The Best of 2021 blog (in June)
It seems like 2022 has already been a year and it's only May June. That probably means it's high time I wrote my Best-of blog for 2021.
I've been late before with the year-end stuff but never anywhere near this late. I write full-time now so I seldom have the energy or the inclination to write about beer or much of anything else for this blog. Besides, I get to write about beer for InDurham on a semi-regular basis, so I get my kicks in that way.
Erin Broadfoot at Little Beasts Brewing in Whitby has graced the pages of our amazing, awesome (shameless plug) online newspaper many times - notably when I chronicled her efforts in bringing stories of Sexual Assault and Abuse in the Craft Beer Industry into the light; the Threats she received from the blowback; and ultimately, the Craft Beer Safety Network she helped establish to help create safe spaces for marginlized populations and a toolkit for breweries to do the right thing.
I've written about Banter & Co, Brooklin's first brewery, Town in Whitby got some love, and I've made sure whenever local (that would be Durham Region) breweries won anything at the provincial or national level I would shine a light on their accomplishment.
Hell, my first ever story for InDurham was about New Ritual - Oshawa's newest brewery - a story I was very proud of even though I came off (unintentionally) as sexist for not showcasing the efforts of all parties involved in the enterprise.
So why continue to write a beer blog? I would ask myself that question every so often and often wouldn't have a good answer. Except because I can, and every few months I would get the itch.
Eventually one needs to scratch that itch.
I have written just two IPA Tales blogs in 2022 - both in April - but have yet to write my year-end review. So let's get that out of the way.
Brewery of the Year
Normally I save the best for last but with all this time passed and with the accomplishments of 2022 blending into what happened last year, it's difficult to seperate. My go-to breweries were New Ritual, Bellwoods (Hafis) and Little Beasts, with Town, Rainhard and Dominion City also getting some of my dollars as well.
Erin's social justice efforts I already mentioned would obviously play a big role in my decision, but that was this year, not 2021, so I had to go with the brewery that is actually closest to where I now live in north-west Toronto, the brewery that continually pumps world class IPAs and APAs, the most excellent Jelly King line of dry-hopped Sours and fantastic experimental brews and one-offs.
It's a nice local to have.
Bellwoods (Hafis)
The IPAs
My favourite style of beer and the name of this blog would naturally garner a lot of attention in any best-of story, but the sheer volume of fantastic IPAs I enjoyed in 2021 was a bit overwhelming. A mix of old favourites and first time brews, my list included Strange Proverbs and Never Look Back from New Ritual; Alouette, Sunsplit and Known Commodity from Dominion City; Upon Us and Seperation Anxiety from Third Moon; and Bermuda (Bandit), Call & Response (Rainhard), Victory Lap (Town), Outside Orbit (Collective Arts), Laugh Love (Indie Ale House), Truth Serum (Rorschach), Janky (Matron), Southpaw (Left Field) and Silent Majority (Little Beasts/Beer Diversity).
And that's not counting my picks for Wet-Hopped IPA (V Bines, 5 Paddles); Triple IPAs (Party City, Dominion City) or Milkshake IPAs (Milkshark - Tangerine, Bellwoods).
From all these beauties I narrowed it down to four:
Strange Proverbs, New Ritual; Alouette 1, Dominion City; Silent Majority, Little Beasts/Beer Diversity; and Call & Response, Rainhard.
Imperial IPAs
A few years back I would have a bunch of these in the running for Beer of the Year but my tastes have changed some and I no longer crave the high octane hop bombs.There are still ten on my list here, but really only one of these was memorable enough to make my Beer-of-the-Year finalist list.
Fine Young Cannibal Chickens and Furthermore...You Forgot to Mention Big Foot (Great Lakes); Rolling Thunder and Good Monster (Collective Arts); Double Square Wheels (Town) and Den Full of Dads (Town/Third Moon); Don't Die Here (New Ritual), Kindly Indifference of Infinity (Dominion City), Double Jutsu (Bellwoods) and Super Juicin' (Sawdust City).
Just one clear winner here:
Super Juicin,' Sawdust City.
The Pale Ales
I love me a delicious five per cent pale ale and I probably drink more of this style than anything else, even the IPAs. There are eight on my list here, including defending champ Valkyrie (Little Beasts); Anthem and Obsolute Systems (New Ritual); Canuck and Citradiction (Great Lakes), Jutsu (Bellwoods), Outside Jokes (Town) and Space Tank (Rainhard).
There is also Alternative Ale (Little Beasts/People's Pint) in the Belgian Pale Ale category.
I narrowed it down to two:
Valkryrie, Little Beasts and Outside Jokes, Town.
Saisons, Gose, IPLs, Kolsch and Pilsners
One of the most interesting thing I learned from looking at the list of beer I compiled for 2021 is how many aged, or bottle conditioned, or blended, or aged and blended, etc. Saisons I really liked last year. I like the style well enough, but five aged saisons, a regular variety Saison and even a cousin, a Belgian Grissette? Doesn't seem like me.
They were so good. Like I say every year, there's hope for this committeed IPA lover yet.
Northfield (Dominion City), Baldr (Little Beasts), Tropical Apocalypse (Small Pony), Aprikot Tart (Great Lakes) and Meadow (Bandit) were super delicious Aged Saisons that were aged in foeders, oak barrels or wine barrels or just bottle conditioned. For a good ol' standard Saison, I'm not sure there's a better one out there than Yuzu (Godspeed). Ladybug, a Belgian Grisette (Little Beasts) was damn tasty too.
There were a couple of Gose on the list as well, including Wizard of Gose - Mango & Passionfruit (Bandit) and 6ix Days in Dade (Bellwoods/Wakefield); a Kolsch from Little Beasts (Bridget Bishop) and an India Pale Lager from New Ritual (Empty Bliss).
I have two different styles of Pilsner, the always delicious Marco Polo Italian Pilsner from Indie Alehouse and an outstanding Czech Pilsner from a Czech brewmaster over at Spearhead Brewing.
Five finalists here, two Saisons, a Pilsner, an IPL and a Flanders Red: a real indicator of how much I'm digging beers that are NOT IPAs. Like I mentioned, there may be hope for me yet.
Czech Republic, Spearhead; Meadow, Bandit; Yuzu, Godspeed; Empty Bliss, New Ritual; and Rose Coloured Glasses, Great Lakes.
Brewer of the Year
I can't say I'm the best judge for this, as I am not a beer expert nor do I know too many brewers well. But I do know what I like and I know who has been consistently knocking recipes out of the park. My circle, however, is small. These are my five:
Andrew DiMatteo, Town; Erin Broadfoot, Little Beasts; Tim Ferriman, New Ritual; Luke Pestl and Mike Clark, Bellwoods; and Jim Fay, Third Moon.
Winner winner, chicken dinner: Tim Ferriman, New Ritual, who is now a two-time champ, having copped this prestigious prize in 2018 when he was brewing at Town.
The Sours
I love dry-hopped Sours and funky aged Sours have me begging for more as well. I have eleven on my best-of list, including a Session Sour and a Foeder-aged funky masterpiece:
Barn Owl #23 and Jelly King - Raspberry & Meyer Lemon (Bellwoods); Paradise Lost - Spiced Cherry and Paradise Lost - Raspberry Lime Rum Spice (Blood Brothers); Salad Bar Suplex, Town/Merit and Concrete Converible (Town/Left Field); Born Into This - Gooseberry & Mango (Third Moon); Staring Down the Sun (Muddy York); Waking Rainbow (Collective Arts); Blood Orange, Tangerine etc. (5 Paddles) and Reflective Surfaces - Sour Ale w/ fruit (Merchant Ale House).
I'll take Barn Owl #23 (Bellwoods) and Paradise Lost - Spiced Cherry (Blood Brothers) for the win here.
The Dark Arts
Six beers created by wizards and witches deep beneath the earth made my cauldron boil and bubble - five Imperial Stouts and a Porter:
Mexican Porter (Anderson); Divine Intervention (Collective Arts/Indie Ale House) and Zombie Apocalypse (Indie Ale House); Long Dark Voyage to Uranus (Sawdust City); Dark Night of the Soul (Dominion City); and Peanut Butter Godiva (5 Paddles).
Peanut Butter Godiva is at least a two-time defending champ here but that delicious beer will be joined this time by Zombie Apocalypse (Indie Ale House).
Best New Brewery
No contest here. New Ritual.
If this was for 2022 my answer would be different. But it's for 2021 and while Erin Broadfoot (Little Beasts) and Josh Hayter (Spearhead) both were extremely active in saying and doing the right things during the seond year of a global pandemic, I have to cast my vote for Kingston's finest citizen since Gord Downie:
Josh Hayter (Spearhead).
Beer Writer of the Year
There wasn't a lot of beer writers and personalities writing or talking about beer as before; we all had different priorites in 2021. But my favourite people, like Robin Le Blanc, Rob Arseneault, Jordan St. John and Ben Johnson still put the proverbial pen to paper on occasion. But my favourite in 2021 was clear-cut: in addition to his podcasts with Robin and his St. John's Wort musings, Jordan managed to put together the Ontario Brewery Map, a hella valuable guide for veterans and craft been novices alike, whilst never cutting his hair.
Jordan St. John
Raddest Person in Beer
Totally made-up category because I realized I hadn't really paid proper homage to the, well, raddest person in beer. I have now.
Erin Broadfoot
Beer of the Year
Last category. Promise. Sixteen beers in the running: Valkryie and Silent Majority (Little Beasts); Bellwoods (Barn Owl #23); Town (Outside Jokes); New Ritual (Strange Proverbs and Empty Bliss); Dominion City (Alouette 1); Rainhard (Call & Response); Indie Ale House (Zombie Apocalypse); Blood Brothers (Paradise Lost - Spiced Cherry); 5 Paddles (Peanut Butter Godiva); Spearhead (Czech Pilsner); Bandit (Meadow); Godspeed (Yuzu) and Great Lakes (Rose Coloured Glasses).
Good thing I enjoy throwing darts.
I went into the Ottawa orbit for this one.
Alouette 1 (Dominion City)
