In which MR and MS and MB sample many beers, run afoul of
the local gendarme, find some unusual credit card policies, and enjoy an
unplanned holiday.
Bonjour, hier je suis... waitaminit, yesterday (2013-05-17) was the first day in Montreal. Now with any city you visit, the most important is to pick the cheapest hotel that is also the closest to the brewpubs and breweries.
The next day - 2013-05-18 - was spent potentially exploring some breweries
and brewpubs. One writes "potentially" as some breweries were closed,
some did not exist (or it was a business address) and some were closed, until 3
PM.
Now what do you do when you are at a "don't walk" signal, and there is no traffic for as far as the eye can see? I mean, unless Doc Brown appears in his chronologically-enhanced deLorean, even a moderately fast tortoise could make it across safely. Well, turns out in Montreal, that is against the law. The local constabulary stopped and gave a reminder that this is normally punishable by a fine of $40; thankfully as ignorance is easy to forgive; there was no tariff levied! Merci!
Anyway, as food was needed, a brunch at L'Assommoir was needed. Fortunately their bar was open, and besides a fantastic vegetarian omelet, sampled
Fortunately, les Brasseurs de Montréal (the Brewers of Montreal, sounds sort of dull in English?) opened at 2:30; let the tastings begin. Situated in an industrial area at 1483 Ottawa, les Brasseurs had quite a selection of beer, and not all were tasted, unfortunately. They also had a good menu of meals and snacks, and some crisps and cheese were purchased for palate-cleansing. They offered proper flights or "degustations" or "l'etchétéra", and beers tried were:
Next up was Brutopia, at 1219 Rue Crescent, where the following were enjoyed:
Then on to BENELUX - Brasserie Et Café, at 245 Sherbrooke street west. BENELUX, for those who don't know it, is a sort of semi-mythical union of BElgium, NEtherlands, and LUXembourg from 1944, but certainly implies good beer from that region of Europe. And there was no disappointment. Besides a nice outside café area, the bar set up was a great place to quaff and chat, all while gustating:
Leaving BENELUX, headed over to the L'Amère à Boire on 2049 St-Denis. Deliberately did not want to try all their beers, as there were specific plans for MR beer #4,000, so only had their:
Then it was back to the Rēservoir, which had been visited previously,
but had a beer with a great potential to be counted as "milestone"
beer. Caesar, the very accommodating bartender, welcomed us back, and
remembered the plans for beer 4k. First off, with some snacks, tried their:
The next of course was their
and the question is how good was it? Marveilleux! It could
be even better, or at least quite different, after some aging. What was even
nicer is the bottle - as a trophy - was allowed to be taken. Merci, Caesar!
Later the next day's evening - 2013-05-20 - it was out and about, starting with a fantastic hookah/cigar bar - Café Gitana - on the way north from Brutopia, and besides some Cbaños, shared a
Also tried some Raki, an anise-flavoured Turkish liquor similar to Ouzo.
Next was the Le Saint-Bock Brasserie Artisanale, at 1749 Rue Saint-Denis. What was very
unusual about this place was that they sell other beers besides the ones they
brew. Asked the bartender to start with the lighter ones, and go down the list.
From there it was to the Le Cheval Blanc at 809 Rue Ontario Est; as the night was getting late (altho they are open until 3), we only tried their
Bonjour, hier je suis... waitaminit, yesterday (2013-05-17) was the first day in Montreal. Now with any city you visit, the most important is to pick the cheapest hotel that is also the closest to the brewpubs and breweries.
First off, being 500 feet from a brewpub is a good start. Had lunch at the 3 Brasseurs (brewers) which is a boutique chain brewery.
Sampled a full flight - or "l'etchétéra" of their
offerings.
La Blanche (white) - mild apples, very good [3,955]
La Blonde (blonde)
L'Ambrée (amber, you see, all the names are in French!)
La Brun (brown, we thought "bear" for a moment)
La Rye Pale Ale (ok, that was English) - a standout beer
Le Spring Fling (golden ale)
Next up was a tiny brewpub - Rēservoir. To cleanse the palate had
some wonderful, fresh crisps.
Sampled the
Pilsner
Weizen - very good
India Pale Ale
Bière aux Cerises (beer with cherries)
Did get to speak briefly with the brewmaster, and made plans to be
back to try their bottled Saison and *gasp* Barleywine.
Being hungry and as MB was staying in Chinatown, decided to
try some Asian food. Stopped in at Déliceux Montreal on 1051 Blvd. St-Laurent.
Great food, also had a
St. Amboise - Noir Avoine (oatmeal stout).
What was odd is that this restaurant did not take
"American" (i.e. no 'chip and PIN') credit cards!! Thank goodness we
had enough cash.
Now what do you do when you are at a "don't walk" signal, and there is no traffic for as far as the eye can see? I mean, unless Doc Brown appears in his chronologically-enhanced deLorean, even a moderately fast tortoise could make it across safely. Well, turns out in Montreal, that is against the law. The local constabulary stopped and gave a reminder that this is normally punishable by a fine of $40; thankfully as ignorance is easy to forgive; there was no tariff levied! Merci!
Anyway, as food was needed, a brunch at L'Assommoir was needed. Fortunately their bar was open, and besides a fantastic vegetarian omelet, sampled
Okanagan Spring - Pale Ale
Unibroue - Blanche de Chambly, White Beer on Lees
Sleeman's - Rousse (Red ale)
Fortunately, les Brasseurs de Montréal (the Brewers of Montreal, sounds sort of dull in English?) opened at 2:30; let the tastings begin. Situated in an industrial area at 1483 Ottawa, les Brasseurs had quite a selection of beer, and not all were tasted, unfortunately. They also had a good menu of meals and snacks, and some crisps and cheese were purchased for palate-cleansing. They offered proper flights or "degustations" or "l'etchétéra", and beers tried were:
Griffintown - blonde ale
van der Bull - white ale
Clu Orientale - ginger / fruit ale
Rebelle Québecoise Ambreé - amber ale
London Ruby - red ale
Black Watch - Scotch smoked ale
Millésime 2103 - Belgian strong brown ale
Barleywine
Next up was Brutopia, at 1219 Rue Crescent, where the following were enjoyed:
Extra Blonde
Bitter Blonde - both ostensibly blonde ales, one was
definitely more bitter
Honey - brown ale
Framboise - fruit ale
Maple Cream - cream ale
IPA - hand pulled or cask ale
Nut Brown - also on cask
Then on to BENELUX - Brasserie Et Café, at 245 Sherbrooke street west. BENELUX, for those who don't know it, is a sort of semi-mythical union of BElgium, NEtherlands, and LUXembourg from 1944, but certainly implies good beer from that region of Europe. And there was no disappointment. Besides a nice outside café area, the bar set up was a great place to quaff and chat, all while gustating:
Cigogne - pilsner lager
Gaïa - Belgian blonde
Lux Rousse - red ale
Yakima - pale ale
Cactus IPA
Believe they use Amarillo hops, which have a distinctive character, so you think Amarillo TX USA and get "cactus"; however Amarillo hops are only grown in Washington state. [NOTE, the folks from Benelux responded: "Thanks for visiting us! great coverage of Montreal in places I haven't visit in a while. BTW: Cactus IPA is named after the bar for whom we contract brew this beer. No Amarillo in there: Simcoe+Citra"
Armada - brown ale
Armada - brown ale
Armada - brown ale
La Marge - Belgian stout
Mont Scharr - dark German pilsner
Grisette Saison Sûre - Belgian saison/farmhouse ale
Leaving BENELUX, headed over to the L'Amère à Boire on 2049 St-Denis. Deliberately did not want to try all their beers, as there were specific plans for MR beer #4,000, so only had their:
Odense Porter
Černá Hora - a blonde Pilsner
Noir à L'Avoine - oatmeal stout
Cream Ale
...before settling on two special beers. Rēservoir bottles
certain special beers (which makes sense given the style) in 750 ml, and has
these for consumption only in the brasserie. First off, the
Saison
was a standout, and at 6.9 ABV was not a beer to drink
without sharing. Fortunately, in any good beer bar there is a lot of
camaraderie, so a couple of people near us were only too happy to be offered a
pour.The next of course was their
Barley Wine - barleywine ale [#4,000]
Later the next day's evening - 2013-05-20 - it was out and about, starting with a fantastic hookah/cigar bar - Café Gitana - on the way north from Brutopia, and besides some Cbaños, shared a
St. Ambrose Cream Ale
Belle Gueule - pale lager
Also tried some Raki, an anise-flavoured Turkish liquor similar to Ouzo.
Trois Mousquetieres - Blanche - white ale
Brasseurs du Temps - La Saison Haute -- Belgian
saison/farmhouse ale
Naufrageur - Houblons Sauvages - pale ale
Boréale - Trinquette 25 - golden ale
Boréale - Cuivrêe Boréal - strong ale
Brasseurs du Monde - Célébrante - Belgian blonde ale
Het Anker - Lucifer - Belgian strong ale (8%)
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Trâitre - ESB
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Stigmate - brown ale
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Sacristie - dunkelweizen
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Croisade - robust porter
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Porter Baltique - Baltic porter
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Naufrageur Double IPA
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - La Gargouille - Belgian brown ale
A L'Abris de la Tempête - Palabre du Pingouin - Eisbock (11.9%)
Broadway - Sherlock Holmes - stout
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Confession - red ale
LWS Brasseurs RJ - École Buissonnière - blonde ale
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Calice Cask - American IPA cask
ale
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Saint Bock Special V - barleywine,
aged in Chardonnay barrels, from 2011
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Saint Bock Special V - barleywine,
aged in Pinot Noir barrels, from 2011
Le Saint-Bock Brasserie - Saint Bock Special V - barleywine,
from 2011
As the latter 3 were shared with some other folks in the
bar, they also shared a
Achelse Kluis - Belgian Trappist Brown ale from 2011
From there it was to the Le Cheval Blanc at 809 Rue Ontario Est; as the night was getting late (altho they are open until 3), we only tried their
Blonde
Red Ale Americane - red ale
Also sampled a
Guldenberg - Bière d'Abbaye - Belgian abbey blonde ale
Armada - brown ale
Pretty good time in Montreal.
Pretty good time in Montreal.
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