Festival Of Beer: Quaffing And Riffing

08/14/09 3:17pm

by Steve McLean (CHARTattack)

I've attended Toronto's Festival Of Beer every year since it began in 1995, but this was the first not to be held at historic Fort York. It moved slightly west to the Canadian National Exhibition grounds' Bandshell Park, which meant more room, but less intimacy. Whether that's a positive or negative is up to an individual's taste — just like the suds and music that are the major attractions of the event.

In case you weren't able to make it to the four-day fest earlier this month, I've taken it upon myself to tell you about some of the artists who performed and the beers you could sample during their time on stage.

Trafalgar Brewing Co.'s Critical Mass was more than 15 per cent alcohol last year, but festival honchos requested them to drop it to 10 per cent this time around. That still tied it for the festival's strongest beer, which made it a good accompaniment to the band with the strongest track record who played: 54-40.

The double imperial India Pale Ale is dark gold with little head and not as overtly hoppy as expected, but it's quite crisp. It's much better than last year's version and tastes great for a high-octane beer.

Like Critical Mass, Trafalgar's Korruptor was also dropped from 15-plus to 10 per cent alcohol. The English barley wine has a fruity bouquet and is too sweet for me, tasting almost like a port. But if approached that way, and drank in moderation, I could see where people would appreciate it as much as Arrested Development's sweet-sounding hip-hop.

I've enjoyed Trafalgar's blueberry, raspberry and black currant meads in the past, and they've now introduced an orange flavour. The nine per cent alcoholic beverage made with fermented honey, fruit juice and a small amount of barley malt has a light citrus bouquet and tastes sweet, but not too sweet. It's pleasant and easy-drinking, just like the pop-reggae sounds of The Sattalites.

Halifax singer/songwriter Christina Martin won an East Coast Music Award for best pop recording earlier this year, so you'd think her pleasant music would go well with Big Rock Lime Light Lager.

The four per cent alcohol beer is based on the even lighter Jack Rabbit and its flavour, unfortunately, is almost as innocuous as I find Martin's music. It's infused with lime and served with a wedge of it, but the mildness of its taste and aroma left me unsatisfied. I'd take this over Bud Light Lime, but was still disappointed.

Sticking with Big Rock and fruity things, the Alberta brewery was also showing off its Rock Creek Cider. It's a very pale straw colour with a very crisp apple bouquet and flavour derived from Okanagan apples. It's five per cent alcohol, mildly carbonated and a much better choice than the Lime Light Lager.

Elliott Brood's rootsy music often makes me think of the west and its wide open spaces, and they're also a much better choice than most bands out there, so the quartet makes a comfortable pairing with the cider.

I admit to knowing nothing about Lori Nuic and didn't see her perform. So she essentially means nothing to me, just like the Barcelona, Spain-brewed Estrella Damm. It's a straw-coloured, 4.6 per cent alcohol pilsner and has almost no aroma, very little flavour and no character whatsoever. It's been brewed since 1876, but they can stop anytime now.

I can apply similar (if unfair) logic to Jamaican drummer Odel Johnson. While he might be talented, I don't know his music, just like I didn't know what Cracked Canoe tasted like until the festival despite a fairly major television advertising campaign. It's brewed by Moosehead and is just 3.5 per cent alcohol. This lightness is evident in its lack of bouquet and very limited flavour. Johnson's playing couldn't be more non-descript than this.

De Koninck is a dark amber-coloured, five per cent alcohol Belgian ale with a fruity bouquet. It's well-balanced, slightly spicy and has a hint of apple flavour. It certainly won't give you the blues, but singer/harmonica player Paul Reddick will.

Palm has been brewed in Belgium since 1747 but has only been available on tap in Canada since April. It's more dark gold than the amber that the brewer uses in its marketing description, but has a lovely, creamy head when poured into its special glass. It's a bit malty and not your average Belgian brew, just like Lee Harvey Osmond member Tom Wilson has proven to be anything but average over his long and varied career.

Toronto's Black Creek Pioneer Village now has its own brewery specializing in cask-conditioned treats that harken back to how beer was brewed two centuries ago. It's Dark Ale is medium brown and very smooth for a full-bodied ale made with roasted malt to give it a hint of caramel and chocolate flavours.

Most women love chocolate, and I closed down Toronto's Horseshoe Tavern at 4 a.m. with members of Ladies Of The Canyon during the North By Northeast Music Festival in June, so I know they like beer. So the next time the lovely Montreal-based ladies come to Toronto, I'd recommend Black Creek Dark Ale to them.

NQ Arbuckle also likes his drinks and has a rootsy edge to his music, so I'd offer him Black Creek's India Pale Ale. It's conditioned in oak casks to produce a light amber-coloured, slightly hoppy ale that would go down well at this or any other time of year.

Young Rival (formerly The Ride Theory) have been one of my favourite up-and-coming Ontario bands over the past few years, but one of the things I may enjoy more than their music is Black Oak Brewing Company's excellent Summer Saison.

It's a medium gold-coloured, 4.2 per cent alcohol brew that has a sweet and almost bubblegum-like bouquet. It's slightly spicy with a hint of coriander and hits your tongue in a pleasant way and continues its magic down your throat. This quite complex Belgian-styled beer was my favourite of the festival.

Finally, Mill Street Brewery had its own entertainment tent featuring a burlesque/vaudeville side show complete with musicians, dancers, magicians, mentalists and freaks. I caught a somewhat scantily clad young lady sing and play guitar and a guy called One Arm Bob who had a playing card stapled to his face by an audience volunteer.

I washed that down with their Lemon Tea Ale, a slightly cloudy gold beer that's blended with lemon ice tea to produce a refreshing citrus aroma. A lemon taste was present, but not strong, but it made for a nice summer drink.

That's it for another year. See you at the bar.