review – Ben's Beer Blog

A couple weeks ago I was on something of a whisky kick; penning a post for blogTO about fledgling distillery Toronto Distillery Company, announcing the release of Still Waters Distillery’s first single malt whisky, and even finding new reasons to rant about the province’s liquor laws as a result of said writing.

Somehow, in the shuffle, I forgot to include my thoughts on what should always be foremost when it comes to booze and beer: the taste.

I was lucky enough to be shipped a small sample of Still Waters’ very limited first release (the 46% version) and, while it’s a touch late to inform you about whether or not you should line up to get yourself a bottle when they were released (back on April 27th), here are my notes on the province’s only commercially available micro-distilled whisky. Continue reading “Still Waters Distillery: So how’s the booze?” →

Budweiser, to a craft beer drinker, and indeed anyone who might refer to themselves as a “beer writer,” is supposed to be anathema.

It is a relatively bland beer brewed with a rice adjunct and it has the distinction of being one of the world’s most popular beers largely by virtue of the fact that it is backed by millions and millions of dollars in marketing. It is brewed en masse, it is distributed by a foreign-owned multinational conglomerate, and its advertisements typically run the lowest common-denominator range of blatantly sexual or related to sports–and often blatantly sexual and related to sports at the same time.

Budweiser is the epitome of a “big brewery beer,” and essentially stands in opposition to all the things about the beer business that I like.

I should hate it.

And yet… Continue reading “This Bud’s for Me?” →