kwjd's Profile
Gourmet food, Craft beer, and the Leafs game. Where do i go for all 3?
The bar area of Beerbistro
LCBO Already Discontinued Maudite and now La Fin Du Monde is getting harder to find!!
Selection is Alberta is better. There are more products available for a province with a smaller population (Montreal Economic Institute did a study a few years ago. There were more stores in Alberta than in Ontario and there were thousands more products available). It is also easier to get products in Alberta that aren't available through private orders.
The prices have been worse since Stelmach increased liquor taxes a few years ago. That is a separate issue from the system being private though.
Beer in British Columbia
Hm, I've never heard of the beer at Guu. I wonder if the Toronto locations of Guu have this. I would assume they don't though since Russell likely doesn't ship across the country for 2 restaurants.
Beer in British Columbia
You have to try the Red Racer IPA (and double IPA if available). The IPA is available in some US states I believe, but the double IPA is draft only as far as I know. The Phillips Skookum Cascadian Brown Ale (new name for the Black Toque) is great. Both the single and double IPA's from Tree. Driftwood Farmhand is possible my favourite Canadian saison.
I don't have any recommendations for places to go as the BC beers I tried I was able to get in Ontario (through trading and a couple have been in bars or the government liquor store). Did you look at the places listed on Beer Advocate?
http://beeradvocate.com/beerfly/city/49
IGA better than beer store(ontario)
Ontario is horrible for beer. No need to rub it in!
ten fidy
I think it was slightly cheaper than that when I bought a single can of Ten FIDY in Whole Foods in Portland. It has to be one of the best value imperial stouts I had bought, at around $3 for a can.
Not disagreeing that Old Rasputin is a great value though, because it certainly is. Another value imperial stout is Brooklyn Black Chocolate Stout.
Stout Irish Pub
I love that they focus more on quality beer than to have Guinness on their menu. Murphy's is a much better representation of the style and St Ambroise Oatmeal Stout is great. I just think Guinness would stick out like a sore thumb on a tap list of local craft beers.
I think their food was just ok when I went in January, but I was quite happy with the beer list. I'll be interested to see how it is when I go back.
LCBO Already Discontinued Maudite and now La Fin Du Monde is getting harder to find!!
Delirium Tremens hasn't been in the LCBO for a while, but it had been several years ago I believe. There are no Ommegang products available here either (not aware of them ever being here).
Gulden Draak comes only as part of a 6 bottle mixed brewery pack in the winter. I believe these may be all sold out by now. It is a pretty nice pack if you look out for it next year: Augustijn Blond, Bornem Dubbel, Bornem Tripel, Bruegel Amber Ale, Piraat and Gulden Draak.
Yes, living in Ontario and loving beer tends to mean frequent trips to Buffalo (or whatever closest US city to you). My parents live in St Catharines, so when I visit them, a side trip to Buffalo isn't too far out of the way.
Best way to keep track of beer at the LCBO is through http://drinkvine.com/
A local beer geek made the site to make the LCBO inventory easier to monitor. You can see the seasonals and get email notifications whenever they come to your local stores.
Going to Oregon! Need beer...
I agree with suggestions of Deschutes and Rogue brewpubs in the Pearl district. My 2 favourite bars in that area are Henry's and Baily's. Henry's has a very large taplist, while Baily's is pretty minimal, but awesome.
LCBO Already Discontinued Maudite and now La Fin Du Monde is getting harder to find!!
Unfortunately there aren't too many options in Ontario for Belgian style beers. Duvel and Chimay (red & white) are both available year round. Aside from those, check out the seasonal releases because sometimes we get some Belgian ones. When they come in, hoard them like you are in a Soviet bread line (since that is the system we live in). For example, from previous releases I have bottles of St. Bernardus ABT 12 and Orval left.
Right now Gouden Carolus Hopsinjoor just got to stores last week as part of the spring 2011 release. Looks like limited quantities of Dieu Du Ciel's Derniere Volonte and Rigor Mortis are left as those came in during the fall.
gulden draak beer
I wish the VarTripel lasted longer. I picked some up the day it came out, but by the time I tried it (and realized how good it was) it was already sold out. I do have a bunch of Orval and St Bernardus 12's stockpiled for a rainy day though.
st. lawrence market price fixing
"Price fixing" has an actual meaning, and I'm hoping you aren't accussing them of this without any proof, since it is illegal in Canada. I think you are just saying the prices are too high for you.
As other said, some prices at SLM are high, some aren't. I live and work near by and I go multiple times a week typically. If I have to add on $5 of subway tokens plus my time just to go shopping, I'm sure I could get better deals, but I don't really want to.
Beer with Italian food
I really can't give you a satisfactory answer. I agree with the conclusion that I quoted, but I'm not sure if I agree with the rationale. I probably shouldn't be a beer sommelier because I'm horrible at trying to describe these things.
Beer with Italian food
My preference? I don't know how to prove something subjective like taste.
Edit: This came from Sam Adams website on Pastas & Sauce Pairings:
"Hoppy beers can help balance a tomato’s astringency and acidity, as well as lift any heavy richness in a sauce."
http://www.samueladams.com/enjoy-our-beer/food-beer/food-detail.aspx?id=c4a60528-9b43-4c65-9beb-191732fab7ca
I'm not saying they are the authority on beer and food pairings, but I'm clearly not out by myself with this opinion. You can disagree, fine, but I really thought this was a fairly common opinion that tomato sauce and IPA's work together.
Beer with Italian food
I still disagree. I drink a lot of IPA's with food and (except for the rare occassion) I don't eat anything deep fried or with tons of grease. I think hoppy flavours work great with anything tomato based.
Typically Italian restaurants do not have very good beer (here at least), so I do not order beer there. I go with wine typically.
Beer with Italian food
I've had fresh Peroni cans (just as they got to Ontario) and it was still pretty meh. It really doesn't take that long to get here, it was probably as fresh as local pilsners that are 100 times better.
I did say I think IPA's go with everything... but I'm going to assume that if beer is for sharing and not everyone is getting the same thing, you aren't going to be able to pair everything perfectly.
Beer with Italian food
If the friend is a "beer geek", they probably wouldn't want the mass produced Itialian beers that aren't much different than Bud. There are some good Italian beers, but I don't see a reason that they should be required. From what I've seen, they seem to be expensive in North America too. If you do want to go for large format Italian beers, ones from Baladin or Panil are nice.
I think something like Chimay Premiere (the red one) would work nicely and that seems to be available everywhere. I also think IPA's work with Italian, but I think IPA's work with everything.
Pubs 2011
Abbot On The Hill has been renamed The Monk's Table a couple years ago I think.
My favourite places seem to be the ones with better beer lists. I seem to end up at either C'est What or Volo at least once a week.
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C'est What
67 Front St E, Toronto, ON M5E1B5, CA
The Monk's Table
1276 Yonge St, Toronto, ON M4T 1W5, CA
Do you still order food delivery when it's snowy/icy? [moved from Manhattan]
I'm actually more likely to order food delivery when it is snowy/icy because I don't want to walk to store/market to actually buy food to cook with. I cook for myself if I eat at home, so I would need a reason like a snow storm for me not to.
I live in downtown Toronto and don't own a car. Though during the "snow storm" yesterday I still walked to a butcher shop on the way home from work.
super bowl question: beers from Wis and Penn?
From Wisconsin, only good beer I've had is from New Glarus. There could be other good ones though.
From Pennsylvania, there are tons of choices. I have no idea about distribution (I'm assuming almost none), but East End Brewing is located right in Pittsburgh and is great. Other one in Pittsburgh that was nice (only tried 2 beers though) is Church Brew Works. Other breweries from the the state that I've had good beers from: Victory, Tröegs, Stoudts and Full Pint.
Westvleteren 12
Ya, I just paid a ton of money to have a Westy 12 shipped by Struise Yeast Store. It surprisingly made it to Toronto in just over a week without any state interference. I'll see how it compares to other quads, but I really just paid the premium to get to try it once. I have a dozen of the 2010 St. Bernadus 12 now, but didn't like it as much as I remember from a couple year old bottle at Beer Bistro. I'll let them age a bit and see.
Seal meat in Toronto?
Wow, that sounds great! I think I need to go to Montreal to have it if it isn't anywhere in Toronto.
Apple pie with cheese? Really?
Maybe my families are just weird then! Other than one Uncle in Ottawa, I'm the furthest east in the family (Toronto). My family is spread out in SW Ontario (grandparents in Hamilton and London) and I spent 5 years in Waterloo.
We always had apple pie with vanilla ice cream on it.
Apple pie with cheese? Really?
Weird. I'm Canadian and thought cheese on apple pie was an American thing. I've never tried it or seen it done.
Some of Today's "Craft" Beers are Pretty Questionable (Split off of PBR Thread)
That's just begging the question then. If you define medicore to be a relative measure (so by definition, X% has to be mediocre), then yes, I suppose you will have X% be mediocre. I agree there is probably a huge group of craft beers that are not too different in quality, but I consider this group to be very tasty typically.
Some of Today's "Craft" Beers are Pretty Questionable (Split off of PBR Thread)
Yes, I buy different brands of food products all the time. I buy different cuts of meat from different butchers to experiment too. I also go to new restaurants frequently and if I go to places I've already been, I typically order something different. Obviously if I only go to a restaurant once or twice a year, I may get one dish again, but I typically like to try new things.
I don't care about buying different brands shoes because I spend so little time thinking about shoes and I don't care or have a passion for clothes. This is why I am on CH and BA, but not some type of fashion website. I care about food/drinks and it interests me. If I only wanted to buy a few types of beer over and over, I would never read about beer.
Because I buy a beer once to have, it doesn't mean it is mediocre. That is pretty bad logic. It could mean there are 1000 medicore beers, sure, but it could also mean there are 1000 really good beers too. I don't want to limit myself to a dozen beers. Once I pick my dozen, how do I know that some beer I hadn't tried wouldn't be better? I don't view it as wading through medocrity because I enjoy vast majority of what I drink. I'm wading through good beers, which is fun. I do drink beers more than once, typically locals on tap or if if I buy 6 packs, plus I have several bottles of some of the better beers that I was actually able to purchase in Ontario. I
If a brewery releases a one time expensive bomber and I enjoy it, why do I need to have it again to affirm that it is quality? I had a good experience with that beer, why is that not enough? Some local restaurants change their menu all the time too, I know I may have a dish that is amazing, yet I'll never have it again. It is the same thing to me.
Alcohol on Planes - Checked Luggage
It is illegal to send alcohol through the mail in many places. It illegal to send from US to Canada (and even within Canada). It is legal to take alcohol in your bags though.
Beer places in Manhattan
I was visiting just over a week ago and went to a few beer bars.
- Rattle N Hum for the huge draft list representing many styles. Had a few casks as well. I also like the Rate Beer ratings on the menu (even though I'm on BA), in case I hadn't heard of a beer before.
- Pony Bar was good for local breweries I hadn't tried before (Chelsea RIS on cask was great).
- Burp Castle was fun to hang out in and had some interesting tap selections that were new to me. Probably had more foreign taps than American.
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Burp Castle
41 E 7th St, New York, NY 10003
Some of Today's "Craft" Beers are Pretty Questionable (Split off of PBR Thread)
I'm with you. I don't want to drink one well made beer, over and over and over. That just seems boring. Like finding a favourite restaurant and going there several times a week and ordering the same thing each time. Sure, it may taste great, but I love to try and experience new things. I like when breweries experiment and have different styles and one-offs. If I'm at home or a bar with a good selection, I never have the same beer (or style) twice in a row.
There is nothing wrong with buying a bomber of a beer once with no intention of having a 2nd one ever. Especially since I have to do much of my beer shopping accross the border in Buffalo, I'm not going to bring back a case of something I've had before when there are hundreds of beers I still haven't tried. I just pick up single bottles of a bunch of different beers from different breweries and styles.
Some of Today's "Craft" Beers are Pretty Questionable (Split off of PBR Thread)
I've read reviews of that beer and it does sound awful. Certainly there are "craft" beers that are bad, but even that brewery does make good beer aside from that. The El Diablo barleywine is very nice.
As an aside, I especially put the word "craft" in quotes above because based on the discussion above, Microbrasserie du Lièvre cannot be considered "craft" because it isn't in the American association since it is in Quebec. Though it could be in a Quebec association (each province has their own), which would surely have some sort of different definition of a craft brewery. I typically use the word as Chinon00 seems to define it. I don't care if Goose Island is in a trade association or not, their beer is great and I include them when I speak of "craft" beer.
