Even though I’ve never chased a sip of creamy beer with a a few squirts of cock sauce, I know Sriracha is going to make it better. Hot sauce makes everything better. Just to make sure, though, I poured myself a glass of Rogue Sriracha Hot Stout Beer.
Not that beer needs improving, mind you, it is a Fine and Good thing on its own. But I’m one of those uncultured eaters who puts hot sauce on everything (OATMEAL?!?!) so that my tongue can’t register flavor unless I’ve doused my meal in some caustic red stuff that measures death on the Scoville Scale.
Made by the free spirited brewers at Oregon’s Rogue Ale house, this brew is basically perfectly designed for me. I’m more of a pale ale guy, so I always find stouts a little flat and syrupy for my taste, and Rogue’s beer succeeds in kicking up the flavor to something a little more interesting.
When I first pulled the bottle out of the fridge it was a little too cold, I could only barely glean the spice in the aftertaste. As the beer warms up a little bit you can taste the bite all the way through.
Though my colleague Adam described the flavor as “like squeezing a Sriracha into a good porter,” I don’t entirely agree. Sriracha is wonderful stuff but the flavor isn’t exactly subtle, and I wouldn’t say the spice or flavoring totally overpowers the the stout. It’s got a nice tingle throughout.
Right now I’m about 3/4 of a way through a 750mL bottle, and I’m not regretting it at all. It’s a slow sipper of a beer-you don’t want to drink this too fast any more than you want to plow through a enchilada stuffed jalapeños and covered in green chili sauce. I’ve got another bottle under my desk, and I don’t know that I would necessarily want to dive in for another round. This is a nice novelty, but not a get drunk beer. Or even a drink multiple beer. This is a drink one beer, pound your chest two times, and move on to something else beer.
Even as I write this I can feel my heartburn kicking in. It hurts. I like it. Confirmed: Spicy beer is good.
Source: Hot Sauce Makes Everything Better, even Beer
Cinderella waltzes across a pillow. Alice In Wonderland sleeps on a shirt. Princess Anna smiles from a box of tissue.
Singer-songwriter Lyra Brown’s bedroom is adorned with some of her favourite characters from Walt Disney’s animated films, from Snow White to Frozen.
“I grew up with Disney and I think it’s important not to abandon things that inspired you in childhood just because you’re an adult,” says the 23-year-old Edmonton musician. “One of the main reasons I started singing was because of Disney. First, I would memorize Disney books on tape before I could read, and I’d sing the songs from there. Then, I’d watch the films over and over and over and over.”
With her long blond hair, tiny frame and wide blue eyes, Brown could easily be the model for Disney’s next heroine. The album cover of her just-released debut, The Language of Eyes, even features the musician as the star of her own fairy tale – with fiery eyelashes, a flock of moths and a tower with a Rapunzel-like braid flowing out the window.
Brown’s songs are almost as whimsical – 10 lilting piano numbers starring her acrobatic and innocent vocals – yet her lyrics hint at darker, heavier themes. Demons. Scrubbing toilets. First love. Abandonment. Trying (and failing) to learn the language of ‘I’ instead of always putting others ahead of yourself.
“Let your hair down, I want to save you,” she coos on Big Fish Too Soon. “All I want to do is comfort you and abandon myself again,” she swoons on As It Seems. “I used to sit and wait and drop everything if you happened to need me,” she confesses on Cheek & Bruise, which tackles the embarrassment of letting someone take you for granted.
Sounds like the plight of a Disney heroine, right? Brown won’t divulge specific details about her struggles, but admits they directly contributed to The Language of Eyes. “A lot was crumbling around me and you unconsciously believe that it’s your job to hold everybody up.”
“I was really good at being the strong one – and I think those songs are the result of me crumbling as I tried to hold everybody up. It feels very lonely when you have to put on this facade of strength and I think a lot of people can relate to that feeling. So that’s how I want to comfort people.”
Songwriting wasn’t always a comfort to Brown. She wrote her first tune when she was three – The Washing Machine Song – but didn’t seriously start working on lyrics until she was 13. “Very embarrassing. I only showed my cousin,” she laughs. “Songwriting was such a secret act, I didn’t want to tell anybody, but then I kind of came out of shell and started writing on guitar and piano when I was about 14.”
A year later, Brown played her first gig – at (the now defunct) B Scene Studios off Whyte Avenue. She also forged an online friendship with one of her musical heroes, Emily Haines of Metric, around the same time.
“I gave her a two-song EP I had recorded at B Scene Studios and we started emailing back and forth. She was very encouraging and showed belief in me right away. That really made an impact on me. We kind of lost touch as time went on, but I never stopped writing. So I think she was the catalyst. I owe a lot to her.”
Over the next few years, between 2009 to 2013, Brown developed a faithful following in Alberta, playing various folk festivals, radio shows and house concerts. But it wasn’t until Rawlco Radio stepped in with a $10,000 grant that Brown was able to record The Language of Eyes with Edmonton musician/producer Jay Sparrow and engineer Brad Smith at Red Panda Recorders. “I sent them 20, 30 songs and they were like: ‘OK, you’re beyond ready to do this’!” she laughs.
She’s ready to share her songs with the rest of the world – The Language of Eyes is now available on iTunes and she’s applying to play festivals across Canada. She’s also ready to face whatever struggles come her way in the future.
“If you use your pain for something creative, it’s never a bad thing. I’m sure I’m going to go through a lot more s—, too. It’s unavoidable – and it’s a blessing in disguise.”
Catch her performance Friday, January 23, 2015 at $7:30pm at The ARTery, 9535 Jasper Ave. Tickets only $15.00 at Yeglive.ca
Source: Concert Preview: Lyra Brown Musical Fairytale
Liquor Depot and Edmonton’s International Beer Fest are very happy to announce one of our guest speakers who will be making an appearance at this years beer festival! We are looking forward to having David Ort provide all of our beer connoisseurs some incredible insights on craft beer and suggested food pairings.
Every year we run our famous Beer School and always go out of our way to improve upon the one before. This year is no different and we will be unveiling more great news as we get closer to the event. Stay tuned to find out when and how to sign up for this incredible experience!
David Ort
David is based out of Toronto and has been writing about food and drink for more than 5 years. His first cookbook, published in 2013, is titled “The Canadian Craft Beer Cookbook” and is full fantastic dishes with 75 incredible recipes that are designed to compliment and celebrate full flavored beer. His book was named one of the Globe & Mails top 20 cookbooks of the year and has spent more than 100 days on Amazon.com’s top 100 cookbooks listing.
David is a well known food, drink and travel writer who covers Toronto’s event, restaurant and retail scene for Post City Magazine.
You can check out more at http://davidort.com
Follow him on Twitter @ortdavid
Beer festivals are great after a few months of extreme cold, and not just because they give you an opportunity to drink outside. The Edmonton Beer Festival gives you access to rare, less-available beers, so you can taste a wide variety, hang out with your heroes and other beer lovers, and learn a thing or two. At beer festivals, you can literally drink as much as you want for just the entrance fee, and there can’t possibly be a better way for beer lovers to spend a few evening hours.
In order to enjoy beer fests, it is important that you take the necessary preparations. The following tips will help you survive massive beer events in 2015 and guarantee you a great time:
Eat prior to entering the festival
Give yourself time to get the flavor of the food out of your mouth or you will be tasting food-flavored beer, and continue to seek out food for the duration of the festival. Typical beer festival fare of turkey legs, pizza, nachos and different sandwiches will give your stomach a much needed buffer between beer and alcohol absorption. Take time to enjoy your food; this will also help to cleanse your palate between flights of beer.
Try to come close to drinking equal parts water and beer
If you have four two ounce servings of beer, try and drink that same amount of water before moving on to another flight of beer. Most festivals provide either bottled water or some other way of obtaining water specifically for this purpose. You will undoubtedly use the restrooms more frequently, but in the end this will keep you from becoming dehydrated and could help reduce the chance of suffering a hangover later on.
Have a list of beers and a plan
Almost all beer festivals provide lists of both breweries and the beers that they plan to bring along to vend at the festival. Get hold of that list and start planning what flights you might want to try. The Beer festivals also provide a site layout–this makes finding your favorites that much easier.
Make sure you actually taste the beers.
Too often attendees at festivals look at those festivals as a four hour kegger. To enjoy the festival and create a lasting impression in your mind, and to retain a happy memory of the beers you drank (that you should be able to find after the festival), take your time to actually taste the beer. Tasting hints to consider:
- Aroma – Since half of taste is actually our olfactory perception, take time to smell the beer. Make a mental note of what you can smell.
- Appearance – Although most festivals pour in two ounce portions, you should be able get a good idea of the look of the beer. The head retention, color, cloudiness, etc.
- Taste – When tasting, it is recommended that you drink only half of the sample initially. Make a note of the different properties of the beer (bitter/sweet/tart, etc.).
- Mouth feel – What did the beer feel like? Thick, chewy, silky, fizzy? The texture will have an effect upon your perception and enjoyment of the beer.
One last tip: dress appropriately for the weather and put on some comfortable shoes, as you will be spending a lot of time on your feet at the Edmonton Beer Festival.
Source: Enjoying a Beer Festival
Exciting memories come flowing back when we look at the achievements of the past year, especially the incredible moments of the 2014 Edmonton Beer Festival. On the first day of the Beer Festival, April 4th, there were record crowds assembled to enjoy an incredible evening of musical performances, beer tasting, and BeerSchool, and the ecstatic mood was carried into the second day.
The organizers always look forward to providing the beer lovers with great entertainment, and they outdid themselves in 2014 with incredible musical performances. Among the performers where:
- The Dryland Band, known to bring the passion of a campfire ballad merged with the power of guitars, violin, sax, and tribal percussion
- The Orchard, whose sweet melodies hit number one on 790 CFCW’s Top Canadian Singles chart
- MitchMatic, a local multi-instrumental and former SONIC Band of the Month
- The Electric Religious, an extremely talented and energetic group of rock musicians
- Jessica Denise, a talented songwriter and classical vocalist with impressive piano chops, and
- Sean Brewer, a true Alberta folk/bluegrass/country phenomenon
A lot of work and effort goes into organizing an event like the Edmonton International Beer Fest, and nothing is quite as rewarding as when things exceed your expectations and someone acknowledges you for it. The feedback from exhibitors and attendees was positive, but even better was the recognition by everyone for a job well done. The Edmonton Beer Fest 2014 was recognized and awarded a Golden Fork Award for the “Best 2014 Beverage Event or Festival”.
The 2014 International Beer Fest was the best event yet, and there were amazing exhibitors who were recognized with awards under different categories, including favorite brews and best staff as follows:
- Favorite Lager – Yellowhead Brewery
- Most Innovative Product – Cuvee Bru by Big Rock
- Runner Up – Watermelon Apple by Boxer Beer
- Favorite Ale – Prohibition Scotch Ale by Big Surf
- Tied – Gypsy Tears Parallel 49
- Best Booth – Spider Beverage
- Runner Up – Steam Whistle
- Best Staff – Guinness Black by Diageo Canada
- Runner up – Parallel 49
The success is also attributed to the event sponsors: Liquor Depot, Boonstock, ESSC, TravelGurus, and North Sask River Keeper. It was an amazing show, check out a few pics of what happened at the Edmonton Beer Fest 2014 gallery our Facebook page. Ready for Beer Fest 2015? Get your Tickets Now!
