Beering in Ontario: Waterloo

SEND HIM TO THE DUNGEON!!

So after I cross the border and try some very pleasant session lagers at Niagara Best, I called up my friend from college and let him know I was on the way to the 'Loo. But before I made it out to Waterloo, I made a detour to St. Catherine's.

You talking about a pleasant little city with some good bars. I stopped here specifically to make it to Merchant Ale House. And they were CLOSED!!!! Who the hell closes a brewpub in the middle of the day? Whatever happened to the late lunch, the early beering. Any way, I decided to walk the street of St. Cath for a while then got back in the car to hit Waterloo.

First off, the drive on Queen Elizabeth's Way is SWEEEEEEEEET! Nice scenery and I counted 25 wineries all along the way.

So I made to Waterloo but my fried still had to work, so I drove around this city and found my way to the LION!

Lion Brewery and Restaurant was a set in an old castle like hotel smackdab on King street in downtown Waterloo. At first I thought I was in the wrong place as there was some sort of a cafe on the ground floor. I later learned the brewpub itself was in the downstairs area in what was probably the Dungeon. Compared to the bright clear day of central Ontario, this place was almost as dark as Lovejoys in Austin. NOBODY was there and I felt a little exposed, but whatever. Up to the bar for the flight...

Lion Lager

(By the way, I can't see sh8t, so no real appearance notes). A touch of toast amber with a subtle hop presence. Not bad. Low 3 Stars.

Lion Light

Probably should have tried this one first. Light body with very subtle malt and hops. There is a hint of sourness on the back of the palette. Somehow I'm able to see the lacy head. 2 Stars.

Huether's Premium Lager

A little gritty on the tongue and sour. Light and crisp aftertaste with high carbonation. 2 Stars.

Ontario, can I see you over here?

What the heck is up with these Premium beers. I'm sorry man but it seems like it's a big misnomer. Pretty much your most boring beers are called Premium. What the hell is up with that? Moving on.

Wuerzburger Lager

Bubbles still coming up as I look at it. Slight dark hue. It's a little smoother than the others with moderate body. I don't know what style to put it in. Low 3 Stars.

Adlys Ale

These flights are starting to run together. All I wrote down was Low 3 Star for a thick red ale.

Wheat Beer

Medium body with low banana and some orange, but it could be from the orange zest the put in it. Not bad.

Honey Brown

(I can tell I was getting a little tired as my reviews got shorter)

Moderate body with some honey and toast aftertaste. Low 3 Stars.

English Ale

Very sour and puckering. Full bodied with a little roast and a funky hop AT. Low 2 Stars.

Black and Tan

A mellowed out version of the English Ale. More like a Brown and Tan.

Aaaaaaaaaaaaand we're done. The bartender was pretty nice and we chatted about the beer for a while. I must say that this spot was very different than many brewpubs I've been to before. I think under the right circumstances (and a Canadian/English palette), this place could be on point. Especially with the Honey Brown and the Lion Lager.

Beering in Ontario: Niagara

When we last left our hero, I was hanging around in Buffalo at my grandmother's place. Beautiful large house in Williamsville, NY which also happens to be home to a couple of great beer spots and an AWESOME grocery store with killer craft beer selection. I randomly picked up a good session beer that rarely goes wrong, an Amber Lager (Great Lakes).

I already had this trip through Ontario set up as I knew that I would be OD'ing on estrogen in Buffalo for too long. My grandmother, mother, sister, two female cousins, my daughter, and of course the women at the daycare center. Had I stayed there the whole week, I would have been so amped up on estrogen that as soon as I got back to Houston I would get a testosterone rush resulting in my buying a gun, smoked a box of cigars, and hit Richmond St. for some hard drinking and strip clubbing. Probably ending the night getting arrested in my own house while yelling RACISM!

So to guard against such risks, I got the heck out of there for a couple days to hang out with an old college buddy in Canadia. On the drive up to the border, I saw the beautiful Niagara Falls. Good thing it was great scenery b/c I was at the damn border crossing for damn near an hour. By the time I got to the border, the guard gave me the THIRD DEGREE with the questions. "What are you doing here? Did you make a reservation, what hotel? Where did you go to college? Why did you rent a truck?" And he was some swole lookin' white dude that's probably training for the UFC. I admit I was a little shook. Dude just caught me flat footed.

So after crossing the border with all casinos and whatnot, I set the GPS for Niagara's Best Brewery and Pub.

This place had a good kind of minimalist decor with little beer baskets of their brew for purchase. And Growlers. It was a little quiet as it was only 11:45AM. I sat outside and instantly realized that I did not bring a warm enough outfit. The area in Niagara, ON was nice and touristy. Everything just seemed cleaner than western New York. Imagine that. Ok, 10 beer flight.

Light Premium Lager

From what I know about Canadian beer, they love their lagers. Lemony and sour nose. Hazy old gold tint. Taste has a light bread and a hint of citrus hops. Moderate carbonation and drinkability. Not the worst light beer I've had. 2 Stars.

Logger Premium Lager

Funky malty smell comes after you give it a cocaine snorting sniff. Clear color. Taste has some toast and a bit more hops than the Light. Moderate body. It's not as crisp as the menu says but it has some icky hoppy aftertaste. High 2 Star.

Blonde Premium Ale

They love that "Premium" don't they. Clear gold color. Similar nose to the logger. The taste has a spiciness to it along with a decent grassy hop and light toast. Always love a good blonde (and the beer ain't bad either). 3 Stars.

Cascade Premium White Ale

Here I am thinking this will have some good ol' cascade hops and yet I get a spicy banana nose. Old gold cloudy colour. Beer has some random spice. As I keep sipping it, the spice turns more into a strong coriander and LOTS of orange peel. A little heavy on the spices, but it works though. 3 Stars.

I got the Mussels. Dammit I love mussels. And these one' are pretty salty. I actually like my mussels with a touch of sweetness to it. Of course some frites to round it out.

Drummond Dark Ale

Brown color with malty cinnamon nose. Lots of brown caramel malt in the flavor with *gasp* a touch of water on the second sip. It gets plainer the more I drink it. It could be the mussels, but 2 Stars.

Portage Premium Pale Ale

Malty/hop nose after hovers over the beer after some swirling. Amber color with a low white head. Moderate hops and malt. Very balanced beer but I've had stronger Blonde Pale Ales. Of course that usually means this is the English style pale ale. I guess the Queen does still hold some sway over Canada. Low 3 Stars.

Daredevil Red

Malty nose. Light malt and bread flavor. It's kinda plain again. It's a little boring, but red ale are always boring to me. I just don't see what the fuss is about Red ales. Maybe I just need to do a Red Ale tasting next time I'm at the Saucer. Wait a minute, the next time I'm at the Saucer is for the party for my PE License. Screw that. It's all Belgians. 2 Star for the balanced beer.

Pilsner Lager

Yeah I saved the pilsner until now. Turns out folk are putting a lot of strength in their pilsners these days and I was going in order of increasing IBUs. Malty and hoppy nose. Dark gold color. Strong-moderate hops and chewy mouthfeel that works well for me. Goes down smooth with lingering hop aftertaste. 3 Star.

Oatmeal Stout

Chocolate nose. Deep brown color. It has a burnt flavor to it. Maybe like overly cooked grains. Good coffee notes but no sweetness. Not bad but again just a little soft on what I like in my stouts. The oats must be giving it the full body. Low 3 Stars.

Bitter Ale

Bread/bitter nose. Copper hue. Nice bitterness just barely balanced by the malt. Last sip is a pleasant toastiness reminiscent of my beloved American ambers. 3 Stars.

Overall, this was a nice experience. The waitress seemed to really know her beer and she informed me they only opened two weeks prior. That's just fantastic. I look forward to getting with them again whenever I'm up this way. Turns out I may be back in Toronto next year. So I would love to see how they've progressed. Holla.