November 2006 – Page 2 – A Good Beer Blog

Did Someone Say “Olympic Boycott”?

Been a long time since we have had an Olympic boycott based on political dispute. Surely it must be time now if only due to the passing of time and the natural lapse of memory. And surely we should be able to take the foot off the clutch and call for one if we are truly going to lead the way on human rights in China. Because that is what we are going to do, right?:

Prime Minister Stephen Harper says his government will not abandon “important Canadian values” by toning down criticisms of China’s human rights record to improve trade relations with Beijing. Harper made the comments to reporters on Wednesday after being apparently snubbed by Chinese President Hu Jintao.

Just wonder, you know, what important Canadian values we might be discussing and whether they get us all the way through the game of chess or whether we just give them an airing now and then.

Socks and WD40

Seeing this is cut and paste day from the MSM [Ed.: the dastards! Give me more.], this digital world meets the Darwin awards is a decent morality play for the day:

…a university professor needed help after he tried to fix a squeaky desktop computer by squirting it with WD-40 oil. The squeak went away, but so did his data.

I once, during my spotty teens, used astringent face cleaner on my Elvis Costello lps so I feel their pain. If is a darn good thing that we do not have to clean CDs or Mp3s but does anyone think of the layoffs in the lp-cleaning industry? Where are they now? And those who made that K-tel lp flipping storage device. What of those?

Good Long Term Thinking

As opposed to the sports of long term planning that will restore the quality of the environment to 2017 standards by 2086, this is interesting to see out of the UK if only as it is indicative of how properly done there is no need to fear the boogieman of a social security gap in the future:

Governments are often accused of thinking short term. But a pensions reform Bill, included in the Queen’s Speech, is one of the most consciously long term bits of planning seen for some time. Looking ahead to 2050, its main aim is to provide a higher level of state pension for many more people over the coming decades. The big idea is that the link between the basic state pension and earnings will be restored some time after 2012 and the state pension age will be raised to 68 by 2046.

It has been a long time since there has been much of a boo said about Canada’s retirement funding stability which leads me to the idea that the funding is actually stable as was promised in the early 90s when the bad old ways were turned around by those wizards the Liberal Party of Canada, who will still never get my vote as far as I can see so don’t even bother.

Tales From The Green Valley

Got a little Christmassy last night watching Tales from the Green Valley on TVO last night, a 2005 BBC production, in which a number of academics with good teeth live in a 1620’s Welsh farm and display how civilized it all would have been without the ignorance, disease, constant use of alcohol and religious fanaticism. But all very good and worth watching. Here is one participant’s website. It were the December episode that drew me back to the deep mid-winter:

To celebrate Christmas 17th-century style the farmers cut a giant yule log, find traditional decorations, brew contemporary tipples, and put all hands to cooking up recipes from the age of Shakespeare, like mince pies with real meat in them. At the same time they must find time to tend the livestock, make some winter clothes, and build a hovel, a period wood store.

But they did butchered a pig and made with it plump sausages and many a pie. ‘Twas the “contemporary tipples” that was of interest, the infusion of herbs in spirit that got me thinking of storing up something of a julglögg, then I reckoned it might be a pyment or metheglin. It reminded me of when at King’s I was in charge of the Gunpowder Punch in 1984 for the Christmas Readings: 7 parts red wine, 2 parts port, 1 part brandy simmered with old apples and spices.

Taking care of this in November leaves time in early December for some careful cheese planning. Oh, and I better buy a snow shovel, too.

BeerBistro!, Toronto, Ontario

I had the occasion to visit BeerBistro! near the corner of King and Yonge Streets in Toronto today…ok, twice today…which in itself tells you something. I had to meet a friend for a quick lunch in that area of town and later took the time to have another beer as I waited for the train back home.

We had a good old blabfest in the corner where the bar curves to the front window. I had a Granite Brewery Best Bitter, a beer that served as one of the entry points into the world of craft beer for me back in the mid-80s when it was first brewed at the old Gingers and later at the Henry House down at the end of Hollis Street near the railway station in the south and of Halifax. Lots of nutty and raisiny malt with a whack of pine resiny hops. It was the perfect match for the pulled pork sandwich which was surprising as it was both excellent and in Canada. The raw fennel salad was a bright accompaniment.

Later I returned. I had a good old read of the menu during which time no one bugged me to make up my mind. I settled on a 2005 Tsarina Katarina Imperial Stout from the good folks at Scotch Irish who brought us Sgt. Major’s IPA. It was thick licorice and cocoa with minty hops. Fabulous.

The decor is hip trendy, reasonable for a beer bistro, and the prices are as honest as having both the LCBO as your wholesale monopoly and the desire to stay in business selling rarer beers requires. Well worth it as the staff was excellent, relaxed and knowledgeable which matched well with the thoughtful food and and well handled drink. Definitely worth a stop when in the downtown of the Big Smoke.

Star Gazing Canadian Style

After last week’s Jane Pitfield debacle where I had a nice talk with the possible future Mayor of Toronto I vowed never to let it happen again. For folk not of the Great White North, this is the new Red Green, Brent Butt of Corner Gas.

The scene. I was at the corner of King and Young, exactly kitty corner from “the Pitfield event.” I approach the corner and see the moment opening up before me in an instant. I stood beside him waiting at the cross walk – like him looking forward – and said “Are you who I think you are?” He says “That depends, who do you think I am?” I say “the guy my wife is in love with.” He says “now that could go a number of ways…” Once I told him I wrote a blog he asked me if I knew The Flea and if he could wave to him in a picture. I obliged.

As nice a gent over the course of a 27 second conversation as ever there was or one very well versed in dealing with whackos.