The Bar Towel

seangm wrote: For whatever reason most of the wet hop ales I've tried locally just aren't very good. Muskoka Harvest Ale used to be my favourite, but the recipe has changed and it's nowhere near as good now. Curious which ones you've had luck with, since I've found they often taste like flatter, blander versions of an IPA/APA.

Amsterdam Autumn Hop and Nickel Brook Ontario Wet Hop are the only two widely available retail ones that I would grab on a regular basis, though I'm not sure whether Nickel Brook still makes their version. Collingwood makes one as well but it's closer to an English Strong Ale than a Wet Hop APA / IPA and it's not especially great. Bellwoods Bine Hunter is a delicious wet hopped ale that's usually available on tap and at the brewery retail store around fall, but no wide retail distribution. The relative scarcity of these beers is my whole point - it would be nice to see more breweries, and the better brewers in particular, put out wet hopped/harvest ales in the fall.

Craig wrote:I'm pretty sure it's just Jai Alai brewed with white oak spirals. I don't think it's aged or anything.

According to their website, it's a seasonal that they stopped making in June. Maybe they made a special batch for us? Dare to dream, Craig.

Haha, I like you, you make me laugh!

Canned 05/18/20.

Its actually pretty good, not sure if I like the original better though. Its 7.5% abv and as it says notes of vanilla, coconut and oak. I don't think its as juicy tasting as the original maybe the oak smooths it out.

Ukie wrote:

Craig wrote:I'm pretty sure it's just Jai Alai brewed with white oak spirals. I don't think it's aged or anything.

According to their website, it's a seasonal that they stopped making in June. Maybe they made a special batch for us? Dare to dream, Craig.

Haha, I like you, you make me laugh!

Canned 05/18/20.

Its actually pretty good, not sure if I like the original better though. Its 7.5% abv and as it says notes of vanilla, coconut and oak. I don't think its as juicy tasting as the original maybe the oak smooths it out.

I remember the original was a good few months old before we got it as well. That being said, I thought it held up quite well and I enjoyed it enough to buy a good number of cans.

I enjoyed the Welly Rising Tide Collaboration Mix Pack and would recommend picking it up

canned Aug 07th, 2020.

JaseWescott wrote:I enjoyed the Welly Rising Tide Collaboration Mix Pack and would recommend picking it up

canned Aug 07th, 2020.

I’ve only drank the Great Lakes and Cameron collabs so far. But both have been excellent. So good in fact, that I grabbed a “crowler” of the Cameron’s one at the Welly walk-up window as well.
I’ve heard that the Muskoka one is a bit underwhelming and I’m not expecting much of the Nickelbrook one....as Welly’s sours just don’t do it for me at all. That being said, even if these two beers are just OK, I’ll buy the pack again for the other two beers

Enjoying the Zundert 10 Trappist Quad from Netherlands - The dense spicy fruitiness is like a super-Aventinus and the slight roastiness reminds me a bit of a stout. Has some weight to it despite the silkiness, and the alcohol wallop lies in wait. Quite an impressive fall beer!

Sounds promising. I was just wondering what other Belgian style beers were out there in addition to the always excellent Chimay and Rochefort 8/10. Also, I know that we're getting a lot of German beer that's actually brewed at Brunswick Bierworks in East York. That actually sounds very promising to me as opposed to stuff being shipped/stored in varying conditions. Is Hofbrau Oktoberfestbier one of the Brunswick beers?

alsiem wrote:... Also, I know that we're getting a lot of German beer that's actually brewed at Brunswick Bierworks in East York. That actually sounds very promising to me as opposed to stuff being shipped/stored in varying conditions. Is Hofbrau Oktoberfestbier one of the Brunswick beers?

Really, because the LC website says the Hofbraü beers are made in München and I've never seen anything other than German oriigns printed in the label of any German 'Import.' It's not as if German breweries are struggling to make a good shelf-stable product - and sneaking around our expectations would frankly be in bad faith.

Be good to discuss known examples of Ontario contract beers pretending to be German imports, if such exist.

Belgian wrote:

alsiem wrote:... Also, I know that we're getting a lot of German beer that's actually brewed at Brunswick Bierworks in East York. That actually sounds very promising to me as opposed to stuff being shipped/stored in varying conditions. Is Hofbrau Oktoberfestbier one of the Brunswick beers?

Really, because the LC website says the Hofbraü beers are made in München and I've never seen anything other than German oriigns printed in the label of any German 'Import.' It's not as if German breweries are struggling to make a good shelf-stable product - and sneaking around our expectations would frankly be in bad faith.

Be good to discuss known examples of Ontario contract beers pretending to be German imports, if such exist.

When I was in Brunswick a while back I chatted with one of the guys working there who told me the German stuff was in fact made in Germany imports; at the time they had Weihenstephaner Dunkel and Alkoholfrei in the Brunswick shop.

That said, and I believe there was some discussion around here, I was surprised that Brunswick is allowed to sell imports in their shop. I figured it'd have to be an online model similar to Keep6, but the bottles they were selling at the time were indeed confirmed to be imports.

alsiem wrote:Is Hofbrau Oktoberfestbier one of the Brunswick beers?

I believe Hofbrau is imported here by Craft Beer Importers Canada, as opposed to The Craft Brand Co. who are affiliated with Brunswick.

Ok, I think I'm the source of my own rumor then. I saw the fridge full of German stuff in their bottle shop and I thought it was just the same as their Omnipollo beers (i.e. that they had been brewed by Brunswick). They don't list any of their partner breweries so I was left to guess. I just also confirmed that the LCBO does list Omnipollo as made in Ontario, so I guess they don't hide their work. My bad.

16688 Best of Belgium - 6 - Pack is now posted as Belgian Beer Discovery Box

A fantastic selection of beers from award-winning Belgian breweries Het Anker, Boon and Brasserie Dupont. This pack contains one each of Gouden Carolus Tripel and Classic, Boon Oude Geuze and Framboise, Dupont Moinette Brune and Saison Dupont Cuvée Dry Hopping.

I'll definitely pick up at least one of these.