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midlife crisis wrote:Flying Monkeys Mark Henry Sexual Chocolate Triple Take Down Stout, the ultimate "festival" beer, in the sense that it was unlike anything else and made an enormous impression on the senses, even if you perhaps wouldn't sit down and drink an entire pint of it. Then Stalin's Choice second and Great Lakes x House Ales x Nickelbrook Farmhouse Harvest Ale third. I missed the Tempest before it was gone as well.
Part of me wants to go back tomorrow to try the few things I regret missing. I have a media pass so I can go back, it's just a pain in the ass to get to for just a few things.
If you guys missed out on yesterday's session, then hell, go today.
best cask days by far. and think this is my 5th I've been to.
people were great. the Brickworks is great. it was cold, but not horrific.
beer was better than last year's, i thought. some real great drinks.
La Buteuse was very nice, as already mentioned.
my big winners?
Tempest. perfect style for cask. tasted and smelled incredible. world class.
Bellwoods' Hellwoods aged on sour cherries. a 1/4 pint is the perfect amount. its a black forest cake in a glass.
The cider from Quebec was great. really tart and sour with a nice bit of funk.
I also liked Railway City's brett beer (pretty good). people dug Toronto Brewing's curry stout. perfect cold weather beer.
There were a few misses, like the Parallel 49th milk stout (did not like at all). but mostly more hits than misses.
atomeyes wrote:
The cider from Quebec was great. really tart and sour with a nice bit of funk.
Missed that one. Was there a lot of cherry in it?
atomeyes wrote:
I also liked Railway City's brett beer (pretty good). people dug Toronto Brewing's curry stout. perfect cold weather beer.
I think you mean Sawdust City Date With Brett? That was pretty interesting.
the Quebec cider "sold out" quickly in the 1st session. too lazy to look up exactly what it was, but pretty certain it was apple cider. very very tart with some brett or funk in it. a small blast of sulphur on the nose, which i always hate, but it didn't affect the taste.
Sawdust City and Railway City, i mix up. i meant the brewery with the stupidly-named beer.
Part of me wants to go back tomorrow to try the few things I regret missing. I have a media pass so I can go back, it's just a pain in the ass to get to for just a few things.
I found the transportation to be quite straightforward and hassle free, myself. Took the TTC bus 28A from Davisville station at noon (almost no other attendees on it, which I thought was odd) and it arrived at the event in under 15 minutes. Took the free shuttle to Broadview on the way home, and that was EZ too.
Quite a few beer I liked (along with a few Duds). Was realy impresed with how efficient everything was once I got in. the biggest lineup was for the booth selling extra tokens.
Really enjoyed the Full City Tempest, Hellwoods with Cherry, Hopfenstark Greg, Half Pints Smoketoberfest, and Stalin's choice. The food was pretty good also.
Great day for cask days despite the weather. Tempest, Hellwoods, Red Racer ESB and Indie's Double Barrel Pumkin were highlights. Can't wait for next year. Thanks again Ralph.
I attended today's event and thought it was great. Most of the beers mentioned above had been consumed by yesterday, but there was plenty more good stuff to be had.
At these events now, I barely glance at the full list. I don't really care what is on it, I know I'll find something good from what I see on the counters once in situ. Today I found the House Ales English Porter, thankfully (for me) sans coffee or chocolate and just perfect - I hope it becomes a Bar Volo regular.
Also, Coco Black IPA, a collab of Great Lakes and Kensington I think: what a great beer, vibrant, full of natural flavour and with a perfect cask-conditioned character.
I also liked an ESB from Surrey, B.C. (name escapes) and Junction's Pale Ale. Both had that mango/orangey character some APAs get, perhaps from Amarillo.
I wish more of the beers would pour clear, but still enjoyed most of what I tried. (Cheshire Valley's IPA did not please, nor did the Angus Old Ale, nor did Clocktower Pumpkin, but that's me).
cmadd wrote:Stalin's Choice – there is no other choice.
I didn't want to say it right away, but yeah - this was my vote, hands down!
What was truly great, though, was that it seemed to be a battle between Ontario Imperial Stouts - Stalin's Choice, House Ales Swag Out, Hellwoods w/ Cherries, and the Coffee Tempest were all the best IMHO.
"What can you say about Pabst Blue Ribbon that Dennis Hopper hasn’t screamed in the middle of an ether binge?" - Jordan St. John
JeffPorter wrote:
My wife tried to "remove" so water from the collab tent and soaked a bunch of people. She felt awful, and sorry if any of you got wet!
Great event today, just a shame there was so few left from the out of province brewers. Out of the 16 samples I had I would say my favourite was the Indie Alehouse x House Ales "Dark Wheat Rises".
Congrats to Ralph, the volunteers and brewers on putting together such a great event. Looking forward to next years!
icemachine wrote:Great event today, just a shame there was so few left from the out of province brewers. Out of the 16 samples I had I would say my favourite was the Indie Alehouse x House Ales "Dark Wheat Rises".
I didn't try that one, but my friend loved it and once he had it, he struck with it for the rest of the afternoon.
"What can you say about Pabst Blue Ribbon that Dennis Hopper hasn’t screamed in the middle of an ether binge?" - Jordan St. John
