donnelly group

there’s gonna be a new brewery in victoria town soon

beer bribery, pay to play, whatever you call it, it is considered a pretty evil practice by most craft beer loving folks
here are some wise words about the concept
from half pints in winnipeg
pretty things’ twitter war
from esquire.com
from westcoaster blog

this is hardly a new phenomenon, nor is is just happening in north america
check out this 2010 article about chicago
and this 2010 article about baltimore
and this one from the uk

does it happen in vancouver?
i have no concrete proof that it does, but c’mon, why else would so many bars tie themselves to so many taps of crappy beer? loyalty and swill-drinking clientele can only account for part of the phenomenon. and frankly, brewery reps for a few local breweries have mentioned to me that they’ve been asked what they can offer an establishment or two around town – nothing overt mind you, just the suggestion that the establishment would be open to incentives.

question for all y’all: should breweries be allowed to give swag to bars to give away to patrons who drink their beer? while not actually purchasing taps, they are offering incentives to the bar to keep them on tap and to consumers to choose their tap over the one next to it.

question 2 for all y’all: do tap takeovers count as beer bribery? don’t get me wrong, i love me a tap takeover, but perhaps we should be wary of decrying pay to play so soundly that it precludes such “monopolies” being allowed. it wouldn’t be the first time that the gov’t misunderstood us!

and to conclude my rant, tied house rules have been relaxed in b.c. and our stadiums sign enormous exclusive contracts with breweries, why is anyone surprised that breweries bribe bars to carry their beers? it just makes those who do carry a range of beer all the more respectable, and the tasting room all the more important for independent breweries. so drink local and vote with your dollars.

ipa day

happy ipa day!!

what is ipa day?
silly rabbit, its one of the best days of the year!

what’s going on in vancouver?
pink pints is hosting a cask of four winds mango ipa at rogue on broadway from 6-9 p.m.
the donnelly group kicks off its 30 days of ipa
yaletown brewpub has its weekly cask night

what’s going on in victoria?

if you need some guidance on choosing which fabulous bc ipa to drink, jan zeschky has you covered!

and finally, here’s the ipa infographic that the beer wench had some friends of her create
(Gina Schuland and Rebecca Selkregg of Deschutes Brewery)

link love

this one should actually be on link hate instead of link love
yet another pandering to the concept that women don’t love beer
i guess what can you expect from a women’s magazine… but still
its articles like this that keep the stupid stereotype alive
womens health magazine on the best beers for women

here’s a much better link – to a helpful how-to introduce beer to the not-yet-converted
for all humans with tastebuds!

and a half decent post about orval’s new female head brewer

do it yourself – make a bottle cap table top

looking for cheap beer?
one man’s list of the worst to the least worst
pbr ranks at number 5 (that’s the fifth least worst)

beercation destinations across the u s of a
but these aren’t beer towns you should visit
these are beer inns you can stay, golf, spa and drink at

the donnelly group’s 30 days of ipa in vancouver

what’s in a beer name
or, when is it okay to send a cease and desist letter to another brewer

beer pairing dinner

not yet sold out
so if you have no dinner plans…

snap’d

i got snap’d at the #yvrbeertweetup at smiley’s pub last month
check it out!

from the print version

from the website

hooker’s green?

Hooker’s Green at the New Oxford – Now Open

If you follow the newly fabricated winding raw metal staircase down from the library at the New Oxford, you will be greeted by the dimly lit games area of the newest addition to the Donnelly Group Public Houses, Hooker’s Green.

Not to be mistaken with ladies of the night, Hooker¹s Green takes its name from a unique shade of green, created by 18th century botanical artist William J. Hooker.

The space is complimented by a large covered patio, a massive wooden bar, its own library and of course a well-stocked and stimulating cocktail and beer menu.

Open seven days a week from 4pm, Hooker’s Green offers a menu of locally sourced modern pub fare and a selection of 14 rotating craft beers on tap.

For more info please visit us at www.donnellygroup.ca

Hooker’s Green
1141 Hamilton Street
p. 604.669.4848
Sun – Thur: 4:00pm – 1:00am
Fri & Sat : 4:00pm – 2:00am

kits cask carouse

the camra vancouver kits cask carouse on sunday was chock-ful of good beer and good times!
and it only mostly kicked my ass!

the carouse was divided up into two groups, hitting pubs in a scissoring order
i was one of the fearless leaders of group b
b for beer
b for best

stop one: darby’s pub
yay for bright and cheerful and wifi! wonderfully attentive service
(and the new summer food menu looks ah-mazing!)
talk: paddy treavor of camra vancouver talked about… camra
verdict: interesting and informative and got us several new members!

cask: lighthouse switchback ipa
verdict: as tasty as outta the keg or bottle – pretty carbonated for a cask though!

carnivore food: wimpy burger with roasted garlic polenta fries

veggie food: vegetarian wimpy burger with roasted garlic polenta fries
verdict: delicious and perfectly sized!

stop two: displace hashery
lousy cell reception and no wifi, but pleasant surroundings and attentive service

talk: brent of r&b brewing spoke about cask ale
verdict: trivia with prizes! who doesn’t love prizes, especially when they’re pints of beer!

cask: r&b strawberry ipa
verdict: not much strawberry apparent, didn’t seem to be anyone’s favourite, but when offered seconds, we all partook!

carnivore food: meat and mushroom pizza
veggie food: eggplant and fig pizza
verdict: the other group got antipasto, we got pizza, i’m down with pizza! especially when there were seconds!

brief translink interlude between stops
we coulda walked, but why waste time between beers walking when your drunk ass can ride?

stop three: sunset grill
nicely reno’d and welcoming atmosphere, we had a nice sunny section to sit in
and yay – they have wifi!
talk: rachaal steele on prohibition and that darned temperance movement that’s to blame for it – fun, interesting and intemperant!

cask: red truck french oaked strong ale
verdict: total crowd pleaser, on the sweet side making it a dangerous little number!

carnivore food: lion’s head meatballs served over a bed of baby bok choy
veggie food: arancino crispy risotto wrapped around bocconcini, served on bed of lightly seasoned marinara
verdict: this was the best pairing of the day for me, and another example of the amazing food that craft beer destinations have on offer – muah!

stop four: bimini’s
we had the whole top level to ourselves! there was a service shift change during our sojourn that wasn’t seemless, but otherwise service was attentive, and there’s wifi!
talk: there wasn’t one…

cask: parallel 49 imperial wit
verdict: not at all my preferred style, but i stuck with it most of the way through and it paired nicely with my tacos

carnivore food: slow roasted pork tacos with smoked pepper hot sauce, pickled vegetables & avocado mash served with a side of roasted corn & potato salad
veggie food: squash and asparagus tacos with smoked pepper hot sauce, pickled vegetables & avocado mash. Served with a side of roasted corn & potato salad
verdict: i’ve never had a crispy vegetable taco before, but i would do it again. unfortunately the corn tortillas were dried out.

there was a second cask available for purchase at bimini
also from parallel 49, it was their “lord of the hops” ipa
and damn, was it ever a tasty beast!

the carouse was a fabulous way to spend a sunny vancouver spring afternoon
kudos to amanda of camra for putting it together,
thanks to the four breweries for providing the casks,
and the four venues for extending us such fabulous welcomes and food,
thanks to everyone who came out and paid their money and tooks their chances!

camra vancouver news

from camra vancouver’s lasted newsletter:

There used to be a time when craft beer enthusiasts in Vancouver would celebrate every time Nigel switched up the tap list. But the list began to change so frequently, we decided to give our livers a break and only celebrate the big numbers. Well, it’s that time again. In a few more weeks it’s going to be the Alibi Room’s 300th beer list! On December 12, 13, and 14, the Alibi Room will be serving some special beers in a 10oz glass for $3. It’s first come first serve, and the fun starts each day at 3pm.

The wait is almost over. Russell Brewing and Storm Brewing’s Collaboration Brew, The Big Smoke will be debuting Sunday December 4th at The Whip. The cask will tap at 4pm, and bottles of this smoky, wee heavy style ale will be available at select independent liquor stores.

If you’re excited about all the changes Trevor Kallies has made to many of the Donnelly Group locations, you have something to look forward to. The Bimini in Kisilano will be reopening to the public soon, and there’s going to be 24 craft beers on tap! We’ll keep you posted on the grand opening.

Last but certainly not least, on December 13th, it’s the Eat Local / Drink Local craft dinner series at Darby’s Pub. It will be a 4 course dinner paired with Red Racer beer.

sartori

the driftwood sartori cask at the new oxford last night was awesome!
there were a whole gaggle of beer geeks there
not so patiently waiting for 5:30 and the tapping
thanks ian!!

alas, the service at new oxford left a lot to be desired
amanda thankfully took it upon herself to fetch us all our glasses of cask
as ian endeavoured to get it poured as quickly and foam-free as possible

on the upside, ian says that there will be another cask of the sartori at the whip
he’s not sure when they’ll be tapping it
and… another cask coming to vancouver
no word yet on who will get it or when they will tap it, but keep yer ears peeled if you’re a sartori lover
(and if you’re not, what’s wrong with you???)

i love the opportunity to try out a new place
so while i was being a lady who lunches last week
i used a 20% off coupon i had
and tried out cinema
(owned by the donnelly group, located at the corner of granville and smithe in vancouver)

it took forever for my sandwich and salad to arrive
but when it finally did, omg, divine!
roasted veggies, goat cheese and pesto – yay
side salad of walnuts, craisins, more goat and vinaigrette – more yay

but really, the important part
the beer list!

donnelly group, i’m impressed!

the bottles

the draught

i hope when i hit library square for 80’s night that i can look forward to a similar beer list there as well!