Archive for category Travel

Beer Review – Phillips Longboat Chocolate Flavoured Porter

Posted by bradinator in Beer, Beer Tasting, Photography, Travel on January 5, 2012

Name: Phillips Longboat Chocolate Flavoured Porter
Origin: BC, Canada
Style: Chocolate Porter (5.2%)

Apperance: Nice dark brown, nearly black porter. Big froathy head that shrinks away quickly leaving a tan cream coloured top for the duration of the drink.

Taste: The main aromas are cherries and chocolate. The flavour is very similar, starting with sweet cherries and raisins. It then a sweet chocolate which proceeds to a bitter chocolate and piney hop flavour. Clean finish with just a light aftertaste of chocolate

Mouth Feel: Creamy, very filling and surprisingly refreshing for a porter. Medium body.

Final Thoughts: 4.0/5 – Where most porters are heavy and rich, Longboat akes a different spin on it. It is lighter and very refreshing, but not so much to subdue its fine flavors. Cocoa is very detectable but I am unsure if they used lactose in this batch due to the lighter palette. Nice balance of bitter and sweet.

Donkeys. On a road.

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Home Brew – Gravities of Mead and Bitter Ale

Posted by bradinator in Beer, Home Brewing, Photography, Travel on January 4, 2012

I did the first nutrient addition to the mead last night, plus stirred it wildly for about 5 minutes. I added about a 1/2 tablespoon of DAP and Yeast Energizer. This is a few days late, but I believe its better late then never. This morning I continued to stir the mead to remove the CO2 and took a gravity reading which is still showing signs of fermentation; 1.073. Its got a long way to go, but mead is not a rushed brew.

I also took a reading of the Harpy New Years! Bitter ale. Its sitting around 1.020 and appears to still be fermenting. It is probably pretty close to being finished fermenting, but I won’t be touching it until the end of the month.

Another photo my friend took. I believe this is somewhere in Nepal.

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Beer Review – Dead Frog’s Toasted Coconut Wit

Posted by bradinator in Beer, Beer Tasting, Photography, Travel on December 21, 2011

Name: Dead Frog’s Toasted Coconut Wit
Origin: BC, Canada
Style: Wheat Ale/Wit (Fruit Beer, 5%)

Apperance: A big fizzy head with great retention. It is a golden, crystal clear wit, with strong carbonation rising.

Taste: A sweet, floral aroma; honey and caramel are detected. Interesting flavour; lemons and herbal notes with a strong presence of spices. Cinnamon, nutmeg and coriander. A floral finish with just a subtle hint of toasted coconut rounding out the rest of this beer.

Mouth Feel: A light bodied, highly carbonated, yet not harsh wit. Refreshing.

Final Thoughts: 4/5 – A very interesting and tasty spin on the Wheat ale. Though I found the coconut to be subtle, it worked well with the sour and spiciness of the wit. The level of clarity for this wit was also quite impressive as they tend to be cloudy from the use of wheat.

Another great landscape shot by my friend

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Beer Review – Howe Sounds Father John’s Christmas Ale

Posted by bradinator in Beer, Beer Tasting, Photography, Travel on December 19, 2011

Name: Howe Sounds Father John’s Christmas Ale
Origin: BC, Canada
Style: Spiced/Christmas Ale (7%)

Apperance: A dark brown and red coloured ale that pours with a medium head with decent retention. Clear and very carbonated.

Taste: The aroma is spicy, mainly cloves or cinnamon. The palette is sweet, with notes of caramel, and something that reminds me of molasses and gingerbread cookies. Cloves and cinnamon are also apparent in the flavours. There is a very light bitterness reminiscent of cocoa.

Mouth Feel: It is sharp, but not unpleasantly sharp. Medium bodied and somewhat filling, but that could be due to it coming from a bomber.

Final Thoughts: 4/5 – This is an amazing Christmas ale. Flavourful and aromatic, with a nice balance of spices and sweet malts, Howe Sound’s Father John’s Christmas ale may very well be the best Christmas ale I have ever had. Plus it backs quite the punch (contains high volumes of Christmas cheer)!

My friend's just got back from a backpacking trip around Tibet and Nepal. They gave me permission to post all the amazing photo's they took. I take no credit for any of the Tibet/Nepal photos that will be posted in the coming months!

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日本語の日記　－　モンタナの旅行の事

Posted by bradinator in Japan, Japanese Language, Language Practice, Photography, Travel on August 19, 2011

先々週の週末　友達と　モンタナへ　行きました。　観光旅行でした。　でも　たの理由も　（りゆう）　アメリカへ　行くべきでした；　８月の始まりに　妻のカナダの結婚相手のビザを　着きましたよ　（けっこんあいて）（つく）！　私たちは　カナダの外のビザをしましたから、　ビザを　仕上げるために（しあげる）カナダの国境を（こっきょう）　渡るべきでした（わたる）。

モンタナで　たくさん　運転と　観光しました。　車で　Going-to-the-Sun Roadに　行きました。　きれいな　山の道ですよ。　そして　モンタナで　買い物もしました。　妻の誕生日に　電気歯ブラシを　買いました　（本当に　妻が　たくさん　ほしかったですよ）。　私には　たくさん　新しいビールを　試食しました　（ししょく）。　アメリカは　世界の中で　一番　いい特別のビールを　作りますよ！　とても　美味しいです。

旅行は　よかったですが　運転をする過ぎましたよ。　１６００KMぐらい　車の中に　いました。　後で　体が　とても　疲れました。　今は　よくなりました。

New Words —

理由　（りゆう）　－　Reason, Motive　（N）

結婚相手　（けっこんあいて）　－　Spouse （N）

着く　（着く）　－　To arrive　（V）

ビザ　－　Visa　（N）

仕上げる　（しあげる）　－　To complete/finish（V）

渡る　（わたる）　－　To cross over　（V）

国境　（こっきょう）　－　National/Provincial Border　（N）

試食　（ししょく）　－　Sample (food or drink)　（N－する）

Grammer —

Verb+ために　＞＞　In order to do (Verb)

Ex: ビザを　仕上げるために（しあげる）カナダの国境を（こっきょう）　渡るべきで。 >>　In order to complete the visa we had to cross the Canadian Border.

Nounの中で　一番 Adjectiveです　＞＞　In all of (Noun) it’s the most (Adjective)

アメリカは　世界の中で　アメリカは　一番　いい特別のビールを　作りますよ　>> In all of the world, America makes the best speciality beers.

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Castle Mountain

Posted by bradinator in Photography, Travel on July 1, 2011

Last weekend I went to the Castle Mountain area near Crowsnest pass for a small reprieve from civilization. Camping, fishing and drinking beer made up the bulk of the trip, in between that we shot rifles and made lots of noise to keep the bears away. I have added a new gallery to showcase some of the most beautiful parts of Alberta.

Check it out here.

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