FUNKFEST 2018: Pint Jockey (Sorta) Live Blog # 2

FUNKFEST 2018

Sawdust City Brewery

Gravenhurst, Ontario

Beers 411 to 420

Crooked Stave: Vielle

Beer: Vielle Artisanal Saison

Brewery:  Crooked Stave Artisan Beer
Location: Denver, Colorado

Style: Barrel Aged Farmhouse Saison (1 year)
ABV: 4.2 %
Colour: Light gold
Aroma: Not much, dead
Thoughts: Some sour no life, age is not evident.

Funk Factor: 0/6

Beer: Up-Chite Kveik Flight Delay IPA Variant

Barnstormer: Up-Chite Kveik

Brewery:  Barnstormer Brewing and Distilling
Location: Barrie, Ontario

Style: Sour Farmhouse/IPA
ABV: 6.5 %
Colour: Light Chestnut, orange-red Good creamy off-white head
Aroma: Rye nose
Thoughts: Malty, liquorice, molasses, warm toasty, biscuit. Light sour, very smooth. One of the most delicious of the day.
Funk Factor: 7/6

Barnstormer: OakHai

Beer:  Barrel-Roll Saison "OakHai"

Brewery:  Barnstormer Brewing and Distillery

Location: Barrie, Ontario

Style: Flavoured and Barrel Aged Farmhouse Ale

ABV: 5.4 %

Colour: Light cranberry red with almost no head

Aroma: Floral and oaky

Thoughts: Light barrel taste with florals and cranberry. Beer is Oak aged and flavoured with Hibiscus.

Funk Factor: 5/6

Beer: Spin Dive Salt and Pepper Gose

Lake of Bays Spin Dive

Brewery:  Lake of Bays Brewery

Location: Baysville, Ontario

Style: Flavoured Gose

ABV: 3.8 %
IBU: 11

Colour: Mid-toned gold

Aroma: Citrus and mineral

Thoughts: Huge citrus, lime salt and pepper from the start very smooth with hints of pineapple. Very, very good.
Funk Factor: 7/6

Beer: Transylvania Boogie

Henderson: Transylvania Boogie

Brewery: Henderson Brewing Company 

Location: Toronto, Ontario

Style: Barrel Aged Sour Ale

ABV: 6.4 %

Colour: Murky dark chestnut

Aroma: Worcestershire Sauce!

Thoughts: Tamarind, molasses, oaky and malty. This would be so perfect for making ribs! This was the most interesting beer of the show.
Funk Factor: 7/6

Beer: Darling 100% Brett Sour Ale

Stone City: Darling

Brewery:  Stone City Ales

Location: Kingston, Ontario

Style: Sour Ale

ABV: 4.5 %

Colour: Light gold/ straw slightly cloudy

Aroma: Citrus

Thoughts: Light citrus attack with a good funk, woody, and creamy finish.
Funk Factor: 5/6

Beer: Hey Beautiful

Shortfinger: Hey Beautiful

Brewery:  Shortfinger Brewing Company

Location: Kitchener, Ontario

Style: Sour Ale

ABV: 5.5 %

Colour: Hazy gold with a generous white head

Aroma: Brett nose with a good hit of citrus

Thoughts: Wheat, citrus, clove, very simple, smooth and tasty.
Funk Factor: 5/6

Beer: Vespers Saison

Brewery:  Dominion City Brewing Company

Dominion City: Vespers

Location: Ottawa, Ontario

Style: Sour Ale

ABV: 5.0 %

Colour: Cloudy Light Gold

Aroma: Light citrus nose

Thoughts: Caramel and banana, slight clove, light on sour, and creamy.
Funk Factor: 4/6

Beer: Gravity Well

Halcyon Barrel: Gravity Well

Brewery:  Beau's Brewing/ Halcyon Barrel House
Location: Van Kleek Hill, Ontario

Style: Sour Flander's Oud Bruin
ABV: 9.0 %
Colour: Medium Chesnut
Aroma: Molasses and sour aromas
Thoughts: Good hit of sour off the hop, oaky wood, smoke and Worcestershire.
Funk Factor: 5/6

Beer: 7 Years Bad Luck

Brewery:  Beau's Brewing/ Halcyon Barrel House
Location: Van Kleek Hill, Ontario

Style: Brett Fermented Double IPA
ABV: 7.4 %
Colour: Golden orange-red
Aroma: Citrus pineapple
Thoughts: Lots of citrus with juicy pineapple funk and toast with a hint of biscuit.
Funk Factor: 6/6

End of part two

Cheers

CJT

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FUNKFEST 2018: Pint Jockey (Sorta) Live Blog # 1

FUNKFEST 2018

Sawdust City Brewery

Gravenhurst, Ontario

Beers 400 to 410

Beer: De Witte (2018)

Dageraad: De Witte

Brewery:  Dageraad Brewing
Location: Burnaby British Columbia

Style: Sour Ale
ABV:  5.2 %
Colour: Straw
Aroma: Bright wheat nose with hints of spice
Thoughts: Warm spices with cinnamon and cloves. Smooth, bland, slightly washed out. Hints of straw and a mild funk. Tastes like a sour Molson Golden. 
Funk Factor: 1/6

Beer: La Belle Farmhouse Saison

Powell: La Belle 

Brewery:  Powell Brewery
Location: Vancouver, British Columbia

Style: Sour Farmhouse Saison
ABV:  8.3 %
Colour: Honey, orange-gold
Aroma: Bright fruity nose
Thoughts: Orange and citrus, with some berry. Lingering camphor, and juniper. Finishing up with clove and honey. Reminds me a bit of a sour gummy worm.
Funk Factor: 4/6

Beer: Pomona Stone Fruit Sour

Four Winds: Pomona

Brewery:  Four Winds Brewing

Location: Delta, British Columbia

Style: Flavoured Sour Ale

ABV: 5.5 %
IBU 8

Colour: Hazy, and Muddy Gold

Aroma: Peaches and nectarines

Thoughts: Light fruity attack with bright peaches and plums airy hints of sour mixed in with a touch of baking spice and some cherries on the finish.
Funk Factor: 4/6

Beer: Darkwood Blackberry Saison (was listed at the show as Darkhorse??)

Brassroots: Darkwood

Brewery:  Brassroots Brewing Company

Location: Toronto, Ontario

Style: Flavoured Farmhouse Sour

ABV: 4.3 %

Colour: Dark orange-red

Aroma: Blackberry and pineapple on the nose

Thoughts: Fruity and sweet, pineapple, citrus, and juicy sweetness from the berries. Refreshing, but a slightly heavy mouthfeel.
Funk Factor: 4/6

Beer: Rage & Love Plum and Cardamom 

Rainhart: Rage and Love

Brewery:  Rainhard Brewing

Location: Toronto, Ontario

Style: Flavoured Sour Ale

ABV: 5.4 %

Colour: Pink and cloudy with an impressive white head

Aroma: Fruity and spicy

Thoughts: First sip gives us lots of spice, cardamom and cinnamon, sour and tart with fresh plums, hints of mint and chocolate. This was one of my favourites early on... There are a few more as good or better by this was a stellar entry.
Funk Factor: 6/6

Beer: Wild Brett

Rainhard: Wild Brett

Brewery:  Rainhart Brewing

Location: Toronto, Ontario

Style: American Wild Ale

ABV: 6.0 %

Colour: Golden Straw 

Aroma: Wheat and oak

Thoughts: Hints of vanilla from the barrel, light and effervescent with strong notes of wheat and clove, funky brett notes and mildly sour. This was brewed for the Brewery's 2nd anniversary and aged in barrels for 1 year and soured with four strains of brett.
Funk Factor: 5/6

Beer: Iron Horse Papaya Sour

Small Pony: Iron Horse

Brewery:  Small Pony Barrel Works
Location: Kanata, Ontario
Collaboration with: Microbrasserie Cassel Brewery

Location: Casselman, Ontario

Style: Flavoured American Wild Ale

ABV: 6.6%
IBU 1

Colour: Dun, straw, no head.

Aroma: Nose is muddy

Thoughts: Overripe papaya wheat, pineapple juice, oddly sour and wet dog. The sample may have been off. 

Funk Factor: 1/6

Beer: Jam Hands Raspberry American Sour

Small Pony: Jam Hands

Brewery: Small Pony Barrel Works 

Location: Kanata, Ontario

Style: Flavoured American Wild Ale

ABV: 5.0 %

Colour: Purple in colour with no head

Aroma: Nose is intense raspberry

Thoughts: Fresh jam flavour with a sour fruit punch body, viscous and reminiscent of sour raspberry jello. Quite tasty.
Funk Factor: 5/6

Beer: Levadura Sour Gose

Stillwater: Levadura

Brewery:  Stillwater Artisanal
Location: Brooklyn, New York; Baltimore, Maryland

Style: Flavoured Sour Gose
ABV: 4.6 %
Colour: Cloudy light gold
Aroma: Wheaty and mineral
Thoughts: Gose is Flavoured with salt, lime, and agave. Mineral lime/citrus with some cucumber, slightly sweet and a bit of wet dog. Tasted washed out like it had been pasteurised.
Funk Factor: 0/6

Beer: Crossfade Farmhouse Saison

Oxbow: Crossfade

Brewery: Oxbow Brewing Company
Location: Newcastle, Maine

Style: Farmhouse Saison
ABV: 5.0 %
Colour: Light green gold
Aroma: light wheat and citrus
Thoughts: Flat, dead tastes pasteurised. Some sweetness with a touch of sour.
Funk Factor: 0/6



End of part one

Cheers


CJT

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Funk Fest, The Lowest of the Low and my busy, busy Canada Day Weekend.

Happy Canada Day!

Funk Fest 2018

Well, July has hit us here like a wave of lava. We are on our third or fourth day of extreme heat warnings and I picked this weekend to be extra busy. First up, on Saturday, June 30th,  was the wonderful Funk Fest at Sawdust City Brewing in Gravenhurst. For those of you who have never heard of our annual celebration of funky beers, Funk Fest showcases some of the best breweries in Ontario (and beyond now) that brew beers, which are considered "sour" or "funky."  It started out mostly as a character of Belgian beers, and Flander's Reds but breweries started to experiment and we now have Goses, Sour IPSs Sour Pale Ales, Auld Bruns, Farmhouse Saisons. It is a lovely mix of different beers. It is the third time The Queen of Pint Jockey Headquarters, and I have gone and quite frankly it gets better every year. This year we only sampled around 40 or so beers and the humidex was courting the forties (Celsius) and there wasn't much cloud cover or shade. They did have a misting tent this year which was a nice addition to the show, and they had a Paramedic on pancake duty, thankfully I don't think he was utilised much.  There were 40 Breweries this year pouring around 100 beers. In addition to about 33 Ontario Breweries, we had A la Fut rejoin us from Quebec, and three breweries from B.C: Dageraad from Burnaby, Four Winds from Delta, and Powell from Vancouver, and a few 

Tasty Sours

breweries from the USA. I'm very happy to say Funk Fest gets bigger and better every year and I can't wait for the next one. I did attempt to live blog again this year but, the same issue happened as last. With so many people at the event utilising the wifi is impossible. And I didn't want to see my cell phone bill after I uploaded so many pictures. So I broke out the old notebook and went analogue on this blog, so I am a little slow in posting my Funk Fest notes, mainly because I have to decipher my own handwriting.

The Lowest of The Low

Then on Canada day, after a long hot shift at work, we went off to The KEE to Bala, which if you are not from around here, is the Holy Temple of Canadian Music. (read it's a barn someone turned into a concert venue 75 years ago and anyone who is anything in the Canadian music scene has played there.) The Canada day concert this year featured my favourite Canadian band "The Lowest of the Low." They are perhaps one of the best indie artists to come out of Canada and are a truly genre-defying punk-folk-pop- rock-blues group. Their songs are lyrically driven guitar heavy pieces of art. and I suggest you check them out. I know many of you who are long-time readers have heard me natter on about them before... but truly they are worth the listen. It was the Queen's first time to hear them and she really did enjoy herself (she has good taste in music!) Oh, and I think Matt Mays was there too... not sure.

Anyway... I've rested... time to get those notes up. Stick around and see if I can figure out what I was trying to say.

Cheers


CJT

Beer # 399 Clothing Hoptional Session IPA

Brewery: New Ontario Brewing Company


Type: Independent Microbrewery    Est.:  2015

Location: North Bay, Ontario, Canada

Beer Style: Session IPA

ABV: 5.1 %      IBU: 40

Format: Aluminium Can  Size: 473 ml

Cost: $2.95 CAD     Purchased At: LCBO

newontariobrewing

    @NewOntarioBrew

Another beer from my mini Near North Ontario brewery trip and stop 2 from the day New Ontario Brewing Company is located in my other hometown North Bay. I went to College here and have great memories of this place. I still try to make it up regularly to go fishing with my college friend and adopted brother, Jack.

Let's try this one out.

Pours a clear honey amber with an off-white head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is peachy with pineapple, pine, light florals and hints of guava. The first sip is malty with a good hit of pine/spruce. Mild caramel with good hits of sweet tropical fruit. Tangy green hops round out the finish. Aeration gives us a warming sensation from the 5.1 % ABV (a little high for a session, but we are not complaining) Aeration also pumps the malt profile making it more bready, like toast with jam. Slight hints of honey round out the finish

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:

It's a great fruit bomb, easy drinking, and very enjoyable.

CJT

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Beer # 398 Canada 150 Best Bitter Ale

Beer # 398 Canada 150 Best Bitter Ale

Brewery: Black Creek Historic Brewery


Type: Contract Brewery    Est.:  2015

Location: Toronto, Ontario, Canada

Beer Style: English Bitter Ale Ale

ABV: 5.0%      IBU: ?

Format: Aluminium Can  Size: 473 ml

Cost: $2.95 CAD     Purchased At: LCBO

BlackCreekPioneerVillage

    @blackcreeknews

I'm a little late posting this one. It was supposed to go up in my Canada Day Beer month, but the notes were complete and I didn't want to waste the tasting. Brewed to celebrate the country's 150th anniversary of Confederation.

Let's taste it.

Pours a slightly cloudy and opaque chestnut brown with a light tan head made up of small bubbles. Aroma is roasted malt liquorice and molasses, with hints of baking biscuits. The first sip is a light caramel and liquorice toffee hard candy taste. Light in body with a malt forward approach. A little residual sugar leaves the lips sticky. Hints of wood smoke oak barrels, maple syrup and vanilla sparkle around the outsides of the tongue. The attack opens up into touches of prunes and an earthy finish. Aeration gives us a spike of malt and dried fruits, dates and raisins, and ends on notes of vanilla and turbinado sugar.

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 nice best bitter, a touch more malty than I am used to but certainly not bad at all. Nice complexities in the smoky, dusty, fruity body. Light and easy drinking and the dates and raisins build out a nice warm and cosy character.

CJT

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Beer 397: Scottish Ale Highlander Brew Co.

Beer # 397 Scottish Ale

Brewery: Highlander Brew Co.


Type: Independent Microbrewery    Est.:  2009

Location: South River, Ontario, Canada

Beer Style: Scottish Ale

ABV: 5.4 %      IBU: 34

Format: Aluminium Can  Size: 473 ml

Cost: $3.25 CAD     Purchased At: The Brewery

highlanderbrew

    @HighlanderBrew

First, stop on my mini near North Ontario brewery tour (well two breweries anyway... I had other things to do...) Highlander is a brewery we have tried before, most notably Lion Grass Flavoured Ale, which until recently my blog was quoted on the description page of Highlander's website. (Nobody even told me I found out by (happy) accident). Tonight's beer is their signature Scottish ale. Let's give it a try.

Pours an orange/amber chestnut colour with a light tan fluffy head made up of small to medium bubbles. Nose is very grainy with hints of malt and molasses. Hints of nuts and toast and a touch of freshly mown grass. The first sip is malt forward with a surprising creaminess. Very nutty and slightly bitter with an herbaceous midsection. Hints of marijuana and medicinal hops. Aeration brings out a biscuit/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, flavourful Scottish ale. Refreshing and delicious.

CJT

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