By Marc Demeule

The 17th edition of the biggest beer festival in North America is now past.  Another attack to my liver, but I’m sure that such good beers can’t be harmful.  The popularity of this event can be observed at the two 2 hour lines during the weekend.  Entrance to the festival is free, so the maximum number of participants needs to be limited to avoid an overcrowded site.  When you are lucky enough, you can take some vacation time for the opening on Wednesday.  It wasn’t my case this year, so I had to go the crowded way.  Okay!  I just used the exit to enter, pretending I was a volunteer in a booth and it worked fine so I skipped the long queue.

In Beervana, a selection of 500 beers, including 240 new brews is called a local beer store.  Nevertheless, I can assure that the selection we had for 2010 was interesting.  In addition to Québec and Ontario breweries, we were able to taste new products from Belgium, Brazil and Italy.  

The Mondial de la Bière also included a beer judging event among Quebec microbreweries.  The platinum distinction of the 2010 edition was assigned to a Pinot Noir oak aged Belgian with brettanomyces (Trippe à 3 à la Brett) from À la fut, Saint-Tite.

Gold medals have been awarded to:
- Le Saint-Bock, Montréal with RIP (Russian Imperial Porter), Sacrilège (Imperial Stout), Sacrilège Ultime (Imperial Stout) and Malédiction (Sweet Stout)
- Microbrasserie le Bénélux, Montréal with Congo (Belgian IPA) and Cuda (West Coast IPA)
- Microbraserie Le Trou du Diable, Shawinigan with La Saison du Tracteur
- Broadway Pub, Shawinigan with Sein d’esprit (German Hefeweizen)
- Hopfenstark, L’assomption with Saison Station 55
- McAuslan, Montréal with St-Ambroise Oatmeal Stout

On my own way, I did experience new brews from Brazil Cervejaria Bamberg and Cervejaria Wäls.  Italia was well represented with Birrifico Artigianale Karma, Birrifico del Borgo and Birrifico Baladin.  The Big Swell IPA from Maui Brewing reminded me great Northwest hoppy beers, so did the Dr IPA from Kuhnhenn Brewing Co.  I’ve missed La Folie from New Belgium, but had their 1554 black ale.

Quebec breweries now offer more Saison beers on their regular tap selection.  Two years ago, it was rare.  For 2010, the new trend is to spice up recipes with brettanomyces.  When will we have sour ales?  Probably in one or two years…  Hope to see you for the 2011 edition with a new location for the festival and more beers to discover in an indoor environment, so rain won’t stop us tasting.

Cheers.
marc@brewpublic.com

Posted under beer awards, beer events, places to drink beer

By Marc Demeule, Brewpublic’s Quebecer Beer Trekker

Crossing the border for another beer adventure can lead to unexpected discoveries.  Our first stop was at Burlington’s American Flatbread where we enjoyed their famous pizzas and sampled a few Vermont beers from Zero Gravity Brewery.  I also had a Cuvée de Jacobin that made me remember good times at the Casacade Brewery (but it didn’t equal all the extreme sour ales I had in Portland)…  We gather with other beer geeks for few trades.  Charlevoix Lupuplus, Dieu du Ciel!, Saint-Ambroise Barleywine, Corne de Brume are some of our products that can be easily traded to US geeks.  At least, they don’t have access to those ones!

We reached Winooski Beverage Warehouse for a quick beer shopping session.  The selection always gets better here.   They have all the classics US craft breweries, but also a good selection of Belgian products.  I was pleased to find some Mikkeller Single Hop Amarillo IPA and Tomahawk IPA.  Now I’m just waiting for a special event to open them.  Because we have an environmental conscience, we brought some of our empty bottles and were surprised to discover a recycling center behind the beer store.  I saw three guy sorting all the bottles and cans.  It was the first time I saw such an organization in a beer store.  Is it the same everywhere?   Maybe they recycle for other places because you can’t generate enough empty bottles from this one spot to keep three dudes employed.

Have you ever hear about the Trapp family?  The land they own in Stowe, Vermont is absolutely unique.  But what interested us is that they recently (end of January) opened a brewery.  “High in the Green Mountains, low in a labyrinthine basement beneath the Austrian Tea Room at the Trapp Family Lodge, Allen Van Anda toils away like a crafty alchemist, pouring water and yeast into shining stainless-steel vats and hoping the combination turns into something close to heavenly”.

Our contact arranged a meeting with Allen, the brewer.  He leads this brand new brewery which specializes in German-style beers.  We had the chance to taste three beers, a Helles, a Bourbon Barrel Bock, and a Dunkel.  These beers help to increase the beer standards in Vermont.  For now, distribution is in its early stages, but they will be soon become more widely distributed. And, if you happen to see one of those kegs in your preferred bar, ask for a pint.  We will have to make a detour by Stowe when we’ll come back to Vermont.

A last stop at Waterbury to the Alchemist Pub and Brewery is necessary.  I’ve talked about this place a few times, so what was new on the taps?  A Heady Topper Double IPA.  Simply malty enough to support a blast of pine and citrus (claiming 120 IBU, we could expect it). I took a taster tray, just to be sure that this double IPA was my preference and I was right, it was.  Please, don’t change the recipe.

At the Canadian border, we were been caught.  No alcohol importation for a day trip.  So I had to pay 10$ of taxes for a case of 50$.  It is nothing when you figure the trip we had.  Thanks to Émilie, our designated driver.  We owe you one.

marc@brewpublic.com

Posted under beer reviews

Brewpublic’s Marc Demeule and his homebrewing friends had a one of a kind brewing session, in extreme conditions of the Quebec winter.

We decided to brew an extreme IPA with all the leftover hops we had.  For a 50 liter batch, we included 20,8 oz of whole and pellet hops.  We also threw in all of our leftover home grown hops (maybe a half pound of Mt Hood).  With an anticipated 140,9 IBU, according to ProMash, we only expected something that could be drinkable, but extreme too.  If you want the complete recipe, just e-mail me.

The particularity of that brewing session was that we had -10ºC in the garage and the vapour generated created condensation that could contaminate when cooling.  Let’s say that when a functional ventilation system is added to the garage, it will be better.  Insulating the mash tun is also necessary to keep a constant temperature.  The funniest thing was when we realized that we had no water to cool our beer.  Frozen pipes!  Even with a torch, no water from the outdoor access.  It is so nice to live in a Nordic weather country.  A brand new home garden hose bought at the nearest hardwork center saved our batch by hanging from the ceiling to finally chill the beer (and the entire house) for a little while.  Always brew when you’re wife is gone to avoid problems…

The result is a double IPA, 8%.  Amber, good foam holding.  The cereal taste is present, enough to balance the taste for few seconds before you feel and explosion of hops, resinous, herbal taste.  It will never possible to brew that again, but we will appreciate it down to the last drop.

Santé.

marc@brewpublic.com

Posted under beer me, beer tools

As we written about earlier in the pages of Brewpublic, tonight is the night when beer sommelier and champion of all things related to craft beer, Preston Weesner uncorks and assortment of special Big Bottle beers. Thirty lucky citizens of Beervana will get a rare and limited opportunity to try a variety of big bottle vintage beers at 6:30 pm at Saraveza (1004 N. Killingsworth Street). This special affair will feature seven expensive and rare vintage large format bottles as the centerpiece of an evening of vintage beer tasting, beer and food pairing, and education about the beers and the changes they undergo in their mammoth bottles.

The all-star beer line-up of seven beers features 2006 Chimay Grand Reserve, 2007 Duvel Tripel, 2007 Samichalaus, 2008 St. Bernardus Abt 12, 2008 St. Feuillien Triple, 2007 Unibroue La Fin Du Monde and 2006 Val-Dieu Winter.

With names like Jeroboam, Methuselah and Salmanazar, these three, six and nine liter bottles hold precious cargo from Europe and Canada that has undergone careful cellaring for several years, allowing the beers to mellow and the flavors to blend to reveal subtle nuances that transform these beers into true works of art.

Last night at Saraveza, we saw some of these Big Bottles first hand, and they are ginormous! Any fan of rare one-of-a-kind beers needs to attend. No question. Just listening to Weesner talk about beer is worth the price of admission alone.

Posted under Beer personalities, beer events

Many beer geeks may have heard about a Jeroboam, but what about a Methuselah or a  Salmanazar?

Anyone who knows Preston Weesner knows the guy is seriously geeked about craft beer. When he’s not organizing and orchestrating fanatical beer festivals (Holiday Ale Fest, Portland International Beer Fest), he’s usually thinking about, talking about, and promoting great beer. Now, Mr. Weesner has teamed up with the beerophiles over at Saraveza to coordinate a unique and intimate tasting of world class beers from big ol’ bottles. This sort of  event is unlike anything many beer geeks have experienced before.

Thirty lucky citizens of Beervana will get a rare and limited opportunity to try a variety of big bottle vintage beers Tuesday, February 9th at 6:30 pm at Saraveza (1004 N. Killingsworth Street). This special affair will feature seven expensive and rare vintage large format bottles as the centerpiece of an evening of vintage beer tasting, beer and food pairing, and education about the beers and the changes they undergo in their mammoth bottles.

The all-star beer line-up of seven beers features 2006 Chimay Grand Reserve, 2007 Duvel Tripel, 2007 Samichalaus, 2008 St. Bernardus Abt 12, 2008 St. Feuillien Triple, 2007 Unibroue La Fin Du Monde and 2006 Val-Dieu Winter.

With names like Jeroboam, Methuselah and Salmanazar, these three, six and nine liter bottles hold precious cargo from Europe and Canada that has undergone careful cellaring for several years, allowing the beers to mellow and the flavors to blend to reveal subtle nuances that transform these beers into true works of art.

Saraveza owner Sarah Pederson and Chef Spence Lack have created complementary parings to accompany these beers from the cellar of Preston Weesner, including a 15-month-old aged gouda cheese from Willamette Valley Cheese, house crackers and Marcona almonds; cherry smoked black pepper duck sausage with a Chimay beer and prune reduction; and a cider braised lamb and parsnip potato mash pasty with warm spiced butternut squash and pickled garnish.

Tickets are $60 limited to two per person and available only at Saraveza. For more information, call 503-206-4252.

Posted under beer events

By Marc Demeule

All the professional brewers I know have a common point. They started their brewing career at home. Homebrewing lets you create your own recipes and experiment unexpected beers with ingredients like oysters, peanut butter, Mountain Dew and sugar-beets. Those were in four different recipes, rest assured.

Basically, all the brewing systems are built in the same way. It can be simple like those described in Charlie Papazian’s book, The Complete Joy of Home Brewing, or slightly more elaborated like the projects presented in Brew Your Own magazine. Nevertheless, what is important is the beer you can get out of it and the fun you can have while in the process.

This post it dedicated to very patient guys. It took three years to build up this home brewery project. Everybody was… let’s say smiling when they were talking about this imaginary brewery. It is coming, one day, you will see. We are working on it…

They got deals and found all the components of this 100 litre (26,41 gallons) system piece by piece. Now, everything is assembled and we are quite jealous because they have easy access to water and don’t have to wear a winter coat to brew at -10°C in the garage like we did a few weeks ago.

A pale ale, an ESB and a stout have been brewed since the inauguration. We can expect a kegerator with taps for our next visit.

Cheers to the Fantastic Four Underground brewery !

marc@brewpublic.com

Posted under beer me

In celebration of all that is dark and hoppy (without too much roast, of course), Belmont Station officially kicks off their Cascadian Dark Festival at their Bier Cafe.

WED JANUARY 20 – SAT JANUARY 23 3-11PM CASCADIAN DARK FESTIVAL

We’re turning over the taps in our Biercafe to Cascadian Dark Ales, (dark ales with IPA hopping levels). Watch our website for daily tappings. On tap today: Widmer W’10, Hopworks Secession, Laughing Dog Dogzilla, Cascade Dark Day, Lompoc Black Tiger, 21st Amendment Back in Black, & Pelican Bad Santa.

Still to come: Laurelwood Arctic Apocalypse, Deschutes Intergalactic Black IPA and Bourbon Barrel Black IPA, Barley Brown’s Turmoil, Big Time Dark Days, Elliott Bay Belgian Black, Rogue Mogul, 3 Creeks IBA, Lucky Lab, Walking Man Big Black Homo, and Southern Tier Iniquity.

Folks like sustainably-minded homebrewer Abram Goldman-Armstrong are lobbying for CDAs to be officially recognized by the American Homebrewers Association and the Beer Judge Certification Program. To Goldman-Armstrong and other proponents of the beer of Pacific Northwest origin, the term “Black IPA” simply will not suffice.

To call Goldman-Armstrong a beer aficionado would be an understatement. The Oregon native is an accomplished beer scribe and organizer of the largest organic beer festival in North America (NAOBF). Hopworks Urban Brewery used Goldman-Armstong’s own recipe for a CDA to construct the pitchy Secession Ale. Goldman-Armstrong has worked for some time to raise the public’s awareness for what he demands be referred to as a “Cascadian Dark Ale,” a beer that does share hop characteristics of a Northwest IPA, but with complexities all its own. While some, in order to dumb-down or make more widely acceptable, use the term Black IPA, Goldman-Armstrong makes a solid case for allowing the beer its own sub-style in the BJCP brewers guidelines. The beer style reflects the rich culture of brewing and recognizes the important harvest prevailing from the watersheds throughout and the climate zone spanning from Northern California into British Columbia.

Abram Goldman-Armstrong’s Proposed Style Guidelines for the Cascadian Dark Ale:

Cascadian Dark Ale (aka Black IPA)

Aroma: prominent NW hop aromas: citrus, pine, resinous, sweet malt, hints of roast, toast, chocolate malt, and/or Carafa, dry hopped character is often present.

Appearance: Deep brown to black with ruby highlights. Head varies from whit to tan/khaki.

Flavor: A balance between citrus-like and spicy NW hop flavor, bitterness, caramel malt, and roast, chocolate, or Carafa-type malts.

Roast character ranges from subtle to medium. Black malt is acceptable at low levels, but should not be astringent. Intense ashy, burnt character is not appropriate. Caramel malt as a secondary flavor is acceptable but the finish should be dry. Diacetyl should not be present. Emphasis should be on hop flavor.

Mouthfeel: Light to medium, hop bitterness and tannins from roast malts combine to create a dry mouthfeel. Resinous character from high levels of dry hopping may create a tongue coating sensation.

History: A style that emerged on the Northwest Coast of North America in the early 21st Century. Northwest hops are prominent, balanced with malt, roast malts give color and flavor, but body should be reminiscent of an IPA, not heavy like a porter or stout. The style is not only gaining traction with brewers in the Pacific Northwest, but is starting to spread to other regions.

Comments: Some brewers prefer to cold steep the dark grains to achieve a very dark beer without the tannin contribution of adding the grains to the mash. The use of Sinnamar to enhance color is common.

IBUs 40-90

Color: 40+ SRM

ABV 5.5-8.5%

Classic Examples: Rogue Brewer, Phllips Black Toque, Hopworks Secession CDA, Barley Brown’s Turmoil, Widmer Collaborator Cascadian Dark Ale, Lucky Lab Black Sheep, Stone 11th Anniversary Ale, Walking Man Big Black Homo, Rogue Black Brutal, Pelican Bad Santa, New Holland Black Hatter, Laughing Dog Dogzilla

Gordon Strong, president of BJCP responded to these guidelines with the following:

“There has been a mechanism around for quite awhile for someone to do something like that. I have a style guidelines template on the style section of the web site. If someone wants to propose a style, all they have to do is write it up and send it in.

Ever since the 2004 guidelines, I have also said that I supported the idea of proto-styles being described this way. Enter it in the experimental category, but use a style description that’s posted on the web site. Then pay attention to how often you see it entered in competitions. If it’s something that people are making a lot, then consider it for incorporation into the full guidelines at a later date.

I have approached a number of people about writing up styles in this way.

So far I’ve only seen two attempts, one at Australian Pale/Sparkling Ale and one at English Golden Ale. Both need a little more work before posting.

For newer American styles, I’d prefer to see if they are going to be made year after year rather than being a flash-in-the-pan. The BA makes guidelines for the GABF that change every year and often have these faddish styles included. We’d like to see if they have some staying power before including them, although writing them up as a provisional style certainly has a lower bar than that for inclusion in the full guidelines.

The specialty and Belgian specialty categories have lists of styles that could be considered real styles that haven’t been written up. Any of those could be covered in the same way.

So, yes, I’m in general support of doing something like this, but at first only as something that would be entered as a specialty. The hardest part is for someone to do the full research and accurately describe the full range of a style, providing commercial examples, specs, etc. Lots of people seem to think they can do this, but they never seem to come up with anything complete enough. If someone wants to do the work, I will certainly work with them to review what they’ve done and ultimately release it.”

-Gordon

BJCP’s Region Representative, Ted Hausotter added:

“The BJCP is the tail of the dog, it makes no beer, or does it create beer styles. It is just a group of beer judges sitting around waiting for you to ask them to judge a certain beer style to a certain criteria. Actually we do more but you get my point. The BJCP also will write the style guidelines so the beer judges can have a reference to judge it by. To bring this forward, articles need to be written in magazines to bring awareness of the style to home brewers. Recipes available along with a style guide needs to be available. The easier it is to turn in a entry in a (homebrew) contest, the faster the beer style is recognized.”

Interview with Abram Goldman-Armstrong

Aside from the detailed BJCP guidelines you’ve mentioned for a Cascadian Dark Ale, how do you briefly summarize what the style entails?

Abram Goldman-Armstrong: Big Northwest hops offset with roast character in a fairly light bodied beer. A session beer for the Pacific Northwest, massively flavorful, dripping with hop sap, and with around 6-7 percent ABV.

Why do feel it is important for people to understand and recognize this beer as something more than simply a Black IPA or Brown IPA?

AG: The signature hops of the style are all grown in Cascadia, the Pacific Northwest. This is a style that clearly originated here, and has grown in popularity over the years.

Did you invent the name Cascadian Dark Ale? Where did it first come from to the best of your knowledge?

AG: No, My friend and home-brewing buddy Bill Wood coined the phrase, when we were brewing an India Dark Ale in 2007. He was reacting to the term “San Diego style pale ale” he said that the CDA style should be named after the Northwest since brewers here invented it.

The first Cascadian Dark Ales were brewed by John Maier at Rogue. Mogul Madness, Black Brutal, Skullsplitter, and Brewer come to mind all brewed in the early 2000s, though Mogul is older I don’t personally find it roasty enough for the category. Matt Phillips at Phillips in Victoria BC, also developed the style independently in 2002 0r 2003. He couldn’t decide whether to release a brown ale or an IPA, and ended up brewing a hybrid, Black Toque, which was one of the first beers I had in this style.

How important is the geography, culture, or other variable behind this particular style of beer?

AG: This is a style that could only have come from the passion Cascadian brewers have for our hops. People (often correctly) accuse brewers in this part of the world (particularly Oregon of over-hopping styles that should not be. (NW style ESBs are a good example of this). Cascadian Dark Ale is a great example of how this love of hops can help develop new styles. Who would expect a big hop character to work with roast flavors? In the Northwest its been done in stouts, so when someone comes along and makes a CDA, people taste it and judge it in a “does this taste good fashion” instead of assuming that the beer did not work out right.

How did the CDA symposium come together?

AG: It came out of a conversation I had with Shawn Kelso of Barley Browns at the Great American Beer Festival this fall, we went around trying different CDAs on the fest floor (most were from Oregon), and said hey let’s put together a symposium to talk about the style. We talked to Carl Singmaster of Belmont Station and Carl and I began wrangling kegs from across Cascadia.

What can people expect at this event?

AG: The symposium itself is a chance for brewers to taste and discuss the style, and hopefully develop the loose BJCP style guidelines into something a little more specific. (the symposium itself is limited to brewers and media only, due to space constraints) Everyone else can except the biggest assortment of Cascadian Dark Ales on draught in one place ever before, starting Wednesday the 20th (of January).

What are some of your favorite representations of the style?

AG: Barley Brown’s Turmoil, Phillips Black Toque and selfishly my own, a version of which is now available commercially as Secession from Hopworks.

Did you have a hand in pushing Widmer to release the W ’10 as their latest Reserve Series brew?

AG: No, but the brewers asked me about the style when they were developing it and I did push for the term Cascadian Dark, which appears on the the label despite the “Pitch Black IPA” tagline.

Hopworks also is bottling their Secession CDA, do you foresee many other brewers joining in to make this a regularly or at least regular seasonally produced style?

AG: Yeah, in addition to Phillips where it has been a standard beer since 2003, there seems to be a lot of interest in the style. Deschutes is rumored to be releasing one as a seasonal soon. Benton Brigade from Block 15 in Corvallis is already a seasonal. Stone has added one to its lineup after releasing it first as its 11th anniversary beer, Carl Singmaster even brought back a 9.5% imperial CDA from South Carolina.

As with most styles of beer outlined in the BJCP there is a bit of variance between one particular representation to the next, is there a specific aroma, appearance, flavor, or mouthfeel you prefer (ie more aromatic hops vs bittering hops; specific malt varieties)?

AG: Big NW hop aroma is required for the style. preferably dry hopped. I favor Amarillo for this, New Zealand varieties can also help with the citrus character, I’ve used Pacific Gem before. As for malt the not so secret ingredient in the style is Weyermann Carafa, which gives the intense black color without too much bitterness. Sinnamar, a liquid color extract made from Carafa by Weyermann is often used as well. I personally like a hint of roast barley and some chocolate malt as well. The mouthfeel is what sets this style apart from American Stouts, it should give the impression of light to medium mouthfeel, like an IPA.

What do you think it will take to get BJCP and ABA to recognize this specific style of beer as more than simply a Black IPA?

AG: Good question, the answer from BJCP is “entries, entries, entries.” They want a bunch of entries in the category 23 “experimental beer” class, labeled as CDAs. I have submitted my loose style guidelines to the Brewers Association, and will submit more comments post-symposium.

Any word of any CDAs making an appearance at the NAOBF this year?

AG: Not certain, I would love to get the Elliott Bay version for the fest, Doug Hindman brought a keg for the Brewer’s Lounge and it was quite good. Maybe Secession if Hopworks is amenable.

So here’s a note for all of you Cascadian beer bloggers, homebrewers, and all-around beer geeks: If you’d like to support the style, write about it, brew it, and talk it up. This will help it generate some traction. Otherwise you might be stuck with only Black IPAs.

Cheers!

Posted under Beer personalities, Oregon beer, beer events, beer news, beer releases, places to drink beer

by Marc Demeule

I saw this article in a business newspaper ( Les affaires 14-20 November 2009 ) when I went to the bank to meet my financial counsellor. It is quite rare to see people you know in those kinds of newspapers, so reposting it on a blog dedicated to beer would allow reaching a better public.

Here is the translation (my translation): Microbrasserie Le Trou du Diable. Create a distinctive enterprise that Shawinigan citizens could be proud of: That was the first objective of those five investors of the Trou du Diable microbrewery. They won their bet! Named in reference of a curious shape of the city waterfall which confers a unique character to the city, the cooperative employed 20 persons and had a fast development. They will soon begin their third development phase. Now known and recognized throughout their region, they constantly look for the quality of their 40 exclusives beer recipes, meals privileging local terroir products and the cordial ambiance of the brewpub. The next project, a major production of barrel oak aged beers, will allow exportation to Western Canada and United States.

I’ve talked few times of Le Trou du Diable in my earlier posts. I should visit them more often. Nevertheless, behind this, there is something probably as important the award; peoples. The brewer isn’t alone! Breweries are businesses that provide jobs. Brewmasters, directors, managers, chefs, waiters and bartenders are part of this industry. It directly injects incomes to the community.

We have about 70 breweries in our province. Those young businesses provide new jobs and contribute to the economy. Most of the breweries (personal observation) are located in the downtown part of the cities and their implantation usually involves building renovations. It revitalizes, diversifies and gives a new breath to the local economy. A lot of them promote culture by according a scene to small music bands and offering theirs walls to visual artists. They also sponsor local festivals with their products, and educate population to a wonderful product that is called beer.

Next time you will visit your local brewery, remember that you’re taking part of the local economy and you support the hard work of devoted peoples. Awards and recognition is important, but it is sure that behind awards, your visit is probably what they prefer.

Santé

marc@brewpublic.com

Posted under beer awards, beer news

Boxing Day is a bank holiday celebrated in many predominantly Christian countries such as Scotland, England, Australia, Germany, and our neighbors to the north in Canada. Though not an officially recognized holiday in the United States, many people in the northern part of the country celebrate this day after Christmas in the tradition of giving gifts to those less fortunate.

Our friend and Quebecer Brewpublican Marc Demeule has given us new meaning to this special day. Earlier this year, Marc visited Portland and like one particular bearded old man from the north, brought with him a bounty of gifts right up our alley. A box of wonderfully assorted craft beer from his homeland brought warmth to our winter holiday season. Honestly, is there anything like handsomely labeled, delicious out-of-market beer for the holidays?

Here’s a look at some of our favorite brews that Marc delivered to us that served up perfectly for these chilly times.

Le Trou du Diable Buteuse: This spectacular brewery from Shawinigan, Quebec produces some of Canada’s finest ales. The Buteuse is the abbey trippel. At 10% ABV, the alcohol is well masked with lots of fruity notes akin to pineapple and pear. Bubbly, amber bodied, and dry, this delicious beer is one of the best Canadian beers we’ve had the luxury of enjoying. Tres bien!

Charlevoix Flacatoune:  This beer is not trying to over impress but it is well built and spectacularly balanced.With a big white head and a light golden bodied spiciness, this blonde ale offers flares of both woodiness and hoppiness and a snap of cereal grains with a pleasant grassy hop finish. Fresh fruitiness with a world of soft complexity. I would really love to see a beer like this pouring regularly around town.

Charlevoix Vache Folle ESB: Extra Special Bitters may not be in vogue these days, but a well-built bitter is unlike anything else. A nice nutty brownish amber pour with thick off-white, lasting head caps a wold of bitter sweet aromas, a touch of herbal hops and caramel sweetness. La Folle ESB is both creamy and resinous; everything fans of the style could hope for. In a land where hops don’t abound as they do here, the creative brewers at Charlevoix finds a way to be both resourceful and creative. Artist Denis Reid is the man behind this brewery’s spectacular labels.

Bristol Beer Factory BrunAle: Here’s a beer that further exhibits using low hops to the best of one’s ability. A wonderful session-worthy brown ale with a world of nuttiness. It’s the kind of dry, cake-like, softly fruity brew that you wish you could go back for again and again. The fact that it comes in 16 ounce, er.. 473 ml cans makes it pleasing for those of us who appreciate a craft brew in a can. At just 4.8% ABV, it won’t ruin you. Excellente!

Orléans Joseph Bellarmin: This imperial India Pale Ale from Microbrasserie d’Orléans/Pub Le Mitan is a bold autumn seasonal with a light citrus presence and some key floral notes to support a boisterously maltilicious underpinning. A warm upfront alcohol presence is likely designed to cut through the Northeast’s chillier months. An amalgumation of English and Northwest IPA styles, and not the best DIPA ever, but quite good, and the handsome artwork is rather luring.

À l’Abri de la Tempête Terre Ferme: Here’s a beer from one of Canada’s most obscure breweries. Brewed on the small island off Quebec’s eastern coast, this brewery uses all organic and sustainable practices to produce a line-up of phenomenal malt-driven brews. Terre Ferme adds exceptional (for the region) bitterness as well as vegetal notes that come across like a mild ginger. If you ever have the chance to try one of À l’Abri de la Tempête’s excellent beers, get on it.

Bièropholie Calumet Grand Chef:  This now defunct smoked beer is one that might have been mentioned in Brewpublic’s “Smoke and Beer” series. Smoke owns the character of this deep, chewy nectar. Lots of molasses, coffee, toffee, and chocolate notes linger underneath the smoldering malt mayhem. Some say this one is the Lagavulin of beer and as it warms, more in-your-face flavor reveals itself. Not much to look at, this beer has little head to it. The dull dark brown core emits an essence that recalls week long camping trip with a lot of time by the old fire. Some mild lactic hints far off in the distance that gives it some semblance of balance, if not cheesiness. This beer was built to pair with sharp cheddar and salty crackers. All features of this beer bows down to the smoke. What a brew! Tres bien!

So, there you have it…a few of the finest beers from Northeastern Canada. We still have more left in our big box. Thank you Marc for sharing with us, and come back to the Pacific Northwest soon. Joyeux Noel et endemain de Noël!

Posted under beer reviews

Every visit to Dieu du Ciel! is a memorable beer experience. Beer brewed there is are sublime and you certainly have the same opinion for their bottled ones. Don’t be surprise if you see a line-up at the door for the anniversary party. In fact, there is a simple reason that explains it. Aged bottles release. Thanks Dieu du Ciel!

For the 11th edition, we had a choice of 21 different beers aged from one to three years, available in bombers or 10oz bottles, for a total of 235 bottles. First came, first served! On tap, 21 different beers (some aged in barrels for the occasion) did complete the party. I joined fellows there and have the chance to get a comfortable seat in this crowded environment. The only bottle I bought is a 2007 Cornemuse Scotch Ale. Few taps completed this anniversary tasting like the Solstice D’hiver Barley Wine ’07, Imperial Pilsner, Rigor Mortis aged in oak barrel used for Pinot Noir, Péché Mortel aged in bourbon barrels and a Vaisseau des Songes IPA for the road back to Saint-Hyacinthe. One day, I’ll seriously consider moving close to that pub… perhaps it wouldn’t be a good idea.

Marc@brewpublic.com

Posted under beer reviews