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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

If you are in New York City for under 24 hours, planning an itinerary that allows for the most out of your Big Apple trip can seem like a daunting task. With so much to do and so little time, you’ll need to develop a solid travel plan. Fortunately, we’ve […]

Spending a day in New York City

Howdy, St.John’s Wort Junior Rangers! Are you like me? Do you wake up to Jazz 91.1 on your clock radio? Is one of the first things you hear in the morning, aside from the contemplative cool jazz guitaristry of Pat Metheny the dulcet tones of brewmaster Joel Manning explaining why […]

Win Free Tickets To Mill Street Oktoberfest!

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Periodically, the Brewer’s Association releases statements that I find a little bit suspect. This is mostly because they’re a lobbying group and their purpose is being optimistic about craft beer. I’m all for defending your own interest. After all, does it not say in the Talmud, “If I am not […]

Devil’s Advocate: Brewer’s Association

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As a beer writer, I only get invited to events at restaurants infrequently. When I get an email suggesting that I should go to a dinner hosted by Thailand’s ambassador to Canada, it’s something of a rarity. This is an important governmental figure from another country. It would be downright […]

Beer and Food: Linda Modern Thai

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The nice thing about planning an event like the Feast Of St.John for Toronto Beer Week is that I’ve managed to create a certain amount of context for myself over three years or so that I’ve been writing about beer. I’ve collaborated on beers with a number of breweries, frequently […]

So You Want To Be A Brewer: Lazarus Breakfast Stout

Arriving in Burton-On-Trent by train, you get a real sense of what William Blake must have meant by “dark satanic mills.” The landscape is one of rolling hills interspersed with small lakes and marshes until you’re suddenly confronted by the expansive brick warehouses and towering breweries that were the pride […]

On Marston’s and Legacy

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Here’s an interesting thought: Craft beer in North America went through a lot of growing pains on the way to being where they are at the moment. There were years of struggling to make English styles of beer as authentically as possible (hard to do in San Francisco) and the […]

London Craft Beer

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Ed Note: Inevitably, marching into another country and talking about a situation I don’t have a complete feel for has the potential to rustle feathers. As such, I have changed the subtitle of my blog for the week to reflect that possibility.    One of the things that has interested […]

Real Ale and Craft Beer – Live from the GBBF