Lockdown got you Down? Try These!

And we’re back! We recently hit the road again, but that hasn’t stopped us from sipping and sampling some of our favourites (old and new) while we were patiently waiting for the world to open up again. In fact, visiting the retail shops of our favourite craft beverage producers was awesome during the most recent lockdown. It was a chance to meet the makers and get to talk to some really passionate folks about the beverages we were taking home. All the while we were supporting local, which is something that we love to do. With that in mind, we’ve got a two for one featuring a brewery from London, Ontario and a winery from Norfolk County, Ontario.

First off, we have a couple brews from the incredible Forked River Brewing Company in London, Ontario – one of London’s oldest craft brew

eries. On this trip, we were on the hunt for a couple of IPAs and we ended finding not one but two to take home and try. The first was their Interstellar IPA which is a more traditional IPA in style. It went down exceptionally well with notes of fruit and citrus, but still packed that hoppy punch that IPA lovers will love. On this particular evening we paired it with the insanely delicious Jalapeno and Cheddar Pierogies and Pickle Fries from the Pierogi Queen food truck, based out of London. To finish off the meal we tried out a second IPA, this time it was the LoCo – Hazy Kveik IPA, which is a special partnership with Logan Couture, captain of the San Jose Sharks. A little lighter in alcohol content, but just as full of flavour as Interstellar, when you’re drinking LoCo you’ll appreciate hints of tropical fruits to balance out that dankness that is commonly associated with IPAs/

A few weeks later we were in the mood for some wine, so we visited our good friends at Burning Kiln Winery in St.Williams, Ontario. Somewhat of an institution in Norfolk County, you can always count on a good glass (or bottle) from Burning Kiln. When we

visited, it was recommended that we try their newest single varietal, Sands, which is made from the Savagnin grape (one of only a few single varietals of this grape that you’ll find in Ontario).  The first glass was just to enjoy on its own, and you will certainly enjoy this one! It’s e

xtremely smooth and we loved the notes of pineapple and peach on the palate. Sands is a dryer wine, but is still sweet enough to satisfy folks with all preferences. We paired it with a homecooked plate of linguine and butter garlic shrimp, and that was a wonderful choice. Needless to say we were satisfied by the end of that meal.

Stay tuned for more tastings, and pairings as we venture further into Southwestern Ontario to visit some of your local favourites!