The North American Tour

“Wait’ll you see this bridge. They spent a million dollars on it.” The van is passing through the North Carolina landscape just west of Mills River. It’s some of the greenest country I’ve ever seen, and for good reason. The rainfall in this part of the Appalachians is enough to […]

Sierra Nevada Mills River

May 5, 2015 in The North American Tour tagged Sierra Nevada by admin

It was the Sunday of Thanksgiving weekend and we were barrelling down on Cooperstown, New York through the rolling hills of the Leatherstocking region. When I say “we”, I mean Dad and my younger brother Andy. We were there mostly to visit the Baseball Hall of Fame, but, knowing that […]

In Which We Visit Ommegang

October 24, 2013 in Reviews / The North American Tour tagged Cooperstown / Duvel Moortgat / New York Craft Beer / Ommegang / Scythe and Sickle by admin

One of the things that always interests me in craft beer is how larger regional breweries deal with the market. Of course, there are independently owned regional breweries like Great Western who are pretty much devoted to doing one thing and doing it well. Then there are large breweries like […]

Big Rock – Changes in Direction

May 22, 2013 in Reviews / The North American Tour tagged Barghest / Big Rock / Erratic / Paradox / Paul Gautreau / Purple Gas by admin

I don’t pretend to understand the Alberta beer scene completely. After all, I was only there for about five days, and there’s only so much information you can process. Fortunately, brewers like to talk. While the column this week is about the unique beer hall scene that Alberta has developed […]

Craft Brewing in Alberta – An Outsider’s Perspective

March 2, 2013 in Accounting for Taste / The North American Tour tagged Alberta / Calgary / Craft Beer / Edmonton / Hog's Head / Village Brewing / Yellowhead by admin

Probably the highlight of Alberta so far was dinner at Charcut Roast House, which has garnered a reputation as one of the best new restaurants in Canada. I didn’t realize, when I saw it on the itinerary exactly why I knew what it was. It turns out that the chef […]

Beer and Food – Charcut

February 23, 2013 in Beer and Food / The North American Tour tagged Beer and Food pairing / Charcut / Connie DeSousa / Kirk Bodnar / My Dinner with Andrew by admin

One of the benefits of getting out of Toronto is the contrast that it necessarily provides. Recently, I went to a bar called Thirsty and Miserable in Toronto. I like Thirsty and Miserable. It seats about twenty five and as many as can stand around nodding to the punk rock […]

Water Music and Continental Treat

February 22, 2013 in Reviews / The North American Tour tagged Alberta / Continental Treat / Edmonton / Thirsty and Miserable by admin

One of the things that I’ve been thinking about over the course of the last week is exactly what to say about the tour of the Sam Adams Brewery I went on last Friday. It’s hard to know what to make of Sam Adams. They are so large in comparison […]

In Which I Tour The Sam Adams Brewery

November 12, 2012 in Accounting for Taste / The North American Tour tagged Jim Koch / Karmic Terroir / Kosmic Mother Funk / Sam Adams by admin

While my editor at The Sun would probably be shocked to learn that I’m covering the international beat, it was my pleasure last Saturday to get up at oh-dark-thirty and accept an invitation on the behalf of Roland and Russell (Thanks, guys!) to visit Southern Tier in Lakewood, New York. […]

Southern Tier

May 3, 2011 in The North American Tour by admin

St. John's Wort

Beery Musings And Amusing Beers