The Bar Towel

My favourite finds of the year:
Nogne Saison
Odell IPA

Most purchased from LCBO: Hoptical

Event: Had a blast at Mondial

Honestly can't wait to get back to Onterrible, as BSy as that might sound. Something exciting about being somewhere that's fighting the uphill battle for good beer. and that has an infant craft beer industry. The hunt for good beer is half the fun... okay, maybe an eighth, but still...

Favourite beer of 2010: Phillips Amnesiac

Most purchased: Black Oak Ten Bitter Years

Best LCBO release: Fall/Hallowe'en/DDC feature (which tended to merge into one big release)

Favourite brewery: Great Lakes

Favourite event: Cask days/week. Still the king.

Best new thing: Toronto Beer Week

Who deserves more recogntion: Ralph, Tomas and Julian at Volo for a year chock full of fun events -- Stone launch, Black Sunday, J20, Charlevoix night, Black Oak night, cask IPA Challenge, Hopfenstark night, just to name a few. And of course a fantastic Cask Week at the end of October.

Favourite beer of 2010:

Most purchased beer of 2010: Grand River Plowman's Ale

Best LCBO release: Olvisholt Skjalfti / Lava

Favourite brewery of 2010: Grand River

Favourite event of 2010: Belgian Beer Festival

Best new thing to happen in 2010: ?

Who deserves more recognition: ?

Favourite beer of 2010: 10 Bitter Years

Most purchased beer of 2010: Hard to say, mostly bought singles with lots of homebrew, statistically it's Equinoxe d'printemps

Best LCBO release: Fall was great, Lava, DDC for variety, Ola Dubh

Favourite brewery of 2010: Grand River

Favourite event of 2010: Grand River tastings (went to 3 in 2010, good variety and stories)

Best new thing to happen in 2010: Was the Miller vortex bottle this year? No.. Then the presence now of Ontario beer at the LCBO, a few years ago it was a pleasant surprise, now it's a given

Who deserves more recognition: Not to kiss butt, but Cass for the private order initiatives and bringing something like Garrison into stores and Bobsy for TBW, even though I didn't get out to any events this year, I only entered the homebrew contest (my kids take up 99% of my waking hours), its great to see something for true beer geeks by someone with the same passion. I look forward to getting out to some 2011 events.

Favourite beer of 2010: Upright 6 Farmhouse Rye. Deschutes Hop Henge Experimental IPA is a close second.

Most purchased beer of 2010: Probably a three way tie between Pilsner Urqeull, Hopfen-Weisse and Aventinus.

Best LCBO release: In terms of a single beer, with only a few days left in 2010 I'm losing hope for St. Bernardus. So for now I'd have to say Koenegshoven. In terms of a whole release it would be hard to pick between the winter and autumn releases.

Favourite brewery of 2010: Les Trois Mousquetaires. I've yet to have anything from them that wasn't completely stellar.

Favourite event of 2010: Toronto Beer Week. Not that I made it out for any of the events, much to my shame and embarrassment.

Best new thing to happen in 2010: I'd say either TBW or Smashbomb.

Who deserves more recognition: I'd echo the sentiments that HMH Negotiants, Cass, R+R, and others of their ilk deserve more recognition for helping improve the beer selection here in Ontario.

Favourite beer of 2010: Probably Lupulus or maybe Stone RIS

Most purchased beer of 2010: Hoptical Illusion by a mile.

Best LCBO release: Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout

Favourite brewery of 2010: Probably Flying Monkey's but I've also really enjoyed everything I've tried from Les Breasseurs Illimites in particular the imperial stout and the two smoked beers.

Favourite event of 2010: IPA challenge since I think it was the only one I went too.

Best new thing to happen in 2010: Volo house beers.

Who deserves more recognition: Great Lakes?

Favourite beer of 2010: Founders Double Trouble

Most purchased beer of 2010: probably Southern Tier IPA

Best LCBO release: DDC or the Fall release, also La Chouffe was great to see

Favourite brewery of 2010: Flying Monkeys

Favourite event of 2010: Volo IPA final or The evening with Fred from Hopfenstark

Best new thing to happen in 2010: I guess the LCBO brewery features

Who deserves more recognition: no idea

Favourite beer of 2010: A tie between Victory Yakima Twighlight and Goose Island Bourbon County Stout

Most purchased beer of 2010: Dieu du Ciel barrel-aged Soctice d'Hiver

Best LCBO release: Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout, waiting for Southern Tier unearthly.... 2011?

Favourite brewery of 2010: Sierra Nevada (30th series, Tumbler, Harvest ales)

Favourite event of 2010: Beau's Oktoberfest. Will be back next year

Best new thing to happen in 2010: Opening of Beers of the World's new location

Who deserves more recognition: The friendly customs agents at a certain Ontario border crossing who generously let me through freely 4 times this year. A record year.

Favourite beer of 2010: Charlevoix Dominus Vobiscum Lupulus

Most purchased beer of 2010: Duggan's No. 9 (Interstore purchase so 2 cases) Hoptical is a close 2nd.

Best LCBO release: Autumn/Halloween.

Favourite brewery of 2010: Charlevoix (Lupulus, Hibernus, a few DIPAs, re-release of Flacatoune and Brut)

Favourite event of 2010: Only went to Beau's Oktoberfest so I don't have anything to compete against.

Best new thing to happen in 2010: I travel twice a year to both Vegas and NYC for work, bringing back a 2nd bag of beer each time rules!

Who deserves more recognition:
Beau's does a lot of interesting stuff when it comes to their Wild Oat and events but get enough recognition. I don't think Charlevoix gets enough recognition for the great belgians that they make. Everything in Quebec is either DDC or Unibroue but Charlevoix needs to be spoken in the same breath.

Favourite beer of 2010: Hop Mess Monster by The Hart & Thistle
Most purchased beer of 2010: Red Racer IPA
Best LCBO release: Schneider Wiesen Edel-Weisse (It's really too bad this was delayed & sort of lost in the mix, I thought it was a great brew).
Favourite brewery of 2010: Duggan's. FINALLY Toronto got another good brew pub!
Favourite event of 2010: OCB week - Project XXX at Great Lakes... though the Bock tasting at Grand River was a lot of fun too.
Best new thing to happen in 2010: Toronto Beer Week (I missed it, but it was great for the community).
Who deserves more recognition: Amsterdam for continually hosting the SOBs and also brewing the TBW winner! (C'est What & Volo deserve recognition, but I think they get it).

Favourite beer of 2010: Mill St Belgian Wit

Most purchased beer of 2010: See above

Best LCBO release: St Ambroise Citrouille

Favourite brewery of 2010: Mill Street

Favourite event of 2010:

Best new thing to happen in 2010:

Who deserves more recognition:

I'm changing this one:

Best new thing to happen in 2010: The DDC feature at the LCBO.

Favourite beer of 2010:

Bell's HopSlam Ale - enjoyed several times throughout the year, first at Chancey Smith's courtesy of Chris Simmons (thanks dude!), then again in Michigan and Daytona Beach, Florida

Most purchased beer of 2010:

Southern Tier IPA

Best LCBO release:

Garrison IPA

Favourite brewery of 2010:

Flying Monkeys Craft Brewery - for getting their excellent IPA, Smash Bomb, into draught accounts throughout the province and for putting their Black IPA, Netherworld Cascadian Dark Ale, onto the shelves of Ontario's alcohol retail monopoly

Favourite event of 2010:

Great Lakes Brewery - The Project X Beer Tasting @ Chancey Smith's, London, ON (March 2010)

Best new thing to happen in 2010:

1) Toronto Beer Week - didn't get the chance to attend but all the folks involved with this should be extremely proud of themselves as beer weeks & festivals are well-known for raising awareness among the masses more so than any other form of advocacy

2) Chancey Smith’s finally getting their proper recognition at the 2010 Golden Tap Awards

3) Adil Ahmed and Peter Chiodo brewing the Bad Ass Chaos Theory Imperial Wheat Stout in November 2010 (the best imperial stout this province has seen in years) and their yet-to-be-released Imperial Baltic Porter, American Barley Wine, and Russian Imperial Stout this past December

Who deserves more recognition:

1) Haven't been yet (I'll be visiting at the end of this month), but just by the sounds of their always-rotating and gargantuan micro draught list, Augusta's Winking Judge in Hamilton, Ontario

2) Black Oak Brewing Company – for making several superb session beers that I always return to, and for brewing 10 Bitter Years

3) The King Edward Restaurant & Pub - for their dedication to local craft beer, clean draught lines, fresh and interesting cask ales, and extraordinary pub food.

The view from the west coast;

Favourite beer I had in 2010: Goose Island Bourbon County Imp.Stout

Most purchased beer of 2010: Probably Green Flash west coast IPA

Best locally made release: Howe Sound Wooly Bugger

Favourite local brewery of 2010: Central City

Favourite event of 2010: Alibi Room's 200th list

Best new thing to happen in 2010: Stone/Lagunitas begin to regularly ship to B.C.

Who deserves more recognition: Again, probably the guys who run Alibi. It's a standout beer venue for any city.