First stop ~ Twin Sails ~Port Moody Pub Crawl

Twin sails was the first stop on our Murray street pub crawl in Port Moody. This is a great task for a Saturday or weeknight, if you can find yourself a designated driver!

There are now 4 tasting rooms along Murray Street. Twin Sails, Yellow Dog, Parkside and Moody Ales (original). And also along this stretch is a great family warehouse which creates great Italian street food! Urbani Foods, supplies select grocery stores with the small batch artisan foods. Things like Risottoballs, Mac & Cheese Balls, CraftDried salami’s, and their Italian sausages are amazing. Their location on Murray street is limited because it is the factory, but they do have a great supply of ready to eat foods that go great with beer !  Pick one up and move onto the next brewery.

Twin sails has a large open tasting room, with lots of space. They did things smart by leaving lots of room to expand. The front of their place has a garage door, which was open lets in fresh air and lots of light, making the place feel larger and open. We were there on a Wednesday but it is highly possible they have a band in the corner on weekends or other special events.

We’ve been hearing and talking a lot about Gose* so we gave theirs a try. It was not to everyone’s liking, but everyone has different tastes. They offer it as part of a flight so give it a try yourself. Most of us enjoyed a flight to try a variety of their beers. I think it was a first for everyone.

Twin Sails has a great vibe, and great beers makes sure this is a stop you make.

~ Colleen
(Photo above)

*Gose: a traditional German tart wheat ale brewed with coriander and salt. Twin Sails Gose pours a dark pale golden colour with a slightly off-white, and substantial head. Notes of an almost sour spiciness mixed with an array of dried apricot, zest, and coriander make up the palate for this beer. The finish is crisp, dry, almost mouth-puckering, and very refreshing making it perfect to sip on a warm summer day

Get on the gose Badwagon

The Beer that Magically Goes with Everything
Written by Brad Leone, Bon Appetit

Photo by: Laura Murray

It's the dog days of summer, your commute is brutal and the workdays are long. You're sweating more than your beer is. What is that beer you're drinking, anyways? Is that a heavy, bitter IPA in your hand?

Trade it in for a gose.

Now is that time for a refreshing beer that won't make you want to chug water or take a nap after but one that has flavor and character. If you haven't been stocking your cooler with gose (pronounced "go-sah"), go ahead and start.

Photo by: Laura Murray

Gose is a light beer made with water, wheat, coriander, and salt, and typically should be 4-5% ABV. If you're familiar with sour beers, it's on the mild end of that specturm, like the Miller Lite of sour beers. Gose tends to have a nice, sour and tart lemon flavor that finishes with clean and tickles the tongue with a hint of salt. Those flavors combine to make a super refreshing beer, perfect for beach, barbecue, and sitting-in-front-of-the-nearest-fan drinking. The low alcohol content and salty finishe won't leave you sluggish and dehydrated like a double IPA. In fact, it's almost like you're not drinking beer at all, but beer's younger cousin that's related to kombucha but the family doesn't like to talk about it. But it is beer, and you'll find it in grocery store aisles (not in Canada) made by Westbrook, Anderson Valley, Siz Point, Sierra Nevada Otra Vez, or Victory Kirsch Gose.

Read full artificial at: Bon Appetit 

This is the place to be.

If you have not ventured to one of the oldest craft breweries in Vancouver. What are you waiting for?

Storm is a fantastic place, you enter right into the action of their brewing station.  There are no chair, or tables, there are no tasters or pint classes. You are limited to 6 tasters in a solo cup for a cash donation.

Their beer board is constantly changing, so check their Instagram account frequently to see what's brewing. Most are very flavorful beers and to my surprise some of the ones you think will be horrible are fantastic. The Pineapple Paradise was my pick of the night. 

~ Colleen

Another visit to Callister

I love how all tasting rooms have their own personality!  And Callister has a great one, this was our second visit to their location, so they did something right !

It was a very busy Friday night when we were visiting Callister, so seating was in high demand! Callister is a remodelled warehouse with keg barrels for tables with bright coloured metal stools. It is small tasting room, so get to know your neighbour!

If you want a variety of brew masters than Callister is the place to visit. This location offers beers from Callister Brewing, as Brewery Creek, Real Cask and a brew-master called “Machine”.  Try a taster from one brewer, or a selection.

Make sure to take a trip to the washroom, it’s behind the bar. There is some great art work along the side and you can see where the action of the brewing takes place. 

~ Colleen

We meet friends everywhere we go

We are often a a large group and sometimes we stick to ourselves and have a good catch up, but sometimes we are social and make new friends where we go. 

On this outing we were at Off The Rails, a second visit for some. Arriving in drips and drabs we grabbed the large table the corner and settled in for flights and pints to taste.

Off the rail has the large corner bench were we sat as well as smaller tables to sit at. They have a giant window with stools which let's in lots of natural light. It is not a large place so when it started to get busy we got friendly. Chatting it up to those in line, or those who could not find a place to sit. We made a couple new friends and hope to see them again !

Storm Brewery

Established in 1994 Storm Brewery is the first craft beery in Vancouver, and every beer drinker should visit this unique location once.

You arrive entering the door off their loading bay; you won’t miss the building it’s covered in graffiti. They do not have a tasting room, there are no tables or chairs, they do not have a bathroom and you recycle your plastic cup while you taste.  The experience is fantastic!

Tasters are by donation, and a good size.  The staff is extremely knowledgeable and friendly. 

They have their 6 main stay beers, and about 6 more which are small batches and on rotation.  Some are hits and some are misses, have some fun giving them a try there are some strange and unique flavours to pick from.   Vanilla Whiskey, Jalapeno Pilsner, Raspberry Bails IPA. Growlers are available to purchase or bring your own to fill. 

~ Colleen

Beer & Dessert Pairing Guide

With brews such as oatmeal raisin cookie, peanut butter milk stout and horchata it's no secret that beer and sweets are a winning combo. Gone are the days when the only thing they served with beer were pretzels. 

But pairing beer with desserts isn't as simple as one thinks. Depending on the type of beer whether pilsner, hefeweizen, IPA or any other beer of choice, it may require a more sweeter or more subtle dessert. That's why Shari's Berries has created a beer and dessert pairing guide to enhance your next brew experience. There are 16 different types of beer to choose from.  Which pairing will you try first?

~ Colleen

Western Beer Club member