The last time I did this, I stated that it's been a few years since I did this. Well, this time - it is, again. I've never really had any request to bring this series back, but I've been thinking about it a bit lately. Unfortunately, being in Brandon.. I miss out on a LOT of beer releases because Manitoba Liquor Marts only brings some products for the Winnipeg stores. Also, Quality Inn Beer Store off of Pembina & Grant Ave in Winnipeg is the best place to get beer anywhere in all of Manitoba. So unfortunately, I'm going to have to focus mainly on beers that I'm able to get myself unfortunately.. so mostly at Manitoba Liquor Marts.
- Orval Trappist Ale - I remember nearly 3.5 years ago when I was visiting Montreal/Vermont, I didn't understand the hype about beers brewed with Brett yeast, to the point that I didn't enjoy it. After this trip was done, I realized why people liked it, it's funky, it's a tad sour, it's dry, it's a special kind of beer that I feel wine drinkers would absolutely love. It's an addicting style that now I can't get enough of. Unfortunately, we have never seen other Brett beers available commercially through MLCC because it's not a safe style of beer to bring in. Many Winnipeg breweries have brewed with it before, but mostly have only served it on tap but breweries are now bottling it for offsale consumption or for the Quality Inn Beer Store
- Winnipeg Brew Werks Pils - I've known the people behind this brewery for a long time. The thing is.. I haven't liked Pilsners since the mid 2000s but when Darren sent me an expedited delivery of cans from their initial run on the day it came out, I knew he wouldn't be just doing that to get me to write good things about it.. it was honestly a good Pils. I fell in love with classic but new style Pilsners/Pilseners around two years a go (I forget where, possibly Montreal) and I was all "holy hell, how can a Pilsner taste great?!" This one is your typical German-style Pils, it's very easy to drink, a tad grainy, light amount of sweet malt, a good crisp and light profile to it. This is something I think that will pair well with Bombers games and patios.
- Surly Xtra-Citra Pale Ale - Manitoba is the only international market for Minneapolis' Surly Brewing and I'm absolutely giddy about that after two years. Xtra-Citra is my go-to beer by them. The beer is sweet, tropical, citrusy and has a light-to-mild bitter hop presence to it. I've found that a few of my "I hate IPA" friends have enjoyed this so far.
- Driftwood Raised by Wolves IPA - I initially had Fat Tug listed here.. but then I realized I had the very same beer listed in my previous edition of "Ten great beers". If you love Fat Tug, you'll love Raised by Wolves even more, it's a tad reminiscent of Fat Tug but with even more of a sweet malt profile and citrus presence. I drink both Fat Tug and Raised by Wolves during the same session quite often.
- Torque Blonde - This one was just recently released and I feel like this beer should be the beer that will win over those who tend to buy 15-packs of Bud Light, Kokanee or whatnot. This is a crisp, light yet flavourful Blonde Ale that reminds me a bit of Labatt 50 but with a serious upgrade to it. It has a crisp, toasty malt profile, grassy hop profile, it's not aggressive in any sense.. and it's also the exact same price as most macro 15-packs in Manitoba. I hope this will take off in the summertime 15-pack category, there's no excuse to buy something international when you can buy something local for the exact same price.
- Partake IPA (Non-alcoholic) - One thing I've found on BeerCrank.ca in the past couple years is that people are absolutely wanting to change their diets, cut down on beer but they absolutely want to still taste the flavour of beer. Partake Brewing's IPA is the best non-alcoholic IPA I've tried so far. It had a definite hop profile followed by a decent malt profile.. you can check out the entire review here. For those who are wanting a non-alcoholic lager, Coors Edge is surprisingly easy to drink.
- Garrison Juicy! Double IPA - God, I've loved Garrison for many years.. their Juicy Double IPA is one of the better Canadian takes on juicy sweet IPAs, but it's definitely not quite a NEIPA but it's still good for being juicy. It's sweet, a tad tropical and very easy to drink. I'm always pleased when this enters my mouth.
- Half Pints' Le Temps Noir Batch 3 - I still remember the first time I ever bought Half Pints' Le Temps Noir, it ended up being one of my favourite Imperial Stouts I've ever had. This year's batch is absolutely tasty, just like batch one and batch two. I found this year's batch to be rich on coffee, a bit "in your face" for a stout and definitely incredibly Bourbony. This beer may be a bit excessive for some people but age this a couple years and this will be an amazing beer to savour with friends!
- Lindemans Framboise - I've seen Brouwerij Lindemans beer in North Dakota, Quebec and Alberta.. but never in Manitoba until last summer. Their Framboise is an absolute heavenly dessert beer. This beer is tart but yet quite sweet. It has a bit of a jam like presence to it but has a tartness that leaves you wanting more. Everything Lindemans has in Manitoba is tasty as heck!
- Surly Darkness (2018) - This beer is regarded as one of the best in all of Canada. I reviewed when the first time it came out and people flat out said "who the eff will spend $30 (CAD) on a beer?!" Being in a place known for cheapness.. people don't want to spend a cent on beer if they can. This beer.. it's what an Imperial Stout is supposed to taste like, it's rich with a lot of roasted malt presence to give it a coffee-like presence. It's smooth while yet fairly boozy - you can feel a tad of a burn the second it hits your throat. There's also a tad bit of caramel sweetness as well. Absolutely yum! I'm glad that Manitoba is lucky enough to get Surly's beers!
If you want to see more of these, well let me know.. some have stated I should start a patreon in order to do more of this but nope.. I just want to do this when I want to have fun! If you disagree with my list, no problem with that as well! One of these editions I'll be able to do an edition featuring the beer selection of just Winnipeg's Quality Inn Beer Store - seriously, their beer selection will impress you!
No comments:
Post a Comment