Visit to Herald Haus Brewing Company Stratford, Ontario October 15th 2019

 The second brewery stop on our whirlwind visit to Stratford was the Herald Haus Brewing Company. It opened in 2018 on the Market Square in what was once the Stratford Herald Newspaper Building. The Herald Building as it was called was renovated and reopened as a brewery by Daniel J Graver. Their selection of beers are named to evoke the history of Stratford and area. We had a light meal before the show as you can see to the right, and below, charcuterie and some vegetable samosas. The cheese and meat were all produced locally as were the pickles. The charcuterie went well with the beer and the samosas were quite good. The dipping sauce for the samosas was terrible and did not compliment them at all.

Sadly I noticed a theme for the evening: lack of attention to detail. From confusion with their beers, to mismatched flavour in their food, to an unbalanced charcuterie board (pickle heavy, cheeses too similar in flavour profile and only one sauce, mustard, no chutney). Beer lines tasted like they needed cleaning (beers seemed flat with little to no head). Herald Haus was one of the breweries I was looking forward to trying and sadly they did not live up to my expectation.

Let's move on to my notes for the evening.

Onto our beer:

Beer # 492: SMS (Summer Music Saison)Saison 19
Style: Saison ABV: 5.5%  IBU: 35

Pours light gold with a short white head. Spicy on the nose with hints of wheat and citrus.slightly tart with hints of bitter green medicinal hops

Final Thoughts: Slightly confused here. At the brewery this was listed as SSM Saison 19 as you can see on the board, left, but on their website, it is The Summer Music Saison 19. Untappd just calls it the Saison 19. Whatever it is an underwhelming wheat-based saison with muted flavours.

Beer # 493: 21 Haze East Coast IPA

Style: NEIPA ABV: 6.8%  IBU: ?

Not very hazy clear gold short head. Aroma is tart fruit and pine. Very hoppy. With spice and bitterness. Sweet almost syrupy.

Final Thoughts: Ok this beer made me grumpy. Billed as an "East Coast IPA" which is just another term for NEIPA or New England IPA This beer is crystal clear despite the requirement of a NEIPA being "Hazy" it is an indication of the biotransformation that happens when the hops meet the various NEIPA strains of yeast. This is also responsible for the "juicy, "peachy," and "tropical" flavours of a true NEIPA. I first thought they had given me the wrong beer, but the flavour profile was close-ish so I just assume its a bad form of this beer. Pro-tip, if you are going to include "Haze" in the name of your beer... make sure it is hazy in the glass. Avoid.

Beer # 494: Perth County Conspiracy 
Style: American IPA ABV: 5.0%  IBU: 60

Amber gold in colour with a thin head. Malt forward with spicy hops.some caramel and biscuit.

Final Thoughts: This beer is named after a local Stratford area acid-folk band by the same name ( I've linked some music of theirs below). Seemingly based off of a West Coast IPA with spicy malt-forward notes. Really unimpressive.

Beer # 495: G.T.R. Rusty Rail Red 
Style: American Red Ale ABV: 4.3%  IBU: 26

Warm and malty with sweet hints of caramel and toast. Like a muscular Kilkenny. Nice Irish red style.

Final Thoughts: This beer was named after the Grand Trunk Railway which ran through Stratford. This is significant because Thomas Edison worked for the GTR as a telegraph operator as a teen. He ran away back to the States after he got called to the Head Office in Toronto to be fired for nearly causing a train wreck. This was hands down the best beer of the night but even here, confusion reigns. Listed as a 5.5% American Amber Ale on Untappd, The website lists it at a 4.3% English Style red. It drinks like a Kilkenny so I would call it an Irish Red and the alcohol feels closer to the 5.5% mark. Worth the visit at least.

Beer # 496: H2 Golden Ale
Style: Golden ale ABV: 4.7 %  IBU: 15

Gold in colour with very little head. Gateway beer... commercial golden style. Wet dog and mild hops, some malt, light rainwater. 

Final Thoughts: Very commercial. Tastes like Labatt 50 or Molson Golden. Worst beer of the evening.

Overall Thoughts: Wow, I think this brewery needs time to grow up a bit. There is a lot of confusion with their styles and flavour profiles. A lot of the beer is just meh, or average at best. I would like to see them do better I will have to revisit them sometime in the future.

Music of The Perth County Conspiracy

First Album: The Perth County Conspiracy,
 Does Not Exist (1970)

Rare Self Pressed Album: Rumour (1973)

Cheers
CJT

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Beer 371 Common Loon and Gord Downie

We knew it was coming. It had to happen sooner or later. We were warned, we were prepared, but in the end, we were not ready. Last night at the age of 53 Canada's "Rock Poet" Gord Downie lost his battle with cancer. My Facebook and Twitter feeds are overflowing today with pictures of Gord, snippets of his songs, reposted music videos. Everyone has been touched by the Tragically Hip; everyone today feels the loss. This morning our Prime Minister broke down and cried on camera as he said "...we are less as a country..." without Gord. For an entire generation, the Tragically Hip have been the soundtrack for Canada. Few other bands have been wholly and ubiquitously linked to the Canadian Identity. I've plucked out Hip songs on my guitar in my day, as "Road Apples," "Up to here," and ""Fully Completely" played out in the background. The Hip were a dying breed. There were certainly one of the last big rock bands that you could actually put on an album and listen to the whole thing. Each album was carefully crafted like a story. Each one took you on a journey. To this day I feel that hearing the opening notes to any song will grab the listener and whisk them back to that moment in time when they first fell in love with that Hip album. For me, it's the "Tragically Hip" their self-titled debut. It wasn't the first Hip album I had heard, but it is the one that resonates with me the most. Raw unadulterated Hip. Play anyone the first two notes of "Highway Girl" and you know immediately... it's a Hip song. 

Man who walks among the stars

Then we have the man himself. Poet, singer, family man, environmentalist, visionary, author, and champion of reconciliation. The man wore so many hats. Most of them sparkly and brightly coloured! In his last year here, he gave us the most memorable Tragically Hip tour (touring with his doctor no less) he gave us a solo album and book about the life of Chanie Wenjack a boy who froze to death trying to escape a residential school, with proceeds going to reconciliation efforts. And a final solo album that sadly he would not see the release of. We returned the favour by granting him the Order of Canada... Which he refused until they promised to give one to each of his bandmates. The indigenous peoples of Canada also held a "naming ceremony" for Gord in honour of his work raising awareness for reconciliation and "widening the road to include all Canadians." The gave him the Lakota name "Wicapi Omani" "Man who walks among the stars." Now he is gone it is up to us... to heal our wounds and tell our story. I'm sure someone will come along who will take up a new voice for Canada. I just hope he or she knows, they are stepping into some pretty big shoes.

Gordon Downies Charities can be accessed here:

THE DOWNIE WENJACK FUND

efforts for reconciliation between Canada and the Indigenous Peoples

The Secret Path

Gord Downie's album and book can be bought here

The Gord Downie Fund for Brain Cancer Research

OPERATED BY THE SUNNYBROOK FOUNDATION

Please if you are able, if you have been touched by the stories or the music, consider donating to one of these worthy causes. Sadly I do have to warn you to be cautious as it may appear that there are many "memorial funds" for Gord going around. These are the officially sanctioned ones, donate carefully so your money goes to the people who need it. --CJT

Beer # 371 Common Loon APA

Brewery: Bobcaygeon Brewing Company

Type: Contract Brewery    Est.:  2015

Location: Bobcaygeon, Ontario, Canada

Beer Style: American Pale Ale

ABV: 4.8%      IBU: 38

Format: Aluminium Can  Size: 473 ml

Cost: $2.95 CAD     Purchased At: LCBO

bobcaygeonbeer

    @bobcaygeonbeer

Since we lost Gord last night I felt we had to honour him with a beer from the town he made famous in one of his most iconic songs.

"Bobcaygeon" From the album "Phantom Power" 1998

Bobcaygeon Brewing company is currently building their own brewery right now in an historic building in their namesake town. Currently, there are three beers available this one, Dockside red and Sunset golden ale. They have also done a few seasonals like a session IPA and a porter, which I hope will return when the bricks and mortar brewery is launched.

Onto our beer.

Pours a crystal clear medium gold colour with a substantial off-white head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is piney and fruity with woodsy spice hints. First sip is malt forward with citrus and pineapple notes. Spicy green hops compliment the maltiness with a touch of pine. Aeration brings warm notes of spice, light caramel and vanilla, with hints of wood and toast.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 


Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 5/6 PASS
Re-Order:  5/6 PASS
Experience: 5/6 PASS


Final Thoughts:

A good everyday APA, balanced, decent flavours. Good for pulling out those old Tragically Hip CD's and giving them another listen.

Cheers... Raise a glass to Gord today.

CJT

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In Search of Tom Thomson: Part 2, A Beer With Tom - Big Timber APA Lake of the Woods Brewery

Big Timber

Beer #364 Big Timber APA

Lake of the Woods Brewing Company

Kenora, Ontario, Canada
Independent Microbrewery
Established: 2013
American Pale Ale
6.0 % ABV IBU: 60
473 ml Aluminium Can
$3.20 (Canadian) At LCBO

Twitter: @LOWBrewCo

The Cairn

So yesterday, We took a canoe trip across Canoe Lake in Algonquin Park to visit some of the Tom Thomson sites. Specifically the Memorial and his grave. I figured Tom Thomson shared his passion with us so I wanted to share mine with him. As I am a beer blogger I knew no better way. In our packed lunch I smuggled in a glass and a can of beer. (Beer is not forbidden in the park. Cans are recommended, bottles are frowned upon, and they prefer you to drink at a campsite... so a little rule bendy...) I had picked Lake of the Woods From Kenora and their BIG Timber American Pale Ale. Since Tom Thomson was a Park Ranger and an avid woodsman, I felt this was appropriate. Plus I think the guy on the can looks a bit like him.

Canoeing shakes up your beer a bit

Onto our Tasting... it's as pretty as a picture.


Pours a light amber gold with a massive off tan head... mostly from the canoe trip herbal hops tropical fruit carmelised pineapple biscuit and woody. First sip gives us a smooth malt forward ale with plenty of fruit and orange zest to back it up. Aeration gives us spicy wood some caramel some bitter green hops lemon zest and a lingering tropical fruit sweetness.

Brew with a view

 Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 

Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 5/6 PASS
Re-Order:  6/6  EXCELLENT
Experience: 6/6 EXCELLENT

Lunch

Final Thoughts: 

Woodsy malty and robust. It was an excellent choice for the trip up to visit Tom Thomson. I'm not sure what was better, tasting the beer or experiencing it in this historic outdoor location. Canoeing across the lake sure built up a thirst and the beer didn't last too long but the memories will always remain. It went well with our Lunch which included homemade smoked chicken liver pate with grilled shallots, a Welsh Cheddar, and some freshly picked kale salad from my garden that morning. But It will pair equally well with burgers, BBQ, friends, and Canadian Art.

Don't Drink and Canoe... I am an
Untrained Professional...

Cheers

CJT




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Beer # 294 Harbinger American pale Ale Descendants Beer and Beverage Company

#294 Harbinger American pale Ale

Descendants Beer and Beverage Company

Kitchener, Ontario, Canada
Microbrewery, Established 2014
American Pale Ale 
5.5 % ABV IBU: 38
473 ml Aluminium Can
$3.00 (Canadian) At the LCBO

Twitter: @Descendantsbeer

Another new brewery for me, Descendants Brewery in Kitchener Ontario. Opened in 2014 by husband and wife team Robin Malloy and Lee Brooks (I actually had a minor panic, attack when I wrote that sentence that sent me to google to make sure that it was a husband and wife team... since the names were not gender specific I didn't want to offend anyone!). It's getting hard to say that any one specific location in Ontario is a hot spot for new craft breweries. At one time I would have classed the Kitchener-Waterloo, Cambridge and Guelph areas as a burgeoning hot spot for craft beer, but now with so much development in the craft beer scene it feels as though every town in Ontario with four corners and a population over 5 has a craft brewery on the way. Even around me there are three new breweries opening soon within a 45 min drive (Torrance, Orillia, Coldwater). If I drew a 2 hour circle around me I think it would contain at least 150 breweries that are open, or opening. Kitchener was like that it seemed a new brewery was opening in the area almost every year. and with new breweries in the greater Southwestern Ontario area opening up like Hanover, Seaforth (SEAFORTH!!!! it's a bend in the road I swear, I've driven through it!), Kincardine, Guelph, and London, it now just seems to be the norm. Craft beer has taken over Ontario. I couldn't be happier!

Neither could Robin and Lee it seems. Their brewery has been well received and is garnering accolades across the province. "Harbinger" means herald, or omen. it is generally used to foretell the coming of a person or event that will be significant. A bold choice for a name of a beer; will it live up to its name? Aside from nomenclature, Harbinger is one of their three core beers, they call them the "3 Amigos." The other two are "El Buscador Cerveza" Mexican style lager, and "Reynard The Fox Golden Wry Ale" that's a "Rye" ale for those who didn't get the pun... I look forward to checking these other two out and maybe some of the other seasonals they offer. Perhaps it's time to go back to Southwestern Ontario for a visit.

Onto our beer for tonight.

Pours a medium dark gold in colour with a large fluffy off-tan head made up of small bubbles. Nose is bright and fruity with lots of malt and caramel hints of mango and citrus. Earthy, floral and herbal notes round out the aroma. first sip is bitter greens, herbal, hop forward sliding down into some sweet caramel malt. Spice and hints of stone fruit some florals and a hint of marijuana right at the finish. Aeration brings out more green hops with some sweet malts and some bitter greens on the linger.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 


Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 5/6 PASS
Re-Order:  5/6  PASS
Experience: 5/6 PASS

Final Thoughts:

I am a sucker for a good Pale Ale. Be it India, English, American or New England. They smell great they taste great and they are very refreshing. This one fits the bill nicely. Descendants managed to find a nice balance of fruit, hops, malt and florals to make this beer quite enjoyable any time of the year. I would recommend you run right out and try it. In this cause "Harbinger" means, a foretelling of good flavours.

CJT

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Brux House Grapefruit Breakfast

Beer # 257 Grapefruit Breakfast

Brux House

Hamilton, Ontario, Canada
Independent Brewpub
American Pale Ale 5.8% ABV 
Pint Glass 20 oz
$6.50 (Canadian) At The Brewery

Twitter: @BruxHouse

I love Sawdust City's Guest Tap. So many different beers often from places I have never heard of. This is one of those cases. I had not heard of Brux House yet. It is a brew pub and kitchen in Hamilton on Locke Street. If this is the calibre of beer they produce... I would expect stellar things from them.

Onto the tasting:

Pours a cloudy, muted orange-gold. Head is short, off-white and made up of tiny bubbles. Aroma is piney, tropical  fruit, vanilla and grapefruit. First sip gives us a fruit bomb. Lots of ruby red grapefruit. Sweet but not cloying, hints of spruce and juniper, and bitter greens. Aeration gives us some warm alcohol in the nose, and medicinal hops and some marmalade.

Impressions: Fail, So-so, Pass, Exceptional 


Cost: 5/6 PASS
Colour: 5/6 PASS
Beer Style: 6/6 EXCEPTIONAL
Re-Order:  6/6 EXCEPTIONAL
Experience:  6/6 EXCEPTIONAL
Christmas Cheer:  6/6 EXCEPTIONAL

Final Thoughts:

Delicious. A wonderful example of an APA. Very well rounded fruit flavours without being overly bitter. Very easy drinking and very light bodied for the alcohol content. Do seek this beer out.


CJT


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Cleaning out the Cupboards

Back Again.... did you miss me?

After a long drawn out and somewhat tiresome summer (that dragged over into fall...) I return to my blog to hang my head in shame as I have not paid it much mind recently. This is actually a big month here at Pint Jockey Headquarters. Five years ago this Sunday (November 8th) is the fifth anniversary of my first post. Sadly I often miss my own anniversaries because of being busy at work... being a chef we start into Christmas parties right about now. However this year I plan on celebrating... with a beer or two and a few posts to boot. However, That being said I have to clear off my desktop and post a few beers I tasted but never managed to finish posting. So here is a a quick three teaser of some of the summer beers I tried to write about for you...

Beer # 240 Panache

Stack Brewing Company

Sudbury, Ontario, Canada

Independent Microbrewery

Twitter: @Stackbrewing

Cedar aged American Pale Ale 
4.5% ABV Aluminum Can 473 ml (16 oz).
$3.00 (Canadian) At The Brewery

Back again with another craft beer from Stack Brewing in Sudbury Ontario. Sadly when I picked these up I didn't get much information on them


Pours a slightly hazy dark gold with an off-tan head made up of tiny to small bubbles. Aroma is woody, mossy, grassy, and slightly fruity. Some pineapple is evident. First sip is very light, drinks like a session APA. some fruit, mostly tropical, pineapple and bitter orange. Cedar is an underscoring note light and refreshing on the back of the palate. Aeration warms up the cedar giving it a bit more of a sawdust smell, some resinous hops and a long finish of bitter orange peel.


Impression: A Solid 5/6 

Lovely little beer. Cedar works very well with beer, especially the APAs.









Beer # 241 1606 Winewood Series Barrel Aged Stout

Sawdust City Brewing Company
Gravenhurst, Ontario, Canada

Independent Microbrewery

Barrel Aged Raspberry Stout
5.7 % ABV Brown Glass Bottle 750 ml
$12.95 (Canadian) At the brewery

Twitter @SawdustCityBeer

pours a very dark brown with slight hints of red and chestnut. The head is dark tan and made of very fine bubbles. The Aroma is leather and wood, some cedar, red fruit, and slightly molasses sweet. First sip is smoky sweet with lots of oak, sweet berries, slightly tart, some cranberry. Some tobacco, raisins, and coacoa powder. Aerations gives us a slight whisky nose, with some grapey astringency. Mouthfeel is cream












Impression:   6/6 

Hands down this was the beer of the summer. After ageing for 10 months in wine barrels with the periodic addition of fresh raspberries, this beer was a flavour bomb, but very easy drinking. I could sit all night and slowly sip a pint of this.



Beer # 242 Revenge of the Ginger IPA

Double Trouble Brewing
Guelph, Ontario, Canada

Independent Microbrewery

Flavoured IPA (Australian Pale Ale)
6.2 % ABV Aluminum Can 473 ml
$3.00 (Canadian) At the LCBO

Twitter: @HopsandRobbers


Pours a red tinted clear amber with an off white head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is fresh ginger, or Jamaican Ginger beer, sharp and citrusy. Rich malt in the background. First sip starts out like a ginger beer, some zing which calms down into a malty robust IPA. Some elements of a red ale especially in the malt profile. Some caramelisation, some residual sugars. The gingerol gives a pleasant tingly mouth numbing feel, and the herbaceous hops lend a nice bitter green taste to counteract the heat of the ginger and the sweet of the malt. Aeration gives off a warmth that fills the body, there is some grassiness, and some hay. The finish is earthy, mineral, and slightly sticky on the lips.

Impression: 5/6

Not a beer I would drink often but a good flavour profile nonetheless. I would actually like to cook this this. It screams beer butt chicken to me...



























There you go... I am caught up again it is time to move forward. A new year dawns here at Headquarters let's see what new beers await.

Cheers
CJT

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