Cool Thing We Want #285: “The Very Very Many Varieties of Beer” From Pop Chart Lab

The Very Very Many Varieties of Beer | Pop Chart Lab | $24 (USD) |

“The world’s most comprehensive beer taxonomy is now bigger and better. This new design features 89 varieties of beer with over 200 representative quaffs, including glassware recommendations for each variety, and covers six square feet with beer-soaked goodness. Each print is signed and numbered by the artists, from a first edition of 1000. Using 100 lb. archival recycled stock certified by The Forest Stewardship Council, this print is pressed with vegetable-based inks in Red Hook, Brooklyn.”

Zoom in and explore this enjoyably informative print here.

EVERY COOL THING WE WANT

Smoke Break #786: Revolution In Beer Will Make Your Head Spin…

This rapid fire beer dispenser from BottomsUP is freaking me out (and making me thirsty).

Seen In Vancouver #252: Moment In The Woods On The West Side

UK Brewer Bottling Expensive Beers Inside Dead Furry Animals

And no, we’re totally not joking…

Twelve bottles of The End Of History ale have been made and placed inside seven dead stoats, four squirrels and one hare. And at 55 per cent volume, its makers claim it is the world’s strongest beer.

A taxidermist in Doncaster worked on the animals, which were not killed for bottling the new drink, with some having been killed on the roads. Outfits featured on some of the animals include a kilt and a top hat.

BrewDog, of Fraserburgh, Aberdeenshire, created the ale, which is stronger than whisky and vodka. The brewer recommend the beer should be served in a shot or whisky glass ”to be enjoyed like a fine whisky”.

The firm’s co-founder James Watt said: ”In true BrewDog fashion, we’ve torn up convention, blurred distinctions and pushed brewing and beer packaging to its absolute limits.

[...]

Barbara O’Donnell, director of services at Alcohol Focus Scotland, said: “This is another example of this company pushing the boundaries of acceptability, all in the pursuit of cheap marketing tactics.” However, Mr Watt argued that criticism of the beer’s high strength was “totally misguided”. He said: “This artisan beer should be consumed in small servings whilst exuding an endearing pseudo vigilance and reverence for Mr Stoat.

“The real catalysts for a binge-drinking culture are not well-crafted beers but the monolithic corporate machines that have cultivated a culture of quantity rather than quality amongst UK beer drinkers.”

True, but you’re still a feckless douchebag.

He also responded to criticisms of the packaging of the product and stated: “I can think of no grander way to celebrate these animals than for them to be cherished by the lucky owners.

Yeah, because thinking is your strong suit. Photo after the jump… Read more

Who Could Resist The Allure Of A Walk-In Heineken Fridge?

You don’t need to speak the lingo to get it (is that even Dutch?). There’s a follow up ad after the leap that I thought was even better… Read more

Feenie’s Weenie Rising Again?

If you’ve been looking for Cactus Club food concept architect Rob Feenie around the test kitchen at the Ash and Broadway location this week, you likely didn’t find him. He’s been in West Vancouver, at the Village Taphouse, helping to develop a new pub menu.

Formerly a Steamworks, the place was bought late last year by the CC chain, and the plan has always been to turn it into – according to manager Trevor St. James – a pub that’s fun and very different from Cactus Club with great food and a killer beer program. This past Monday it closed for renos, and the ambitious plan is for a soft re-opening tomorrow (Friday).

Right now, it’s a worksite, with plenty of noise and sawdust, but there’s no hiding the excitement on the part of St. James, Feenie and the rest of the team who are in there, pulling all-night shifts to get it ready.

Twenty local beers (seasonal ales, lagers, wheat ales, IPAs, brown and cream ales from all over the province) will flow through a Perlick Century beer system and out of taps mounted on the brick wall behind the bar. The focus for the 20 bottled brews is on unusual imports from global beermakers in places like Singapore, the Czech Republic and Brooklyn.

Beer lovers can opt for a Salt Tasting Room-like sampler, featuring three drafts, served with a big old homemade pretzel.

The rest of the menu is still undecided but at a CC media event on Tuesday the Food Concept Architect himself said it’s possible that some of the dishes from Feenie’s may find their way onto the Taphouse menu: that decadent burger, Feenie’s Weenie, and my favourite, his shepherd’s pie made with duck confit.

That’s good news for me. For years, I pestered Feenie about bringing his food to the North Shore. Even in print I may have whined about his disinclination to open in the community where I make a living as a food and restaurant writer. (The mandate where I work is local, local, local. So while I am able to slip in a Vancouver story once a month or so, it’s a lottery win for me whenever a restaurant opens on the Shore. Especially a good one.)

Well, from my keyboard to God’s ears, my friends. Or maybe it was to Cactus Club owner Richard Jaffray’s ears. Whatever. Semantics.

Of course, the strangest part of the tale is that the Village Taphouse is just steps away from a very busy Cactus Club, and it might seem odd to pit them against each other. Truth is, the pre-reno Taphouse has been doing fine, picking up the overflow from the often sardine-squeezed restaurant across the street.

So maybe it will work in reverse for a while. Which is nothing to cry in your tasty local microbrew over anyway: the new dishes created by Feenie for Cactus Club are exceptional, especially at the price point. Not all of them are at every location, but look for tuna tataki in a yuzu vinaigrette for $13.50; a generous plate of beef carpaccio for the same; airy butternut squash and mascarpone ravioli for $18; and a huge serving of braised Angus beef shortrib — that at the touch of a fork falls apart like Britney Spears off her meds — served with celeriac puree, baby carrots, sweet green beans, nugget potatoes and shaved pecorino, for $30.