The Princess Wears Girlpants

For the past five months, I've been living the beer-swilling good life. Since February, I have had beer delivered to my door, in quantities of 12 to 14 tall cans.

To my door, folks!

The Brew Box Company, an Ontario-wide beer-delivery service, collaborates with some of our province's fine breweries to bring a mixed box of suds each month. You can select from breweries like Beau's, Collingwood, Silversmith, or a mix of all of them. I chose one of my favourite breweries from last year, Sawdust City.

In addition to the cans of beer, you receive a beer glass, free tickets to beer events, and tasting cards for the brews that are securely packed in the case. It's a pretty good deal.

But after five months, I've decided to end the beer-of-the-month-styled club. Not because I didn't like the service: it was great. I mean, who doesn't like great beer delivered to your door? Not because I've grown bored with my brewery selection: I really have come to think of Sawdust City as one of Ontario's best breweries.

No, after five months, I've missed going to my local LCBO and trying new breweries. I've missed checking out the latest offerings at the breweries in Ottawa. And, I'm accumulating a lot of beer in my basement.

I don't drink a lot of beer at home, it seems.

So, to cap off the end to my Brew Box club membership, I'm going to review my favourite of all the Sawdust City ales. It's one that I tried, when I visited the Muskoka-region brewery, last summer, but was unable to bring any home because they were sold out of cans.

I'm savouring the few that they sent me.

The Princess Wears Girlpants (9% ABV)
Sawdust City Brewing Company
Gravenhurst ON

Appearance: slightly unfiltered, golden-yellow, with a foamy-white head that pours thick and settles to a solid, near-creamy cap. There is lots of effervescence during the pour.

Nose: slightly floral and tropical, with a mix of pineapple, tangerine, and a kiss of hops.

Palate: flint and white pepper, grapefruit, mango, and pineapple. There's an acidic finish where the alcohol meets a slight banana flavour (yes, I'm using slight a lot: don't know why). 

Overall impression: there is so much going on with this ale. There is a complexity of aromas and flavours that makes me want to drink more and more. Of course, with the high alcohol content, one can per sitting is enough for me.

This is a unique Belgian-style golden ale that can be hard to track down, but if you can find it, pick it up. It's a keeper. I'm just sad that I didn't receive more of these cans in my Brew Box.

In Ottawa, it can be found sometimes at The Arrow & Loon Pub.

Beer O'Clock rating: 4

Cheers!

Golden Beach

As we move into the coldest month of winter, I can't help but think about the summer and warmer weather. I also think of my 2015 summer vacation, when my family and I enjoyed a warm day on the beach, swimming in Lake Huron.

Because there are still several months before we can enjoy beach weather, the only thing I can do is reach for a beer and lose myself in warm thoughts.

That's not to say I drank myself into a stupor. I merely drank a session ale whose name brought me to thoughts of Sauble Beach.

Sawdust City Brewing Company became my favourite Ontario brewery in 2015, with its wide variety of standard and seasonal ales. I visited the brewery on my summer vacation and was blown away. And, as I begin a new year, my love for this Gravenhurst brewery will surely grow because I joined their beer club and will have their amazing brew arrive on my doorstep, every month, starting in February.

In the meantime, let's take a look at their pale ale.

Golden Beach Pale Ale (4.5% ABV)
Sawdust City Brewing Company
Gravenhurst ON

Appearance: a murky, wheaty, golden-yellow with a dense, creamy, off-white head that leaves a thick cap.

Nose: honeydew mellon, pineapple, with a pine-resin overtone that is mixed with grapefruit rind.

Palate: flinty grapefruit and lychee headline the mouth and carry through to a bitter, mineral finish.

Overall impression: the low alcohol is a strong contrast to the bold flavours of this session ale. On a cold winter's day, I was transported to the warmth of last summer on that beach. I was reminded that I could drink this ale year-round, which I would gladly do.

Beer O'Clock rating: 4

Cheers!

Road Trip, Part 1

I love hitting the road and discovering the many craft breweries that Ontario has to offer. To date, there are some 200 microbreweries in the province, with no slowing in sight.

Obviously, I can't get to all of them at once, but little by little, I'm paying my respects to more and more of them.

On my recent vacation, I hopped in my car and drove to the Bruce Peninsula, in Southern Ontario. If you don't know where that is but have a basic concept of what Ontario looks like, Southern Ontario looks a bit like an arrow head, with its directional point towards southwest: the Bruce Peninsula is that northern point in the arrow head, and it's the narrow strip of land that separates Lake Huron and Georgian Bay.

From Ottawa, depending on your route, it can take approximately seven-and-a-half hours to reach the Northern Bruce, which is just north of Wiarton. I chose my route carefully, making sure that I passed a few craft breweries along the way. My intention was to stop for lunch in the Muskoka Lake district and visit three breweries: Muskoka Brewery, Lake of Bays Brewing Company, and Sawdust City Brewing Company. As time had it, I never got the chance to stop at Lake of Bays.

My first stop was to Muskoka Brewery, in Bracebridge. Not far from the intersection of highways 118 and 11, the brewery was only a couple of minutes off of my route. These criss-crossing thoroughfares join up south of the town, so the drive to the brewery gives you the impression that you're out in the back woods. Sort of. You definitely feel as though you're in cottage country, which suits the brew company well, with its iconic Muskoka chair as its logo.

Muskoka Brewery is one of my favourite Ontario ale producers. I love the hoppiness of Mad Tom, and last year, I almost exclusively drank their Detour session ale. I was looking for something special to try at the brewery and anticipated something on tap at their tasting bar.

On that note, I was sadly disappointed. Four ales were on tap: Mad Tom, Detour, their cream ale (or possibly, the Craft Lager—I didn't pay close attention), and their Summerweiss. All four (or five, since I don't remember with of the two beers the fourth tap offered), I have had before, and I like all of them, but I wanted to try something I had never had before, something I could take with me that I wouldn't normally find in my local LCBO.

Happily, while there was nothing new for me to taste, their refrigerator held two beers that were new to me: Moonlight Kettle Just Peachy, a peach kölsch, and Winter Jack, a barrel-aged, double-chocolate stout. I grabbed a bunch of both, and within about 10 to 15 minutes after pulling into the parking lot, I was on my way.

Because I'm not drinking in September, you can expect a review of the kölsch in October. The Winter Jack is laying down until Christmas.

On my drive, when Hwy. 118 cut through Carnarvon, I should have turned onto the 35, heading north, towards Dorset. From there, I would have turned onto the 117, which would have taken me to Lake of Bays, my other intended stop. Because I didn't know how long it would take me to backtrack, and because I like to keep moving forward, I decided to save that brewery for another trip. My next destination was Gravenhurst and Sawdust City.

This newish brewery is located in the heart of Gravenhurst and was only a couple of blocks off my route. Located in what looks like it could have once been a small department store, Sawdust City boasted a large retail area with a wall of refrigeration cases and a sitting area that could host dozens of visitors. Large windows showcased the fermentation tanks, and a small stage offers live music on Friday and Saturday evenings.

Now that's a Muskoka chair!

I pulled into their parking lot just after noon, just in time for lunch. I learned that you can order food from a truck that is parked in the lot, so I ordered a Korean beef bulgogi sandwich. The owner of the food truck takes your money and delivers the food to your table inside the brewery. I ponied up to the bar and tried a four-glass sampler, selecting four ales that I hadn't yet tried from Sawdust City: Gateway Kölsch, Golden Beach Pale Ale, Skinny Dipping Stout, and The Princess Wears Girlpants, a lovely Belgian blonde.

The kölsch was light in body and in flavour, and while it was a good beer to sip on a hot day, it wasn't my favourite of the bunch. I really liked the pale ale and the stout, but by far, my favourite was the Belgian blonde. My greatest disappointment, however, was when I learned that the brewery was sold out of cans, and the only way to enjoy it for this season would be to drink it from the keg at the brewery.

Next year, Sawdust City, I want to write a full review of this ale, so keep some aside for me, okay?

I left the brewery with a full stomach (the food from the truck was amazing!), some lovely beer flavours in my mouth, and cans of the pale ale, stout, and a third, untried selection—a saison called 7 Weeks of Staying Up All Night (with a name like that, how could I resist?).

Back on the road, I continued my road trip, without stopping, until I came to a rest at the mouth of Lion's Head Harbour, overlooking the curving coastline of Georgian Bay, where the high, sheer cliffs mark the beginning of the Niagara Escarpment, waiting to meet up with my family, who had been camping on the peninsula for the past three days before my arrival.

Together, we visited a few more breweries over the next week, and in my next Beer O'Clock post, I'll continue the road trip and share some thoughts on the beer I sampled.

Cheers!