I have not yet reviewed a place that does not sell beer, but I have been so impressed with every visit to the Cambie Street location in Vancouver that I felt I had to! The Benton Brothers consist of Jonah and Andrew and their three stores on Granville island, Cambie Village and Kerrisdale. They had been recommended to me by friends who know and understand my love of cheese (there’s more to me than just beer by the way…so much more…).and was impressed by the stellar reports that they had given me; I finally decided to . . . → Read More: Benton Brothers Fine Cheese – Cheesemongers Extraordinaire!]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/benton-brothers-fine-cheese-cheesemongers-extraordinaire/feed/ 0 http://www.beerwrangler.com/the-beer-moment/ http://www.beerwrangler.com/the-beer-moment/#comments Tue, 08 May 2012 05:55:49 +0000 The Beer Wrangler http://www.beerwrangler.com/?p=2045  

This months Session (no. 63) as posed  by uber-beer blogger and writer Pete Brown is called The Beer Moment. Here is mine.

I grew up in a semi rural/suburban town in Buckinghamshire, just outside London (that’s UK not Ontario!) and my parents, especially my father, often went to the local pub and enjoyed cask bitters from the likes of Fuller’s and Bass. One such pub was a haven for families in the summer. Warm Sunday afternoons were spent in the expansive beer garden where kids could run, roam and play in relative safety, while the mums and dads . . . → Read More: The Beer Moment]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/the-beer-moment/feed/ 0 http://www.beerwrangler.com/lighthouse-switchback-ipa/ http://www.beerwrangler.com/lighthouse-switchback-ipa/#comments Mon, 07 May 2012 02:54:22 +0000 The Beer Wrangler http://www.beerwrangler.com/?p=2038 I keep drinking this beer, so it stands to reason that I

a) like it and b) should write about it.

The problem is that every time I crack one open I just want to relax and enjoy it, rather than actually  open my rather neglected blog and get to it!

Lighthouse Brewing have really upped their game in the last year and a half with some cracking and interesting “big flavour” bombers. They waited a bit to follow up with an addition to their popular if conservative 6-pack range, but it was well worth it. The . . . → Read More: Lighthouse Switchback IPA]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/lighthouse-switchback-ipa/feed/ 0 http://www.beerwrangler.com/the-case-for-beer-by-frugaldad-com/ http://www.beerwrangler.com/the-case-for-beer-by-frugaldad-com/#comments Thu, 03 May 2012 06:12:04 +0000 The Beer Wrangler http://www.beerwrangler.com/?p=2032 Thanks to frugal dad for this fun infographic!

Source: FrugalDad.com

The head on the 1 year-old was a little more restrained, but the aromas and flavours were full on! Dark mocha coffee bean, baked dried fruit, high cocoa content chocolate, rich sweet black molasses, a roasted warmness and a whisky like . . . → Read More: Driftwood Singularity – 1 year on]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/driftwood-singularity-1-year-on/feed/ 0 http://www.beerwrangler.com/phillips-garrison-mash-up-baltic-porter/ http://www.beerwrangler.com/phillips-garrison-mash-up-baltic-porter/#comments Thu, 26 Jan 2012 08:17:50 +0000 The Beer Wrangler http://www.beerwrangler.com/?p=2003 East and West united; Canada going forward as one, whether you are in the Maritimes or the West coast beer is a universal pleasure and one that has united two great Canadian craft breweries on opposite sides of the country.

What is Baltic Porter? It is a relatively modern name used to describe strong Porters brewed in Russia and the Baltic nations that copied strong porters and stouts brewed in Britain for export to those regions. One difference is that many of those breweries now use lager yeasts rather than the warm/top fermenting ale yeasts that brewers . . . → Read More: Phillips Garrison Mash-Up Baltic Porter]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/phillips-garrison-mash-up-baltic-porter/feed/ 0 http://www.beerwrangler.com/ommegang-three-philosophers/ http://www.beerwrangler.com/ommegang-three-philosophers/#comments Mon, 19 Dec 2011 07:29:12 +0000 The Beer Wrangler http://www.beerwrangler.com/?p=1995 Ommegang Three Philosophers is a Belgian style quadrupel dark ale, blended with an authentic kriek (cherry lambic). It has a dark reddish brown colour and a loose head that disappears fairly quickly. This beer has a powerful flavour that saturates my mouth as soon as it enters. The thick caramel notes and cooked, dried fruit are the main players, and it overwhelms the subtle (or is it buried?) cherry from the kriek. There are sherry-like armoas and a winey finsh that give this a bitter-sweet note that is good for strong cheeses.

I was a bit disappointed . . . → Read More: Ommegang Three Philosophers]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/ommegang-three-philosophers/feed/ 0 http://www.beerwrangler.com/lost-coast-winterbraun/ http://www.beerwrangler.com/lost-coast-winterbraun/#comments Wed, 07 Dec 2011 05:02:22 +0000 The Beer Wrangler http://www.beerwrangler.com/?p=1987 The Lost Coast Winterbraun is a strong dark brown ale brewed especially for the winter months. The label sports a Picasso-esque snowboarder with skin the colour of this rich and deeply hued brew;  the sweet, dark caramel and rye bread aromas that greet you are a comforting reminder of why we drink different beers when the nights draw in and there is a chill in the air.

The flavours are warming too, a hint of black treacle, roasted malt, baked dried fruit, and sweet caramel are all there and give this beer a cake-like appeal. This can . . . → Read More: Lost Coast Winterbraun]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/lost-coast-winterbraun/feed/ 0 http://www.beerwrangler.com/beers-of-british-columbia/ http://www.beerwrangler.com/beers-of-british-columbia/#comments Fri, 30 Sep 2011 00:22:01 +0000 Beer Learner http://www.beerwrangler.com/?p=1964 Whether you’re a fan of BC craft beer, live in BC or just visiting, then this is a book for your collection. It is a dossier of brewpubs and microbreweries and covers fundamental information of a brewery’s offerings and sometimes with a bit of history is thrown in.  If you can see past the clunky and inconsistent formatting, (this is a self published book) and get to the ‘meat and potatoes’, then you will really find a lot of great information from this guide.  If you’re planning any beer related trip in British Columbia, this guide will likely motivate you to check . . . → Read More: Beers of British Columbia]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/beers-of-british-columbia/feed/ 0 http://www.beerwrangler.com/driftwood-twenty-pounder-double-ipa/ http://www.beerwrangler.com/driftwood-twenty-pounder-double-ipa/#comments Fri, 19 Aug 2011 04:35:35 +0000 The Beer Wrangler http://www.beerwrangler.com/?p=1947 Driftwood Brewery Twenty Pounder Double IPA comes with trademark fabulous graphic artwork on the label. At the very least they have raised the game when it comes to bottle labels! Happily this is not where the game raising ends. They have produced many of British Columbia’s (and canada’s for that matter) best craft brews. A double IPA (thanks for not using ‘Imperial’) has been keenly awaited by the craft beer fans of the West coast. Since the two IPAs that have been on the shelves – regular IPA Fat Tug and super seasonal Sartori Harvest have proved . . . → Read More: Driftwood Twenty Pounder Double IPA]]> http://www.beerwrangler.com/driftwood-twenty-pounder-double-ipa/feed/ 0