beer – Page 2 – Tiana Feng

Recommended Ciders: Brickworks & Okanagan Pear

March 26, 2015Drinks, FoodLeave a Comment

A lot of the times I prefer cider to beer because I find them more drinkable with meals. Like beers, I’ve been looking to try more Canadian-made craft beers rather than the mass-produced kinds. My recent favourites are Brickworks Premium Dry Cider and Okanagan’s Dry Pear.

The Brickworks also comes in a semi-sweet variety (which I haven’t tried yet). They are made with 100% Ontario apples Their site says that “No apple in our cider travels further than 300 kilometres from the tree to the Ciderhouse.” 5% of all their profits also go to environmental organization Evergreen. Their apple cider is perfectly balanced in term of sweetness. It goes down easy like apple juice but doesn’t feel too sugary.

While Okanagan makes an apple cider I decided to try the pear. On their website there are actually a variety of fruit ciders. Anyways the pear cider was nice and crisp. It wasn’t like the Sir Perry Pear cider that was way too sweet, the Okanagan balanced the sweetness as well as Brickworks.

With both these ciders I didn’t feel like I was having some “girly” drink. These were authentic to the fruit flavour but tart enough to be an adult drink.

Recommended Craft Beers: Sawdust City Lone Pine IPA & Old Tomorrow

March 18, 2015Drinks, FoodLeave a Comment

I’ve been obsessed with trying local craft beers lately. There are a ton from Ontario alone! In fact the craft beer trend is so popular that Toronto now has stores to buy your own brewing supplies. Most recently I tried Old Tomorrow Canadian Pale Ale. The Toronto ale a full-bodied brew that went down smoothly.

The other beer I had was Sawdust City’s Lone Pine IPA. It was very hoppy!

The best thing about buying local craft beers is also the fabulous designs. The first one pays tribute to the 150 year anniversary of the Charlottetown conference that triggered confederation. Constrastly, Sawdust has a more country vibe because after all it is brewed in Gravenhurst! Anyways, can’t wait to dig for more beer treasures at the LCBO.

Chocolate Beer Made by Flying Monkeys

January 5, 2015Drinks, Food1 Comment

Perhaps this post title is misleading because monkeys don’t actually fly so no actual monkeys were involved in making this beer (at least for all I now). The Flying Monkeys is a craft brewery located in Guelph, Ontario. When I stumbled on this beer, in such eye-catching packaging I could not resist. Hell, they probably could have just put CHOCOLATE BEER on the label and I would’ve bought it. This was more obvious. This beer was more than the normal “chocolate” stout. It sounded epic. It was a Manifesto. It had an alcohol rating of 10%.

We saved the one bottle we snagged for New Years Eve. When we opened it the aromas were splendid. It truly did live up to it’s name. It did not smell like beer, but like a comforting chocolate milk. The strange part is, that’s what it tasted like to! The fact it was a beer, only hit you after every sip. It was delightful. Also, I could totally feel it right away after a mug full (I don’t have anything besides mugs at the moment).

I went back to the LCBO the next day to realize that it is no longer stocked in shelves. I guess I will have to wait until next Christmas to buy the entire aisle.

Craft Beer & Music

November 25, 2014Drinks, FoodLeave a Comment

A few weeks ago, I photographed the 4th Annual Big Smoke Fest hosted by Tall Boys. The night featured a great music entertainment as well as a fine section of craft beers.

The most memorable beer I tried at the event was a mysterious one from Nickel Brook Brewery. They had over 10 varieties at their booth but I was drawn to a mysterious bottle with a black label and the numbers 11 05. The friendly rep told me that it was a barley wine beer that had been aged for a year on exactly November 5th. It had a striking 11% alcohol but was smooth and sweet.

You can see the entire photoset of the night on the Tall Boys Facebook Page.

Want Some Sapporo?

May 17, 2014May 30, 2014Drinks, Food1 Comment

Sapporo sent me some beer in celebration of their latest campaign which features animated versions of traditional Japanese ink wash paintings- an art that dates back 1000 years.

Sapporo, which originated in Japan, does have a brewery in Canada. It’s a rice lager so it is light and sweet. The beer is dry but refreshing because it does not leave an after taste and therefore very easy to drink. Since the taste is clean, it could probably be paired with any food.

If you would like some Sapporo, I’m giving away vouchers for free 6 pack over on Ride the Tempo!

Burgers and Tacos @ Tallboys

January 25, 2013March 27, 2013Food, Restaurant Reviews1 Comment

Before yesterday’s installment of The Big Smoke Music Festival, we grabbed food inside the venue, Tallboys Craft Beer House.

I ordered the Pan Seared Fish Tacos ($12). The fish sat in a soft corn tortilla with guacamole salsa fresca, lettuce and sour cream. They were served with fries. They’re very similar in style to the fish tacos at Tacos El Asador with just the right amount of coriander. The fries made it a decent amount of food, and I swear they had a little bit of sour cream in them because of their interesting taste.

Nash had the Tallboys Signature Bacon Chili Burger ($13). The chili was mixed in with melted cheese and onions resulting in awesomness between two buns. They also have a burger with kimchi in it which we will definitely come back to try.

Since we were at Tallboys, it was only appropriate that we did get some tallboys. I had the Nickel Brook Green Apple Pilsner. It was a good amount of sweetness in a beer. Nash had some kind of cider, I forgot.