For Whom the Bell Rings
Bickford Brewing’s New Releases, an All Day Event, and a Great Cause
It’s Saturday, and in what appears to be a rare display of kindness, the sun is shining. I’ve just walked into Bickford Brewing on Harbord Street for an all day event celebrating the release of Ring the Bell, a white IPA, in collaboration with @brewreviewphil. A portion of the sales from this and other beers is being donated to cancer research, and it would seem that the new release combined with a good cause has created a pretty solid attraction. To top it off, two other beers were released on Friday. Crown of Wheat, a witbier, and Butter Knife Coffee Blonde, well, a coffee blonde. Clearly, I won’t be trying just one beer today.
The bar is well peopled, forcing me to host up at a high table by the window and abandon my universal perch. I assume a change of scenery is a good thing. Harbord’s recent overhaul is mostly complete and so the view is pleasant, but more importantly, it drives more foot traffic. Owner/brewer Andrew McCready is at the brewery all day, and we get to chatting about business, beer in general, and of course the new releases.
A white IPA is basically a Belgian witbier combined with an IPA. As with all hybrids, it is a style of beer one has to learn slowly. Both the brewer and the taster. Bickford flattened the learning curve pretty quickly on this one I must say, leaving it solidly in the hands of the drinker. Interestingly, they’ve made a hoppy wit instead of a witty IPA, and the result is a yeasty mid tone and a citrusy yuzu undertone, with big motueka hops dominating the nose. Each component both shines through on its own and combines with the others in the holiest of matrimonies. As you work your way through this beer, new characteristics come to light, like watching a movie for the second or third time. Bitterness and yuzu linger into the finish as the hops fade away. It’s one of those times that leaving a bitter taste in your mouth is a good thing.
The coffee blonde is a complicated affair. It may sound strange, but it’s nothing to sniff at. Actually, sniffing is exactly what you should be doing. The coffee qualities are hard to put a finger on, and there is a certain new character that the blonde base adds to the coffee, or perhaps that the coffee adds to the blonde, it’s hard to say. Like an inside joke where you just had to be there, you just have to try it.
The crown of Wheat is a very approachable wheat beer. It has that conventional yeasty nose and a bit of the requisite coriander and orange, but all of them remain fairly subtle. It’s less aggressive than some wits, which was well planned, as Ring the Bell harbours enough aggression to go around. This beer is perfectly suited for this kind of weather, long may it last.