Insulated Growler Tap System (http://www.beergrowler.com.cn/)

Mar12 by Mike

Not only does http://www.beergrowler.com.cn/ sell insulated growlers on top of all other type of beer gadgets but they also sell Tap Systems for those insulated growlers.

Much like actual beer taps at the bar there is a learning curve for this system. If you do not do things correctly then you will just get a full glass of head much like I did the fist time.

I was able to get the hang of the tap system by watching a video made by a group in Australia.

When storing your beer in the growler make sure to keep the pressure in the growler to 5psi. Before pouring bleed off most of the pressure in only leaving a small amount of pressure. Once this is done start pouring your beer. When the pressure stops pouring your beer regulate just a little bit of CO2 pressure to keep the beer pouring. If you give to much CO2 then it will just get way to foamy. The more you use it the better you will get with it.

Once you get the hang of it this will be a great addition to your summer plans. How can you go wrong with an insulated growler and a tapping system? You can also put this in your fridge and enjoy the beer for a few weeks instead of having to drink it within 24 hours of opening your growler like normal.

If you would like to bring this to your store or brewery then check out the website below or send them an email for a copy of their catalogue and price list.

Here are my full sized photos.

http://www.beergrowler.com.cn/

If you would like a copy of their catalogue and price list send an email to sales1@sinobatoo.com

The Perfect Black and Tan

Feb19 by Mike

I have always loved a good Black and Tan when out at a pub but had never thought to make one at home as it takes some skill to pour a perfect black and tan.

I guess I should actually explain what a black and tan is for the people that do not know. A black and tan is typically a Lager or lighter ale poured carefully with a stout to make a multiple layer beer. The Perfect Black and Tan device makes pouring a black and tan easy. The only real difficult part is making sure you know what beer is more dense than the other as it will sink to the bottom if poured on top. Do a small scale test of the two beers you want to drink before going for the full glass as to not waste your beer and time.

My first try pouring I did not do a test even though I thought I should.

You can find great instructions on layering beer at The Perfect Black and Tan website. But the basics are to pour the more dense beer into the glass to the half way point. After you have done that you up the Perfect Black and Tan device on top of your cup. Now you are to pour the second beer slowly as it takes a little longer for the beer to pour through the small holes in the device. If you have picked the correct order of the beer then this device will work amazingly well.

Here is my review of my first black and tan.

Sadly the Pale Ale that I picked for this test was much darker than I expected as I had never had it before so it is not as striking and drastic as it could be. Still you can really get an idea of what this device can really do.

The price of the Perfect Black and Tan is quite low and for how well it works I would recommend anyone that enjoys a black and tan or anyone that likes to experiment buy one.

Top purchase your own Perfect Black and Tan device you have a few different options.

Here are my full sized photos.

The first option is directly from their website.
The Perfect Black and Tan Store

In the United States you can get it from Amazon.com
Amazon.com store

In Canada you can get it from Amazon.ca
Amazon.ca store

Insulated Growler (http://www.beergrowler.com.cn/)

Feb2 by Mike

British Columbia has a real lack of Insulated Growlers on the market currently. Breweries carry both 1L and 1.89L glass growlers fairly normally and the odd stainless steel or aluminum at some locations. It is nice though to be able to fill a growler and forget about it in your car or whatever your transportation is for a few hours before you drink it. Usually thought this would mean that your are having to put your beer into some kind of cooler to keep it cold.

British Columbia is a very outdoor focused province where we like to hike, bike, kayak, snowboard among other things (But then so is much of Canada). What better way to grab some beer and enjoy your activity? There is nothing worse than warm beer! I think breweries in BC should really look at selling a well made insulated growler. I was recently able to try out an insulated growler and put it through its paces.

This growler that I was sent as a review unit claimed to keep beer cold for up to 10 hours. The first growler fill that I got was filled at 5:30pm that was left out on a table and was not opened until 11:20pm. My first pour of the beer was very cold still. I did not have a thermometer on hand but I would venture to say that the temperature had not dropped very much from the time it was filled. I then checked the beer again at 7:20am the next morning which is almost 14 hours later. The temperature had dropped but it was still cold enough to serve a higher alcohol beer like an imperial stout or barley wine. Both of my second two fills had very similar outcomes with the beer staying very cold for much longer than 10 hours.

I really hope that breweries in Metro Vancouver, BC and around Canada will start stocking insulated growlers and I would highly recommend this growler itself. This is something that is really lacking in our market! To check out this growler and any other growler that beergrowler sells click on the link below. The company sells not only insulated growlers but all kinds of other growlers as well.

Here are my full sized photos.

http://www.beergrowler.com.cn/

If you would like a copy of their catalogue and price list send an email to sales1@sinobatoo.com

Not only do they sell the growlers but you can also have them personalized with your breweries logo!

Do It Yourself Bottle Waxing

Feb19 by Mike

When most beer geeks get serious about beer they start a beer cellar to age their high ABV beer. Again as a beer geek knows this can build flavours while mellowing the strength of the alcohol in the flavour. Beers can really morph into a whole different animal with age for the good or the bad. There are a few enemy’s of beer when you age it though. There is light, temperature and oxygen and all can have a significant effect. Light can be easy to control as you can turn off the lights and temperature can be easy by finding a place in your home that does not fluctuate in temperature much from season to season. The one enemy that can be hard to protect against is oxygen. Some breweries either cork their beers that age well and some wax the top of the bottles. Many breweries do nothing though and this can be like playing Russian roulette with your beer and depending on the beer that could be an expensive game. A fellow local blogger got me onto the idea of waxing my own bottles to protect them for the long haul. Jason of Beer Scout posted a little blurb on waxing and I decided to expand it a bit with this post.

What you will need
Good high ABV beer
Crayons or any other paraffin wax (dollar stores)
Hot glue Sticks (walmart)
Oven Safe Dish (dollar store)

You will require equal amounts hot glue to crayons to make your waxing solution. Make sure when you start that all beer to be waxed is at room temperature as my first batch was cold and half of my wax seals cracked. Start by preheating your oven to 350C. While you wait prepare your crayons by removing their paper covers. I had large hot glue sticks and used two in my dish. I then placed 8 crayons of similar colour into the dish making an approximate 50/50 split. Once the oven was preheated I placed the dish into the oven and heated. Watch the oven closely as to not over bake the mixture. Once everything is melted take your dish out of the oven and mix everything very thoroughly. This will turn out horribly if it is not mixed well. Once everything is well mixed place the bottles into the mixture and coat the cap area of the bottle making sure it is well sealed. Do not take your time as the mixture will be cooling down as you do these steps. Oh yeah turn off the oven if you haven’t yet.

It is really that simple. I would recommend a container that is taller and skinnier than the one I have if you would like a more full wax seal like most commercially waxed bottles. Not sure if they are better but it does look better. Now go out and try it for yourself just be careful as the wax is at 350C!

Full sized photos can be found here.

TapIt Cap (Growl Tap)

Jan26 by Mike

Have you ever wanted to pick up a growler of beer but then decided not to because you did not want to drink all 1.89L or 64oz in a day? This was always the downside of growlers as you had to finish them so fast after opening. But then a man named Rob in Denver Colorado had an idea and started up a kick starter.

The TapIt Cap uses CO2 to force the beer out of the growler without letting oxygen touch the beer! This means that if your beer is filled off of a proper growler filler your beer will stay carbonated for a full two weeks! This might be the best thing to hit the craft beer market. The system uses 16g CO2 cartridges that you can purchase at your local home brew shop. If you live in Vancouver then your best bet is Dan’s Homebrewing Supplies and will run you $2 a pop.