The Fat Tug Standard - One Man's Search for the Ultimate Pint

Things have been getting kind of heavy & political lately on VEBB so I thought I'd break up the rants with something I have enjoyed researching...back to your regularly broadcast programming shortly...

In search of the ultimate Fat Tug...sounds like a lot of fun to me

Back in the mid-80's, when I was on my first extended trip in Europe and Middle East, I developed some survival skills to help me get by in the wilds beyond the borders Surrey where I grew up.

One such skill of great importance was the one I used to decide which restaurant or bar I was going to plant my ass in and this method I dubbed "The Amstel Standard".

I developed this in Greece, where at that time the only decent beer I could find was Amstel and by decent, I mean best of a bad, Eurotrash selection. My method was based on sound empirical research and basically involved me looking at countless menus around whatever city/town/village I was in to see if they sold Amstel beer and if so, at what price.

If they did and the price was good, that's where I camped out and drank beer. Having only a few dollars a day to spend while backpacking, finding the cheapest place to slake my thirst was a top priority, as often I had to choose between food and beer (and you know who won that battle most days), so I would be on constant lookout for the best deal while out sightseeing or doing whatever it was I was up to that day.

Very advanced and clever, don't you think.

I adopted this method in each country I visited, renaming it after my favourite, or sometimes the only available beer in that country. In Israel, it was the "Gold Star Standard", the best adaptation of the name, but probably the worst beer I ever used as a standard, not that there was much choice in mid-80's in Israel.

The other day I got to thinking (yes, sometimes I have a momentary lapse of reason or two) and decided to research "The Fat Tug Standard", which, now that I think about it, sounds more like something that should catch the attention of the vice squad than searching for the best deal on my favourite beer. My love for this beer is only surpassed by my love for my wife and daughter so I thought I would do some "research". I just love it when my wife asks me where I am off and I can reply, "just doing research for my blog dear, see you in a few hours." Of course, she knows what this means, but in this case, at least she won't be able to easily find me perched at the bar in either St Augustine's or Tangent Cafe, my two locals, as I wander all Vancouver looking for the ultimate (read cheapest) Fat Tug.

I do have to say that there are many different factors that contribute to cost here in Vancouver that may not apply in the beach bars of Greece, such as the existence and cost of a liquor license and business permit, paying staff more than just drinks, costs of building upkeep (there is little upkeep when your bar is a palapa with no walls) and I tend to be less picky about where I drink when I am sitting with my feet in the sand surrounded by merry backpackers and scantily-clad Scandinavian women (obviously the Amstel Standard was developed during my single days) and when I am paying in currency valued much less than the Canadian dollar.

Here in Vancouver I choose where I belly up to the bar based on many different factors such as staff knowledge and service levels, how my beer is served, atmosphere, the ethics of the bar management/ownership, whether I want to watch the game or not, convenience to transit, approval of my wife, whether Fat Tug, or a suitable substitute IPA, is one tap and, of course, price, but price usually only factors in if it is so prohibitive that it obliterates all other factors.

I will do my best to break down the city into geographical areas and find as many taps of Fat Tug as I can and I will do a post per area researched. I know I will miss some areas and some locations, but hey, a man only has so much spare time, one liver and I cannot afford a divorce lawyer.

And for those of you who feel I am favouring Driftwood and Fat Tug beer, well, you are absolutely right. This is my blog and I prefer Fat Tug over any other beer in the world I have found.

Since I live about 200 metres of Commercial Drive, I figured that would be as good a place as any to start, so here we go...

(All prices pre-tax & rounded to the nearest cent in ounces only)

Commercial Drive - Draft 
Establishments listed from south to north from 12th Ave to Venables

Licensee	Serving Size	Price Regular	Price Special	Regular Price Breakdown	Special Price Breakdown
St Augustine’s	14oz/414ml	$6.00	$5.00 (Tuesdays)	$0.43 oz	$0.36 oz
Tangent Café	16oz/454ml	$6.00		$0.38 oz
Timbre	16oz/454ml	$6.50	$4.75 (Tuesdays)	$0.41 oz	$0.30 oz
Charlatan	20oz/568ml 16oz/454ml	$6.25 $4.99		$0.31 oz $0.31 oz
Storm Crow	20oz/568ml	$5.75		$0.29 oz
Biercraft	16oz/454ml	$6.50		$.41 oz

Commercial Drive - Bottle 

Licensee	Size	Price	Price Breakdown
Toby’s	22.9oz/650ml	$6.90	$0.30 oz
Liberty	22.9oz/650ml	$5.99	$0.26 oz
LDB	22.9oz/650ml	$5.50	$0.24 oz

If you see any places I have omitted, please email me at vaneastbeerblog@gmail.com and let me know. Also, if you work in an establishment in Vancouver that serves Fat Tug, email and let me know where, how much and serving size (uses ounces not words like sleeve that have absolutely no value).

Cheers and Happy Fat Tugging my friends.

Craft Beer Defined

This evening, when I heard the on the 6:00 news that the term craft beer had been defined and included in the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, I was very excited.

Finally I would have a conclusive answer when I am inevitably asked the question ,"what is craft beer?"

This is always one of the first questions posed to me in interviews and it always catches me off guard for some reason, causing me I mumble out some lame-ass definition that makes me sound like I have no clue what I am talking about and which makes the interviewer think they are going to fire their assistants for recommending me for the interview. This inability by me to nail down the perfect definition might be because there was no real consensus as to what constitutes a craft beer because the term was created mostly as a marketing ploy. You ask 10 different beer aficionados to define craft beer and you will get 10 different and often conflicting answers.

But that was before Merriam-Webster got involved.

You can imagine my excitement as I quickly went to their on-line dictionary and typed in "craft beer". Merriam-Webster have been defining the English language since the 1800's so surely they would know how to nail down precisely and succinctly the definition that has alluded all of us beer geeks for the past 15 years or so.

Finally there would be no argument or debate as to what constitutes a craft beer. I was prepared to be enlightened.

So here it is, according to Merriam-Webster: craft beer (noun) - a specialty beer produced in limited quantities.

Well that sure clears things up doesn't it? No longer will I have to struggle to sound learned and intelligent when asked to define craft beer. I can just sit back, with an all-knowing smirk, and spout forth the definition endorsed by those who define the English language, making myself look every inch the expert my interviewer expects me to be.

Seriously, I'm even more confused and have more questions than ever. What defines "a specialty beer"? What defines "limited quantities"? Does that mean my beloved Fat Tug IPA is not a craft beer? Say it ain't so!  It is regularly produced, can be found virtually everywhere in Vancouver year-round and is a beer from a recognized style, so is it a specialty beer made in limited quantities? 

Who cares. I like it so I will drink it until I don't like it any more, no matter what label gets attached to it or pigeon hole its gets shoved into. I don't drink Fat Tug because it is called a craft beer, I drink it because I love its flavour.

I think maybe we, the beer geeks, get too carried away with this whole craft beer thing sometime, especially since no one really knows what the Hell craft beer is exactly. Isn't the point of going out for a beer to enjoy said beer and the company you are with while drinking it? If you like a beer's taste and it hits the spot for you, does it matter whether it is craft or crap? Hell, if Molson M and it's microcarbonation blew away my tastes buds, I would drink it, but predictably, it just blew, so I don't. I have tasted beers that were supposed to be great tasting beers, brewed by the most hip and reputable "craft breweries" and I have disliked them because, yes, you guessed it, they didn't suite my palate.

I've said it before and I'll say it again,  I would drink beer filter through dirty socks if I liked the taste and it didn't kill me.


So maybe this ambiguous definition from Merriam-Webster and lack of consensus on any other definition from the beer world about what defines a craft beer is not all that important. What is important is that we all have ample access to the beers that we love, sold at reasonable prices, in the volumes promised and served in the correct manner.

Meanwhile, I'm going to start memorizing this new definition so I am ready for that next interview. How can I go wrong by answering, "well, according to Merriam-Webster..." 



  

BC Rocks the Canadian Beer Awards

BC brewers/breweries dominated the 9th Annual Canadian Brewing Awards, held in Toronto August 25-28, taking home 38 of the 117 medals awarded including the gold medal for "Beer of the Year" by Driftwood Brewery for their Fat Tug IPA.
Anyone who knows me will tell you that I am probably responsible for about 10% of Fat Tug's sales in the Lower Mainland. I have been telling everyone who will listen it is the best bottled beer in BC, but I guess I was wrong, as it has now been judged the best bottled beer in Canada.

This year's event, which was sanctioned by the Beer Judge Certification Program (BJCP), incorporated style guidelines used by the BJCP, the Brewers Association Style Guidelines and the Great American Beer Festival and included only bottled beers.

When the dust had settled and the last sample had been judged, BC easily outdistanced their closest competitors, Ontario, who brought home 31 medals and Quebec, who snagged 22. Leading the charge for BC breweries were Howe Sound Brewing, who brought home an impressive seven awards, with four silver and three bronze and Tree Brewing who were recognized four times with one gold and four bronze medals.  Not only did Howe Sound top all BC breweries, but by my count, they brought home more medals than any other brewery in the country, narrowly beating out Quebec's Unibroue who captured six medals. In total 16 BC breweries were honoured, bring home 11 gold, 14 silver and 14 bronze medals.

Last year BC made a big impact as well with, Surrey's Central City Brewing taking home three golds plus "Beer of the Year", with Thor's Hammer and "Brewery of the Year" honours. It just goes to show the quality of the brewers we have in our province and how they are pushing each other to get better and better which benefits us, the consumers, who get to taste these brilliant brews and the industry as a whole.

Well done and congratulations to all the BC brewers and breweries who were honoured!!
What a way to start building the buzz for October's BC Craft Beer Month, a month designated to celebrate BC craft beers.

List of BC winners

Howe Sound
     Silver: Diamond Head Oatmeal Stout - Stout
     Silver: Pumpkineater Imperial Pumpkin Ale - Pumpkin Beer
     Silver: Megadestroyer Imperial Licorice Stout - Experimental Beer
     Silver: Baldwin and Cooper Best Bitter - English Style Pale Ale (Bitter)
     Bronze: Howe Sound Lager - Kellerbier
     Bronze: Garibaldi Honey Pale Ale - N American Style Blonde/Golden Ale
     Bronze: Woolly Bugger - English Style Barley Wine
Tree Brewing Co
     Gold: Serendipity #3 - Wood or Barrel Aged  Beer
     Bronze: Thirsty Beaver Amber Ale - N American Style Amber Lager
     Bronze: Captivator Doppelbock - Bock Traditional German Style
     Bronze: Hop Head Double IPA - Imperial IPA
Driftwood Brewing Co
     Beer of the Year – Fat Tug IPA
     Gold: Fat Tug IPA - N American Style IPA
     Silver: Singularity Russian Imperial Stout - Wood or Barrel Aged Strong Beer
Vancouver Island Brewery
     Gold: Hermannator Ice Bock - Bock Traditional German Style
     Gold: Sea Dog Amber Ale - N American Style Amber/Red Ale 
     Silver: Hermann’s Dark Lager - N American Style Dark Lager
Granville Island Brewing Co
     Gold: Belgian Wit - Wheat Beer-Belgian Style White/Wit
     Silver: Cypress Honey Lager - Special Honey/Maple Lager or Ale
     Bronze: Ginger Beer - Fruit Beer
Lighthouse Brewing Co
     Bronze: Overboard Imperial Pilsner -  European Style Lager/Pilsner
     Silver: Navigator Doppelbock - Bock Traditional German Style
Okanagan Spring Brewery
     Bronze: Brewmaster’s Black Lager - N American Style Dark Lager
     Silver: Porter - Strong Porter (Baltic)
Swans Buckerfields Brewery
     Silver: Scotch Ale - Scotch Ale
     Bronze: Pandora Pale Ale - English Style Pale Ale (Bitter)
R&B Brewing Co
     Silver: Hoppelganger IPA - English Style IPA
     Bronze: East Side Bitter - N American Style Pale Ale (Bitter)
Yaletown Brewing Co
     Gold: Hill’s Special Wheat - Wheat Beer-German Style Hefeweizen
     Silver: Yaletown Oud Bruin - Wood or Barrel Aged Sour Beer
Central City Brewing Co
     Gold: Thor’s Hammer - English Style Barley Wine
     Silver: Red Racer Imperial - Imperial IPA
Dead Frog Brewery
     Gold: Pepper Lime Lager - Fruit Beer
     Bronze: Citra IPA - N American Style IPA
Mt. Begbie Brewing Co
     Gold: High County Kolsch - Kolsch
Nelson Brewing Co
     Silver: Harvest Moon Organic Hemp Ale - Kolsch
Phillips Brewing Co
     Bronze: Analog 78 - Kolsch
Fernie Brewing Co
     Gold: Sap Sucker Maple Porter - Special Honey/Maple Lager or Ale

For a complete listing of all the medal winners check out the Canadian Brewing Awards.

My Thoughts About Sessional Beers

I recently received a request from CAMRA YVR, along with all other BC beer blog writers, to give my thoughts about sessional beer. I have to admit I have never really given this topic much thought and don't know if I will add much to the discussion CAMRA YVR is attempting to generate.
First off, I do not have any preference for what a sessional beer should be or not be. For me, what I drink is dictated by my mood, my palate at the time, who I am with and my budget. When the circumstances are right, I seem be be able to handle and metabolize several pints of high-octane, big beers and wake up the next day feeling like a million dollars. At other times, I feel the buzz after one or two lagers and it goes all Pete Tong in a hurry. The trick, which I have not quite yet mastered, is to recognize the appropriate times to take advantage of the former and run like Hell  when I detect the latter.
I can honestly say I have utilized everything from Old Rasputin and barley wines to lower gravity beers like Guinness and lagers as a sessional beers. If I am in for the long haul, and if I have the choice, I tend to change it up as I go. Lately, I have been a major hop monster, so I usually have a pint of Red Racer IPA or Driftwood Fat Tug in front of me to start and then I will venture forth. Red Racer ESB is also one of my favourite starter beers as it is very flavourful but does not blow my taste buds apart right off the hop (no pun intended).  I tend to lean towards the bigger beers these days, but not exclusively so and if the mood strikes, I have been known to sit down and enjoy a fare-few Pyramid Apricot Ales.
The gravity of the beer has no relevance in my choosing it, or not, as a sessional beer. I have grown so accustomed to drinking 7% beers that they seem the norm now. In fact, I rarely look at the alcohol percentage of a beer until after I have ordered and tasted it. I drink what I like in the moment. I would never choose to drink a beer because it is 4% just so I can drink more. For me, that is like choosing low-fat cheese so I can eat more with less calories. When I was living in the UK, there was really no choice but to drink low gravity beers, at least where I was living, but I enjoyed many of them. But if similar beers were available here, I would not choose them if I were sitting down for a few just based on the lesser percentage of alcohol. I also never choose a high alcohol beer, just based on the percentage, if I am sitting down just for one.
If there is something that drives my choice of beer when I am having more than a few, it me is the carbonation level of the beer. I tend to look for beers a little less carbonated after a few as I tend to feel bloated. I have learned a wee trick from my good friend Martin Williams of decanting my beer from one glass to another to get rid of the excess and unneeded carbonation and to slightly warm the beer to release to flavours. It is difficult to choose a beer based on carbonation levels here in Vancouver as most beers are served far too carbonated (and too cold).
So, as I said, I might not be the right person to ask about a sessional beer because all beers are potentially sessional beers for me. My drinking habits are not the norm and I realize that. What I find to be the most important factor these days as to what beers I drink and how many of them I consume is the fact that I have a seven-month-old daughter who dictates, more often than not, my beer drinking habits. In fact, said seven-month old is currently squirming in my lap like she has just been tazered, with a funky smell coming from her diaper...she not only is the most improtant factor in my sessional drinking habits, but she also dictates when I can write about beer and for how long.