The Bar Towel

Someone told me that the LCBO used to be like the Beer Store, that you'd write down your selection on a little piece of paper and the employee would go into the back and bring you out your bottle and put it in a paper bag to take home, lest you feel shame for buying such an evil vice. Is that true? ...

Beau's has done two Gose's. They had 'Opa's Gose' at their Oktoberfest a couple of years ago. I remember really enjoying it.

It wasn't in the picture or mentioned in the story but there was Beau's Lugtread part of the bet as well.

Just trying the Hop Circle now and, unlike most of you (it seems), I prefer it to the American ones. It certainly has more of a rough edge, or a resiny weedy character, as has been pointed out above. To my palate that is all to the good. I'm with you. I like the Hop Circle a lot. I was a bit underw...

Hope they don't strike, but glad to be next to Quebec if they do.

I can't remember ever buying a two-four but I buy 12 packs fairly frequently. Dieu du Ciel has their mixed packs that I get pretty regularly. Mixed 12 packs seem common amongst US microbreweries as well. I got a Brooklyn one time I was down there.

They had a feature this morning on CBC Radio One in Ottawa about the privatization of the LCBO. Apparently a great deal of the feedback they received was that the target should be the Beer Store monopoly and not the LCBO.

Agree completely regarding the Double Black IPA. Had some recently and really enjoyed it. I wish they bottled more of their varieties as it's hard to justify a growler when you just want bottles for everyday drinking. I'll have to swing by and pick up some of the Old Man Winter.

Big Rig Lon's Extra Special Bitter (ESB). Nice flavour on this one. Looking forward to their Pumpkin Porter coming up in October.

Also had a Smuttynose Old Brown Dog Ale from a mixed pack I picked up recently. Also a keeper.

I agree about the Creemore Altbier too.

Shipyard Smashed Blueberry - I go to Maine many a summer and have always been underwhelmed by Shipyard but I am very impressed by this one that I found at the LCBO. Much better than their pumpkin beer to my taste. Phillips Ginger Beer - Plenty of ginger here, maybe a touch too much. Like it but not ...

I went by there to pick up some growlers for the weekend, but there was nary a growler to be had, completely sold out of them. Not surprising given the long weekend I guess. Anyway, picked up a six of the Gold and was pretty impressed. I wouldn't order it if the IPA or Hefe was on tap but it's a nic...

The list of IPAs reminds me that as much as I admire the US microbrew scene, it can seem like a bit of a one-trick-pony at times. You go into a lot of stores and it's shelves upon shelves of IPAs, APAs....much of a muchness. There's a lot of great beer down there but sometimes you have to search a b...

Those better be 20 oz. pints at those prices for draft. A pretty uninspiring selection considering the number of beers there. Still, there are a few that I would be quite happy with if I found myself there (Mill St., Maudite, Anchor Steam, Creemore). I wouldn't be drinking too many at those prices h...

Sounds like the Kitchesippi beer bike.

http://www.ottawacitizen.com/news/Ottaw ... story.html

We went there today. It reopened this evening after a small fire disrupted a busy opening week. Cutting to the chase, we really enjoyed both the IPA and Hefeweizen. They were both good enough for us that we'd probably buy them in the future to drink at home. We also had the Brown, which we thought w...