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BBQ in the Summer Wine Tasting - August 21, 2015

Posted on August 26, 2015

Eric Southward
August 21, 2015
Of course we scheduled a BBQ wine tasting in August, and it snowed… of course! It’s Alberta!!  So there we were, a group of patio-loving wine-drinkers all cozied-up on a chilly August evening, drinking some great wines designed to handle much warmer temperatures.  But we made the best of it, and the evening was delightful.  The BBQ was supplied by the fine people at Holy Smoke, and the wines all performed exceptionally.

Wines were chosen for characteristics that lend themselves for being great BBQ vinos.  They needed to be refreshing, intense, versatile and great value.  My favourite wines were the night’s first two – the Cava and the Chilean Pedro Ximenez.  But, as for the group, I got outvoted.  The overwhelming favourite of the night was the Carlisle Zinfandel Saitone Ranch Vineyard.  It really is a great match with saucy meat coming off a grill.  The Coca I Fito “Aloja Negre” and the Poggio Al Sole Rosato tied for second place, while the Best’s Great Western Chardonnay garnered the 3rd most votes of the night.  All in all, it was a great way to spend a chilly August evening, and for those who attended, thank you.  You were a pleasure.  Below are some tasting notes for the seven wines tried during the tasting.  Cheers.



NV CANALS NADAL Cava Brut Nature Reserva
(Penedes, Spain) - $27
“The 2007 Canals Nadal Brut Nature Reserva is produced with zero dosage. It sports an expressive nose of minerals, almonds, and apple leading to a dry, focused, moderately intense wine with good balance and medium length.” – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, May 2011

2014 MAYU Pedro Ximenez
(Elqui Valley, Chile) - $16
“The Elqui Valley is the northernmost appellation in Chile. Giorgio Fressati is a wine consultant in Italy and has family in Elqui who are grape producers. They are related to Falernia, the owner’s father’s winery. They have two calcareous slopes where they grow Pedro Ximenez grapes at 2,500 meters altitude on the magnetic center of the earth. The Elqui Valley is one place to keep in mind. These wines offer mindboggling quality and character at unbelievable prices.” – Robert Parker’s Wine Advocate, June 2014

2012 BEST’S Chardonnay “Great Western”
(Great Western, Australia) - $30
“Founded in 1866, Best’s is one of Australia's oldest family-owned wineries with some of the oldest vines in the country. The “Nursery Block”–a 22-hectare vineyard adjacent to the winery and cellar door–was planted by Henry Best in 1866 and many of the original vines are still in production today. Within the collection, believed to be the most extensive pre-phylloxera plantings in Australia and possibly the world, ...

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Sour in the Summer tasting, August 18 2015

Posted on August 24, 2015

Shawn Young
August 18, 2015
Well, there is a first for everything right? I mean I may be wrong (and feel free to correct me if I am), but I think this was the first sour tasting hosted by a beer shop here in Calgary (ok ok so we're not just a beer shop... I'm happy in my delusion). I was so excited to put this on, and with only 2 weeks’ notice, my colleagues and I worked hard to make sure everyone who would be interested knew about it. So much in fact that we ended up overselling the tasting and had to make it a stand up tasting! However, that allowed me to open the really good stuff!

Our friends at Peasant Cheese picked out some cheeses for us that would stand up to the onslaught of acids  we were about to be subjected to, and just now as I'm writing, I realize I could have given it a funny name based on lactic acid (cheese and lacto fermentation and whatnot... oh well next time).

So here's the lineup for all those curious. Please commence drooling!



Oude Geuze by 3 fonteinen
The first of the evening was one of many Lambics. The classic geuze style is a blend of 1, 2 and 3 year old lambics. The 2 and 3 year olds are have practically fermented dry, and the 1 year old is mainly added to priming sugar for the carbonation. This boasts huge tart aromas and flavors, and melange of fruit characteristics, peach, green apple, mild pear. Cidery oak notes and a crazy amount of funk. Upon first sniff, everyone knew exactly what to expect this tasting. ($27.69 for a 750mL bottle)

Dulcis Succubus by Le Trou du Diable
Although I could easily have made the tasting purely out of lambics, I did want to offer some variation by giving a few different kinds of sours. This is a mildly sour barrel aged saison by one of Canada's top brewers (and one of the world's truth be told). Peach, apple and apricot penetrate the malty and straw farmhouse malt. A young and mild acidic note that shows potential for age, but currently does not overtake the malty body. ($22.19 for a 750mL bottle)

Geuze Mega Blend 2015 by HORAL
This is a biennial release from Belgium's high counsel of artisanal lambic-style beer producers (The initialism HORAL makes sense in French -or maybe it's Dutch?-). This most recent version is said to be the best one yet, and all I can say is that it's probably in my top 5 lambics ever.  It's a fairly dry geuze with a crisp bright acidity and plenty of crab apple flavors. Grapefruit tartness plays around with an interesting sweet note that's hard to place. ($24.49 for a 750mL bottle)

1945 Berliner Weisse by Black Market brewing
This was the second and final break in lambics that we took. This is a take on a northern German sour wheat ale that dates back to around the 15th century. This wheat beer is fermented with Lactobacillus to give it a tart lactic acid zing. Mild spices including clove and pepper co...

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Free Drop in Tasting w/ James Robertson of Tullibardine Distillery Today - 3-6PM!

Posted on August 19, 2015



Join us between 3 and 6pm  tomorrow, Wednesday August 19, for a free drop in tasting with James Robertson of Tullibardine Distillery.

James has been a familiar face in the store for close to a decade. We've witnessed the rebirth of the Tullibardine brand through him and shared in its evolution. James will have whiskies from the range open as well as a custom cocktail we'll be mixing up, the Twisted Sovereign!

We hope to see you today for a chance to sample these whiskies:

Tullibardine Sovereign - $62
Tullibardine 225 Sauternes - $68
Tullibardine 228 Burgundy - $68
Tullibardine 500 Sherry - $68
Tullibardine 20 Year - $150
Tullibardine 25 Year - $300

And the Twisted Sovereign Cocktail:

2 ounces of Tullibardine Sovereign
4 ounces of Fever Tree Ginger Beer
2 dashes of Dillon's Angelica Bitters
Garnish with a lime
Serve over ice
...

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Scotch Malt Whisky Society Canada August 2015 Outturn

Posted on August 15, 2015

The 8th Scotch Malt Whisky Society (SMWS) outturn of 2015 was a huge hit! All six of the new whiskies released showed well, as did the 7th man, 66.57, a peated Highland whisky. The demand was extremely high, and not unexpectedly so, three of the six new releases were very rare and available only in small quantities. They included whiskies from a forest shrouded Japanese distillery, a closed Lowland distillery and an Islay distillery made famous by a certan Jim Mc... ! Four of this month's releases are sold out, but we have more exciting whiskies on the way in September!



August's Scotch Malt Whisky Society Canada releases are:

25.65: The whispered kiss - 50% - 22 Year - Refill Barrel - Lowland - Flavour profile: Light & delicate - Outturn: 220 bottles - Panel's tasting note: "A whispered kiss from a ghost of a distillery. The nose tip toes around delicate peach skins, apple blossom and papaya. Sticky honey glaze on dainty cinnamon pastries. Musky notes reminded the panel of perfume departments and aromatherapy boxes. Crushed rose petals and wax candles in a dunnage warehouse. To taste they found crisp pear, mandarin, apple and mint and with water the fruits morphed into tinned peaches and cherry drops. Memories of childhood were evoked by talcum powder, allspice, citronella candle, and sandalwood. An gentle earthy warmth hovered while silky fruit syrup and honey lingered like a shadow." Drinking tip: "A graceful aperitif.  Careful with the water." - $219.99 - !!SOLD OUT!!
44.56: Sweet and sour creative tension - 51.8% - 20 Year - Refill Hogshead - Speyside - Flavour profile: Juicy, oak & vanilla - Outturn: 300 bottles - Panel's tasting note: "The nose had heaps of honey, mounds of marshmallows and vast vanilla it also evoked summer barbecues (charred ribs, salad, lemon, balsamic, wood-sap, lawns) and a bookbinder's workshop (leather, paper, glue). The palate had sweet and sour creative tension – sweet vanilla, chocolate muffins, crème brûlée, dark toffee and fudge against stewed fruits, Haribo sours, orange and blueberry. We also found woody notes – oily pine and wood fire embers. The reduced nose offered millionaire’s shortbread, sweet pipe tobacco, shrubberies and a good blast of honeycomb; while balsa wood and clove joined the palate. This 1891 distillery was co-founded by ‘Restless Peter’." Drinking tip: A summer barbecue dram (or just with a good book). - $183.99 - Only 2 left!
35.119: An Alice in Wonderland dram - 57.7% - 16 Year - 1st Fill Barrel - Speyside - Flavour profile: Spicy & sweet - Outturn: 216 bottles - Panel's tasting note: "The first nose was explosive with camphor, Berwick Balls and fruit pastilles. Sweeter notes of golden syrup, strawberry jam and tangerine pushed through. A crazy tea party ensued with ham baked in Coke and a dusting of Moroccan spices. The tasting was sen...

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New beer arrivals Friday August 14, 2015

Posted on August 14, 2015

Shawn Young
Friday August 14, 2015
Ahoy!

Another week, another batch of amazing beers, hey? Ok, so maybe you haven't seen them yet, but I know you're just as excited as I am, and if you're ever in to see how fast I have to restock these shelves then you know it's no lie. We're still in that time of year where summery light beers are coming in, and if you're like me and love those styles for as long as we have the weather to accompany them, then you know that it's only a matter of time until the fall beers start hitting the shelves. I'm making sure to get my fill of Kolsch and ISA and lambic(more about that later) before my next favorite seasonals start arriving, and I'll make sure to have them all for those who love them as much as me! That means you!

There are at least a couple new ones in that vein this week, and I can already say that I am very satisfied with them. See for yourself.

Postmark IPA from Postmark Brewing
Postmark is one of the newest Vancouver brewers to hit our shelves. Their IPA is among the first of four of their beers in Alberta, and if I do say so myself, it is quite pleasant. A mild body with soft caramel notes and hints of hearty bread, and moderate citrusy hop character with a soft and balancing bitterness. Definitely an easy drinking IPA. ($6.59 for a 650mL bottle)



Curiosity Lager by Stanley Park Brewing in collaboration with Lululemon Athletica
I'm not so sure anyone expected a 'lululager' (I'm so sorry for that...) to hit the scene, but it's not an unwelcome sight (seriously though, I'm very sorry). This is a light, crisp pale lager done with chinook and lemon drop hops (Get it? Lemons. I apologized for my pun). It's mild and bready with a very soft bitterness. It was made to be served at a festival and marathon on the coast, because after all, beer is the first thing that many marathon runners have on the finish line. I imagine it would be suitable after some hot yoga as well. I myself will tilt it back in warrior pose. ($3.39 for a 500mL can)



Garden of Eden Tropical IPA from To 0l Brewing
Just like most things that Mikkeller touches, this one is gold! His former students came across the ocean with this light bodied IPA with a hint of tart acidity and wonderfully tropical flavors. The bitterness is not overpowering, and compliments the body nicely. ($5.39 for a 330mL bottle)

Long Strange Tripel by Boulevard Brewing
One of a few of Boulevard's "smoke stack" series, this boasts a 9.2% ABV but you wouldn't know it! Yeasty with notes of apple and drier fruits. Mildly estery with plenty of bread. A big and pleasant beer that could double as a desert for those who don't like the sweetest deserts but do like beer. ($16.39 for a 750mL bottle)

The last few new items are of the local(ish) variety, and it's about time we see more Alberta brews!
<...

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