Besides the couple of suggestions already in the thread, anything I should be looking out for?
After a while I always head over to the Bavaria tent. It's 2 dollars for the 4 ounce glass and the beer is pretty good and 7.9% That's of course only if you want to get a little buzzed.
I went last night finally.. was a fun time. Waiting time wasn't too bad. Not enough euro beers to my liking... most of the booths are for Quebec or American beer companies. Nothing wrong with them, I just wish they had more of the top rated beers in the world.
Favorite beer of the night for me was the Dogfish Head 60 mins IPA (avail. @ Oktoberfest Pub). Apparently it's pretty popular, along with their 90 Mins IPA one which is stronger. I originally heard of this company through the Beer Wars documentary.. a good watch btw. The owner is a really cool guy it seems like. It's a tough business to get into because all the big players who make beer flavoured water (Bud, Coors, etc) have all bought up the market and shelf space.
And still my unbeaten favorite beer : Noblesse from Microbrasserie Saint Arnould
Things to avoid :
Don't remember the name of the place but there was a red fox on their banner. Their beers were awful. My girfriend took a sour fruity one and it was so sour we threw it away. I took the blond and it had a bad aftertaste.
The Kangoroo burger is so small you could eat it in one bite and its 2 for 10$. Pass.
It was fun but I prefer FestiBiere de Chambly because its outside and there is plenty of room to move. Expect it to be crowded, bring cash to not have to wait twice to buy your coupons.
I can understand where you come from but people just need to better educate themselves about alternative meats. Harvesting seal, Kangaroo not only is better for the enviromnent than mass beef production wild meat is also much higher in protein and lower in fat than beef.
There is also a misconception out there that these animals are endangered. Nothing could be further from the truth. I could post links but I'm sure anyone can find them.
I hunt my own meat and have just come to accept that some people don't like it. To me it's an ecological and health choice as I like to eat meat and hate the cattle industry and its clear cutting of forests for creation of grazing fields. When people say they are against Kangaroo meat or seal meat yet eat chicken, beef etc to me is a bit hypocritical. If you don't eat meat at all and you are against me hunting then that's another story and I have nothing but respect for that.
Btw I've had Kangaroo meat at briskets and it tasted like a regular hamburger. I prefer venison. Never had seal but looking forward to trying it it's just very expensive.
Oh I'm not saying anything about them being endangered or stuff like that, just don't feel right eating a kangaroo. Same like horse, duck and rabbit.
Denis Leary said it best. We like to save the cute animals and eat the ugly ones.
lol. Hey in the end you have to go with what you feel is right. To me I either eat meat or I don't. I look at whether the practice of eating a particular animal is sustainable or not and if it's done humanely. I also never take killing an animal lightly and it never gets easier. There is something to be said about field dressing a deer. Gives you a whole different respect for what Mrs cow went through before looking all perfectly seel-wrapped on the counter at your local Provigo.
Personally I love rabbit, duck, goose and horse meat and feel fine eating it. But I understand and respect that some don't. I just feel it's important to ensure fallacies aren't perpetrated i.e they are endangered, it's more cruel than eating beef or chicken etc...
If half the people saw where chickens are grown and the kinds of condition they live in they'd never eat it again, for example. I worked in chicken farms when I was a kid and let me just say it's horrible.
I can understand where you come from but people just need to better educate themselves about alternative meats. Harvesting seal, Kangaroo not only is better for the enviromnent than mass beef production wild meat is also much higher in protein and lower in fat than beef.
There is also a misconception out there that these animals are endangered. Nothing could be further from the truth. I could post links but I'm sure anyone can find them.
I hunt my own meat and have just come to accept that some people don't like it. To me it's an ecological and health choice as I like to eat meat and hate the cattle industry and its clear cutting of forests for creation of grazing fields. When people say they are against Kangaroo meat or seal meat yet eat chicken, beef etc to me is a bit hypocritical. If you don't eat meat at all and you are against me hunting then that's another story and I have nothing but respect for that.
Btw I've had Kangaroo meat at briskets and it tasted like a regular hamburger. I prefer venison. Never had seal but looking forward to trying it it's just very expensive.
hunting your own meat >>>> buying it at the supermarket. Most meats come from abused/"enhanced" animals.
Went yesterday with a group of friends this time so I tried many more beers. Some of them were average, not worth trying. Tried 4 beers at the Bistro Européen, was surprised how I didn't like all 4. Maybe the most noteworthy was the Bière d'abbaye Ter Dolen Kriek. Not because it was any good, I didn't enjoy it, but it's a really unique beer. Color was red, cherry taste and VERY sweet. It's like drinking sour candies. One of my friends loved it.
At the Oktoberfest pub, there was one worth trying, the Fourth Dementia Olde Ale (Kuhnhenn Brewing Co). It's at 13,5%, but it really doesn't feel it. A really smooth beer and love the taste.
Unfortunately theres wasn't any John John Dead Guy Ale bottles left, I wanted to try it again. Let's hope I'll be luckier today.
As for the Quebec's beers, there are a lot I found interesting to try.
Sir Wallace (À la fût). It's a Scotch Ale, really tasty one, loved it.
Apico (honey) and his twin brother Acero (Maple syrup) from Boquébière. Not your typical beer at 16,5%. Unlike the Fourth Dementia, you fully feel all the alcohol in it. I bought my glass yesterday and the bartender serverd me a really small sample in a plastic cup. I pointed her my glass and she replied that she only could serve small portions in the plastic cups. When I tried it, I understood why. You easily can be drunk in no time with this. And it's good!
Boson de Higgs (Hopfenstark). The science-loving guy I am, I needed to try this one. It's a white beer which I usually despise. But this one was great, it's smoked flavored. My friends called it the Bacon beer. It's also very smooth.
All in all, I'm surprised and proud by the quality of beers we make in Quebec.
I also tried the Kangaroo wrap, I agree it's very expensive for what you get, but it was getting late and was getting hungry.
Went for the afternoon yesterday, here's what I had:
Wells & Young's - Wells Bombardier Burning Gold: was going for the Banana Bread beer but they were sold out so I randomly went for this one instead. Wasn't bad, but wasn't too memorable either.
Dogfish Head - 60 Minutes IPA: I liked this one a lot, nothing too fancy but just I really smooth beer I could drink any time. Really nice taste.
Dogfish Head - Palo Santo Marron: 12% and you taste every bit of it. Personally, I hated it. It was a barrage of flavors and none were pleasant. On the other hand, my friend loved it (and finished mine) so hey.
Le Trou du Diable - Dubai Pillee: A 10% and it was fantastic - had an incredible spice to it and really nice flavor. It was heavy though, even the sample felt almost like a meal, so I wouldn't have it every day.
Le Trou du Diable - La Chose: This was the last beer I had so I don't remember much of it but it wasn't bad at all.
Boquebiere - Hopkins Smoked Porter: Fantastic, I'm not really big on dark beers but this one was amazing. A really smokey flavor that I liked a lot but could see some others hating. Made me crave a nice steak to pair it with though.
Boquebiere - Township Red: This one was expensive (5 coupons I think) and the guy even felt the need to warn me that it was a sour beer, as if I should be careful before buying it...but it was also amazing.
Dieu du Ciel - Solstice d'Ete a la Mangue: Not a big fan of fruity beers but I decided to give this one a try. It was good, nothing that blew me away, but a nice summer beer for sure.
Dieu du Ciel - Noce de Soie: This was some sort of Japanese spice beer that was only okay.
Broadway Pub - Vent d'Anges: Had this near the end so I don't remember a whole lot of it. It was expensive (5 coupons) and didn't make a major impression on me though.
Brasserie St-Laurent - St-Laurent: Just had this because it was cheap and I needed more beer, haha. Was fine.
Oktoberfest Quebecois - Claire Maltee: Fantastic, a really light beer that didn't have a whole lot of taste, but it was really refreshing and would make a good summer drinking beer.
I also had the kangaroo burger and while the meat itself was delicious, it was a total freaking rip-off considering it was $5.50 and smaller than a White Castle slider. I instantly regretted not getting the sausage on a stick from their tent - cheaper and a lot more meat for your $.
I got there around 2pm yesterday and there were hardly any lines, but at around 5pm when we left it was definitely getting packed, and almost every booth had at least some kind of wait. So next year I'll probably try getting there for around 12-1pm. Was lots of fun though.
Really disappointed in the set-up this year. A good beerfest, to me, is located on the outside. Nothing beat the Chambly beerfest at the end of the summer. Can't wait.
It was pretty good, but there was too many people!
You can't move around or anything, it's really too jam packed.
I did however, get to do exactly what I wanted to - I tried a bunch of Dogfish head beers. I was really excited to try them after seeing the show Brewmasters! Anyway it wasn't overwhelming but I'm still glad I tried them!
Not much of a picture, but I figured I'd share one of them I took
It was pretty good, but there was too many people![/IMG]
Did you go today? Compared to yesterday the place was empty. It really was a great day to go. There was absolutely no waiting lines. Felt like thursday.
So yeah I went today and there were many beers noteworthy. Yet again, most beers from the Bistro Européen were average, not sure what's up with their beers, but it's really nothing great (the few I tried).
I also was still disappointed that they didn't get any John John Dead Guy Ale left, I really wanted to try it again but hey at least I got to taste it on thursday! Thank asthraygirl!
Tried a couple other beers from Rogue Ales (which is by far the best brewerie from the USA I've tried). The Chatoe Rogue Dirtoir Black Lager was great, loved it. My twin, Jee, loved their Chocolate Stout.
The Wild Raspberry Ale from Great Divide was awesome, one of the best raspberry beer I've tried. Definitely worth trying.
The very last beer I tried at the Mondial was the Under the Kilt wee heavy (Dragonmead). Absolutely great. I wasn't a fan of scottish ale before this Mondial, but now I am and it's partly because of this one (and the À la fût - Sir Wallace). Loved it, really tasty.
Tried the Avery brewing Joe's Pislner. Terrible. DO NOT try this one.
As for the Quebec's breweries, we went to Le trou du Diable, great beers. Tried the Le nez de poivrot, a winey beer with 11% alcohol. Worth trying.
Also went to Brouhaha, tried the Gaz de course, another high % alcohol, really tasty, loved it. Was expensive, 6 coupons, but it was worth it. Also tried the Saison Voatsiperifery, a spicy blonde. If you like spicy beers, try this one, it's good!
Since I loved my Sir Wallace from À la fût yesterday, I went to try a few others today. Tried the British, loved it. Jee said it tasted like purple Mr.Freeze. It indeed tasted a bit like it. It was a brown beer with a bit of a nut taste. Great and tasty like I love em.
At last, St-Arnould's beers also had quality beers. A few years ago I remember trying a raspberry beer that I absolutely LOVED. I wasn't sure if it was the Marie-Framboise from St-Arnould so today I convinced my friend to try it so I can taste. Man, I would buy infinite boxes of this beer. It's incredible. I usually hate fruity beers, especially whites, but this one is so damn good. It's like eating a damn raspberry while drinking a beer. Win-win. The Évêque was also a very great beer. Can't recall much what it was (I tried so many beers during these 3 days) but I remember loving it. I would have to try it again next year
All in all, I didn't talk about all the beers I've tried in the past week cause there were too many (I've tasted 44 different beers) and some of them were simply average or not any better than the ones I've talked about here, but I appreciated a lot my experience this year. I wouldn't whine if they do it at the Place Bonaventure next year again. It might be inside, but with the temperature we had today I was glad the way it was.
Total money spent : 51$ (Beers) + 5.50$ (Kangaroo wrap)
Favorites breweries :
1) À la fût (ste-Tite) : Great presentation, quality beers and very tasty. Awesome moustaches. Would definitely go to Ste-Tite one day to have a beer.
2) Rogue Ales (USA) : Tasty and unique beers. Loved them all (tried 4).
3) St-Arnould (Mont-Tremblant) : Marie-Framboise is that great. L'Évêque was also very good.
4) Broue Pub Brouhaha
5) Le trou du Diable
Favorite beers (excluding Marie-Framboise):
1) Under the kilt wee heavy (Dragonmead)
2) Sir Wallace (À la fût)
3) Fourth Dementia Olde Ale (Kuhnhenn Brewing Co)
4) Gaz de course (Broue pub Brouhaha)
5) La British (À la fût)
HM : Chatoe Rogue Dirtoit Black Lager (Rogue Ales), Wild Raspberry Ale (Great Divide Brewing Co.), Évêque (St-Arnould), Acero (Boquébière), Le Nez de Poivrot (Trou du Diable), John John Dead Guy Ale (Rogue Ales)
Wells & Young's - Wells Bombardier Burning Gold: was going for the Banana Bread beer but they were sold out so I randomly went for this one instead. Wasn't bad, but wasn't too memorable either.
That's hilarious, I used to drink the Banana Bread on occasion when I was living in England around '07/08. It is quite nice.
I had their Bombardier several times as well, which I remember probably more for the name, otherwise pretty average. Kind of on the darker side for an ale, as I recall.
Wish I'd been up for the fest this year, but I just wanted no part of downtown. Oh well.
