KW Craft Beer Bars - Part 2

KW Craft Beer Bars - Part 2

Following on from Part 1,  we will be taking a look at the best places to grab a Craft Beer in the Kitchener Waterloo area. 

The Lancaster Smokehouse

More of a Restaurant than a Bar however the selection of craft beer can't be ignored as it's pretty impressive, in their own words:

 "The Lancaster smokehouse proudly supports The award winning beers produced by ontario’s craft brewers. we only serve OCB products on Tap because we think it makes for better tasting beer. our selection is based on beers that compliment our food and allows for seasonal changes and special brews. ask your server for more details and about our seasonal selection!"

The only downside to this BBQ joint located on Lancaster Street West is that the food portions are so big you might not have room to try all the craft beers on tap. I picked up a Steam Whistle Oktoberfest Stein on the last occasion I went. Great food and beer. 

The Boathouse

Wonderfully located in the centre of Victoria Park The Boathouse is the best place to go to catch some live Music in Kitchener Waterloo. The whole bar has a very Bohemian feel to it with 3 or 4 different craft beers on tap at any time. The food is surprisingly good with the Nacho's being a personal favourite of mine. I also believe the The Boathouse to have the best Patio in the whole of KW, as you can see in the photo above, it looks out onto the water which is a refreshing change to the usual view of a parking lot. 

Huether Hotel

In fact not a Hotel at all the Heuther is the only place in Kitchener Waterloo to brew all it's beers on the premises. It comprises of a number of Bars  & Restaurants on different floors all selling their Lion Brewery beers. Located on the busy King Street North in Waterloo and the historic building stands out among newer establishments. If you find yourself in there I urge you to try their Black & Tan, which is a mix of their Lager and Ale, for something different. 

Hopefully with the rise of Craft Beer there will be more locations to add to the list soon.

PROST!  

@EyeBeerHolder

KW Craft Beer Bars - Part 1

KW Craft Beer Bars - Part 1

Craft beer is on the rise here in Ontario. In 2002 craft beer represented less than 2% of the LCBO's sales, it now stands at around 5% with a forecasted growth of 10% each year. With this has come a demand for establishments to provide craft beer on tap or at least have a wide selection of bottles.

Kitchener - Waterloo is no different, people are craving variety. There seems to be a change of mindset for the next generation of beer drinkers where locally brewed beer, specially by one of the Ontario Craft Brewers, is preferable to main stays such as Alexander Keith's or Coors. However a lot great bars are going unnoticed due to the abundance of Sports Bars in the area, below is a list of some great bars to visit for Craft Beer in Kitchener - Waterloo.

The Bent Elbow

The newest bar in Kitchener, The Bent Elbow offers nothing but craft beer (if you want a Budweiser you better go to the washroom). A constantly changing selection of beer is offered in this hidden away bar on Weber Street East. Draft and bottled beer is in great supply as well as one hand drawn Cask tap. Each patron is presented with a little black book to help you make up your mind on which beer to choose which is immensely helpful. Mondays offer is $5 on all pints of Ontario Craft Beers, which I regularly take up. 

Imbibe

This sleek and trendy bar isn't the biggest in Kitchener but provides a stylish selection of beer and live music. Located below the museum on King & Queen in the heart of Downtown Kitchener it can be easily missed but its an excellent bar for the location. My first visit consisted of discovering Silver Smith Black Lager and listening to a local blues musician, both excellent 

Beertown

By far the biggest player in the area and probably the best located. Beertown is owned and operated by the Charcoal group, owners of a variety of bars and restaurants in the area. Located in the prime location of Uptown Waterloo Square this bar is seldom quiet. Beertown boasts over 20 beers on tap as well as 4 seasonal in addition to a very well stocked bottle fridge. A tad more expensive then the other bars in the area but it's worth paying the premium for the stylish decor and range of beers. 

Thanks for reading so far Part 2 to follow later.

PROST!!

@EyeBeerHolder

Steaming into Spring

Steaming into Spring

Spring is officially here, even if the weather isn't, and with that in mind I like to change up the beers I brew to match the season. Soon the weather will be hot enough where an Ale just doesn't seem right unless it's something light like a Kölsch or an IPA. In a couple of weeks I will start making my annual batch of Strawberry Beer and this year I think I will add a Mango Wheat Beer as an additional batch (blog to follow later). In the interim I thought I would try my hand at a new style which has fascinated me, a Lager fermented at Ale temperatures, otherwise known as a Steam Beer or California Common.

The Steam Beer was born out of necessity for during the mid 1800's people flocked to California as part of the Gold Rush of the time. Used to the colder climbs where refrigeration was readily available and very much needed in the process of making Lager, brewers found themselves having to adapt to the demands of people still wanting a cool Lager the end of day. 

Gold rush fever 

The brewers being the resourceful kind decided to make a Lager fermented at Ale temperatures. Now the difference between Ale & Lager Yeast is the Former is top fermenting at higher temperature (13-24°C) and the later is bottom fermenting at cooler temperatures (9-14°C). All this has an influence on the final outcome (taste) of the beer so fermenting a Lager at a high temperature was a risk. Fortunately for the brewers it became a big hit and at one point as many as 27 different breweries were producing a Steam Beer. Sadly Prohibition wiped most of them out and only the best known survived which is made by Anchor Steam Brewing Co in San Francisco, They also trademarked the term "Steam Beer" which means any other brewers use the term "California Common". But hang on I hear you cry where did the term "Steam Beer" come from in the first place? well there a variety of different answers but I believe the simplest one to be correct. 

There is a type of German Beer called "Dampfbier" (literally "steam beer" in German) a traditional brew fermented in the same style. In my opinion it will have been a brewer of German descent or a German Immigrant who had knowledge or experience in the process of making Dampfbier and saw the circumstances were ideal in California to replicate the style. 

To the Brew

Name: Strasburg Steam

Style: Steam/California Common

About: Traditionally brewed in California with Lager yeast at Ale temperature 

Ingredients: 

WLP810 San Francisco Lager Yeast

1 lb 80L Caramel Malt

3 lbs Light LME

3 lbs Light DME

2 oz Northern Brewer Hops (Bittering)

2 oz Northern Brewer Hops (Aroma)

Additons:

Irish Moss

Yeast Nutrient

The Process: as usual I just do partial mash as I find I don't have the time for full grain at this point in time. 

I started out by bringing around 3 gallons of spring water up to about 68°C. After Milling the Caramel malt I added the grains to the pot and made sure the temperature stayed at about the same temperature. 

 I let the grains rest for about for 30 minutes ensuring the temperature never dropped below 65. After that I let the grains drain off before washing them in steeping water and removing. I brought the pot up to the boil before removing from the heat and adding in the LME & DME. Once the everything had fully dissolved I brought the wort up to the boil once again and added the 2 oz of Northern Brewer Hops. 

I Kept the boil rolling for 45 minutes before adding the Irish Moss and Yeast Nutrient for the final 15 Minutes. Once the boil was done I removed it from the heat added the additional Hops and let it stand for 15 minutes. I cooled it for 30 minutes with a wort chiller before adding the wort to the Primary Fermenter. I took the OG reading as 1.048 which was around what I was hoping to achieve .

As Always the final part was to add the yeast, I had made a yeast starter the night before so added the slurry in the mix and decided it would be best to keep the fermenter in the basement to keep a cooler temperature.

I left the Beer in the primary for 6 days before deciding to move in into a secondary as the bubbling seemed to have slowed to a sufficient amount. 

Once the Secondary was filled the was a lot darker than I was expecting. Although this could be down to the lighting in the Basement. I looking to leave the brew in the secondary for around 2 weeks after which I will Keg it.

. If you've made it this far then thanks for reading and please add any comments or contact me at @EyeBeerHolder.

PROST!!

Grodzinski is a GO!

Grodzinski is a GO!

There is no finer feeling then sampling a brew you've made for the first time, well for me anyway. After a 1.5 Weeks of leaving my Grodzinski to carbonate it was ready to drink and I'm very happy with the result.

Glorious Grodzinski!

As I was kegging the beer I took a gravity reading and the ABV worked out to around 4.5% which I was happy with as Home Brewing for me isn't about making the most Alcoholic drink you can, it's about experimenting with different styles and flavors that aren't readily available from the LCBO and Liquor stores . 

Smoked Polish Beer is something I have never encountered before, in fact the only place I could find on untappd to make it was Iron Hill Brewery who won a Bronze Medal for theirs in 2012. 

On pouring the beer I was delighted with the colour, the Carared© Malt giving the beer an amber glow, and a slight cloudiness from the Wheat DME. Cloudy Beers always remind me of the wonderful brews from Quebec who seem to have a fondness for Wheat and gives the region a unique style. 

Tasting the Grodzinski I was taken aback by how smooth it was, it gently glides down the throat which is always a dangerous profile on a Beer. The smoked malt gives the brew that wonderful smell that conjures up memories of the Fire pits from the Summer past and with Spring breaking on to the horizon it seemed quite fitting to be ready as the snows start to melt. It also gives the brew that little subtle something extra that keeps you interested in savoring every mouthful, which is beneficial with how smooth it tastes.

My only criticism is that maybe the smoked malt is a little too subtle and if I were to make this style again I would look to double the grain bill to see what the outcome would be. Perhaps though the smoked malt would be overpowering where as now it has a little air of mystery where the drinker can try to detect that little flavor over many smooth mouthfuls. 


 If you've made it this far then thanks for reading and please add any comments or contact me at @EyeBeerHolder.

PROST!!