Pub Chat: Episode 12 - 3 Monts

And a discussion of our month long attempt to stay dry

In this episode Adrian and I talk about Dry Days, our successful month of not drinking.  It was crazy.  So to celebrate we tasted three beers from 3 Monts - their Special, 90th Anniversary, and Reserve.

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The Great Burger Hunt - The Next Act Pub

Where The Editor shows me apples are awesome

During my trip to Edmonton earlier this month Adrian and I met up with twitter friends Nisa , Ted , and Devin at Brewsters to have a late breakfast and drink beer.  Somewhere in the conversation The Next Act Pub came up, and the descriptions of the burgers they serve sounded mouth watering.  Not only that.  They supposedly had a great beer selection.

Next thing I knew we were clearing our bill at Brewsters and heading to Whyte Ave to sit on The Next Act Pub's patio and enjoy a few beverages.  They sure did have a good beer selection, and the waitress, also from Winnipeg, was very knowledgeable about the vast selection.

After downing a few pints we decided to order a few burgers.  The Next Act Pub has distinctive names for their burgers – The Act, The Director, The Class Act, The Editor, The Drama Queen, and The Cameo.  The last one is actually a new burger each week, which is very cool.

I settled on The Editor. A burger topped with bourbon soaked apples, Brie, caramelized onions, lettuce, tomato, and a bit of mayo.  The burger had a slight tinge of charcoal flavour to it, and it was quite thick, but probably would have benefited from being a bit juicier as the bun was a little on the dry side.  Of all the toppings I would ever order, apples on a burger would not be one of them.  I am not a fan of apples in general but this honestly sounded good.  The Editor did not disappoint, as the Brie and apple were subtle flavors that complemented the crisp veggies and burger really well.

The fries were piping hot straight from the deep fryer, but since the hops from my beers have destroyed my pallet completely at this point my review of the fries is just that they were good, and well balanced between the salty flavour and crispy texture.  At this point though, all I could taste was the citrus hops from the delicious IPA’s we were sharing on the patio so take this review with a grain of salt.

Costing me $14 for the burger and fries it did seem a little on the pricy side but the type of burger, and portion size made up for the cost.  The rest of their menu is filled out with sandwiches, salads, and a few snacks for appetizers.  If you live in Edmonton, or are stopping in for a weekend like me, this is definitely a place to check out if you love beer and burgers.

What I got: The Editor with fries - $14 (before tax)

Burger Taste : 4/5

Fries Taste : 3/5

Price Value : 3/5

Menu Selection : 3/5

Overall : 3.25

The Next Act

8224 104 St NW

Edmonton, AB T6E 4E6

(780) 433-9345

Nickel Brook Green Apple Pilsner

I don't even know what to say about this beer

Beer : Nickel Brook Green Apple Pilsner

Brewery : Better Bitters Brewing

Brewed In : Ontario, Canada

Style : Fruit/Vegetable

ABV : 4%

Price : $3.88 per 473ml can

Notes : Year round availability

Story : I’ve never heard of this beer, nor Better Bitters Brewing, before I saw this bright green can in the MLCC.  Sure it stood out, but I instantly shuddered at the green apple aspect to it.  I am not a fan of apples.  Yet I tried this beer anyway.

Appearance : The beer exploded from the can, so crack it carefully.  It looks like sparkling apple juice, with a white head that fades quickly, and tons of bubbles can be seen in this beer.

Smell : Not as strong as actual apple juice but that is pretty much exactly how it smells.

Taste : Well this definitely tastes like sour green apples.  Almost like a sour cider.  The finish is much sweeter and the after taste lingers.  This is, uh, not for me.  Too sweet and too much apple flavour.

Mouthfeel :  Green Apple Pilsner is medium bodied.  The can says it is very crisp, but I don’t find it that crisp, and it is very carbonated.

Drinkability : I’d never buy this again but I am not an apple fan.  I actually poured it out but I could understand why people who like apples like it.  And to say I will never drink an apple beer would be a lie because I quite enjoy Unibroue’s Ephemere Pomme.

Pub Chat: The Dark Knight Rises Special

Plus 3 tasty brews!

In this episode Adrian and I are joined by the Beer Jerk , or better known as George Cavalenes , and Rich Johannsen .  Both these fine gentlemen hosted the now defunct podcast - The Nabe Society - where they discussed films.  We figured it would be a good idea to get their opinions on possibly the biggest, or at least most anticipated, film of the summer - The Dark Knight Rises .  While recording we also tasted Southern Tier Brewing's Creme Brûlée Stout courtesy of myself, New Belgium Brewing's Super Cru courtesy of Rich, and Stone Brewing's Ruination 10th Anniversary IPA courtesy of George.  Adrian was cheap this evening, or possibly just drunk.

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Pub Chat: Episode 11 - Tree Brewing's Hop Head DIPA

A DIPA at its finest

Posted this online a bit late but in this episode we discussed Tree Brewing's Hop Head Double IPA.  Not only do we discuss new music, at the time, we were excited for like B.o.B., but we also discuss some of our favourite concerts and musicians with Brett Enquist .

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Dead Frog Nut Brown Ale

Damn I love that bottle!

Beer : Dead Frog Nut Brown Ale

Brewery : Dead Frog Brewing

Brewed In : British Columbia, Canada

Style : English Brown Ale

ABV : 5%

Price : $10.99 for a 6 pack

Notes : Brewed year round

Story : I had never heard of Dead Frog Brewing until this 6 pack showed up in the MLCC.  Turns out local brewer Dave Rudge, of Half Pints Brewing, created this beer.  This made me want to try it a bit more knowing all the other tasty brews he had his hand in.

Appearance : The beer poured a dark amber brown with a little lacing.

Smell : Living up to its name, Dead Frog Nut Brown Ale’s aroma was nutty with coffee and burnt sugar.

Taste : Mostly roasted malts, especially in the finish, the flavor was somewhat nutty and hint of coffee as well.

Mouthfeel : Light bodied and very smooth.

Drinkability : Dead Frog Nut Brown Ale was not bad, but there was really not much too it.  I may pick up another 6 pack but overall it is a beer I don’t need to have again.

The Amazing Spider-Man Review

My thoughts with spoilers ahead

I don’t know why, but I feel compelled to write a review on the newest Spider-Man film, The Amazing Spider-Man .  Possibly because I haven’t written a film review in a long while, or maybe it is the writer in me, one who has read enough, watched enough, or hell even created, enough stories with Peter Parker in them, that I feel I deserve to criticize the film.  I know I DON'T actually deserve to criticize the film, relax, but it's a character that is intertwined with my child, teenage, and adult life.  One I am still close to; even now I’ve got Spider-Man books within my reach.  Like I said – I don’t’ know why I feel compelled to write a review.  I just do.

Going into the film I had reasonable expectations: cool action sequences, another look at Peter Parker’s origin, and solid Marc Webb music selections.  I got all of these, and a bit more, but other then those three items I was fully open to whatever Webb planned to do with Peter Parker.

The casting was one thing I was unsure of going into the movie. Martin Sheen and Dennis Leary cast as Uncle Ben and Captain Stacey were my main concerns.  Sheen as Uncle Ben felt so wrong – it felt like they were using his screen persona as Martin Sheen to make us care about Uncle Ben. The film did not build up his character enough, and although I felt emotionally attached to the scene of his death it was all due to Peters reaction and my previous knowledge of Uncle Ben.  I did quite like that they didn't use the "with great power" line word for word  Leary was better than Sheen but had the same constraints, relying more on him being Dennis Leary than Captain Stacy.  More on Captain Stacey later though, they did do some things right with him that I would like to touch upon.  I was sold on Emma Stone as Gwen with her performance, and Andrew Garfield had a bit to prove in my eyes – and I am unsure if he did.

Garfield played a great Peter Parker – his Spider-Man was a little lacking in my opinion.  Garfield's Peter was different from Tobey Maguire's , his Peter was confident as well as awkward, which he did a spectacular job of juggling both characteristics.  His Spider-Man though was not as confident, the way he stood tall as Spider-Man felt off - I don’t know if I can explain it other then just the way he carried himself.  His sarcasm was there albeit toned down and with the exception of one scene he did very little talking with the mask on.  The writers’ choice to have Spider-Man less talkative bothered me but the switch was good for the Peter character and Garfield played awkward better than Maguire ever could.

By the time the third act was beginning to shape up was when Webb started to lose me.  Right after the construction workers help Spider-Man, it all began to fall apart, as if the webs became too tangled.  Webb hit the nail on the head perfectly though with the city of New York getting behind Spider-Man.  Overall the story felt too common of a tale – the clock is ticking and Spider-Man will have to save the day.  I probably sound harsher then I am meaning but the finale felt run of the mill, but before the story came to a close something I didn’t expect happened.  Where I felt Sheen wasn't right for the role, I saw that Leary was right for it, but he was not given screen time to really shine..  My hopes were dashed, and I honestly thought, just before the third act, that Sony Pictures was going to base the new Spider-Man series around the Captain Stacy/Gwen Stacy masterpiece by Stan Lee and John Romita .  Of course they were going to take liberties but the rushed climax of that arc really disappointed me.  The few scenes Leary and Garfield had together were glimmering hopes of a sequel based around their odd relationship - ending with would have been the "gut punch" of this film.  That clearly isn't happening now.

Maybe I'm hinging too much of my expectations on what I hoped for in the future with the Sony Pictures reboot.  Walking out it wasn't complete enough for me.  The acting, for the most part, and chemistry was great, the action was well thought out, and the use of the modern world (the Spidey cell phone) played perfectly into the film.  Yet the typical countdown plot line was lacking and the rushed ending abruptly cut this film down from great to good.

It may sound like I am picking apart the writing of the film completely.  And, well, I kind of am BUT they did do many things right.  The scene where Spider-Man removes his mask and hands it to the kid before saving him may go down as one of my favourite scenes in all of film.  It was pitch perfect.

In my mind this Spider-Man trilogy could have been great with this film playing out the way it did – with the exception of Captain Stacy surviving.  The second film would deal with a new villain, while still setting up Norman Osborn, and the death of Captain Stacy hitting much harder.  Ending the trilogy on a sad note with the Green Goblin and Gwen’s death would be superb, but we all know Hollywood would never go for that.  Right?