. They are, however, available from their online store in limited quantities.

More to come...

Cheers
CJT