Smokin’ Good Beer

One of the advantages of spending some time in a city different than your own is that you get to try beer normally not available at home. That normally means local and regional craft beer and the occasional import only… Continue Reading →

Vintage, Vital and Vitus

An item on my beer bucket list is the opportunity to drink a pint (or three) of Weihenstephaner FRESH from the brewery in Weihenstephan, Germany. This 1000-year-old brewery really knows how to brew wheat beer. Most of you will know… Continue Reading →

Beer Personality Tour Completed

Well, it took far too long, but I finally got into print a full accounting of my Canada’s beer personality series. In Planet S Magazine I  have been running a series about how each of Canada’s regions display unique personalities,… Continue Reading →

What a Year Can Do

Last year when I was in Halifax, I wrote – and not flatteringly – about the Rock Bottom Brewpub (read the review here). Quite simply, it didn’t offer real beer made locally, and it showed. They shipped wort from B.C…. Continue Reading →

Small Beer, Part Two

Last month in my Beer 101 column, I started a conversation about the joys of small beer (read the first part here). Despite their rarity these days, I believe quite strongly they can still play an important role in the… Continue Reading →

BBQ Beer

Summer is (almost) here and that means we can unwrap our BBQs from their wintery cloak. And it also means it is time for Vue Weekly’s BBQ issue. All grilling all the time. I was asked to write a piece… Continue Reading →

Three New Beer on Their Way

It feels like there has been a bit of a new beer lull in the last few weeks. After the initial rush of spring seasonals, things got all quiet on the prairie for a bit there. Well, in one day,… Continue Reading →

Ice-T, Ultra and Other “Lifestyle” Beer

Beer companies have, since at least the invention of beer, tried to link their beer to fun, exciting, cool times. This is old hat. Beer (or at least corporate beer) has always been sold on the basis of lifestyle fantasy… Continue Reading →

Shaking Hands with the Devil

One of the advantages of being on the opposite coast from my normal residence is that I can find some beer not available in the west. This includes local seasonals and and small regionals. One example is Le Trou De… Continue Reading →

The Importance of Lagering

One of the basic divisions in beer is between ale and lager. Ales, of course, are fermented near room temperature with species of yeast that prefers warmer temperatures. Lagers are fermented cooler (9-12 degress Celsius) with yeast evolved to prefer… Continue Reading →

« Older posts

Book an Event

Looking for a new and original fundraising idea for your organization? Want to offer something a little different to your clients?