Folks, this was possible the most Canadian weekend ever, and here is why: beer, hockey, maple syrup, and wearing a toque and a tank top in the same day. It all started on a typical Friday night. Not much to do in the small city of Guelph except share a brew with friends. But this Friday was a bit special, as the Brass Taps bar on the University campus was hosting a craft beer event. A chance to knock off the "3 Canadian beers in 1 day" item off the list, and a chance to support some awesome local breweries making some tasty beers and smooth ciders. I, myself, am not a huge beer drinker, but I do appreciate the craft and love to sample different breweries brands. I see it as an art form, just like a fine cheese is filled with so much love and care. My favourite brews from the event were these: Revel Cider: Liquid Gold Now I may be a tad biased here, as Revel is owned and operated by a friend of mine. Tariq started with an idea, and fiercely followed that dream to a delicious line of ciders. He is a local success story with a tasty tasty product. He recently changed the yeast in his liquid gold cider, which gives a much sweeter impression to the glass- in my opinion a big improvement from the last iteration of liquid gold. A must try in the Guelph area. Cowbell Breweries: Absent Landlord Cowbell is based in Blyth, Ontario. A town in which my grandmother lived, and my great grandfather was the anglican minister (fun fact I learned today while plugging cowbell to my dad). They describe Absent Landlord as "approachable", which I would 100% attest to. Like I said, I'm not a big beer drinker and I found this Kolsch very smooth and definitely enjoyable. Bench Brewing: Farmhouse Ale Bench Brewing comes from the Niagara area. Their Farmhouse ale really evokes a "summer at the farm" kind of feeling. It was really light and orangey which I love. Definitely a less "approachable" beer with stronger flavours, but absolutely a great patio beer to share with friends. But enough of beer analysis from a know-nothing. Next on the gamut was the Elmira Mpale Syrup festival. The first time we went to this festival was last year, and we were absolutely stunned at the popularity of it. They must have thousands of people visit. Features of the festival are of course several syrup vendors, but also a ton of Mennonite baking, jams, mustards and other culinary delights. Last year we go snowed on, this year was all sun. Both years were sugar filled and sent us home with baked goods and confections. Lastly on the agenda was Hometown Hockey in downtown Guelph. As someone from a big city, I find Guelph never has enough going on. So imagine my excitement when I found out Ron MacLean and Tara Slone would be paying us a visit and a big event would be on the agenda for the first weekend of April. Guelph gave us a gorgeous day that started with me leaving the house in my winter jacket and my flames toque, and left me shedding layers until I switched to a hoodie and swapped my flames toque for my flames baseball hat... of course once the sun went down I ended up back in a toque but... ya win some ya lose some #CanadianProblems Evan and I were even lucky enough to each win a toque, scarf, and pair of mitts with the Hometown Hockey logo on them. It felt a bit weird winning this winter package in the sun of today, but who knows, we might need them by tomorrow. Best of all, we made it on to TV and were shown across Canada watching the pregame show! Thanks Hometown Hockey for choosing Guelph to pop into this year (and thanks for swinging by on such a warm day!) Not a bad weekend at all, and another one that again made me proud to be part of this great country. I love seeing the community get together in so many different ways and to see local businesses and entrepreneurs supported. Not to mention seeing Canadians come out of their winter holes and soak up the sun... but thats a post for another day.
1 Comment
Uncle Robert
4/4/2017 04:08:23 pm
Thanks for sharing your great experiences last weekend. Looks like you were on the run the whole weekend and had lots of fun. Now a TV star!
Reply
Leave a Reply. |
KATIEGrowing up in Alberta and having family in Ontario and BC, I've done my fair share of driving across Canada. That love of Canadian travel combined with the pride of being a citizen of one of the most progressive countries in the world make me a little obsessed with our fair land. I've travelled to 9 provinces (and 1 territory!) and I've lived in 2, and I still can't get enough of this amazing country I call home. archivesCategories |