New brews to peruse

If you’ve ever toyed with the idea of hosting your own beer festival, now’s your chance.

In a normal year, beer lovers would have swarmed through the doors of Canada Life Centre this past June in search of the newest lagers and ales as part of the Flatlanders Beer Festival. But of course this year, like 2020, has been anything but normal.

And while last year’s festival was scratched entirely due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this year the fest is going ahead, albeit with a virtual twist — and a bit of mystery.

Starting Wednesday, July 28, 11 different mixed packs of brews will be available at select Liquor Marts for folks to enjoy as part of the 2021 Flatlanders Beer Festival At Home. Festival-exclusive mixed packs from breweries such as Calgary’s Banded Peak, Vancouver’s Stanley Park, Toronto’s Lost Craft and even Irish titan Guinness are all part of the fest, as are packs from locals such as Trans Canada Brewing Co. and Little Brown Jug. Many of the boxes feature new/new-to-Manitoba brews and, in some cases, glassware or other fun beer-related trinkets.

Three of the packs are also mixed-brew mystery boxes, either in packages of six or 12 beers, with only the producer’s name (but not the style of beer) revealed in advance. The biggest mystery package includes a dozen brews from locals such as Barn Hammer, Trans Canada, Farmery, Fort Garry and Good Neighbour, cider from Dead Horse as well as brews from beyond our province’s borders. And for those not inclined towards lagers and ales, there’s even a hard seltzer/hard iced tea mixed pack.

And while you can’t bend a brewer’s ear at a Flatlanders booth this year, that doesn’t mean you can’t learn a bit about the featured beers. Most of the packages also come with links to corresponding pre-recorded tasting videos created at the brewery that can be accessed online. A couple of the packages, meanwhile, feature live virtual tastings for thirsty Manitobans to enjoy while cracking open their Flatlanders boxes. On Thursday, July 29, for example, Guinness brewing ambassador and certified cicerone (like a sommelier, but for beer) Jimmy Callahan will lead a virtual event for those who picked up the Irish brewery’s box, while the Lost Craft box also features a live virtual tasting taking place on Aug. 24.

The 2021 Flatlanders Beer Festival At Home packages start at $15.95. As usual, proceeds from the festival are in support of the True North Youth Foundation. For a complete list of stores carrying the mystery boxes, the breweries involved and prices of each of the boxes, see flatlandersbeerfest.com.

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Beers of the week

Here’s a mixed six of new local brews, from light and fruity to hearty and hoppy…

Torque Roadrunner Raspberry Wheat Beer (Winnipeg – $3.50/473ml cans, brewery, Liquor Marts and beer vendors)

Medium pinkish-red in colour and slightly hazy, the raspberry notes on the nose are fresh and ripe, working well with the wheat component. It’s dry and light-plus bodied, with those red, slightly tart berry flavours again pairing nicely with the wheat flavours before the short finish. A simple but fun summer sipper — 4.5 per cent alcohol. 3/5

Half Pints Brewing Co. Berry McBikeface Raspberry Grapefruit Lager (Winnipeg – $4.29/473ml cans, brewery, Liquor Marts, beer vendors)

Half Pints have added raspberries to this riff on their wildly popular Bikey McBikeface grapefruit lager. It’s pale gold and slightly hazy in appearance, with ripe grapefruit aromas which accentuate the tart raspberry component. Like the original Bikey, there’s a hint of sweetness on the palate from the grapefruit, with the raspberry flavours playing a more secondary role, a brisk hit of hoppy, citrusy bitterness and a just-right 4.5 per cent alcohol level. A patio pleaser. 3/5

Vessel Beer Co. Rumble in the Crumble Rhubarb vs. Strawberry Oat Pale Ale (Winnipeg – $4.59/473ml cans, Nonsuch Brewing Co., Liquor Marts, beer vendors)

Brewed with local rhubarb and strawberries as well as Mosaic and Callista hops and a dash of brown sugar, this pale gold and hazy pale ale brings the tart from the rhubarb and the sweet from the strawberries on the nose. On the palate both flavours shine, complementing each other well before the more subtle oat notes kick in with very slight sweetness and some warmth from the 5.5 per cent alcohol. Call this rumble a delicious draw. Brewed at Nonsuch. 4/5

Devil May Care Nothin’ But the Hops Vol. 5 West Coast IPA (Winnipeg – $4.59/473ml cans, Torque brewery, Liquor Marts and beer vendors)

The latest in Devil May Care’s mix tape series delivers Manitoba-grown Comet, Centennial and Chinook hops. It’s medium copper in colour and clear, with a solid core of herbal, chalky and slightly resinous hops aromas to go with the fresh malt notes. On the medium-bodied palate the hops really shine, picking up more resinous and ripe citrus notes that work great with the fresh malty component. At 6.4 per cent alcohol there’s some kick on the back end, and the bitter notes are nicely countered by an almost-sweet note. One of the best in this series. Brewed at Torque. 4/5

Grain to Glass Brewing Skulls Lager Schwarzbier (Winnipeg – $3.49/473 cans, Torque brewery, Liquor Marts and beer vendors)

Those expecting a timid lager, be warned — this ain’t it. This black lager is deep cola-brown in colour, with bright mocha, toasted nut and roasted malt aromas that are intense. It’s medium-bodied, dry and robust, with roasted coffee, toasted malt, Tootsie Roll and slightly peppery, earthy flavours. And while the flavours are intense, the 4.8 per cent alcohol and relatively short finish make this a good option for dark beer lovers to enjoy in the summer. Brewed at Torque. 3.5/5

Oxus Brewing Vostok: The Orbit Double IPA (Winnipeg – $4.60/473ml cans, brewery, Liquor Marts and beer vendors)

The first version of Oxus’s double IPA, was dubbed The Launch, and this second version, The Orbit, is just as good. It’s pale gold and slightly hazy in appearance, and brings big, complex resin, floral, tropical fruit, grassy and malty aromas. On the mainly dry, medium-bodied palate, intense grapefruit pith, fresh-cut grass and lemon oil flavours work nicely with the resinous, malty and peppery components and the warm, 7.5 per cent finish that sneaks up on you. Out of this world. 4.5/5

uncorked@mts.net

Twitter: @bensigurdson

Ben Sigurdson Literary editor, drinks writer

Ben Sigurdson edits the Free Press books section, and also writes about wine, beer and spirits.

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