Microbrew-Themed Cruises

Crystal Cruises is putting a twist on its "Wine & Food" Experiences of Discovery motif by replacing the wine with lagers, stouts and IPAs that are barrel-aged, made with bacon, have names like Funky Old Time, and more – all for a new Microbrew-themed luxury cruise.  Read more.

Postmark

Did you know there is a Railtown in Vancouver?  I don’t feel like much of a Vancouverite because I didn’t know that, and I’ve lived here all my life! It is located East of Gastown and North of Chinatown. It is mostly an industrial area, with great funky coffee and sandwich shops in and around. And this is where you’ll find Postmark.

Postmark started out as a Fresh Tap winery with a dream of “one day” opening a brew pub. After talking to Steve a dream is what it was.  He never in his wildest dreams thought it would come true, but the stars aligned and on June 17^th Postmark opened their doors.

They have an amazing set up, elegant and classy yet it is not pretentious or stuffy. As you walk towards this incredible building, built in 1921, look to your left and you’ll see there sort of outdoor growler filling station (you’ll understand when you arrive). A large open window will allow you to get your growler filled and not have to get congested with the guests enjoying flights inside. Make sure to look up, the light fixture is an old farm wheel.

As you walk through the giant doors, standing about 12 feet high you’ll notice large steel tanks where all the fantastic beer is being brewed.  Enter into the tasting room where there are several tables and cozy couches to settle into to enjoy a flight, pint or even a glass of fresh tap wine.

Behind the bar are beautiful chalk boards showing off the lists of wine and beers available, as well the creations the chef is preparing.

At their opening, which I was lucky to attend, they had 2 beers available Red IPA, as well as Saison. Both were excellent and I recommend a trip into Railtown to sample.  By the end of July they will have a Stout and a Hefe available. The Hefe is what I am looking forward, described as a dry Bavarian style Weiss beer brewed with lemon zest and local raspberries!


Thanks to Kate, Mike, Steve & the rest of the staff for a great night, I look forward to sampling your future beers, and even some fresh tap. 

 

~ Colleen

 

more photos here

  

Dageraad Brewing - Grand Opening

I was excited to be invited to the opening of the birth of Dageraadbrewing next week so I was extra excited to see that I was able to buy their beer in my local store, West Coast liquor.

After 2 years of planning and building, Dageraad Brewing is ready to celebrate their launch, July 19^th at Tangent café with Belgian music, food and of course their Belgian beer.   

I purchased their blonde ale, an excellent smooth beer with no after taste. And I look forward to attending their opening and being able to sample the other beers they have to offer.

 

 

~ Colleen

Beer tasting at The Fat Badger

A long overdue visit with a friend

A girlfriend and I had a pleasant evening at the Tap and Barrel.  To be honest it wasn’t my first choice as I haven’t heard outstanding reviews.  We picked the coal harbour location as it was a middle meeting point on transit and found a table on their large patio without any problems. They have set tables under giant umbrellas or communal seating up top overlooking the seaplane. This is where we opted to sit.  They have a large area so we had no trouble finding a table with some space on a summer evening.

Their drink menu is pages long of beer or wine. You can pick a flight of whatever you like, which is a great option. Being easily overwhelmed I picked things that sounded refreshing on a hot day.
 

My choices were:

Pineapple hef. The Tree Brewing, Kelowna offers up some beers with great creative names. They love what they do and have fun with it. Mellow Moon Pineapple Hefeweizen has a summer smell to it! It is a light citrus wheat start for flavour, than evolves to a citrus taste before finishing with the pineapple flavor. 

Beermosa, Parallel 49 see: Bearmosa Post

Life, 33 Acres Brewing.  I didn’t love this in the start.  There is a bite as the beer hits your tounge, but by the 3^rd sip it is hardly noticeable. Perhaps that bit is because of the way it is processed. It’s called a California Common” What this means is rather than fermenting the lager at a cool temperature it is done at a higher temperature closer to an ale. Because of this face it is often referred to as a lager / ale hybrid.

Over all it was a great summer evening for a patio drink and some great company.

~ Colleen

 

 

Beermosa

Defined as an excellent blue-collar breakfast cocktail, consisting of orange juice and beer. Best prepared with light, American style lager beer. And is especially popular with post-punk hipsters.

The name is what got me and I am not a hipster nor was I having it for a breakfast cocktail.  But I can see how it would be a great substitute for champagne and orange juice on a special morning.
Or for my purpose as a light refreshing drink on a patio on a hot summer day. It tastes like beer but with a hint of a tropical taste, would be a great drink for the non beer drinker.

~ Colleen

Mellow Moon Pineapple Hefeweizen

This is a pineapple wheat beer, from Tree Brewing in Kelowna BC.

It pours to a cloudy yellow colour with the aroma of pineapple, banana and an overall tropical fruit.

My first sip I could taste the banana and fruity tropical flavor, which held up the entire pint. A light beer and easy to drink on a summer day. Not too sweet, so I could enjoy a pint or two.

~ Colleen