The Bar Towel

seangm wrote:

cratez wrote:

Bobsy wrote: I'm a sucker for a good bitter too! My go-to options are a couple of local ESBs - Collingwood's King Post and Nickelbrook's Equilibrium. They're always in stock at my local grocery store, and manage to somehow find their way into the cart on a regular basis.

Thanks for the recos. For some reason I get cravings for good bitters/ESBs around this time of year (something about the cooler weather) but tend to assume worthy examples can only be found on tap/cask from the likes of Granite, Wellington, Fuller's, etc. Never had the King Post before and have only tried the Equilibrium on draft so I'll give these two a shot. Cheers!

Chiming in as another ESB fan, I really enjoyed St. Mary Axe Canadian Best Bitter if you happen to come across any.

I grabbed a can of this and wasn't really a fan tbh. I'll have to try one more before making a final decision though as I usually like to have something at least 2 times before ruling it out.

sofakingdrunk wrote:

seangm wrote:
Chiming in as another ESB fan, I really enjoyed St. Mary Axe Canadian Best Bitter if you happen to come across any.

I grabbed a can of this and wasn't really a fan tbh. I'll have to try one more before making a final decision though as I usually like to have something at least 2 times before ruling it out.

It really grew on me as I drank more of it. The first few sips weren't what I expected, but it really seemed to evolve nicely as it warmed up a bit too. Another bitter I almost forgot about is Henderson's Best, I've been buying it a lot since they started canning it. It's up there with Equilibrium for me.

seangm wrote:It really grew on me as I drank more of it. The first few sips weren't what I expected, but it really seemed to evolve nicely as it warmed up a bit too. Another bitter I almost forgot about is Henderson's Best, I've been buying it a lot since they started canning it. It's up there with Equilibrium for me.

Yeah, I agree with all of this too. I like Henderson Best. I know they got some bad press on here when they first came on the scene, and no doubt rightfully so, but I quite like their flagship beer and the brewery is a fun visit too. My current bitter faves are Henderson, Equilibrium and Junction Conductors. I was a big fan of Grand River Plowmans back in the day, but then it seemed to change. I haven't had it in ages now.

The St Mary's Ax is a bit different, not the classic ESB profile I would guess, but I was pleasantly surprised by it all the same. I wonder if it is more of a traditional Canadian golden or sparkling ale?

Now if only we could reliably get one or more of these on cask!

midlife crisis wrote:

seangm wrote:It really grew on me as I drank more of it. The first few sips weren't what I expected, but it really seemed to evolve nicely as it warmed up a bit too. Another bitter I almost forgot about is Henderson's Best, I've been buying it a lot since they started canning it. It's up there with Equilibrium for me.

Yeah, I agree with all of this too. I like Henderson Best. I know they got some bad press on here when they first came on the scene, and no doubt rightfully so, but I quite like their flagship beer and the brewery is a fun visit too. My current bitter faves are Henderson, Equilibrium and Junction Conductors. I was a big fan of Grand River Plowmans back in the day, but then it seemed to change. I haven't had it in ages now.

The St Mary's Ax is a bit different, not the classic ESB profile I would guess, but I was pleasantly surprised by it all the same. I wonder if it is more of a traditional Canadian golden or sparkling ale?

Now if only we could reliably get one or more of these on cask!

Yea I'm glad I gave Henderson a shot, as it turned out to be one of the better local bitters. St Mary's is definitely a unique profile, definitely worth another try.

Local 1794 on the Danforth has a rotating cask tap, had GLB Pompous Ass last time I was there and I've gotta say it's pretty excellent on cask. As far as I'm concerned "English pale ales" are usually in the best bitter style anyway

A Westvleteren 12 from the release in Ontario of about five years ago. Until recently I'd been living in Asia for those five years, so I've had two or three each year or so on my return visits. I gave a few away and have six left of the original twenty four. This is my first since May 2016.

2014 Lambda

Opened ice cold to avoid rumoured explosions, and it did gush but I managed to not waste any. I you have one of these, keep your eye on the bottle once opened, as it never stops bubbling up slowly and will spill over even if the bottle is half full.

Smells like layers of dark fruit, raisins, cherries, grapes. Taste is phenomenal. Deep layers of fruit, brown sugary goodness. Balanced Brett character which fights through the malt gives a dryish finish for the style. Still the flavours linger nicely. This is the only Lambda I've tried, and at 3 years and 7 months I can't imagine this getting much better.

beerstodiscover wrote:2014 Lambda
Opened ice cold to avoid rumoured explosions

Deep layers of fruit, brown sugary goodness...

Right? Lambda is easily one of the best beers, ever and I'm including top Trappists in that comparison. I sure as heck wish I bought a half dozen more but that's how it goes!

And I'm def down with the chill it well / settle it well approach with unpredictable beers. Besides chilling people may want to carefully wash the bottle ahead of time and open it over a sparkling clean saucepan or something to catch any run-over. Burdock NOOM certainly has this issue, the first bottle was a 70% loss of fruity / chocolate / sour deliciousness.

Z

Nickel Brook Uncommon Element Brett Pale Ale

Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout 'expy' 2012

Rochefort 10

Left Field Passionfruit Day Game Fruit Session IPA

Yesterday at Left Field brewery:
Lolly Mango Lassi IPA
Laser Show Vermont Style IIPA

At The Monk's Kettle:
St. Mary Axe Canadian Best Bitter (draft)
Black Oak Oaktoberfest (draft)
Collingwood Vintage Ale (draft)

At Milos' Craft Beer Emporium:
Hacker Pschorr Oktoberfest Lager (draft)
Granite Best Bitter Special (cask)
Godspeed Momiji (draft)
Black Swan IPA (draft)

Over the week at home:
Hofbräu Oktoberfestbier
Great Lakes Citraddiction
Northwinds Nosey Parker Porter
Northwinds Rainmaker IPA
St-Ambroise Pumpkin Ale
Nickel Brook Equilibrium ESB
Amager & Goose Island RyeKing

Saison Dupont 750ml

Rochefort 10

Bellwoods Mango-Passionfruit Gose.

Pretty much a perfect beer day!

(T&M)
Oast House Country Bumpkin Pumpkin Ale
Left Field Squeeze Play Pink Lemonade Sour

(Home)
Bellwoods Mango-Passionfruit Gose

Two fer two....

Barncat-grapefruit juice IPA. Phenomenal beer. It's a hazy murky opaque beer that almost looks like as if you were to mix orange juice(grapefruit) with milk. It's absolutely smashed full of grapefruit goodness. Really juicy,quite pithy with a well balanced bitterness. Not quite as good as their "pulp" but not far off. At 6.5% it's really easy drinking. Another brilliant beer from these fellas

Right now at Le Saint-Bock in Montreal:

JW Lees Harvest Ale Lagavulin 2011
The Avery Brewing Company Samael's (Oak Aged Strong Ale)
Le Saint-Bock RIP 2017 (Russian Imperial Porter)
Le Saint-Bock RIP 2009 (Russian Imperial Porter)
Le Saint-Bock RIP 2017 Bourbon (Bourbon Barrel Aged Russian Imperial Porter)
Les Trois Mosquetaires Porter Baltique Special Edition (blend of bourbon and brandy barrel aged naltic porter)

All 4 oz. pours - average ABV of these beers is around 12% so moderation is key.

I've long been a fan of this bar and they usually a few beers on tap to capture my interest, but I've never seen a line up like this. I'm in Montreal on business for one night only so needed to pick my spot carefully. Did some research and Saint-Bock's present line-up blew the competition out of the water. As of yesterday, they also had Avery Uncle Jacob's Stout (BBA imperial) and The Bruery Mash & Vanilla (BBA barleywine) pouring. These must have run dry today, much to the chagrin of my tastebuds (but I suppose my liver celebrated).

Apparently, these are remnants from an 11th anniversary line-up.

The JW Lees stands out is an all around exceptional line-up - great peated scotch finish; an instant classic in my books.

Excellent opportunity the side-by-side the RIP beers. The 2017 is truthfully a bit of a boozey mess. But man did the 2009 age well. The alcohol heat settled and the underlying porter shines through. Barrel aging also rounded it out a bit. A lot of wood on the nose, but restrained on the palate and some added depth in flavour profile.

The price is steep on a lot of these pours, but being out of town helps justify the splurge. It's also a great lead in to Cask Days - both my wallet and liver are taking a pounding in the coming days!