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- Clouds and Clouda
Ever wonder what SRM means? Or how beer is carbonated? We've got answers for you. We've also got a springtime Vienna Lager, a nitro IPA, and Piña Colada in our release list. Plus, a brewery gets ready to open its new location tomorrow.
Have a great week y'all!
- Joseph Lavoie
New Beers in the Lower Mainland
What do thumbs have to do with it?
The folks at Backcountry are back with another fresh release this week. This time with a refreshing Vienna Lager. I do love a good Vienna Lager on a warm spring day. I confess to not understanding the description, but I’m hoping you English lit majors will reply with an interpretation.
Details: 5% ABV | 25 IBU
Description: “Two ingredients, both alike in dignity. In fair Vienna, where we brew our beer. From ancient style to new recipe. For never was a story of less woe than this beer and its drinkers glow.”
Where to get it: Available on tap May 5 and ships to retailers across the province in limited supply along the Sea to Sky, the North Shore, and Vancouver.
Brewery location: 405-1201 Commercial Way, Squamish, BC, V8B 0R5 | Google Maps
Cloud Theory
Do you love the rich, creamy, pillowy mouthfeel of a nitro beer? Want that feeling with something bright and juicy? This might be your beer. The hop choices promise a medley of fruit flavours like mango, guava, lychee, and citrus, supported by herbal notes.
Details: 6.5% ABV
Where to get it: Available now at the brewery, next week at bottle shops across the province.
Brewery location: 1216 Franklin St., Vancouver | Google Maps
PS! this is a nitro beer, you’ll need to give the cans a gentle shake and pour them into your glass vigorously.
New Beers in BC
Piña Clouda
Last week we saw a trend toward cocktail-inspired releases, and that continues this week with this seasonal return.
Details: 5.5% ABV, 15 IBU, 3 SRM
Description: “Pouring as hazy as tropical storms clouds, with a rich pale golden hue. Notes of banana, clove, coconut, pineapple, and tropical juices all unfold with a light and semi-sweet finish.”
Where to get it: At the brewery and at select pubs and restaurants.
Brewery Location: 2010 Government St., Victoria | Google Maps
It's called what?
SRM
Did you notice this acronym above? Perhaps you’ve seen it displayed in taproom lists, next to ABV and IBU. Do we really need another acronym to decipher? Well, we’ll let you be the judge of that, we’re just here to explain what it means, and SRM is a numerical way of noting a beer’s colour.
SRM: Standard Reference Method
What it measures: the wavelength of light as it passes through the beer
How to interpret SRM values
2 is Pale Straw
3 Straw
4 Pale Gold
6 Deep Gold
9 Pale Amber
12 Medium Amber
15 Deep Amber
18 Amber-Brown
20 Brown
24 Ruby Brown
30 Deep Brown
40+ Black
Brewery Openings
Three Dogs opens new location
It’s been years in the making and the day has finally arrived for this White Rock brewery. The new location opens tomorrow. Unfortunately, as a local, I find myself in the UK this week (Cask ales for the win!), so we’ll need you, Beer Loopers, to pack the taproom!
Time: May 4, fom 12 pm onwards
Location: 107 15181 Thrift Ave., White Rock | Google Maps
Beer School
How do breweries carbonate beer?
We highlighted a nitro beer in this week’s new releases, but most beers are carbonated with carbon dioxide, or as your high school science teacher liked to call it, “CO2.” It’s critical to our enjoyment of beer as it adds to the experience by adding bite to the beer and giving it a lighter texture. Have you ever enjoyed flat beer? It’s just not the same.
So, how do the bubbles get into the beer? Two ways:
As has long been practiced, and as is common with many Belgian beers and mixed fermentation beers here in North America, the carbon dioxide is naturally produced by adding a touch of sugar to the bottle when the beer is bottled. The residual yeast then consumes this sugar to produce bubbles naturally. This is called bottle conditioning.
Why brewers love it: bottle conditioning generally results in an effervescent beer, with smaller bubbles.
Drawbacks: Yeast sediment at the bottom of the bottle, or even exploding bottles if too much sugar is added.
A quicker and much more common way of carbonating beer is by adding the CO2 directly to the beer from an external source of CO2 (a tank). This is called force conditioning
Why brewers love it: speed, practicality, consistency. You can get your beer to consumers sooner and have significant control over the final carbonation levels.
Drawbacks: Not nearly as romantic as the concept of letting yeast naturally carbonate beer the way mother nature intended.
What else is brewing
Barnside Brewing is expanding its hops acreage (Instagram)
Any guesses which community this is? These five breweries are nestled in one walkable Metro Vancouver community. (Daily Hive)
Any you’d add to the list? Best brewery and brewpub patios in Vancouver (Daily Hive)
Pic of the week
Splish Splash
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