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C'est What? - Spring Festival of Small Breweries - May 26th

Post details, reviews and recaps of interesting beer events in Ontario and elsewhere here.

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JWalter
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C'est What? - Spring Festival of Small Breweries - May 26th

Post by JWalter »

From a lager made with Maple sap instead of water (Maple Bush Lager) to Double Oatmeal Treacle Stout to a beer called Hop Addict, our Second Annual Spring Festival will be featuring some of the more imaginative work from our local breweries. Thirty-five creative creations from over two dozen breweries will be available for sampling. As usual, the who's who of the Southern Ontario brewing scene will be rubbing elbows, and the foam off of their upper lips on this fine Friday.

Samples are $1 each (all taxes inc.)

Details:
2nd Annual Spring Festival Of Small Breweries
Friday, May 26, 2006 at 5:00 PM
C'est What, 67 Front St. E. at Church
Doors Open: 5:00 PM
No charge for this event!

Admission is on a first come, first seated basis.

Official Site: http://www.cestwhat.com/asp/events.asp?id=631
FYI - I'll be recording tasting notes tonight and on Friday to put together into a one-off Podcast that might morph into a series of Bartowel/OCB Podcasts, so anyone who is interested, please come out and share your opinions with the WORLD! :)
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jmcnally
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Post by jmcnally »

Did you come into C'est What? at about 6:15pm in a Newcastle shirt? I was just leaving and saw you. I wasn't able to sign up for the preview event since I was pouring wine at the New Zealand Wine Fair tonight but stopped in for a pint on my way.

Hope it went well!

Hamilton Brian
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Post by Hamilton Brian »

That's funny. I can't help but think I might run into an Alan Shearer lookalike at the pub...

PRMason
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Post by PRMason »

Sorry I didn't have the Chaplain's Solace ready for the pre-tasting event. It will be there tomorrow for service on Friday's event.
"Every day above ground is a good one."

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Torontoblue
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Post by Torontoblue »

Hamilton Brian wrote:That's funny. I can't help but think I might run into an Alan Shearer lookalike at the pub...
More of a Mickey Quinn lookalike :D :D .

No offence Jwalter :lol:

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JWalter
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Post by JWalter »

Torontoblue wrote: More of a Mickey Quinn lookalike :D :D .
No offence Jwalter :lol:
Hardy Har Har! I'm actually on a diet!

No offence taken, I know you're just taking the 'Mickey' :)

McNally - Yup, that was me :)

Micky Quinn:
Image


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jmcnally
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Post by jmcnally »

I'm worried about this "first come, first seated" stuff. Do you think if me and my two friends arrived about 8:30, we'd have trouble getting in? 5:00pm is a bit early for me!

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GregClow
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Post by GregClow »

jmcnally wrote:I'm worried about this "first come, first seated" stuff. Do you think if me and my two friends arrived about 8:30, we'd have trouble getting in?
Yes, you probably will. This is a very popular event, and there is usually a line-up to get in within an hour or so of doors opening.

You may have a better chance if the weather is still crappy tonight, but even then, I would suggest that you have a back-up plan ready in case you don't get in.

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JerCraigs
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Post by JerCraigs »

or be prepared to stand in line for a while... I know a few people plan to hit it early and take off though so that might be good for you.

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sstackho
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Post by sstackho »

jmcnally wrote:5:00pm is a bit early for me!
5pm is a bit early for me as well.

That being said, I will be there at 5. :D

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lister
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Post by lister »

Good to meet some people there, JerCraigs and Steve amongst others.

The only beer that really stood out as a WOW! for me was the Glenora Springs Triple Chin Irish Ale. It was really smooth and nice tasting. I could pack away several pints in a row of that which is unusual for me since I usually don't repeat myself.

Muskoka had their heffe weisebier there which I don't think unseats Denison's. It's nice and all but it's not quite there yet to dethrone the king.

I flumoxed JWalter a bit with my high score of the Mill St. Tankhouse dry-hopped cask. I don't mind the flavour of hops but how much bitterness that gets in to whatever brew.

The Maple Bush got another try. It seemed like a different beer to me versus the Tuesday one. Maybe it was only what I had ahead of it on Tuesday or else my tastebuds were funky but I didn't notice that sharpness up front which I didn't like. I probably won't bother with a future pint or 6/12 pack (if they ever come to be in Toronto) though I'm sure I will sample it again since the girlfriend likes the stuff.
lister

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JerCraigs
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Post by JerCraigs »

I quite liked the Muskoka Hefe as well. A bit more clove flavour than I personally like but it was nice. Church Keys Pale Ale was an interesting new beer as well.

Was disappointed not to see the Nickel Brook Apple wasn't it supposed to show?

I was fun to see a lot of people I hadn't seen in a while, i think I spent more time talking to people than drinking beer! Sorry for those I didn't get much time to chat with.

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No More Euro-Lagers
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Post by No More Euro-Lagers »

Enjoyed the event thoroughly.
Stand out beers for myself:

1.Camerons unfiltered Dark 266- I think were going to see some cool stuff coming from them in the not to distant future.

2. Churchkey Pale Ale- John has done it again, a beautiful Pale Ale.

3. Mill Street Tankhouse unfiltered- one of my favs, you could smell the hops six inches from your nose. It was big and bold, just what one of these shows need.

The only criticism I would offer is that its hard to get a drink at the stations. Maybe setting it up like the 'winking judge' did with respective breweries and their reps pouring at stations and available for questions on the beers they were serving. May aleviate the log jamb of people in front of the bar and avoid the people who insist on sitting in front of a pouring station, and blocking the bar.

PRMason
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Post by PRMason »

Sorry I was unable to attend the festival...again. Was my Chaplain's solace cask on offer?
"Every day above ground is a good one."

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JWalter
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Post by JWalter »

PRMason wrote:Sorry I was unable to attend the festival...again. Was my Chaplain's solace cask on offer?
Perry - Yes it was, a had several samples of that, it was excellent! Let us know when and where we'll see some more!
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