In case you didn't guess. The title of yesterday's blog is a line from one of my favourite Cowboy Junkies songs:
This darn cold will not go away I still have a pretty beefy headache and a sore throat. However, I intend to soldier on. I have my tastebuds back and my nose is functioning adequately so I will continue with regular tastings. I did manage to get a bottle of Cheli's Barrel aged Pale Ale from Lake of Bays Brewery so look for that one, probably tomorrow night. Tonight I am dipping into a beer I have been dying to try. It comes from the Yukon!
Yukon is NORTH!
Next to the Icelandic beers, this will be one of the most Northerly Breweries I have tasted. And I think that only one of the Alaskan Breweries is more Northerly in North America. Other upcoming events here at Pint Jockey Headquarters: May 30th to June 6th is Ontario Craft Cider Week Which we will be celebrating by doing another week long spotlight on Craft Ciders (and maybe one or too not so craft ciders... we have to make fun of somebody...) And a week after that is the BIG EVENT in Toronto. OCB Week returns again launching on Father's Day weekend. I was hoping to get down to Session Toronto but my work schedule doesn't look promising. So I may be going down midweek again this year for the second Installment of my Live Blog OCB Week.
So stay tuned, lot's of good stuff coming down the pipe!
Brakeman's Session Ale Junction Craft Brewery Toronto, Ontario, Canada Independent Golden Ale 5.3 % ABV Aluminum Can 473 ml. $2.85 (Canadian) At the LCBO Twitter: @Junction_Craft I have only talked about Junction Craft Brewery when I was down in Toronto for OCB Week There I had the Cascadian Dark Ale at The Only Cafe. Junction Craft has been around since 2012 and is part of the mushrooming Craft Beer scene in Toronto and Ottawa that has taken place over the last 5 years. Suffice it to say I could almost name every brewery in this province before 2009 and I was pleasantly shocked to learn that the number of breweries and brewpubs in Ontario now top 200! Junction Craft owes it's Railway theme to the location of it's brewery. Opened in the so called "Junction" Area of Toronto which is loaded with rail yards and warehouses and the crossing point of two major rail lines. It is also next to the Stockyards area where cattle were brought in to be auctioned and sent for butchering. The rattle and clang of the train has echoed through the Junction for over 100 years. So this became a natural choice to name the brewery when the time arose. Other than that, I could not find much on the brewery on the web page, and I haven't yet been down to have a chat with someone there (Which I plan to correct sometime soon), so tonight we will have to let the Brakeman do the talking for us. All aboard... onto the next tasting. Off dark gold in colour with a short creamy white head made up of mostly tiny bubbles. Very light caramel malt on the nose with a light herbal hop. Toasty malt and molasses some hay, grains and grassiness and a touch of old leather. Slightly smoky with some hints of charcoal. Aeration gives us a fresh fruit and light herbal hops. Finish has a tart lingering bitterness. Complex yet refreshing. not forceful but gives you enough to contemplate.
Cost: 5/6 PASS Colour: 5/6 PASS Beer Style: 5/6 PASS Re-Order: 6/6 EXCEPTIONAL Experience: 5/6 PASS Final Thoughts: It's a sneaky little beer. When one thinks of golden ales there is such a wide range of products out there that go from stellar to shabby. When I first sniffed it it didn't seem to have much going on... but it fooled me. A good complexity and a nice beer. Certainly worth having again. I would drink this all day at a BBQ. This is the third beer I have had from Junction Craft and I can assure you it will not be my last. Cheers CJT Follow me on Twitter: @pintjockey Like me on Facebook: Pint Jockey Online
Extras There was so much to see and do, I really couldn't get to it all. I have a love hate relationship with Toronto. It was my home for many years. I made friends there, had good times (and bad). I miss Kensignton Market, and try to visit whenever I am in town. Sadly each time it's a little less Boho. The AGO with it's monumental Henry Moore, and lovely collection of the Group of 7. Chinatown with it's hustle and bustle, making you think you are running a race backwards through the crowd. The smells, the food, the fascinating people. I miss it, and boy am I ever glad I am gone.
Thoughts on my First Annual #OCBWeek and #PintJockeyLiveBlog
The Art Gallery of Ontario Advertising the Group of 7
LUCKY MOOSE?... well there was a moose on the roof (Not Joking)
Some pointy thing downtown
I would call it a success. Maybe not a rousing one but a success nonetheless. I had some learning curves, some difficulties, and a lot of unknowns. But I am raring to try again next year. Maybe if I ask the boss real nice-like, I can get August 2nd off to go to Session Muskoka! Cheers CJT... P.S. Enjoy my Random Pictures.
THIS... Is why I love Toronto... so many different foods
Honestly, this bar is my home away from home. It is the greatest, art bar, boho bar live music bar, and craft beer bar ever ( I'm being biased)
It was at one time the local watering hole of one of Canada's best Independent bands ever: The Lowest of the Low. They mention the bar in two of their songs... see the videos to the right.I spent (wasted) many a good night here. It is a place the world comes to see you. The only was a craft beer bar before there really was craft beer bars. I came in here for my first sip of Duggan's #9... I used to drink Big Rock Traditional in here before Big Rock was a Big Thing... No matter how crowded, how hectic and how hip it seems.. it's not. It's home... a place where you can strike up a conversation with someone you would have never known. Play a game of scrabble, or Trivial pursuit with them... long before the advent of Game Cafes.... The Only welcomes all... The only...is the Only. As cryptic as that sounds, only someone who has had a pint here will know... it is a slow clap, nod in acknowledgement, only the best will know club. I am proud to have called The Only my Local at one time, and no matter how much she changes... she always welcomes me home.
Ono the Tastings!
Beer # 1
Maris Pale Ale
Left Field Brewery (Toronto)
ABV 4.5 %
very clear gold in colour whispy white head nose is light grain some caramel. First sip is light malt caramel, some grain, very thin, a little watery. A touch of vanilla and a little wood.
Beer # 2
So Say We All Session IPA
Nickel Brook Brewery (Burlington)
ABV 4.2%
Dark and brooding. Colour is a cloudy deep chestnut.Thin white head is almost non-existent. Nose is roasted grain a little burnt sugar some oak and vanilla. First sipp is nutty toasted malt and light chocolate. There are very light coffee notes, as well as a slight woodiness.
Beer # 3
Genius of Suburbia
Flying Monkey's Brewery (Barrie)
ABV
Light gold in colour, thin white head.Pine and citrus on the nose. There is a lot of Christmas tree going on in this nose.The taste of pine is milder than the nose.herbal hops pop up in place of the pine, The taste is very light and refreshing. Cleansing on the palate.
Beer # 4
Professor Dunkel Bock
Barley Days Brewery (Picton)
ABV 6.0%
Red in colour, with a thin white head. Dark caramel nose, burnt sugars, and fresh herbs.First sip is cloves, pumpernickel bread some molasses, caraway, deeply toasted malt
Extremely dark brown, light tan head. Roasted malt on the nose some smoke, and coffee. First sip is coffee with some chocolate, tosted malt, some molasses, and turbinado sugar.
Beer # 6
Root Down
Wellington Brewery ( Guelph)
Flavoured Golden Ale
ABV 5.0%
Very light gold in colour with a very thin white head. The nose is all ginger. Deeply floral taste that explodes with ginger. Light graininess, and a touch of hops. Very smooth, reminiscent ginger beer.
Beer # 7
Festivale
Beau's all Natural Brewing (Van Kleek Hill )
Altbier
ABV 4.8%
Copper in colour with a white head. Sweet sugar and malt on the nose. Pastry, and sugar, like a bear claw. Wheaty and sweet. Caramel , and bread develops, and turns into some darker malt. Middle of the road.
Beer # 8
504 Pale Ale
Liberty Village Brewery
ABV 4.8 %
Light to clear gold in colour with a long lasting white head made of tiny bubbles. Hoppy and piney on the nose, light grapefruit and slightly toasty.First sip is very piney. moving on to light malt and some slight caramel and citrus.
Beer # 9
Cascadian Dark Ale
Junction Craft Brewery
Black IPA
ABV 5.0%
Dark coffee brown with a light tan head. Aroma is all coffee and chocolate with a light herbal essence. First sip is bitter coffee and very dark chocolate deeply roasted malt and dark rye bread. Slightly bitter finish roasty and toasty.
Beer # 10
Enigma
Grand River Brewing
Red Ale
Cask ABV 6.0%
Exceedingly brown to black thin wisp of a head just off-white. Nose is high alcohol, grapey, sweet, bourbon and brandy. First sip is candy and maple syrup. sweet and well rounded. slightly sticky Some oak, vanilla, and toasted sugars. Slightly rum centred taste.Very unusual and very delightful.
Bar Volo Bar Volo is probably the best craft beer bar in Toronto. From it's communal seating to it's order and pay (for everything) at the bar it reeks of non-pretentiousness. Servers are kept busy delivering awesome food, and clearing glasses... oh, so many glasses. Bartenders are extremely knowledgeable and very helpful, especially when you come in to first navigate their 30 plus tap list which is printed on a giant chalkboard in the middle of the bar. A chalkboard which is updated frequently though the night and often tweeted about on twitter. The tap list is listed by letter and numbers... you figure out what you want, you tell the bartender the letter, and they pour it for you from the simple wooden tap marked with that letter. They also produce a small line of their own beers on site, called House Ales, and we will taste one of those tonight. Here is also where I ran into some unfortunate technical difficulties. Namely some dead batteries. So I had to switch to hand written notes and this also explains why there are no pictures (and the fact I am late posting this blog). Beer # 1 Belgian Saison Left Field Brewery (Toronto) ABV 5.2% Light gold in colour, crisp white head made up of tiny bubbles. Banana and cloves on the nose. First sip is light, fruity, banana, mildly hoppy. Cloves and citrus, coriander, meaty and filled with umami. Would be an excellent food beer. Beer # 2 Chill Winston Belgian Grisette Great Lakes Brewery (Toronto) ABV 3.8% Light gold in colour, thin skiff of white foam for a head. Wheaty nose with some fruit. First sip is sweet and tart berries and cherries, light, dry with a bready finish.
(N.B. I was actually stumped by this, I had not heard the term Grisette used before. It turns out it is a Belgian Saison, or Farmhouse ale particular to a mining region of Belgium, Hainaut province. The name references a young girl who works in factories and wore a Grey (gris) uniform, often these ladies would hand out trays of beers to miners as they returned to the surface). Beer # 3 Ezra Belgian Farmhouse ale aged in Spirit Tree Cider Barrels Great Lake Brewery Collaboration with Amsterdam Brewery (Both Toronto) ABV 6.2% Deep woody gold with a light white head made of tiny bubbles. Aroma is apples spice cloves and a hint of ammonia. First taste is wheat mixed with apples.Creamy, smooth, slightly tart. Finish is dry, tartaric acid, and crisp green apple. Beer # 4 Watermelon Wheat Kensington Brewing Company (Toronto) ABV 4.5% Gold in colour with very little head. Very light green melon on the nose, and watermelon rind. First sip is Midori melon liqueur which is quickly replaced with tea. Similar to an iced black tea made with a hint of melon, some sweetness but fairly dry. Beer # 5 Limp Puppet India Session Ale Great Lakes Brewery (Toronto) ABV 3.8% Cloudy white gold with an off white head. The nose is very piney. Touch of pine in the attack, quickly turning to ruby red grapefruit. Fresh and clean, tingly, citrus, herbal, oregano and basil on the finish. Beer # 6 Rooster Tail American Wheat Northwinds Brewery (Collingwood) ABV 4.9% Bronzed gold in colour, with a light white head. Nose is crystal malt, bread, and coconut (sunscreen). First sip is warm and nutty, black tea, candy, effervescent, creamy. Some caramel and bread on the finish. Beer # 7 Marmalade Saison (Cask) Black Oak Brewery (Etobicoke) ABV 5.0% Rich honey gold in colour with a creamy white head. Nose is toast and marmalade. Sherriff's marmalade as a matter of fact.fact. Caramelised oranges, sugar and light fruit. First sip is warm and nutty orange, cooked sugars, toasted brown bread, Hazelnuts, Frangelico, with sweet overripe oranges on the finish. Beer # 8 Fermium Double Black IPA Bar Volo House Ales ABV 8.0% Very dark brown with a light tan head. Nose is dark chocolate, espresso, toasted bread, and slightly nutty. First sip is darkly roasted malt, nutty, walnuts, bruleed sugar, very bitter dark chocolate and strong herbal hops. Warm toasty pumpernickel bread and black strap molasses.
C'est What is one of those eternal Toronto hotspots. It used to have a concert hall and was a huge bastion of independent music back in the day. Now they have switched focus to good food and even better beer. Always a good place to come when you are looking for that unusual brew. It is one of my favourite stops. It is located on Front street near Church, so anyone who knows this area knows it is great for people watching. It is also in the basement so it gives that aire of exclusivity, if you are not in the know... you don't know.Well know it and look it up. You will not regret it.
Beer #1
Barn Door Brewing Company (Brewed at King Brewery, Nobleton.)
Tombstone India Pale Lager
ABV 5.0%
Light gold in colour slightly cloudy thin white head made up of small bubbles. Nose is floral, sandy, smells of the beach. First sip is an interesting mix between a German lager and an IPA. Light citrus and fruity with a back bone of bitterness. Crystal malt some caramel, and a little wet grain on the middle. Very bready on the finish.
Beer #2
Granite Brewery, Toronto
Hopping Mad
ABV 6.0%
Rusty copper in colour, bright white head made up of small to medium sized bubbles. Caramel and burnt sugar on the nose, roasted malt. Very light and refreshing, hoppy, licorice, turbinado sugar. cheek puckering. Almost forgot to take a picture...
Clear orange gold in colour with a fluffy white head, made up of small bubbles. Roasted malt on the nose with light caramel some fruit and a touch of ammonia. First sip is very grain forward, some piney hops, a touch of bitterness, and some light citrus. Finish is herbal and medicinal hops.
Final Thoughts:
C'est What has an awe inspiring selection of beer, I could honestly spend the rest of the night and the rest of my money in here... but more adventure awaits... Avante!
Well sportsfans... the long anticipated day has arrived. #ocbweek #pintjockeyliveblog. .. is in effect. Got up very early for this old chef and have hit the bus station and am being whisked to Toronto. (Yes, safety first... I plan on consuming many fine beers today... so I will leave the driving to someone else. ) This is a milestone for my young blog. This is the first post on the road (literally and figuratively.... I'm on a bus... ) This is somewhere I've wanted to take the blog for a while and I am excited to see the reception it gets. Once again you have been very good to me, I am enjoying record readership, and I hope you all are enjoying my rantings, pontifications, and musings on all things beer. (As I do love ranting, pontificating, and musing.)
Well it's about time to crank up the tunes and sit back and read my book... there are 2 hours left in this trip. Plenty of time to spend with The Trews, The Lowest of the Low, and The Headstones... good Canadian music pairs well with good Canadian Craft Beer. Don't forget to follow along on Twitter @pintjockey. .. and Untappd I will post random thoughts all day. Randomness should increase as the day goes on. I apologise in advance for spelling and grammar mistakes... they will be corrected once I return to headquarters I assure you... Most of all thank you for making this journey with me... first round is on me...
Pickering, Ontario, Canada Independent English Style Pale Ale 5.0 % ABV Brown Glass Bottle 500 ml $3.95 (Canadian) At LCBO Twitter: N/A Down to Durham County for a OCBWeek beer. Durham County is an unusual brewery, in that they don't do much social media. They have no website, and no twitter feed. They do have a page on the OCB website, which is here but otherwise they are pretty absent from the internet. I guess they prefer to let their beer do the talking... which is fine with me. It isn't often I find their beer in bottles or cans so I was delighted to find this one at an LCBO down in Etobicoke. Mostly on encounters they beers on tap at local bars, especially C'est What in Toronto, where they brew a line of beers just for them. Enough already, onto the tasting...
Very dark gold in colour, almost light copper, with a fantastic beefy head made up of tiny off-white bubbles. Very long lasting with good lacing. Honey sweet nose with medicinal hops aroma light pine and camphor. Honey is there on the first sip as is caramel and tangy hops. Slightly piney, floral, herbaceous. The hops are very fresh and green. Aeration gives us an explosion of bright green and piney hops. finish is floral and caramel.
Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional
Cost: 5/6 PASS Colour: 5/6 PASS Beer Style: 6/6 EXCEPTIONAL Re-Order: 5/6 PASS Experience: 5/6 PASS Final Thoughts: Of all the beers that claim to be "British" or "English Style" this is the first one I have found that does indeed taste like a British beer. Light, floral and fresh, it is a delightful beer. Very thirst quenching, and a great beer to drink on it's own, or with some good BBQ.
#PintJockeyLiveBlog at #OCBWeek! One of the biggest beer events is upon us. In 4 days the Ontario Craft Brewer's OCB Week, launches on Father's day Now in it's fifth year, OCB week is a celebration of all things Craft Beer in Ontario. While events happen all over Ontario, Toronto is the main focus, and that is where yours truly will be heading on June 18th. I am going to be live blogging from some of my favourite bars in the city. The Only Cafe, Bar Volo, Thirsty and Miserable, to name a few. I am also going to try to get to Mill Street Brewery's Flight tasting, and Six Pints as well (Plus any other trouble I can get up too). So stay tuned to the blog, my twitter, and Untappd for all of the updates. Also look for the Hashtags #OCBWeek and #PintJockeyLiveBlog, The OCB Week Websiteis here check them out for events near you. Here at the headquarters I am continuing the spring cleaning of the Fridge of Fame, there are a few more backlog beers that I wish to post about before I bring in more for the summer season. As always thanks for sticking here with me. Last month I had a record number of viewers and I am hoping to best that again this month. It warms my heart that you all enjoy the ramblings of this old farm boy. Cheers CJT Follow me on Twitter: @pintjockey
