The Best of 2016 - Part Two

Back in May 2014, it was suggested that super-model
Kate Upton, shown here with late-night TV host Jimmy
Fallon playing Flip Cup, may have helped Brew Ha Ha
reach 10,000 hits because I had earlier included a photo
of her with a beer nestled in her upper region of her
hourglass swimsuit figure. She's quite famous. Turns
out that picture connected to this column was the first
hit if you Google-imaged "Kate Upton and beer" Ooops.
My Google fame was short-lived as the pic is now linked
to some Pinterest account. It was good while it lasted...

Well, something interesting happened yesterday. As some point when I was writing this year's Best of 2016 - Part One column. which was no doubt a fascinating and educational read (My Brain: "Seriously, you just said that? Dude, you're an asshat."), this little horse-and-pony show called Brew Ha Ha crossed 100,000 hits.

Now in terms of beer blogs - or even blogs in general - that's probably small potatoes. I honestly have no idea. But I do know this. If I had 100,000 dollar bills (dollah, dollah bills, y'all) in my bank account, I would be a happy camper. Well, actually, I'm kind of a happy camper already but that's mostly because I don't camp.

Me: "If only there was a way to camp without the outside stuff and potential of bears..."
Morgan Freeman Voice-Over: "Howard Johnson Hotels... for all your camping needs."

The last time I talked about reaching a milestone was the 10,000 hit mark back in May 2014. That was until an eagle-eyed buddy, Joe, pointed out that a Brew Ha Ha column was linked to a Google Image of Kate Upton with a beer propped up in her cleavage. (Don't even try it. I ended up with beer all over me.) I thought that was maybe a bit of a cheat being linked to an Upton pic so I have refrained from using her pictures since then. Oh, I still check her pics out from time to time. Because I have a keen interest in the swimwear industry.

The best mixed pack of 2016 goes to Muskoka Brewing
for their Winter Survival Pack. There's a delicious
lager, cream ale, session IPA, actual IPA (and one of
my favourites), a stout and a Winterweiss. That's a
whole lotta different flavours in one excellent package.

I meant to acknowledge my 25,000th hit here but missed it. And again, I was going to say something about my 50,000th hit but missed it, too. This time, I was paying attention. I told Beer Bro Stevil St Evil earlier in December that I might hit six-digits by Christmas. Meh, I was off by a few days. And lemme tell you this, now that I have crossed that awesome threshold? *Looks around at messy apartment* Yeah, nothing's changed. Same old, same old. My toilet didn't magically clean itself. Oh well.

But I'm not here to talk about my dubious achievements as interesting as I, no doubt, am. (Brain: "Seriously, man, just shut the hell up!") No, I am here to honour all that is good and pure and holy in the Ontario craft beer industry for the year 2016. And when I say "holy," there are no Biblical connections. It's just that there were more than a few beers I drank this year and exclaimed, "Holy shit, that's good!" So the blasphemous version of "holy" because while we might all be Hell-bound, I got my ticket first. So let's jump into Part Two of the Best of 2016, shall we?

I enjoyed the hell out of Collective Arts' 3 X 2  Summer
Mixer with its Hefeweizen, Gose and Papaya Saison. It
was, quite simply, the kind of beers that are meant for dog
days of Summer - all light, all refreshing, all damn good,

Best Mixed Pack: The Muskoka Brewing Winter Survival Pack beat out another mixed pack this year - their Summer Survival Pack, which I had earlier earmarked for this award. What made that Winter pack a tiny bit better? The inclusion of their Shinnicked Stout with its rich infusion of Lumberjack Coffee from local beanery, Muskoka Roastery. Half coffee, half chocolate, all delicious. A great party pack because it has something for everybody, including your drunken, racist Uncle Bob (we all have one), who was passed out in the Lazy Boy two hours before Christmas dinner. More for you! Also, smarten up, Uncle Bob, it's 2016, not 1956. (Previous Winners: Okanagan Spring's Craft Variety Pack, Muskoka Hoptorial Mix-Six.)

Best Summer Sampler: There were a few contenders for this crown, including packs from Mill Street and Cameron's, but in the end, I had to go with the Collective Arts' 3 X 2 Mixed-Six. Why? Because the beers here are absolutely Summer beers! Start with their German-style Hefeweizen, follow that with their light, refreshing Gose and finish up with the best of the three, their Papaya Saison. I bought this six-pack so many times that I probably paid Collective Arts' hydro bill in August.

When Junction Craft Brewing moves to Symes Road this
coming Summer, they can expect to see me as a frequent
visitor. Granted, the fact that they are a stone's throw from
Rainhard Brewing and Shacklands Brewing doesn't hurt.

Best Specialty Wheat: I didn't include this in yesterday's Best of 2016 list because it's a little off the beaten trail. But what would happen if you mixed a red ale with a German wheat? Well, Junction Craft Brewing's Olympia Looping Red Wheat kind of answers that question. Like a good wheat, there's banana and a whiff of bubble-gum on the nose while on the tongue, the 5%, 18 IBU (international bitterness units) ruby-red treat is tangy apple, fruity and dry. Combining a red ale and wheat made this the world's most perfect Autumn beer. The best season of all now has a complementary beer. Excellent job.

Best Fruit Beer: I have never honoured a fruit beer before because, frankly, most of them are gross. Far too sweet for my liking. But every once upon a blue moon, someone gets it right. That was the case with Wellington Brewing's Rhubarb Saison. Rather than sweet, it was tart. A little spice on the nose with no discernable fruit, the 5% beer had light rhubarb on the tongue but with a really nice dry finish. How about that? Morgan Freeman Voiceover: "Rhubarb: It's not just for pie anymore."

There are lagers and then there was this. Lake of Bays took an
 amber lager and decided to oak-age it. What was the outcome?
Well, you're reading about it here so it must be pretty damn good.

Best Specialty Lager: Let's be honest here. Lagers are a perfectly safe style. Yes, they can be goosed nicely as I noted yesterday but it's seriously tough to really jazz them up. Well, then, trust my favourite Baysville, Ontario brewery to give it the old college try. I should say "try and succeed" because their Lake of Bays' Stamp Hammer Oak Aged Amber Lager was a little slice of small batch goodness. There was a deceptive note of sweetness on the nose that initially spooked me but on the first sip, I knew this 6.5%, 20 IBU lager was cut from a different cloth. Both fruity and tangy on the tongue, the oak doesn't come through until about the halfway point. And when it does, you go full Matthew McConaughy, smile a little, sit back in your patio chair and simply say, "Well, alright, alright, alright..." Frankly, nobody makes specialty beers quite like Lake of Bays. I am constantly on the look-out for any new singles they release because they always bring the Funky Cold Medina.

Witness, if you will, in the full majesty of this Paul The
Beer Guy photo, the glory that was Old Tomorrow's
Monty's Golden Ryed Ale. Aged in ryed oak, this was a
full-flavoured deeply rich ale with a whole lotta kick.

Best Specialty Ale: To be honest, I was leery of this, simply because it was aged in used rye (Canadian Whiskey) barrels. I actually hate rye. So I bought a bomber of Old Tomorrow's Monty's Golden Ryed Ale more as a measure of support to the young brewery rather than anything else. And it sat there in my fridge... for quite a while. Then one day as I was, no doubt, buoyed by a few tasty IPAs, I thought, "Well, how bad can it be?" and cracked it open. I noticed a little rye on the nose because to a beer drinker, that's a particularly distinct and not all-together pleasant odour. So with some trepidation, I took a sip of this 5.2% ale and was surprised with the smoothness. You do notice the wood instantly on the tongue and the rye influence is subtle at best, giving it a, well, earthy taste. This was unlike any ale I had in 2016. Had the rye influence been any stronger, I probably would not have enjoyed this but man, it was just right. In the end, I bought a few more because I really enjoyed it. To be frank, I could not drink these all afternoon, despite the low ABV. It's firmly in the ranks of a "once in a while" beer. But it was the one that surprised me the most... well, that is until I get to a wine barrel aged sour beer further down.

Three similar styles and three great tastes. Here's an IPA, Extra Pale Ale
and Session IPA from Collective Arts, all three of which are strong beers.
But put them together? Now you got yourself an excellence Triple Play... 

Best Triple-Play: The Best Triple play goes to a brewery with the best three beers of a similar style. Last year, it went to a brewery's pale ale, IPA and Imperial IPA. This year, we're gonna veer off that script slightly and give it to Collective Art's troika of the solid State of Mind Session IPA, their outstanding Rhyme & Reason Extra Pale Ale and their Ransack the Universe IPA, which will pop up later. Hell, you could throw their outstanding Black IPA into the mix and call this tandem a Fab Four. (Previous Winner: Nickel Brook's Naughty Neighbour APA, Headstock IPA and Immodest Imperial IPA.)

Best Collaborative Beer: While I have been keeping this all within Ontario's border, I did mention yesterday that a couple would go beyond this Province.

I shared the Canada Coast to Coastless Imperial ESB with
Beer Bro Glenn one afternoon when he popped by. Neither
of us could believe the flavour that came out of this bomber.

After meeting at the 2014 Canadian Brewing Awards in Fredericton, New Brunswick, respective brewers from Ontario's Flying Monkeys, Nova Scotia's Garrison Brewing, Quebec's Trou du Diable and BC's Philips Brewing decided to collaborate on a beer or as they called it, a Quad-Laboration. To that end, they decided to create a high-test English Special Bitter that they called Canada Coast to Coastless Imperial ESB. But this was not your traditional British ESB. No, at 7.6% and 50 IBUs, the four breweries, which all made their own batches, using identical ingredients, created something far beyond a regular ESB. While the hops used vary from report to report, they were definitely there as this fairly burst with flavour. Mine came from the good folks at Flying Monkeys and was shared with Bro Bro Glenn during one of his visits to Donny Bar and Grill. He, in turn, reviewed it on RateBeer, giving it an impressive 17/20 (I would have turned that dial up to 19) and noted that it "poured an impressive dark red with a thick and creamy head. Lots of semi-sweet malts on the nose with a little plum, some caramel and a little bit of sweetness on the tongue. Hoppy as well."

This is an actual photo of Unfiltered Brewing
top-dog Greg Nash. During a recent trip to
Halifax, I had the opportunity to try three of
his IPAs, the highlight of my trip. Well, I
guess the wedding of my niece was big, too.

The Beast Of The East; The Best Of The West: Okay, a quick peek beyond our provincial borders for the next two. Let's start out in BC and look at the beauty made by Driftwood Brewing from Victoria that regularly adorns the shelves of our local LCBOs. That would be their Fat Tug IPA, a big favourite of Beer Bro Glenn and coworker Jonny. Well, throw me in the Fat Tug Fan Club (wait - this isn't some weird prison thing, is it?) because on occasion, I overlook my guilt at not buying Ontario beer and grab myself a couple off the shelf. Hey, at $6/bomber, it's a steal. Five different hops goose the jungle juice, which features notes of grapefruit, mango and melon. At 7% and 80 IBUs, this bright orange brew curls your toes with big taste. And for some beers I do not feel guilt over, let's look to Unfiltered Brewing in Halifax. You will not find any of Greg Nash's dynamite IPAs on the LCBO shelves. Nor will you find them on the shelves of the Nova Scotia Liquor Corporation. Nope, the only place you can get the goods is to visit the brewery at 6041 North Street. It is available exactly two ways - at the brewery bar or in one and two-litre growlers for take-away. While in town, I had a chance to try his 7% Riddle of Steel IPA (very good), his 8%, 100 IBU Twelve Years to Zion Imperial IPA (exceptionally good) and his 7.5%, 100+ IBU Double Orange Double IPA (OMFG!) Bursting with Citra hops, the Double Orange is one of the best IPAs I have ever had. Orange, citrus, the kitchen sink - you name it because it had everything. This beer was, indeed, the Beast of the East. As I told the kid at Walmart who was looking for the Arnold Schwarzenegger action figure, "Aisle B, Back."

You see this nice lady holding a Side Launch
Wheat? Her name is Garnet Pratt Siddall and
she is a good person who did a good thing even
though it was a costly decision. Cheers, Garnet!

Best Childhood Memory Beer: I'll be honest. I thought the Nickel Brook Dreamsicle Orange Vanilla Pale Ale wouldn't fly - too gimmicky. But again, I support my locals so I grabbed one. Created out of the brewery's Funk Labs under the watchful eye of Funkmaster General Patrick Howell, I thought it would be sweet and, well, nasty. But I was hugely surprised when it turned out to be tart and tangy. The 4.1%, 25 IBU bright orange brew had some orange and vanilla on the tongue but it was subtle and fun. As Patrick himself said, "This beer is my childhood summer memories in liquid form. Eating a melting popsicle on the front porch on a warm Summer night - that was the idea we had when designing this beer." It was tart, fun and well, funky. Great job.

The Buck Stops Here Award: Here's where we give credit where credit is due. When a taste panel at Side Launch Brewing in Collingwood found a few batches of Side Launch Wheat could spoil if improperly stored, brewery president Garnet Pratt Siddall made a hard choice and recalled three separate batches made in July. Within a few weeks, there were fresh batches on the liquor store shelves but for a while, the brewery was awash in bright yellow cans that were recalled. It was not an inexpensive hit. But man, it was a brave move and it was the right move. You are only as good as your reputation and with that recall decision, they only added to their good name. Cheers to Side Launch!

Here's our choices for Best Sours this year. On the left is
mine,  Bellwoods Motley Cru 2016 and the right is Jay's
choice, his very much-beloved Bellwoods Jelly King. To be
perfectly honest here, I forget which one is in the glass. 

Best Sour Beer(s): This is another category where I am ably assisted by my former coworker, Jay-Dawg. I'll start first because of... "it's my blog" reasons. When I was gifted by Rib Eye Jack's Ale House's GM Steve with a Bellwoods' Motley Cru 2016, I had no idea how prized the beer was. While Jay-Dawg is happily splashing in the middle of the Sour Pond, loving the style, I am still dipping my toes in at the edge like the coward I am. I'm still not sure what to make of the style but brewers are putting a lot of time and effort into it so I pay attention. Now the Motley Cru is an open fermentation beer that uses no regular yeast. How is that possible, you ask? Well, the beer is mixed with Gewurztrammer grape must - must being the pulp, seeds and skin of the grapes. Apparently, the wild yeast on the grape skins do the job. This year's, Motley Cru was aged in French oak barrels from Tawse Winery (Vineland, Ontario) for two years and then blended with a sour ale that had been barrel-aged for the same length of time. So how was the end result of the 8% sour? Tart as hell with some white wine notes (obviously) with some really nice apple and woodiness on the tongue.

Nickel Brook's Cafe Del Bastardo had a huge
blast of coffee the minute I popped the waxed
cap. It was so pungent that I put away my beer
glass and poured it into my Marvel Superhero
coffee mug. I'm using this picture instead to
show you the deep colour of this imperial stout

Three years in the making, this was a taste like I have never have before and would gladly have again. The only problem is finding it. Once a year release and it does not last long. They made 5,200 bottles this year - the most ever - and apparently, it was still gone in record time. This beer was also my beer writing buddy Drunk Polkaroo's 1,000th review on Untappd.

Now moving from the hard-to-get beer over to what is clearly their most popular and far more readily-available sour, Jay's choice was Bellwoods' Jelly King. Seriously, as soon as he had his first Jelly King, Jay could not stop raving about it. He was all, "Jelly King this, Jelly King that, Jelly King rules and I forgot to put on socks because Jelly King." To me, the 5.6% sour was quite tasty (not in the same league as Motley Cru though I suspect few are) with a mouth-puckering citrus finish. due to dry-hopping with Citra. I can easily see why Jay would pick this one as his favourite sour of the year. When it comes to sours, I defer to Jay and Drunk Polkaroo. They know their sour stuff.

Best Coffee-Infused Beer: This is a brand new category in this catch-all, wrap-up-for-2016 column (I did all the traditional styles yesterday) because it involves my two favourite liquids - coffee and beer. Some would say those are the only two liquids I ingest. And they would be right. I get the water necessary for humans to stay alive from both. *Checks pulse* I'm fine, thanks for asking.

In this award-winning photograph from Paul The Beer Guy, we see young
Taylor manning the bar at Brock Street Brewing on Hopkins Street in
Whitby. She's just one reason the brewery is the Spirit of Craft Beer 2016.

This one was an easy pick as Nickel Brook's Funk Lab cranked out one called Cafe Del Bastardo. When I opened it, there was so much coffee aroma that it filled my kitchen instantly. And I hadn't even poured it yet. Okay, so what is this miracle of blended coffee and beer that Funkmaster General Patrick and his brew crew created? First, they got their grubby mitts on a crap-ton of coffee, supplied by Detour Roasters from Los Idolos, Colombia. So you know, real coffee!  So they took these coffee beans and put them in Kentucky bourbon barrels with Nickel Brook's Bolshevik Bastard Imperial Stout - the same recipe as their Kentucky Bastard Imperial Stout... but with coffee! Oh, good gravy, this was outstanding. Probably the biggest taste of the year. At 12% and 70 IBUs, there was (duh) coffee and bourbon on the nose with more coffee, bourbon, vanilla and chocolate on the tongue. I wish I had saved this for... well, today, to be honest. Just insanely delicious.

REBUTTAL OF THE YEAR: When I had a laugh at the
fact that artist Garnett Gerry had drawn beloved character
Roland Baggetts wearing socks with sandals on the label
of the Great Lake Brewing's Sunnyside Session IPA, their
social media man, Troy Burtch, fired back this photo on
Twitter near instantly. Don't lie, guys. We've all done this.

The Spirit Of Craft Beer: This is the part of the assembly where we heap praise on a brewery for being, well, fun. And this year, Brock Street Brewing checked off all the boxes for us. While I had been creeping harmlessly following them on social media since they opened in 2015, my first connection with the brewery, located five minutes away from my buddy, Johnny, in Whitby, was back on January 30th. I remember it like it was 11 months ago. The second annual Burlington Winter Beer Festival was being held at the Holiday Inn that's exactly a $17 cab ride away from where I live. One of the booths there was being run by Brock Street dudes Andrew and Phil. They had a miniature 30-inch ping-pong table and were challenging all comers. All I heard coming from that booth was laughter and good-natured trash-talking from both the guys and the drinking public. Then they got a miniature pool table and called me out on Facebook to try my luck. I finally visited the brewery in July and seeing my son, David, peeking in the back, sweetheart server Taylor asked if he wanted to check out the shiny equipment. He was in the back before I could even ask him.

According to my receipts, I have drank more
of Collective Arts' Ransack The Universe
Hemisphere IPA than any other single beer
this year. Good thing it's super-tasty or that kind
of devotion would seriously suck for me personally.

Because they love their customers as much as they love their beer, Brock Street Brewing is the 2016 recipient of the Spirit of Craft Beer award. You guys make me proud of the folks who make our craft beer. (Previous Winner: Longslice Brewing.)

Beer Of The Year (aka The Wingman Award): Well, there's always that one beer that grabs me by the throat and utters, "Say Uncle, dammit." This year, that was Collective Arts' Ransack the Universe Hemisphere IPA. Loaded with Galaxy hops from Myrtleford, Australia and Mosiac hops from Yakima, Washington, this 6.8%, 85 IBU hop monster is all tropical fruits, mango and citrus on the nose and tongue. But it was also that sneaky voice on my shoulder. If a lady liked a photo of mine on Facebook, Ransack was there, whispering in my ear, "Dude, wake up! She totally wants you!" If someone posted a political view that I disagreed with but ignored, Ransack was there to tell me, "Argue with him! People love their political views being challenged! Don't be a wuss!" It was my best buddy this year and the bromance will continue long into 2017. The year's best. (Previous Winner: Muskoka Mad Tom IPA.) 

But folks, that's a wrap on 2016. I'll be back just into the new year with a look at the labels we loved this year... and much much more. But guys and dolls, that's it, that's all and I am outta here! Until next year, I remain...

The Best of 2016 - Part 1

When I pester people to drink locally, this is
what I mean - Ontario Craft Beer. Yeah, sure,
Nickel Brook, right around the corner from me
in Burlington, may see more of me than others
but when I shop, it's Ontario-wide craft beers!

Well, another year is done and true to the way 2016 has gone so far, celebrity deaths did not end at Christmas. It's almost like we can expect a few more right up until 11:59 pm on December 31st.

I took my son over to my life-long buddy Dave's house for a post-Christmas dinner with his lady, Joann, the other night and we were talking about this. Eventually, we came up with a joint conclusion. We decided that as far as celebrities and musicians go, we didn't believe that more left us this year than normal. No, our theory is that the people we lost this year simply mean more to our generations - the Baby Boomers and the Gen-Xers. Artists like Prince, George Michael, David Bowie and Glenn Frey, actors such as Carrie Fisher, Alan Rickman, Alan Thicke and Garry Shandling, as well as sports legends Muhammad Ali and Gordie Howe - these people all loomed much larger in our generations' lives.

This is probably how our parents felt when icons like Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Bing Crosby shuffled off this mortal coil, though I don't believe our folks' generation ever put quite the same stock in celebrity as we do. But to us, the people we idolized in our youth and into our adulthood simply seem too young to die. But that's not the way things work. So for all those who decried 2016 as the worst year ever, all I can say is, "Buckle up!" Because right now, 2017 is ready to hop behind the wheel with the phone in one hand, a beer in the other, texting his bros and going 90. It'll probably be just as ugly.

First on deck from one of my all-time favourite
breweries is Cameron's and their outstanding 12
Mile India Pale Lager. Just as delicious as hell...

Okay, using that awful segue from celebrity deaths to beer, let's move to the much cheerier of the latter since this was an outstanding year for craft beer. Having previously done these year-end, best-of lists from 2013 to 2015, I have always kept my list to only Canadian beers. Why? *Looks outside at last night's fresh mounds of snow* Well, because apparently, I've chosen to live in this Arctic Tundra. And there have been some great Canadian beers on the previous three lists. But this year, I'm getting even more exclusionary. My list's boundaries are now those of Ontario's.

You see, I am always thumping my chest and once I stop coughing, I say loudly, "Goddammit all to hell, drink locally, people!" That's important to me. When you meet people like Nickel Brook owner John Romano, Muskoka sales rep Vince Cusick or Lake of Bays sale rep Tim Glazin (among the many others I have met over the years), you learn quickly how much your support is appreciated. There is no sense of entitlement on their end. They want to earn your patronage - and they do. So I'm sorry, Quebec and the Maritimes, apologies to the Prairie provinces and BC but this year, I'm going all-Ontario with this bitch.

Even though Lake Wilcon Brewing changed the label
for their iaugural beer, Mad Quaker, from the design
on the left to the one on the right, I was thrilled with the
original for one reason. I'm colourblind and yet when I
asked a coworker if the can was purple, it turned out
against long odds that I was correct!!! That meant a lot.

Aside from the boundary changes and some expanded categories, there are only two other rules. Rule 1) No previous winners. And Rule 2) Shit, I think I miscounted because that's it. I already mentioned the Ontario thing. Okay, gang, let's... get... reeeady... to rumble!!!! Previous winners are listed in bold italic at the end of each.

Best Pale/Blonde Lager: You may notice there is only one previous winner in this new category. The reason is simple. When it comes to lagers, I like mine dirtier than that hard-to-reach part on the rear of the toilet with the two ceramic bolt covers that guys only clean if a woman is coming over. So yeah, that dirty! But I had some great lighter-hued lagers this year because damn, you guys are getting good at this. But none surpassed Cameron's Brewing's 12 Mile India Pale Lager. Brand new to the brewery this year and frankly one that should be available to the beer-drinking public year round (Did I say that loudly enough? You heard that, Cameron's?), this 5.2% brew combined the best of two styles with some great light fruit and citrus on the nose followed by both bitterness and graininess on the tongue. Frankly, this was one of the best new beers from an older house that I enjoyed this year. Just excellent, gang. (Previous Winner: Hogsback Brewing Vintage Lager.)

"Yay, this pilsner came late in the fight," says Thor, "but by
Odin's beard, I only back the mightiest of allies!" Which is
exactly the situation when Rainhard's Unfiltered Pilsner
landed in my glass two weeks ago and ended up being the
best Pilsner of 2016. Years have 12 months so it happens...

Best Amber/Dark Lager: Lake Wilcox Brewing, which recently opened their own brewery in Vaughan, Ontario, came flying out of the gate this year with their Mad Quacker Amber Lager. Originally contract-brewed out of Railway City in St. Thomas, their inaugural beer was a sessionable 4.7% with dark fruit and breadiness on the nose with a thicker caramel and toffee finish on the tongue. Heavy-duty and damn delicious! This is why I like them dark and dirty. It's like rare prime rib to a carnivore - it's something to bite into! This brewery started off perfectly and appears to be headed further on that same trajectory. (Previous winners: King Brewing Dark Lager, Mill Street 100th Meridian Amber Organic Lager.)

Best Pilsner: Now here's a category about which I feel somewhat badly. You see, I had a winner slotted in this spot way back in April and no one knocked it off its lofty throne. Many contenders came over 2016 but none could beat it. It was free and clear. Until just two short weeks ago when I popped into Rainhard Brewing for some fresh beers and a glass. Suddenly, a newcomer had brashly, brazenly knocked the crown off the king.

Is it a Saison? Is it a Farmhouse Ale? Well, actually, it's
both and it's also the best Saison I had in 2016. Kudos to
the Collingwood Brewery gang for this exceptional beer.

Yup, the Rainhard Unfiltered Pilsner ended up being the best one I had this year. Pale but hazy in the glass (because unfiltered rocks the house), there was absolutely grassy maltiness on the nose but the 4.9%, 35 IBU (international bitterness units) brew surprised the hell out of me on the tongue. A quick hop punch and some citrus made this light-to-medium bodied beer a lot more in the glass (my brand new Rainhard glass, I should say) than your average pilsner. But then I've long since learned that nothing brewer Jordan Rainhard does is average. This is a brewer on a mission and we, the beer-lovers, get the spoils of his journey. That works for me. Great job, Jordan and hold tight - you're back to this little party quite soon. (Previous winners: Steam Whistle Pilsner, Steamworks Pilsner and Black Oaks Epiphany No. 2 Imperial Pilsner.)

Best Saison: Man, I had a lot of saisons this year which is remarkable because that style used to be much lower on my list of priorities. But this year saw a banner crop of them and I jumped in. This year's winner, Collingwood Brewery's Saison Farmhouse Ale, comes with a back story. One day, I was making my lunch prior to a late shift and I was scanning my fridge for a nice, light beer to pair with it.

I love this Drunk Polkaroo's picture of Side Launch
Wheat, this year's Best German-Style Wheat. But I
love this delicious beer even more. Banana goodness!

I spotted this one and thought, "Perfect." Except as soon as I cracked it open, there was a WTF moment. The smell was too deep and rich for a saison. Checking the ABV, I realized that I was enjoying a 7% beer before going to work. (Not recommended at all.) But since I was committed to it at that point, I drank it for King and country. Oh man, thick aroma of tropical fruit with some light sweetness on the tongue followed by a bitter bite. This was one heavy-duty saison and I loved it. These guys also make a great pale ale and ESB. Great work. (Previous Winners: Nickel Brook-Sawdust City 11-05 Imperial Saison, Four Winds Brewing Saison.)

Best German-Style Wheat: It is an absolute privilege this year to name Side Launch Wheat as the best in this always-tough-to-pick category. Back in the Summer, the brewery made the tough decision to recall three batches of this beer, simply because they were worried if it was improperly stored, it might not be 100%. That prompted me and Beer Writing pal Drunk Polkaroo to create a #stepupforsidelaunch social media campaign to show our support for this Collingwood brewery. However, as far back as March, I already had this slotted as best wheat.

Aside from a very clever name, Railway City's The
"Witty" Traveller Pint is a damn tasty beer. It is also
the first winner of my Belgian Wit category here.

This beer came to the brewery several years back from the original recipe for Denison's Weissbier (as did Denison's Dunkel, renamed Side Launch Dark Lager, also one of my favourites.) The Bavarian-style 5.3% beauty is all banana and cloves on the nose with coriander, more banana and light yeast on the tongue. I'm surprised it took this long for me to choose it. More on our Collingwood friends tomorrow so stay tuned. (Previous Winners: Creemore Hoppy Hefeweizen, All Or Nothing Hopfenweisse and Howe Sound King Heffy Imperial Wheat.)

Best Belgian-Style Wit: Well, what can I tell Railway Brewing out of St Thomas, Ontario, other than the fact they are the first winner in this category? That's because every year, I would opt for a German wheat over the Belgian style simply because I prefer those. But I recognized that's not fair so, hey, new category this year! And I chose Railway City's The "Witty" Traveller Pint as the inaugural winner. 

Way back, the tiny town of Blyth, Ontario was
named Drummond. But in 1855, some British
dude named Blyth bought the whole town up
and renamed it after himself. But he never
once made the trip overseas to visit his new
namesake community and so Cowbell Brewing
named their first ever beer, Absent Landlord.

As expected, from the Belgian yeast, this 4.5% brew adds some spiciness on the nose along with the banana with some pepper and bubble-gum on the tongue. I will always prefer the German style but top-notch beers like this are bringing me a little more onside with Belgian Wits. Excellent effort equals excellent result. Well done.

The Beau's Lug Tread Honourary Best Kolsch - Part One: As I mentioned a couple of columns back, I feel badly that I've never honoured the lagered-ale Kolsch style in the past hence it is named after Ontario's biggest and best, Beau's Lug Tread. And you'll see the reason for the "Part One" shortly. While I have always maintained that pale ales are the best crossover from macro to craft beers, lagered ales are an equally friendly style to achieve that. And my favourite this year was the brand new Cowbell Brewing Absent Landlord Country Kolsch. I was stunned to see this checked in at just 18 IBUs as it has a lovely bitterness on the tongue. At 5.3%, this is lightly spicy (Belgian yeast?) with some caramel on the nose with some hop punch and tartness on the tongue. Like Lake Wilcox before it, Cowbell came out at the first bell swinging. And as we speak, Cowbell is busy building a massive brewery, slated to open in the Summer of 2017, with indoor-outdoor seating for 216 visitors and an outdoor venue for entertainment, sports and children's use.

There can be no question that Old Tomorrow's
Track 85 Lagered Ale, named after the final
section of railway track being laid in 1885 to link
Canada coast-to-coast, is definitely one of this
year's best Kolsch beers. Old Tomorrow rocks!

What an addition to Blyth this brewery will be.

The Beau's Lug Tread Honourary Best Kolsch - Part Two: I'm not doing this category twice because I've neglected it in the past. Well, maybe a little. No, I'm doing this twice because former co-worker Jay-Dawg vehemently insisted that if I picked any Kolsch except for Old Tomorrow's Track 85 Lagered Ale, I was just plain wrong. "This is the best Kolsch I've ever had in my life!" he insisted. And he's not incorrect as it's certainly one of the best I've enjoyed this year. But I had my choice so here's his. Some toasty malts and caramel on the nose, the 4.5% beer has a herbal and fruity finish on the tongue. A very different beer than Cowbell's but a damn good one. Jay will have some input into tomorrow's sour beers selection, as well, because that's what friends are for.

Best Blonde Ale: Here's another first-time category, simply because amber and dark ales were taking Best Ale every year thus far. So in the name of fairness, I added this because there's some damn fine blonde ales out there that were being neglected, simply because I like my ales dark. And this is a joint choice between myself and Jay-Dawg because we both loved the Lake of Bays Summer Sunset Session Ale. At just 4.5%, this would qualify as the Best Session Ale but I slotted here instead. Some light citrus on the nose with grassiness and lemon on the tongue, this was as refreshing as hell. Loved it!

Aside from the outstanding label created by both artist
Garnett Gerry and graphic designer Fabian Skidmore,
this was just a fantastic session IPA, not to mention the
second time Great Lakes Brewing has won this category.

Best Amber-Dark Ale: Okay, the first two-time brewery winner on today's and tomorrow's Best Of 2016 lists but certainly not the last. Once again, Cowbell Brewing stepped up huge with their Doc Perdue's Bobcat West Coast Red Ale. Again, a beer I had very late in the year that snatched the win away from another established red ale, I felt I had little choice. This was just too damn tasty. At 5.5% and roughly 40-45 IBUs, this one had both the caramel of a red and the citrus of a west coast pale ale on the nose while following through on the tongue with a deep, rich and hoppy finish. It take two of the styles I love - red ales and west coast pale ales - and blended them perfectly. (Previous winners: Mill Street Tankhouse Ale, Parallel 49 Gypsy Tears Ruby Ale and Wellington Terrestrial India Brown Ale.)

Best Session/Light Beer: Again a choice with which I know Jay-Dawg will agree, the best session beer I had this year - hands down - was Great Lakes Brewing's Sunnyside Session IPA. At just 3.9% and 25 IBUs (Seriously? It tastes way hoppier than that), it poured a beautiful hazy gold with nothing but citrus on the nose.

When Beer Bro Glenn and I recently visited Rainhard
Brewing in West Toronto, we both walked out with a
six-pack of Armed 'N Citra as it had a sale price for
the sixer. Didn't have to ask us twice with this beer.

At first, I got some some lemon on the tongue but a few sips later, pineapple also popped up. You could pound this delicious treat all afternoon and still operate heavy machinery... but probably shouldn't. (Legal disclaimer: Back away from the backhoe, asshat!) But man, if you want to make it to the end of the Maple Leaf game, here's the one for you! (Previous Winners: Flying Monkeys Genius of Suburbia India Style Session Ale, Great Lakes Citradiction Extra Pale Ale.)

Best Pale Ale: Frankly, I'm a little shocked and appalled that I haven't chosen this one in the past. I should probably punish myself by drinking a bunch more soon. That seems only fitting. No, don't try to stop me! I have to atone for my sins. That said, my second two-time brewery win of this two-day extravaganza goes to Rainhard Brewing's Armed 'N Citra Pale Ale. This 5,2%, 45 IBU single hop west coast pale ale has tons of citrus and tropical fruit on the nose. When I started my Best of 2016 list back in late-February, this was the first beer on the list. Nothing knocked it off because nothing could. It's just too good to beat. (Previous Winners: Spearhead's Hawaiian Style Pale Ale, Cameron's California Sunshine APA and Sawdust City's Golden Beach Pale Ale.)

Junction Craft Brewing's Engineer's IPA has that British
malt on the first few sips and then suddenly, the hops pop
through on the tongue. Very deceptive, this beer. And tasty.

Best British-Style IPA: I added this style last year to give it a nod and frankly, I found a great one. Well, here's another great one - Junction Craft Brewing's Engineer IPA. Yes, it's heavily-malted on the nose and tongue... at first. At 6.2% and 59 IBUs, there's also a bit of citrus on the nose while the tongue remains all malty caramel. But about halfway through, all of a sudden, pineapple pops up and within seconds, there's some hoppiness on display. This is a sneaky beer and I love a beer that can surprise me and give me something new further into the glass. More from this brewery tomorrow. (Previous Winner: Longslice Brewing Hopsta La Vista IPA.)

Because Great Lakes Brewing suffers an embarrassing
abundance of riches in the IPA category, I have actually
had to give them their own category so others can win...

Best Great Lakes Brewery's India Pale Ale: Well, here's a wonderful problem to have. Great Lakes Head Brewer Mike Lackey has pumped out so many outstanding IPAs from his legendary Tank Ten that frankly, GLB could win the next six Best IPA titles easily. Last year, my Best IPA was Octopus Wants To Fight but it beat out other GLB offerings, Thrust! An IPA, Karma Citra and Maniacal Hopshop. That's not even mentioning My Bitter Wife and Lake Effects. That he cranks out so many outstanding IPAs out of one tank over the years has left me in a bit of a quandry, one that Drunk Polkaroo feels as well. So congratulations and damn you all to hell, Mr. Lackey, as you now have your own IPA category, just so other breweries can win too. Oh and this is now the third brewery double win of the next two days as Thrust! An IPA gets the nod this year. Beer Bro Glenn may want to throttle me for this because Karma Citra would be his choice but this 6.5%, 72 IBU bomb-blast of hops has tons of grapefruit and mango on the nose which is followed by a huge blast of resin and tropical fruit on the tongue. So good, it's frankly unfair. (Previous Winner: GLB Octopus Wants To Fight IPA.)

Okay, getting back to IPAs made by mere mortals, the
one that knocked me out this year was Big Rig Brewery
Alpha Bomb Unfiltered IPA. I seriously loved this one.

Best India Pale Ale: Okay, if we can move away from the fact that Mike Lackey landed here in a rocket from Krypton, there were other really good IPAs this year and here we see that Big Rig Brewing's (Ottawa) brewmaster Lon Ladell is no slouch himself. Because a slacker couldn't have made the outstanding Big Rig Alpha Bomb Unfiltered IPA. Hot damn, this beer was so frikkin' good. Ladell used Chinook and Columbus hops at the beginning of the boil and then Mosaic hops at the end of it to finish this bad boy. The 6.7%, 87 IBU (yikes!) brew had a metric-ton of grapefruit on the nose with a beautiful tropical fruit as well as a strong malt backbone on the finish. Big Rig has some great beers but this is their best by far. This brewery is going places. (Previous winners: Flying Monkeys Smashbomb Atomic IPA, Nickel Brook's Headstock IPA.)

Best Double/Imperial IPA: This one was fiercely-contested but at the same time in the end, it was kind of my choice from the second I enjoyed it. It was the one to beat. Innocente Two Night Stand Double IPA was such a huge beer that it could not be ignored. Head brewer Steve Innocente unleashed a hop monster with this one.

i had a ton of really good Double/Imperial IPAs but this
one? Holy crap, this was insanely tasty. It was one of
those "Only Three Beers You Can Take To A Desert
Island" beers. You might just pass on the other two...

At 8.5% and 100+ IBUs, this was the Irish car bomb of double IPAs. While that imagery might not be the most appealing of descriptions, allow me to explain. The aroma was the juiciest of the year - mango, grapefruit and citrus on the insane nose, it paved way for huge resin and solid malts for balance, which fairly exploded on the tongue. You would step over your mother to get one and I would cheer you on. Screw her. A very limited release, Rib Eye Jack's Ale House GM Steve put one of these nasty-ass throat blasters in my hands. Best. Gift. Ever! (Previous Winner: Nickel Brook Immodest Imperial IPA.)

Best Porter: This guy again? Already? Yup, seems so. Steve Innocente, please take a step forward because the Innocente Charcoal Porter was a step above the others this year, as well. This 5.6% glass of black velvet had smoked malts and burnt something (wood?) on the nose and followed it up with strong chocolate on the tongue with toasty malt on the tongue. Not gimmicked with any fruit flavours, it tastes like it came from aging in a nice barrel. Dark, smooth and lovely. (Previous Winners: Mill Street Vanilla Porter, Nickel Brook Pissed Pete Pumpkin Porter, Highlander Blacksmith Smoked Porter.)

Former coworker Jay-Dawg came back from Kingston
raving about this Stone City Ales' Ships In The Night
Oatmeal Stout. Turns out he had good reason - great beer! 

Best Stout: Again, another one that came out of left field. When Jay-Dawg visited Stone City Ales in Kingston back in the fall, he brought back four beers for me - a German wheat, two IPAs and one stout. The one he couldn't stop talking about? The Ships In The Night Oatmeal Stout. The dude is a total IPA and sour fiend but man, he loved this stout. I, for one, applaud his good taste because this 5.6% glass of black magic had some killer coffee and chocolate on the nose with some very tasty bittersweet chocolate and toasty malts on the tongue. Just a medium body but a huge taste! (Previous Winner: Stonehammer Oatmeal Coffee Stout.)

Best Imperial Stout: Bellwoods Brewery at Queen and Ossington in Toronto never enters its beers in awards. I'd like to think it's maybe because they want to save every last drop for customers. Probably not but hey, I like my theory.

Was it barrel-aged or was it not? That's a
damn tough call because it certainly tasted
that way but this was so rich and heavy, it
didn't really matter. Truly outstanding...

I think there's a good reason that the devil is on the label for their Hellwoods Imperial Stout but mostly because it's sinfully delicious. Nothing but rich, thick, boozy chocolate and coffee aroma on the nose, this 10% cocoa-bomb has tons more chocolate and deep rich plum on the tongue. Some of this year's early batch was barrel-aged; some was not. I think the one I enjoyed at Rib Eye Jack's Ale House way back in January was but there were so many strong flavours, it was tough to tell. Either way, wow, whatta beer! (Previous Winners: Nickel Brook Kentucky Bastard, Walkerville Barrel-Aged Milk Stout.)

That's it for today but I'll be back tomorrow with many many more beers to award. We have barrel-aged everything to discuss, two different sour beer winners (one chosen by Jay-Dawg), fruit beers, the best mixed packs of craft beers, coffee-infused beauties, best memories of youth beers and hey, a few more important ones. Which brewery captured the Spirit Of Craft Beer the most this year? Which brewery made the most socially responsible corporate decision of 2016? And which beer gets the Beer Of The Year, aka Wingman of the Year Award? All of these will be as they are today - Ontario craft beers because we love our brewers. Except for three as I also have a collaborative beer that crosses four Provincial boundaries. as well as the best west coast beer and the best east coast beer I had this year. So see you tomorrow because guys and dolls, that's it, that's all and I am outta here, Until tomorrow, I remain...

I get a brand new brew crew

A new Beer Store, a new set of thugs to work with, except I've worked
with these three before. They would be Trishan, Josh and Jonny, all of
whom will be getting forced by me into the sweet world of craft beer.

A few weeks prior to Christmas, I got the word from our District Manager that I would be shifting out of my Beer Store in southwest Oakville into another in Northeast Oakville.

This, in itself, is not big news. In the eight years I've been full-time, this would be my sixth shift. Moving us around keeps the job fresh. Despite the fact it's the exact same business, every Beer Store in unique unto itself.

For instance, the one I landed in is much slower than the last one... and frankly, that was a pretty awesome Christmas present in itself. But this store isn't exactly unfamiliar to me as I started there in 2005, went back there in 2011 for a short time and now have returned there for a third (and triumphant - my word and no one else's) time! It's at the north end of the subdivision I grew up in and where my Mom still lives. So I am like The Ghost of Store 2055. My spirit continues to return and haunt it. Those poor bastards.

Trishan meant to order 48 six-packs of Lagunitas IPA
when it became available on our inventory. Forty-eight
six-packs is one row of 12 cases. What he accidentally did
was order 288 six-packs. Frankly, when it landed on my
first day of work, I thought it was the best welcome ever!

But since I was there relatively recently, there's a core staff still working there when I last was. That includes the senior full-timer, Trishan, who basically runs the joint for our manager, Jeff. You see, Jeff is a multi-location manager, overseeing five different stores so he pops in weekly to do paperwork, prop up spirits and make sure his ships are sailing smoothly. With Trishan at the helm, he has less-than-zero worries. And Josh came to the store back in 2010 or so when he left the Fort Erie Beer Store to become a student at nearby Sheridan College.

And then there's Jonny, our big lovable goofball, who happens to be the younger brother of my last coworker, Jay-Dawg. Now Jonny and I go back almost as far as Jay-Dawg and me. And Jonny happens to be this blog's Number One Cheerleader from its inception in June 2013. "You wanna know what's great about your blog?" Johnny told me with no small amount of enthusiasm a couple of weeks back. "I sit down on the john in the morning and it's the perfect length. When I finish the blog, I'm also done on the toilet." I wish I could tell you that was the strangest thing he said to me that week. But it probably wasn't. That boy cracks me up.

My Secret Santa stash from Jonny. Lessee, a
Flying Monkeys Smashbomb Atomic IPA, a
Sawdust City Lone Pine IPA, a Sextant Why
So Sirius? Pale Ale, a Nickel Brook Naughty
Neighbour Pale Ale, a Stone Go To IPA and
a Muskoka Twice As Mad Tom Double IPA.
Geez, you'd think this guy knows me well?

But when Josh heard I was coming to the store, he texted me to ask if I wanted to be part of their Secret Santa. "Absolutely," I texted back and in the end, Josh very wisely paired me with Jonny. Now I would say Jonny is a little bit ahead of where his brother Jay was in terms of craft love lovin' when Jay and I reconnected at the Beer Store a couple of years back. But in the space of less than a year, Jay went from drinking macro... to pales ales... to IPAs... to Imperial IPAs and finally, sours. His tastes advanced that quickly. These days, if you hand Jay a macro, he'd graciously say thank you and wait until you turned around before he puts it back in the fridge. So by simple association with his brother and the fact that their condos in Burlington are just one floor apart, Jonny has started drinking and loving craft. Mostly because that's what Jay always has in the fridge and historically, little brothers love to mooch free beer. (Mine did.)

Since the Secret Santa limit was $20, I simply popped into the LCBO and grabbed him six different crafties, ranging from a french vanilla porter to IPAs. Turns out Jonny was also my Secret Santa so I got all pale ales and IPAs. That worked out well. In fact, he was pumped to hear I had never had (or heard of) a Sextant Craft Brewing Why So Sirious? Pale Ale. "Yes!" he exclaimed, "I got you one you've never had! You know how hard that is?" He makes a valid point. For the record, a sextant is a much fancier compass that ships used in the old days to chart distances based on their relative point from, say, a known star to the horizon. Those old sea captains weren't all wooden legs, hooks for hands and "Arrrr, Billy."

Wang Chung's Dance Hall Days was in poor Derrick's
head but he didn't know what the song was called. So he
came to me because well, I'm old and remember the 80s.

So for the past couple of weeks, I've been getting to know the other, newer part-timers and they seem like a great group of young 'uns. Anna excitedly told me all the details of her five-year-old son's Holiday Pageant for his Kindergarten class. Poor Nicole got a taste of me bringing back my empties. I wait until my trunk is full and then wheel them in. Usually nine full cases of six-packs or flats of cans and 20-plus scattered bombers. I told her with a straight face that it was a week's worth of beer so she's quite worried about me already. And then there's Matty, the son of one of Oakville's most senior full-timers. We were joking around one day when he suddenly stopped and said with a huge grin, "That's NOT cool, Donny!" I would hear that multiple times when I was in the back and he was near the mic at the cash.

But it was Derrick who presented me with my earliest challenge.

I recently grabbed some Beau's Lug Tread
Lagered Ale. I hadn't had one in a couple
of years and forgot how good this beer is...

You see, he had a song he didn't know stuck in his head from one of his Grand Theft Auto games. "You'll know this song, Donny. It's from the 80s." Well, there's no denying he certainly came to the right guy. "Okay," he said, "It goes 'Dum dum de dum, da, de da'." Dude, really? I'm gonna need a little more than that, like even one lyric would help. Two days later, he thought of one. "Take your baby by the hand." So I told him to get his phone and google Wang Chung's Dance Hall Days. The minute he You-Tubed it, his eyes lit up. "That's it!" he shouted. "That's the song!" Turns out this had been nagging at him for quite some time and even his Mom was stymied. Apparently, she couldn't get it from "Dum dum de dum, da de da" either. In her defence, Wang Chung themselves couldn't have deciphered that clue and would probably have asked, "Is that The Thompson Twins?" And just like Matty before him, whenever I was in the back, Derrick would blare Dance Hall Days over the mic. I'm starting to hate that song all over again. Mostly because I start singing along.

So while all is going exceptionally well with my brand new brew crew, it's time we talked about beer. And I want to start today with an oldie but goodie - Beau's All Natural Lug Tread Lagered Ale.

Okay, an excellent start for the budding Sextant
Craft Brewing team. Their Why So Sirius? Pale
Ale would make an excellent crossover beer for
those now switching from macros to craft beers...

Now if you have ever had an Ontario Kolsch, there is a 99.9% chance that Lug Tread was your first. Why? Because it's everybody's first Kolsch! That's just that big! Top fermented like an ale, cold-aged like a lager, the Kolsch, a centuries-old German tradition, is one of the cleanest craft beer styles. Lug Tread gives you a lager's grassiness on the nose with the bready malts on the tongue like an ale. Kolsches, like pale ales, are considered the best cross-over styles from macro to craft beers. But I have a dilemma. You see since I started this back in June 2013, I have always had a year's end Best Of blog. This year, I'll have two (maybe three) separate columns simply because of a large expansion of styles and categories included. And this is the first year I've included Kolsches. In fact, two of them since Jay and I disagreed on which was best so I'm including both. The problem is that our picks were both released in 2016 and that leaves out Lug Tread, the grand-daddy of all Kolsches. So to acknowledge that, the category will be called the Beau's Lug Tread Honourary Best Ontario Kolsch so the big boy finally gets it due recognition as the one that started it all for us. It's always been one of this province's best beers.

Okay, I always loved a good red ale so what happens when Cowbell (Blyth,
Ontario) puts out a West Coast Red Ale and Oskar Blues Brewing (Lyons,
Colorado) puts out an Imperial Red IPA? It's a whole lot of dark hop pop!
And why is Spider-Man in there? "Because I'm mostly dressed in red!"

Okay, let's look at that Sextant Craft Brewing beer Jonny got me as my Santa. Now Sextant is a new brewery, created by husband and wife team, Dave Wingfelder and Cindy Eveline, back in February and the Why So Sirius? was their inaugural beer. While presently contract-brewing, the pair is looking to open their own brewery perhaps as early as next year. At 4.8% and 33 IBUs (international bitterness units), the Sirius has some nice light citrus on the nose and a light touch of tropical fruit on the tongue. Great little beer, great start and I wish this was around when I was introducing Jay to pale ales. Also, I really like that can's design - very cool looking with its space theme.

For starters, look at the head on this bad boy and yes, I poured
it properly in a clean glass. Aside from being an exceptionally
good session IPA, the lacing on this beer is the best I've seen.

Okay, next up, I pitted one red ale against another - a Canadian versus an American - because I have much love for red ales. In the Canuck corner was Cowbell Brewing's (Blyth, Ontario) Doc Perdue's Bobcat West Coast Red Ale against Oskar Blues Brewing (Lyons, Colorado) G'Knight Imperial Red IPA. I assumed the Imperial IPA would take this but hey, life throws you curves sometimes. In the end, I actually preferred the Doc Perdue's Bobcat (shown in the glass above). At 5.5% and around 40-45 IBUs, it gave you both the caramel of a red and the citrus of a pale ale on the nose with a deep, rich, hoppy finish on the tongue. To be honest, I was a little surprised the G'Knight was an Imperial because even at 8.7% and 60 IBUs, I found the hops far too muted, leaving this tasting more like a strong red ale. It was still very good, mind you, just not what I was expecting. Lots of caramel on the nose, dark fruits (plums, prunes) on the tongue, this was a great red ale, if not an Imperial IPA. No matter, it was good and their regular IPA fared far better with me so I'll look at it soon.

In three words: Ho. Lee. Shit! My favourite brewery is
finally coming to the Beer Store. I honestly didn't see I'd
see the day when I could buy Nickel Brook's awesome
beers at my work but finally some good news from 2016!

Another beer I got that I've never had from Jonny's Santa Gift Bag was Stone Brewing's (Escondido, California) Go To IPA, their session IPA, which is kinda funny because I put the same beer in his gift bag. Bit of a fluke. His assessment since he drank his first? "That Stone beer was great!" Indeed, it was exactly that but let me elaborate a little more. It's a sensible 4.8% with an insanely high 68 IBUs, meaning it's one of the hoppiest session ales I've ever had. There is no way you'd peg this as a sessioner. Citrus and tropical fruit on the nose with pine, pine and more pine on the tongue. Insanely tasty. It's like Stone realized there were three NHL hockey teams in California and figured, "Holy crap, we better put out a session IPA so hockey fans can watch the entire game!" Once again, Stone can brew no wrong.

Well, as I told you, the rest of the week will be filled with Best of 2016 lists because that's the cliche all beer writers follow at year end but hey, it's good to honour the best, I think. Just one man's opinion on beers but I have had some beauties this year. So guys and dolls, that's it, that's all and I am outta here. Until, well, a day or two from now, I remain, as always...