Well … I finally did it … after years of humming and hawing about it, I finally pulled the trigger and changed the name of my Home Brewery. The new name is Cockatrice Brewing! I’m pretty excited about it.
Why Cockatrice Brewing?
Cohesion with My Style: I brew structured, traditional European beer styles (like a Munich Dunkel and German/Czech Pilsners … or Lambics and Monastic Ales). These beers are perfectly suited to the classic, “Old World” authority of Cockatrice Brewing.
The Cockatrice also blends with my current work with Ogopogo: Specifically with the Ogopogo Challenge. Having my own brewery named after another mythical beast (the Cockatrice) creates a powerful, unified brand narrative.
It positions me as the curator of Legendary Beers. lol. Let’s hope!
My most recent visit to my favorite Trappist Breweries (Chimay et Orval) was August 2024. My first visit to both of these was fifteen years earlier in November of 2009 — see my Trappist Thanksgiving Post(s).
Although much remains the same, there have been many changes. Fortunately, they both still make the same great beers.
At first, when I drove down into the valley near Florenville and saw the Abbaye d’Orval, I thought, this is my favorite brewery location in Belgium. However, as I’ve grown older and after a few trips, I’ve found that I favor the Abbaye Notre Dame de Scourmont. I find that it is less busy with tourists now. If you book far enough ahead, you can stay in the Auberge de Poteaupre. Then walk through the forest to get to the Abbey. It has always been very welcoming and serene.
An added bonus is the Michelin-starred restaurant just around the corner! Ferme des 4 Saisons is wonderful — the food delicious, the service impeccable, and the beer — well. Chimay! Yay!
Now, make no mistake. I love the locale and the beer. But Orval is still my favorite beer, hands down. And a visit to the Valley of Gold is always in order. If you can swing a tour of the brewery, the tour is awesome. The grounds are spectacular — they have a wonderful brewery museum and another art exhibit in the cellar of the monastery. Wow. Maybe it is my favorite after all. Hmmm … so hard to choose.
I guess the best thing for folks to do is to visit both and decide for themselves.
This is a tough one — narrowing down all the great beers I’ve had over the last 30+ years to a list of only five. I’ve based this on a loose set of criteria, the most important of which is 1) Is this beer still available for purchase? It would be silly to list them as options/favorites if you couldn’t purchase them anymore. In fairness, the Leroy Breweries (I think) have stopped exporting the Hommelbier to the USA. So, if you want to drink this one, you’ll have to go to Belgium. Expensive, I Know. But worth it if you are in that area.
The other criteria, in my mind, are these: 2) Do I like this beer so well that I would go out of my way to visit the source? 3) Have I tried to make a clone of this beer? 4) If it is available, do I have it in my beer fridge right now? 5) If it was an option at any pub/bar/locale, would it be the first one I chose? Everyone of these beers meets these criteria.
My favorite. In my fridge right now. My clone is in the fridge right now. I’ve visited the monastery three times (maybe four … lol). I would drink this every time (and I have). This is the right kind of Wild Beer.
I love this “Belgian Blond/IPA.” When I visited the hop yard around Poperinge, the aroma is what hits me every time I open one of these bottles. I have (750ml) bottle in my fridge right now. I have two versions of a clone recipe (one in the fermenter right now). One of the photos below is in St Louis … anywhere I see this beer, I buy it or drink it. I’ve been to this region five times and would like to make it six!
Good Lord. Could this beer be any tastier! The Aventinus is a Weizen Bock (8.2% ABV). It’s dangerous. We were fortunate to meet the brewery owner on the day they had their strong beer festival. After we started drinking at the festival, I’m not sure he would invite us back. haha. Wonderful people. Awesome beer. Awesome locale. I highly recommend stopping in Kelheim (if you are anywhere near there). I love the Eisbock version as well. When I see it, I buy it. I have a clone recipe for this AND the Eisbock. Will be brewing it later this year.
My ideal in terms of West Coast IPA. I love this beer … hard for my to get right now (in Canada). When I see it in stores, I buy it. On tap somewhere? I’m drinking it. I have a recipe that I think is close to the flavor, but not sure it is a clone (I made it for my wedding). A great organization and they make wonderful beers. If you are in the Paso Robles, California area — stop by for a visit!
A great Pale Ale. Probably the best. I love this beer. This is another one I would drink every time. I try to keep it (when it’s available) in the fridge. I have a Pale Ale recipe, but haven’t come close to replicating this one yet. However, my friends and I did go the Asheville location and brewed a Belgian Beer (My Hommelbier clone) on their pilot system! I’ve been to both locations (Chico, California and Asheville, North Carolina). Both are so cool. The tours are great and so are the beers!
I guarantee if you drink any of these five beers you will not be disappointed. Oh … and those locations are well worth the visit!
Enjoy!
Beer Mentor
— EDIT —
I meant to say that the only beer-specific glass I am missing is the Firestone-Walker. Maybe a nice Jamestober gift? haha.
The continuing story of my 2024 trip to Belgium goes back 25 years earlier! From 1998 to 1999 I was the USAF Commander of a Special Detachment that maintained microwave antennas and towers across Europe. This particular tower was in Houtem, Belgium.
Since I didn’t start drinking beer until 1995, you could say that I was pretty inexperienced in what constituted great beer and the locales associated with it. This tower is only a 20 minute drive from The Abbey of St Sixtus, home of the Trappist beer, Westvleteren. I remember distinctly my guys telling me “Sir, we have to go pick up some special beer and then we’ll be back.” I didn’t realize the significance of this until years later.
However, I fondly remember this place, because my guys challenged me to climb this tower and I agreed. It took my 1.5 hours to get to the top, but you can see that I made it! I did take the elevator back down. I wish I could remember the celebratory beer I had.
I didn’t realize it would be another 10 years before I made it back to this area–by then my beer knowledge had grown exponentially. I knew that Belgium produced some of the best beers in the world and I realized I’d been right there and didn’t know it. I had a plan! I was on deployment to Stuttgart in 2009/2010. I decided that I would spend the Thanksgiving Weekend (25-28 Nov 2009) traveling to all the Trappist Breweries in Belgium–on the first full day (the 26th) we visited three: Orval, Westvleteren, and Westmalle.
Unfortunately, the Westvleteren Cafe (In de Vrede) was closed on that day. I still didn’t know the process for purchasing this beer so we walked around the grounds trying to find information. One of the folks who worked there had pity on us and allowed us to buy 4 bottles of the Westvleteren 12. He then explained to us the process … you have to call the brewery ahead of time to place your order. You were allowed to purchase two cases maximum (at the time). You had to provide the license plate number of the vehicle with which you were picking up your beer. You were to show up at your designated date/time and pick up your beer–cash only. Now that I knew the process, I was determined to get two cases!
Setting aside a lunchtime, I began calling the one number I had for the brewery (no convenient on-line ordering here). After thirty minutes of a busy signal, it finally started ringing. I let it ring. 18 times. Someone finally answered and, thankfully, they spoke English! I was able to place my order. Europeans don’t celebrate the same holidays as Americans–I was able to set my “pick up” for a Tuesday at 1000, which meant I could drive the 7 hours back in time for work on the Wednesday. What I didn’t know at the time is that this was the trip in which I would have the Hommelbier for the first time! Or how significant the Poperinge-area is for Belgian Beers. I arrived on the Sunday and had the Monday to visit the area — to include a hop farm and (finally) the Cafe In de Vrede! I stayed at the quaint (and special) Hotel de la Paix. I fell in love with the area!
Here I am drinking my Hommelbier! The photo above of the machine that says “2008” is a “Hop Pelletizer.” I’m not sure that’s what it’s called, but it is what it does. My camera battery died that morning, and the farmer let me borrow his camera (with my SD card) to take photos. Obviously his date was off. haha. I was able to get my two cases of Westvleteren 12 PLUS a couple more 4-packs with glasses at the Cafe.
The Hommelbier has become one of my favorites. I just enjoy the blend of Belgian Yeast character with the local Hops. I guess the aroma brings me back to the hop yard I visited there and how nice all the people were to me. The Hommelbier has been brewed since 1981 (Originally 15 minutes away in the town of Watou) by Leroy Breweries. It truly captures the character of the local area.
Another brewery a few minutes away from Poperinge is St Bernardus, which used to brew the Westvleteren 12 for the Abbey until they moved the brewing back to the Abbey. St Bernardus now makes the St Bernardus Abt 12 (based on the same recipe).
My next stop in Poperinge was in 2012 (I only had to wait 2 years this time). When my brothers and best friend joined me for a two-week beer tour around Europe, I told them we had to go to this location. It just so happened we stopped through on my birthday! We stayed at Hotel de la Paix and celebrated with them! Another very special time–especially having the opportunity to try beers we just couldn’t get in the US (like the Nunnebier in the photos). The next day, we hit In de Vrede and then continued our journey, solidifying Poperinge and the Hommelbier in my mind as a special place/beer.
Once again, I didn’t realize it would be so long before I was able to visit Poperinge again. However, when my wife and I decided to visit Europe in 2024, I knew I had to share this special place with her! What an awesome time we had in Poperinge. We stayed again at the Hotel de la Paix (where else?) We stayed two nights and both nights enjoyed a great dinner in their cafe. Luckily for me, Leroy Brewery had a marketing event going with the Hommelbier! For each beer you bought, you received a “scratch-off” card with an opportunity to win prizes. I ended up winning twice (or would that be four times since I had the beer too?!) Oh, and the empty glass was a gift when I asked where to buy one!
With the extra time we had in Poperinge, we rented bikes and toured the area. I tried very hard to line up a tour of the Leroy brewery — they closed their original brewery in Watou and had consolidated their operations in Boezinge (still only 13 minutes away). I couldn’t do it, so we booked a tour at St Bernardus! While I was slightly disappointed in the brewery tour, the rooftop cafe was awesome. We did ride by the old Leroy Brewery. Oh, we also rode by In de Vrede (who knew it would be closed on a Friday. Oh well) … all in all, another great trip to Poperinge and the surrounding area!
I’m not sure when, but a sixth trip to Saint Sixtus would be cool … until then, I will enjoy drinking my own version of the Hommelbier in my sweet Hommelbier glass …
My wife and I traveled to Belgium in August last year. It was not primarily a “Beer Trip.” We were visiting War Memorials (mainly in the Flanders area) and Biking, Bird-watching, and Hiking around the country-side. However, if you also happen to love beer, you can easily scratch that itch wherever you happen to be in Belgium!
I will say that this beer (TwoTribes Nomad) was made in London, but it set the tone for me as we traveled through the “Chunnel” to Brussels. Once we picked up the rental car, we made our way to Bruges. The car stayed in the parking garage the next two days as we explored the city and surrounding area. I had the advantage of previous “beer-oriented” trips to Belgium, so it was nice to visit things I hadn’t seen the last time.
Because we were there in High Season, there were a LOT of people. But with a little planning, you can avoid most of the crowds (especially if you are biking/hiking). Of course, we did hit the great beer places, too (here’s that post). None of them were “waiting list to get in,” but a couple were pretty full. The service was great and the beers tasty!
We left Bruges early on the third morning … once we were traveling towards Ypres, there were no crowds–the roads were nice and the scenery was stunning. We stopped at almost all the Canadian Memorials as we made our way deep into Flanders.
The poem “In Flanders Fields” was written in this area by a Canadian soldier: Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae. It was very moving to tour these sites …
We made our way to Ypres for lunch — and it so happens they have beer there, too!
St Arnoldus was great … the bar is very linear with an awesome patio in the back. I figured I might as well have a flight of St Bernardus at St Arnoldus!
We toured the Flanders Museum and, after a couple of birding stops, made our way to Poperinge! (To Be Continued)
I’m up to 79 places on the Growler List visits … What a concerted effort! But I am determined to complete as much of the list as I can — all in the name of good beer drinking!
I was able to visit t’Brugs Beertje, number 112 on the list, during a recent trip to Belgium. With around 300 different Belgian beers, it’s a pretty good place to find a winner–the Orval in this picture was a 2013 version … tasty (and was made the last time I visited Orval, which made it even more special)! This place is definitely worthy of a spot on the list.
But, really, if you are going to visit Belgium, I would recommend the other spots on this list first: 1) Orval, 2) Halve Maan Brewery, 3) Cantillon … maybe even the Grand Place in Brussels. Don’t get me wrong, this is a great bar … but that’s what it is. There are other bars in Bruges that we found to be as intriguing and well stocked with beer:
This place, down a narrow alley, is well worth the visit!
Very cool venue, excellent beers, and great presentation!
There are so many good places with great beer in Bruges. Even sitting on the patio of our hotel, we enjoyed a refreshing beverage and checked out the views.
We didn’t even make it to Halve Maan this trip …
I loved #112 … the bar is quite eclectic, and the beer selection was phenomenal. What a treat to visit Bruges, and this place in particular. If you have a chance to visit here, these places are well worth the visit. Make sure you spend some time walking around the city and taking in the sights — this will make the great beer taste that much better! 🙂
Last September (2023), my friend sent me a link to an article about a “Beer Contest.” Here’s the link. He said “We should enter!” … I said “Hell’s Yes!” When you click through to the contest, you’ll see that it was put on by Sierra Nevada Brewing. This already piqued my interest! One of my favorite breweries in the US and (as I mentioned in my previous posts) one of my Top 30 places to drink a beer.
This particular competition was for their newest brewery–in the Asheville, North Carolina area. So, if you win, you get to 1) go to the brewery and brew a custom beer with the brewers, 2) hang out and drink great beer, and 3) enjoy all the fun that being in Asheville provides (for me Mountain Biking and Disc Golf are two that come to mind).
We decided to enter. Being my normal “not really into the details” kind of guy, I skimmed the rules and saw we needed to provide a video not longer than 30 seconds. The competition rules stated this was a “Friend’s Reunion” competition to celebrate the history of the 40-plus year-old Sierra Nevada Pale Ale–‘Still the One! that brings friends together.’
Fortunately, my friend looked a little closer at the rules and found the criteria for the judging. They were: 1) relevance to the theme, 2) creativity and 3) originality. Our first thought was to have a rotating list of pictures of our group of friends from the last twenty-plus years, supported with our version of a “Still the One” song. The two songs i could remember were Shania Twain’s “Still the One” and Orleans “Still the One.” Either one of those two would have worked with some modified lyrics, but we read the rules even closer and realized we couldn’t use copyrighted material.
We decided to go ahead and write our own tune–my focus was having a catchy rhythm, keeping in mind the theme of the contest. I cracked open a Sierra Nevada and started strumming my guitar. haha. I came up with this chord progression: G – D – Dsus2 – A to open G, G and repeat. Here’sa link to my initial attempt. Although not fully developed at the time, these are the lyrics that were kind of floating around in my head while I was playing:
Crafting it and Brewing it … for a long time!
Bringing it and Drinking it … for a good time!
Wanting to Remember it … for a lifetime! (Sierra Nevada. Still the Beer!)
Chugging it or Sipping it … what a flavor!
With my Friends enjoying it … All Together!
40 plus and going strong … Classic Pale Ale!
My friend worked his musical magic on my song, we added the lyrics above, and (after having to change some pictures based on an additional reading of the rules … haha) we submitted it to the contest. Here’s a link to the actual 30-second submission.
We submitted our entry pretty early in the contest window — the site had a scrolling list of the entries. Remember when I said we needed to submit a video? All I saw for the entries from other people were photos. My friend and I both thought these were thumbnails from submitted videos from other entrants. After we had submitted ours, we waited to see our “photo” show up in the list. However, when it showed up, it was a video! Apparently, if I had paid closer attention, I would have seen that you could either submit a video OR a photo. haha. Good thing I didn’t see that, because we might have just submitted a photo.
On my 60th birthday (!!), the contest ended … we had to wait another three weeks to find out who won. On the 8th of November I was out on a bike ride–I had checked the site that morning to see if they had posted anything–there wasn’t anything there, so I forgot about it. My friend was the actual person to submit the entry–I typed up the text for our written entry to answer the questions for submission: (1) Tell Us Why Your Friends are the Best, and (2) Tell Us Why You All Deserve an Ultimate Friend Reunion Trip to Asheville. He submitted the video and the “essay.”
That meant he was the one notified — and we won! Woo Hoo! We are heading to the Sierra Nevada Brewery near Asheville for a fun-filled weekend! That’s why I consider myself to be an “award-winning” songwriter. haha. Stand by for the report on the festivities!
As I’ve traveled around and sampled beer all over the world, I’ve definitely put together a list of places I would easily visit again. If you are one of the three people who follow this blog (lol), you will know that I was tracking the defunct magazine’s (All About Beer) “Growler List: 125 Places to Have a Beer Before You Die.” That list came out in 2008–but over time, it has become a little bit of a Circus. Many of the places closed or changed over time (especially during COVID period). If you follow the brewing industry, I think you would know that the emphasis always shifts–except for those precious few that remain consistent.
I was, at one time, using Untappd to track my stats … It became tedious to me because I was always trying to up my numbers and try different beers — even when they weren’t the beers I wanted! I think I started using it in 2013 and stopped in 2019. By that time, I had recorded over 2100+ beers and had been to 500+ places.
Interestingly, I still ended up drinking what I would consider my favorite beers anyway … the only one I would probably swap out on this list is the “Tripel Wit” at the bottom for a Firestone Walker Union Jack IPA.
By replacing the Tripel Wit with the Union Jack IPA, I can then say I’ve been to four of the five breweries associated with my five favorite beers: Orval, West Vleteren, Russian River, and Firestone Walker. My favorite place to visit was Orval (although you can’t drink a beer at the brewer). The only one I haven’t visited yet is the Leroy Breweries — and I hope to do that this year!
Suffice it to say that when I pick my top 30 places, it is with much experience, enthusiasm, and pleasure–but the list will probably morph as I continue along my beer journey. As I’ve gotten “more experienced,” I find I like a quieter locale–plus I really like to dig into the history, character, and quality of the establishment and the (obviously)–the beers.
This is actually an update to this blog post from 2010. It, too, listed my “Top 50 Places” … up to that point. I’ve reduced my number to 30 — more manageable and it makes it more special. My criteria is still the same for my “30 Places:” 1) I can remember where the place was and can get back there, 2) it’s a place that you can get to to drink beer, 3) it will be a place that, no matter if you’ve been once or dozens of times, you will want to go back when the opportunity presents itself. The specific order to this list is my Top 5 … see that post here, Top 5 runner-ups, top 5 festivals, top 6 breweries, 4 most obscure, and 5 other?
Beer Mentor’s 30 Places: Yes, I’ll have Another one!
1a
My House.IMHO, my brewery produces great beers (and my collection is growing!) … oh, and I don’t have to worry about how I’m going to get home after a couple of beers
1b
Bräustüberl Weihenstephan, Freising, Germany. (2010, 2012 x2) – to drink the beer produced here at the oldest brewery in the world!Plus you can sample traditional Bavarian cuisine as well … then walk around the halls and brewery–check out the history.
2
A la nouvelle Hostellerie d’Orval, near Abbaye d’Orval, Belgium (2009×2, 2012)– where to drink an Orval near the Abbey. Then head over to the Abbey for a visit to the museum and to pick up your beer. If you are lucky enough, maybe you can figure out a way to tour the brewery … Make sure to visit the Spring in the old Ruins — the source of the water for the brewery …
3
In de Vrede, Westvleteren, Belgium near Sint-Sixtusabdij Westvleteren (2009, 2010, 2012) – you can drink (and purchase) all versions of Westvleteren here … need I say more?
4
Staffelberg-Klause, Bad Staffelberg, Germany (2010)-You get the local beer on tap here and views that don’t stop … and when you are here, you’ll see why I rank it so high (in Summer/Fall only)
5
Ye Olde Mitre Tavern, Ely Court, Hatton Garden, London, England (2010) .. although a hole in the wall (basically in an alley) … it opened in 1546 …pouring Fuller’s beers. You can feel the history as you stand there drinking your beer.
6
Hofbraeuhaus, Munich, Germany (1997, 1998, 2001, 2012) — probably should be in my top 5, but there’s only 6 places there. haha.That’s how good I could count after having a few liters at the Hofbrauhaus.
7
The Grand Place, Brussels, Belgium (2010, 2012) — Any number of small cafes on the Grand Place will serve you a wonderful beer … a great atmosphere for people watching.
8
Kloster Andechs, Andechs, Germany (2010 x2, 2012) – Monks have been serving pilgrims here since 1455 … I have enjoyed each journey I’ve made to this beautiful locale …
9
The Long Valley Bar, Cork Ireland (2000) — As I was touring around Cork, I stopped in here for a pint of Beamish … and left with my favorite Beamish Glass. Family-owned Irish Pub … an awesome place.
10
Sloppy Joe’s, Key West, FL (Can’t remember all the times) – Let’s just say if the place was good enough for Ernest Hemingway, it’s good enough for me!
11
Fruhlingsfest, Bad Cannstadt, Germany (2010) (The second largest (I think) fall festival in Germany (after Oktoberfest) — I place it higher because it was less touristy)
12
Oktoberfest, Munich, Germany (1998, 2012) (It would be difficult not to include this festival — just for the sheer spectacle (look at the size of it on the map! … but it also has great beer in one liter steins. lol)
13
Aventinus Festival … Schneider Weisse Brewery, Kelheim, Germany (2010) – (this would be my number 1 festival, but it is a hard one to attend — I think it is typically for the employees and local people around Kelheim. We were very lucky to get tickets!If you can’t get tickets, the Weisses Brauhaus is awesome too!)
14
Wurstfest, New Braunfels, Texas (2013). Great locale, excellent food/music, and really good beer–still going string since 1961. Worth a trip!
15
Great American Beer Festival, Denver, Colorado (2004, 2005, 2006, 2008, 2009) –– How many different beers can you drink in 3.5 hours? A lot! Remember them all … probably not. You gotta like a lot of people to go to this festival!
16
Cantillon Brewery and Gueuze Museum, Belgium (2010, 2012) – The heart of the Gueuze … an absolutely amazing tour — will be crowded, but worth it!
17
Pilsner Urquell Brewery, Plzen, Czech Republic (2012) – Wow. The birth place of the Pilsner — go for the great tour, stay for the great beer! (Fresh from Fass!)
18
Sierra Nevada Brewing, Chico, CA (2019) – one of the original breweries of the Craft Beer revolution — still making great beer, and the tour is out of this world! Worth a visit!
19
Rogue Brewing, Newport, OR (2017) – When you get to ride the “beer train” over to the distillery, you know you’re in the right place! Great experience here …
20
Anheuser-Busch Brewery (St Louis, MO) (2012, 2013) / Coors Brewing (Golden, CO) (2011) — I know … big beer … but the absolute scale of these breweries is amazing, and the tours are both really good!
21
Huisbrouwerij De Halve Maan, Bruges, Belgium (2012) – A great brewery tour — was here for my 49th birthday — they had a sign up for me — the full tour of this place. Incredible. And Bruges is a wonderful city …
22
Cellar Bar at the Breuberg Schloss, Germany (1998, 1999) – First of the obscure/hard to get to entries: only really open during the Bagpipe Association of Germany’s Summer School and ending festival. Do it!
23
Beer Tent. Glengarry Highland Games, Maxville, Ontario (2003, 2009) – Second Obscure Entry: Excellent during the games — fantastic when all of the Pipe Bands are there celebrating after the ceremony.
24
Selin’s Grove Brewing, Selinsgrove, PA (2009) – small out-of-the-way brewery in Pennsylvania that is worth a trip … or at least it was back in the day! I need another visit to check it out!
25
Mercury’s Bar, Stone Town, Zanzibar (2012/2013) – right on the beach looking out over the ocean … the beers are good enough with this view … just not an easy place to get to!
26
Irseer Klosterbrauerei, Irsee, Germany (2010, 2012) – since 1142 … lol. You can stay here and stumble back and forth to drink great beer! The church, Kloster, and surrounding area is beautiful!
27
Jack Quinn Irish Pub, Colorado Springs, CO (Too Many Times to Count) – What can I say about Quinn’s — I went through countless pints of Guinness, played a lot of bagpipes here, and have some awesome memories/stories … if I can just recall them …
28
Naturfreunde Haus, Vaihingen, Germany (Many Times) – this one could have been in the obscure list as well … so inviting … awesome food … great Kellerbier! Worth the walk
29
The Auberge de Poteaupre, near Chimay Brewery, Belgium (2010 x2, 2012) – Stayed here (I think) three times … excellent food and you can drink ALL of the Chimay beers … to include the Monk’s beer … Beautiful place and a short walk to the Abbey.
30
Cat’s Eye Pub, Inner Harbor, Baltimore, MD (2011) – this place has live music, a lot of character, and some great beers on tap … so much US History in this area. Worth a visit
Wow, this was a harder exercise than I thought it would be — a huge variety of places that were good that didn’t make the list–however, this list contains the places where I’ve been, with a beer in my hand, and said to myself “could this be any more perfect than this right at this moment?” My only caveat would be that, as time passes, places change. But I would say each of these places would be as special, because I’ve found each visit has always brought its own flavor. Enjoy!
Last week I had the opportunity to participate in the first annual Prairie Beer Awards (PBA) competition in Winnipeg, Manitoba from 11-15 May 2022. This is a commercial beer competition covering two provinces in Canada – Manitoba, and Saskatchewan. The organizer used the BJCP guidelines and supplemented with a couple of other unique categories. The awards ceremony is scheduled for June 4th.
Kudos go out to Dave Cole for bringing this all together. The sponsors stepped up huge and the local breweries in Winnipeg were all in! I arrived on Wednesday night after an uneventful flight. Dave brought out the big guns for “Beer Church” that night … so many crazy, unique beers–almost everyone brought something special to share.
I brought three to share in my Beer Briefcase (the ones on the right side) … The other three bottles were mead for the Mead Exam.
Selection of Beers in the Beer Briefcase
This competition had three Master-level judges and three or four National-level judges, from across the provinces … there were folks from British Columbia, Alberta, Ontario, Quebec, and Nova Scotia for sure. A couple of the judges were professional brewers from different provinces. They also had a representative from Red Shed malting. It was a great turn-out!
Wednesday night’s Beer Church included a 1994 Lindeman’s Gueuze Lambic! It was still funky and full of different flavors … I’m still trying to decide if I liked it! haha.
I was super busy during this competition. I judged several categories: 1) All Belgian-style beers, 2) Ciders, 3) Meads, and 4) Other Brewery Beverages to name a few. I also proctored two different exams: 1) The Beer Tasting Exam and 2) The Mead Tasting Exam. Finally, I took the BJCP Written Exam trying to move up to Master.
I took the written exam at the end of the event — I think I would rather have taken it at the first so I could relax more during the weekend.
The competition was very well organized, and we were able to visit breweries on Friday and Saturday. We got to ride around in a couple of old school buses checking out all the different places.
The first brewery I visited, I didn’t even have to go anywhere! The competition was held at Torque Brewing. The folks at Torque were very nice and super accommodating. They had an excellent selection of beers on tap! Worth a visit in Winnipeg. I didn’t see it until after the competition was over (I couldn’t see the names of the breweries or the beers to keep the objectivity in place), but the walk-in cooler in this brewery was huge! They had so much room in the back … a great looking brewhouse.
Torque Brewing Brews List: May 2022
Friday was a full day of Cider and Mead judging. We got started a little late (flight delays were a slight problem). This part of the competition included the province of Alberta. I had the pleasure of judging with a very knowledgeable lady, Kathy Yan Li. Great insight!
After sampling a beer at Torque, we headed over to one of the original Brew locations in Winnipeg, Barn Hammer. We were able to squeak in a visit to Sookram’s Brewing Company as well, before heading back for the Beer Tasting Exam. It was a nice way to close out the evening before we headed back to the hotel for more Beer Church!
Riding in the Back of the Bus!
On Saturday, I proctored the Mead Tasting Exam and took my written test. We then visited five different breweries (on the Blue Bus this time)! Now to test the memory banks and see if I can remember the breweries in the right order. Lol. We had to hustle to catch up with the bus, so our first stop was at Low Life Barrel House. This place was setting the bar pretty high to begin with.
A Row of FoedersThe Grape Vidal …
They had a nice selection of barrel-aged beers … unfortunately, I could only sample two before it was time to continue the tour! The next place we stopped was Brazen Hall, a brewhouse in the Viking Style. Pretty cool place… since we were on a whirlwind tour, I picked the Dark Horse – Hazy Black IPA to sample. A very nice beer — I wanted to try the others, but, alas, I had to continue my travels!
Brazen Hall Dark House – Hazy Black IPA
Our next stop was at a Brewery still under construction: Devil May Care. It was a cool opportunity to see the work they are doing to bring their brewery into the downtown area of Winnipeg. The owners were very nice and we sampled a couple here and there and then headed out for our next stop! (I really enjoyed the Creme Brulee Stout)
The next place we stopped was Nonsuch Brewing. What an awesome location! The owner, Mark, graciously shared some of his nicest Belgian-style beers. I love the fact that the website is focused on the beers … how a brewery should be! But, if you visit the Brewery, you’ll see it is an upscale lounge/restaurant. It is a lovely building and the beers are excellent. I was able to sample this Red-wine Barrel-aged Belgian-style Pale Ale right from the barrel. What a treat. Next time I’m in town, I think I may go here for dinner.
Our final stop was at Oxus Brewing. Kevin and Sean are great guys and they are making some really tasty beer! A nice wrap up to a great trip. I’m already looking forward to the next competition in Regina! I highly recommend a visit to all the breweries mentioned above if you get a chance in Winnipeg. They all offer excellent beers with great atmosphere.
My travels home were an adventure. After a cancelled flight, delayed flight, another overnight stay, lost wallet, and lost bag I made it home! Haha. Good to be back and looking forward to the next beer adventure!
Beer Mentor
The Ceiling at Bag Claim at the Winnipeg AirportA plant was growing in the sink in my Hotel room!Flight delay meant I was able to sample another Restaurant in Winnipeg!My new flight was early enough I almost saw the Lunar Eclipse!Rushing back on the “Trolley” after retrieving my “lost wallet” from my first flight. Whew!After going on a journey on its own, my bag showed up with my stash of Prairie Beers! Yes!I had a good look at the moon before my 0600 departure! 🙂
My last (really) belated post … New Zealand Beers! haha. I know, I know … it’s been a couple of years since I was there, but I have some nice photos to spark my memory. I flew into Auckland as my beginning location … and promptly visited The Shakespeare.
Although it was an excellent start to a pretty good beer journey, the focus of this trip was biking, birding, hiking, and major sight seeing, so the beer was added in where it fit and when we were close to civilization … otherwise it was kind of like this — fast, furious, and out of focus! lol
Not a lot of opportunities on the North Island — we were only there for a week — mostly around the National Park at Tongariro … but the South Island … wow. Of course, the first week (or so) on the South Island was a lot of small planes, boating, hiking, and birding.
By the time we made it to Wanaka, we had a chance to catch our breath and enjoy a good beer. Fortunately, this place had several options — we went with Speight’s Ale House — great patio with a view over the lake and an excellent selection of beers!
The IPA, made with New Zealand hops, was very satisfying. I was able to purchase a few more beers to enjoy during our stay and transition travels to Hokitika.
Of course, a Hazy.
A crisp Pils.
I did get to try this North Island brew!
This was my first intro to Moa … not my last from them.
Celebrating the local birdlife!
Mixed Bag of some Nice beers!
When we left Wanaka, we cruised across the lower Southern Alps and ended up on the West Coast … we staged out of the town of Hokitika — great place! We saw a couple of glaciers, put in some miles on the West Coast Wilderness Trail … and toured a brewery!
Monteith’s is a brewery in Greymouth … the original craft brewery (I think) in New Zealand — now owned by the Heineken Group. The tour was fun and informative and the beers were pretty good — worth a stop when in Greymouth … refreshing!
Monteith’s Brewery Tour!
As we continued our trip back over the Southern Alps, I was able to sample a variety of other beverages when we arrived in Hanmer Springs.
These MOA beers were good!
Everyone needs one Big Size!
Not a beer … but an interesting drink …
This was a Rauchbier — very nice!
Another Not Beer. lol.
Quite a selection of dark beers along the way.
We enjoyed these different brews around the interior of the South Island … as we made our way back to Christchurch to start our Alps to Ocean bike tour, we stopped at a small brewery near Geraldine — Valley Brewing Company.
They had some pretty tasty beers and excellent food … talk about your out of the way spot!
Finally, during our Alps to Ocean six day bike ride, I had a chance to sample a variety of beers (again) …
the MOA beers ended up being my favorite.
The scenery was stunning!
Our final stop was in Oamaru … at Scott’s Brewing Company. The location was beautiful — the beers were good … they matched their beers with their pizzas. Very nice patio.
Stating the obvious — the location made many of the beers special … and not necessarily the other way around! There were four or five outstanding beers … the rest were good to very good — but I wouldn’t complain. Solid beer trip!
Beer Mentor 