Warming up with a Stout

You need this in your life.

Long, cold nights followed by short freezing days is what winter brings to Canada. While this year has been milder than most, it is still not summer. I don't complain about winter, I love all the seasons and the differences they bring both in the weather and my beer. It seems only right that I take a moment and salute those brews that bring warmth to my belly when the temperature falls.

When I was a younger man, I avoided stouts. Although, given the state of the beer world in those days , it wasn't like I was given much choice. For the most part, the only stout we had access to was Guinness and it held no appeal to me. Oh, I would choke one down on St. Patrick's Day when we would start our pub crawl in Hess Village (think lots of bars, little self control) but then it was on to green food colouring in my beer and the sweet release of blackout drinking.

Hmm. This seems wrong.











My recurring them from the last two years has been how craft beer saved my life and with stouts and porters, it is particularly true. Lagers and IPAs can be very crushable (Easy drinking) and even as I was beginning to understand how destructive my drinking was to myself and others, I could still get ramped up when drinking those as well as any macro lager.

Enter the humble Mill Street Vanilla Porter. This is one of those beers that changed everything for me and one of the reasons I will not drop this brewery from my regular rotation despite their being bought out by Labatt's. It is a creamy, vanilla, coffee bean and chocolate dream. I often refer to it as ice cream in a glass. It is just so smooth and tasty, I found myself lingering over each glass and when I would look up at the clock, an hour had gone by and it was time for bed. This was a new development for me, as I would most often race to cram as many Old Milwaukee's as I could down my throat before passing out. I loved how it warmed me up and filled my senses with wonderful flavours. This was a something different.

I was moving forward with porters, but still struggling with stouts. They are generally have a higher alcohol content and the roasted malt can give you at bitter note that, when you are starting to try them, can turn you off. I know it did for me and much like the amazing IPA, it took some time for the changes to my palate to take hold. Slowly I began to purchase and consume more stouts as the weather turned cold and they began to make sense to me. The thicker mouthfeel helps you to really experience the most common flavours of the roasted malt, dark chocolate and the bitter coffee beans. Most often, a stout slows you down with its large body and high ABV. You don't want to pound a 10% Oatmeal stout, it is something to sip and savour. This was the essence of my discovery. I had found a style of beer that really held me back and slowed me down.

Grab a Kentucky Bastard from Nickel Brook, a Winter Beard from Muskoka or maybe a Chocolate Manifesto made by Flying Monkey's. You do not put these beers in a funnel. Well, you shouldn't, but it's your life. These beers will force you to sit up and  notice the flavours they impart. They are big bold beers that make you pause as you drink and feel the warmth spreading through your heart. Stouts can range from smooth and creamy to strong and biting. there is something for everyone and most assuredly you can find one that speaks to you.

When I grab a dark beer and settle into my chair for a night of hockey watching or maybe a movie or two, I like to think of it as my Hi-beer-nation. Just letting go and putting myself in the mood to shut out the world and relax.

 I have an Amsterdam Brewing Company Tempest Imperial Stout that I have been ageing for a year and a bit chilling in the cold cellar and I think tonight is a good time to see how it has changed since last year. That's one of the other things about higher ABV stouts that I was surprised to learn. You can age them for a few years and really see how the beer changes. It never occurred to me that I would want to save a beer for that long, but I have cellared a Kentucky Bastard and a Cuvee from Nickel Brook from this year as well to see where they go next year or maybe even into 2018.

So if you are hesitant to get into a stout, give a porter a try. they are generally less bold and have a thinner mouthfeel and flavour profile. They have many unique takes and they should help you to ease into the often bigger, stronger notes that stouts bring to the table.

But don't give up on these dark angels, it is in the attempt to find the Perfect Beer that I have come to love them and you could too. They bring so much to the table and while it is the season of snow and ice, it is also one of robust flavours. It will soon enough be time to break out the saisons, lagers and IPAs. But for now, why not get your snifter or pint glass and pour some warming love into your life.

Cheers!

On Winter

It has been one of the quietest winters I can remember. Not much in the way of snow and even the temperature has been mild. Not what I think of when you say Canadian Winter, but hey, no complaints from this guy.

My brother lives up north a ways and is amazed that people seem to forget we live in Canada and that in the winter, it snows. He laughs every time we get a little snow and social media explodes with all the exasperated posts about bad drivers, shovelling snow and bitter cold winds. He has a point. If you look around Facebook or Twitter, they are filled with the same posts everybody made last year. And the year before that and the year before that, forever and ever amen. What is it that causes us to lose our collective minds when the mercury dips down and the fluffy white stuff falls from the sky? And what makes us forget that it happens every damn year?

I work with the public and not a day goes by when someone doesn't mention the weather in some way. It's a safe subject and a very Canadian way of saying hello. What I have noticed over my 25 plus years in customer service is that the same people that bitch about the humidity in the summer, do the same for the cold in the winter. I am not sure what they were expecting. The weather is something that changes every ten minutes up here and you would think they were used to that by now.

I am a summertime guy myself. I love it all, from the warm sun and cool air of the May 24 weekend to the humid nights of late August and everything in between. I revel in the heat and spend as much time as I can outside in the Grotto.

This place is where I spend my summer. Beauty!

The winter on the other hand is not my friend. Cold, dark days that are too short. Lack of sunshine does a number on me and I struggle more each year to keep my spirits up while the snowy weather drags on. From the beginning of January until we start to see the first buds break ground in late March, I have to remind myself that summer is coming and I just need to hang in there a few more days.

Despite my struggles with the winter, there are things I love about it. Hockey is T.V. every night and my Leafs keep finding new ways to lose. There is almost nothing better than BBQ in the cold. It just seems to taste better when you know not everyone will brave the elements to have a wonderfully grilled steak and potato dinner. It helps that I have propane heat and a garage to hang out in while the 'Q does its thing, but the flavours seem to be brighter when it is out of season.

Nothing stops the Polkaroos from BBQing.

I also must admit to a bit of a dirty secret. I like shovelling. We have a rather long driveway for the suburbs and a double car garage behind our house. It is a lot of space, but I love when I get out my trusty 10 year old shovel and begin to clean up. There is something soothing about pushing the white stuff around to reveal the blacktop underneath. I never rush, no need for a wrenched back here. I love the feeling of my body heating up as the wind swirls around me. The steam when I take my hat off and accept a mug of Irish coffee when I take a break during a big clean up makes me smile. But most of all, I think I feel like I accomplished something. Small and not world changing, but by clearing the snow from our driveway, we somehow connect with the outside. I don't ski or snowboard. Being a fat guy and having a grasp of physics means that my weight on two sticks going down a hill would result in a funniest videos sort of ending and perhaps a cracked limb or two. But give me a shovel and I am just fine. Trying to work through the drifts that form as the wind pushes the snow around makes me move my body, and in Winter that is a big accomplishment.

Looking back at a job well done.

I would hazard a guess that this is what makes it so soothing for me. Struggling with anxiety and depression, especially at this time of the year, can leave me feeling lethargic and empty inside. Shovelling focuses my attention on an achievable physical task that also allows me time to work through some stuff that may be bugging me. I am not sure why, but as I work my way to the end of the driveway, I become more relaxed and let things that had been upsetting me all day just slip away.

We have talked about getting a snow blower many times and I always resist. I know it would make life easier for those 3 or 4 heavy snows that can take over an hour to clear and leave me a little sore the next day, but still I hold back. Some of that is the cost of purchasing and maintaining a quality machine. The other reason is far simpler, I am not ready to give up my big blue shovel.

Old Blue, she's held together with

Duct tape and love.

It still means something to me to look down at the back of the house and see a clean slate. Maybe we could all approach the snow with a little less hatred and embrace the seasons in the Canadian way, with a smile on our faces and a knowledge that spring is just around the corner.

 Well, not around the corner, but just down the street and kind of walking slow. I mean you think this season could pick up the pace a little. Come on spring, get your ass on in here.

It's okay, I know that when it comes, I will get out the garden stuff and begin the process of getting ready for the summer again.

I can't wait!

Cheers.

My favourite sign that summer is coming!



Polka Dot Awards 2015 #3 - Long Dark Voyage to Uranus

Just something about the name makes me smile.

Long ago, in the barren macro lager land of the Drunk Polkaroo's past lies a sad little truth. I never understood what it meant to drink good beer. Anything but the coldest, flavourless lager would chase me from the table and make me hide behind my tall boy of Old Milwaukee.

Moving my taste buds away from not feeling anything at all through drinking better beer led me to discover how much I love the dark stouts of Winter. So many flavours, textures and combinations of ingredients make for some amazing beers. This might be one of the best. Not to mention, what a name!

Gravenhurst, Ontario brewer Sawdust City makes many good beers, but I looked forward to no beer more than the return of Long, Dark Voyage to Uranus. I bought the beer for the wacky name and wanted it again because of what was inside. I rarely quote the blurbs found on the beer I drink, preferring to craft my own not so eloquent description and I will, but this is too much to pass up

"What's in a name? Uranus by any other name would smell so sweet. That was written many eons ago by Toftorg Golshop, Ruler of the Third Empire of Uranus on one of his many voyages to earth (it was stolen and re-written by "you know who" sometime later).
And while on earth for one of those trips, Toftorg grew fond of the rich, robust stouts of Northern England. Designed to withstand the grueling intergalactic voyage from Earth to Uranus, "Long, Dark Voyage" is a Uranal Stout of the highest order. Ass puckeringly bitter and dry as a bone, this dark chocolate treat is quite dangerous and can sneak up on you from behind if you don't keep your wits about you. You've been warned! "

I mean, come one. Who doesn't want to try this seasonal beer after that.

Pours thick as motor oil, with an impenetrable black colour and a creamy bronze head. Smells like dark chocolate. Tip the glass back and get a thick mouthfeel that cascades coffee, bittersweet chocolate and roasted barley malt. Hint of caramel and licorice add to the complexity of the darkness. Driest stout I've ever had and the finish is a great bitter punch that leaves you wanting more. At 9.5% ABV and 60 IBUs, this isn't a beer for the weak of heart.

This brew was the first time in my life I waited for a beer to come back. I never knew that such a thing as seasonality existed when it came to malted barley and hops. Learning the patterns and tastes of each season really is a treat and I appreciate what they bring as the world turns. These dark, high alcohol beers are perfect for the long cold winter here in Canada. they warm you up and give you a healthy glow as we hibernate and wait for the first light of spring.

I am in love with this beer and have one set aside for next year to age as well as one in the fridge for New Year's Eve. Nothing but great beers that night.

Congratulations Sawdust City and Long Dark Voyage to Uranus on your Polkie win!

Cheers and let's go exploring!

Seems like these guys should get together and make a beer.
I know, sometimes it's like I'm 12.