The Boozecan

Happy New Year, boozehounds! OK, we’re a tad early, but...

Fri, 30 Dec 2011 11:54:00 -0800

Happy New Year, boozehounds!

OK, we’re a tad early, but who’s counting? Your Friday tune, despite the year it celebrates, is still the best end-of-year party song bar none. So crank it up and get down.

All the best for 2012 from The Boozecan. Well, unless that Mayan sh*t goes down…

Prince - 1999

A Merry Boozemas to one and all! It’s The Boozecan’s...

Thu, 22 Dec 2011 14:53:34 -0800

A Merry Boozemas to one and all!

It’s The Boozecan’s favourite holiday season “carol” of all time. Enjoy, and happy Friday!

The Billy Bishop - 1407 Laburnum St. -...

Wed, 09 Nov 2011 20:03:00 -0800

The Billy Bishop - 1407 Laburnum St. - www.billybishoplegion.org

This is the third year in a row we’ve posted this review. It’s not that we’re lazy - well, we kinda are actually - it’s that “The Billy”, its patrons & members, and its whole raison d’etre deserve the accolades and the support. Yours and ours. So read on…

‘K, we’re going to get a lil’ bit preachy here, so bear with us: This Friday is Remembrance Day. As we like to remind people, thousands of Canadian soldiers didn’t die or suffer unfathomable physical and mental injuries just so we could have a day off in November. So we at The Boozecan implore you to avoid the shopping malls and all the tacky disrespect of wanton consumerism for a day, and at least try to catch the Remembrance Day services on telly. Better yet, if you can make it down to the cenotaph in person, it’s doubtful you’ll ever experience such a moving ceremony on that scale.

But it doesn’t all have to be all doom and gloom either. There’s a kick-ass way to support vets all year long–with a drink at a legion. They (legions across Canada) have been having a tough time as of late. It’s partly due to a dwindling membership–there are just less and less old soldiers around–and it’s partly their own doing. Legions haven’t exactly done much to encourage regular folks to pop in for a drink. But hey, what better way to support something than via a pint glass?

But before your turn your nose up at the thought of drinking in the stereotypical echo-y legion hall with metal banquet chairs around beat up, stained formica tables and the walls yellowed by 50 years of stale cigarette smoke, remember, they’re not all like that. And one of the best lies in the heart of Kitsilano–Royal Canadian Legion Branch 176–The Billy Bishop. And this Friday, it’ll be packed to the rafters.

The Billy (as we calls it) is a different kind of legion. It’s nice. For starters, blink and you’ll miss it. If it wasn’t for the sign outside you might pass it off as a just an old house stuck amongst the apartment buildings of Kits. Yeah, it’s got the usual function hall on the upper floor, but below lies the heart of the Billy–the pub.

More than a pub, it’s a living museum. The walls are literally covered with history–hundreds of regimental plaques from all around the globe, historical photos, paintings and other military memorabilia. But it’s got an authentic English pub feel to it–fireplace, beamed ceiling, dart room, dark wood furniture, padded booths and tiny self-serve bar.

The misconception out there, as we hinted at, is that you have to be a veteran and/or a member to come in for a drink. You don’t, you just have to sign in as a guest. But this is a legion remember. So good behaviour and respect are the order of the day (and guys, take your ball cap off if you’re wearing one–this is some old-school respect we’re talking about here). It’s not the kind of place you come to for a balls-to-the-wall night out–obviously. You come here to chill out over some pints in one of the few places in town where you can actually hear yourself think. No TV’s, no shitty music blaring, and better yet–no douchebags! That’s not to say it’s inhabited by monks 24/7. Friday nights there’s a lively English pub-style sing-song ‘round the piano, there’s semi-regular music acts, roast beef and Yorkshire pudding dinner specials and there’s the prerequisite (and by that we mean “awesome”) Sunday afternoon meat draw. There’s even a small beer garden outside for the spring and summer months.

As far as booze goes, you don’t really come here for cocktails (although they’re happy to oblige if that’s your tipple), you come for beer. And they’ve got a modest but respectable selection on tap at probably the best prices in the ‘hood starting at around a fiver a pint:

Molson
Piper’s Pale Ale
Vancouver Island Lager
Hermann’s Dark
Smithwicks
Guinness

So take your hat off, sign in, and soak up some Vancouver history along with your brews. And if you get the chance, buy a vet a pint and say thanks. It’s the least we can do.

For info on Billy Bishop (the person) Click Here

Vancouver Craft Brew Week - May 6th to 14th That’s right!...

Wed, 04 May 2011 08:56:50 -0700

Vancouver Craft Brew Week - May 6th to 14th

That’s right! Vancouver Craft Brew Week is back and in full effect! Check out the sweet promo video (embedded above) and make sure you get in on the events. Find out all about VCBW at their website:

vancouvercraftbeerweek.com

55+ breweries, 70 venues and 9 days of beer! Sounds heavenly doesn’t it? Even Mayor Gregor Robertson or as we like to call him “GREGOR THE KEGGER” kicks things off by tapping the first cask and declaring May 6 – 14, 2011, Vancouver Craft Beer Week!

It’s a week of beer pub crawls, food and beer pairings, beer science, beer courses, beer and burlesque, beer and BBQ, beer seminars, beer casks, beer how-to’s, beer awards, beer cocktails, beer and women (not being sexist here), beer festivals and even a Mother’s Day beer brunch!

Don’t be missing out on this one fellow dipsomaniacs! Get your beer on!

St. Augustine’s: hop-head Nirvana. St. Augustine’s -...

Mon, 28 Mar 2011 11:05:09 -0700

The tasty, tasty sampler tray

Just a few of the way-too-many TV's

St. Augustine’s: hop-head Nirvana.

St. Augustine’s - 2360 Commercial Dr. - www.staugustinesvancouver.com

You know, we really weren’t sure if there was any point in reviewing St. Augustine’s. It’s not that it doesn’t deserve a write up—we’ve been big fans for a long while now—we just figured most people (especially beer lovers) knew about this place. Apparently not.

After canvassing friends, acquaintances and other assorted booze-hounds like us, we were actually a little horrified to find out St. Augustine’s wasn’t even on their radar (maybe it’s the stealth-like dark exterior decor?). Well, it’s high time we remedy that, oh ye of little adventure.

The beer selection here will blow your mind. But it’s not just the overwhelming choice that make this one of the best beer bars in the city. It’s that, to their well-deserved credit, the folks running the place have turned it into an Aladdin’s cave of craft and micro-brews—the majority all available on tap. No big-brewery swill here, boyo.

There’s way too many to even begin to list here, but the 40 (count ‘em—four-zero!) beers on tap run the gamut from lagers and pilsners to ales, stouts and porters and just about everything in-between, and will run you from a modest $5.50 up to $7.50 a pint. Plus, a good few of these are seasonally rotated in order to confound your attempts at trying one of everything they offer (we kid—kinda).

Beers range from locally produced (think local, drink local) from the likes of Tree, Dead Frog, Central City, Storm and Driftwood breweries to imports from Washington, Oregon and California. St. Aug’s even serve certified organic brews, including the Crannóg Ales delicious stout, Back Hand of God, made right here in B.C.

Deciding what to start with can be a daunting task, so we suggest you dip your toes, figuratively speaking obviously, in the beery pool by ordering a sampler tray: four small glasses of any of draught beer for $8.50. It’s a pretty good deal to be honest. You’re probably getting just over a pint anyway for your eight and a half bones.

St. Augustine’s also features three of its own house brews, which we highly recommend: a pilsner, a lager and a stout. All muy tasty and cheap to boot.

As far as other kinds of drinks like cocktails or highballs, we haven’t even bothered to inquire. Why would we? This is like a candy store. A candy store that sells beer.

The pub itself is pretty big (100+ seats maybe?), but it’s often packed to the rafters. Especially if there’s a hockey game on. Which leads us to our one and only criticism: we’re cool with TVs, hockey, etc if they help you attract clientele. But honestly, there are so many screens in this place, it’s like walking into a Best Buy.

And if there isn’t a local game on, how ‘bout either turning them off, or at least showing something more cultured—like Bugs Bunny cartoons?

But for the kick-ass job the place has done at becoming a bastion of alterna-brews in our too-often mainstream supplied burg, TVs are a small price to pay.

Top 10 St. Patrick’s Day/Irish things you probably...

Thu, 17 Mar 2011 11:22:41 -0700

Top 10 St. Patrick’s Day/Irish things you probably didn’t know.

Happy St. Patrick’s Day, piss-tanks. Before you go filling your guts with green beer, fill your head with knowledge!

More vomit is produced on St. Paddy’s Day than any other day of the year.
Boston hosts the largest, and therefore worst, St. Paddy’s Day celebration in the world.
St. Patrick drove the snakes out of Ireland in a sweet 1972 Ford Econoline.
McD’s Shamrock Shakes don’t taste like mint. They taste like shit.
Leprechauns are so named ‘cause they have leprosy.
Kissing the Blarney Stone is said to endow the kisser with the gift of the gab. “The gab” is Irish slang for “cold sores”.
Corned beef and cabbage is a great pre-drinking meal. It will also ensure that your St. Paddy’s day vomit is of a thick, creamy consistency.
Jameson’s whiskey is great in cocktails and other breakfast foods.
The British government’s Weights and Measures Department has officially classified (ex-Pogues front man) Shane MacGowan’s urine as “overproof”.
This plucky nation has endured many dark times in its history - two famines, “the troubles”, and Enya.

Tales of the Cocktail - Day 3 (Tuesday): The party wraps...

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 21:23:06 -0700

Chambar fills up

Punch. Self-serve. Aw, yeah.

Chambar bar.

Also - PIG HEAD!

Boozecan pays respect to tasty friends.

Beefeater almond ice tea.

Gin tasting selection.

Desmond Payne of Beefeater Gin.

Gin x8.

Tales of the Cocktail - Day 3 (Tuesday): The party wraps up.

Wow. Hard to believe it’s all over already. Tales of the Cocktail Vancouver was a helluva three days. Dunno know how they can go five days in New Orleans. Probably ‘cause it’s New Orleans.

We’re tired and liquored out (yeah, even us) but absolutely elated we were able to be a part of it all, and the great news is that it was a resounding success, totally sold out, and next year’s is already being planned. And come hell or high water, we’ll be there. If you couldn’t make it this year, or weren’t sure what it’s all about, hopefully we managed in our ham-fisted way to give you some sort of vague idea of what goes on. And on that note, here’s how the last day went:

12:10pm - Heading to Chambar for TOTC farewell pig roast lunch.

12:15pm - Oh man, can smell tasty, tasty pork roasting from two blocks away. Mouth watering. Formerly undemanding stomach suddenly wakes up.

12:17pm - Nice! Chambar has two full-size pigs roasting on spits over open BBQ’s right out on Beatty St. Is this what heaven smells like? (sorry vegans/vegetarians)

12:20pm - Join growing crowd inside Chambar, where (surprise, surprise), the drinks are already flowing. Hear two of our favourite words EVER when inquiring about Pura Vida punch in giant-ass bowls: “Help yourself”. Punch is great (Fireball, Strega, dark rum w/pineapple & ginger citrus). Most peeps are surprisingly chipper given epic late night madness on Monday night’s bar crawl.

12:30pm - Punch #2. F*ck, that was fast.

12:35pm - Place is packed, but bit quieter & not quite as frenetic as previous two days so easier to talk to people today. Great chatting with Paul and Anne, TOTC’s founders. They’re stoked it was such a success. Van City brought the enthusiasm. Local bartender extraordinaire Jay Jones (instrumental in getting it here/organizing it) also jazzed it went gangbusters.

1:00pm - Lunch is served. Kudos to staff at Chambar for handling God-knows-how-many-people and making sure all are fed. Also thanks to piggly-wiggly - you were delicious, oh little porcine friend.

1:20pm: - Time to dive into second feature cocktail - bourbon-based Kentucky Savoire Faire. And we were going to take it easy today…

2:30pm - Exit Chambar, start meandering back to Fairmont Pacific Rim for Beefeater Gin tasting with uber-knowledgeable, super-freindly and totally unpretentious Master Distiller Desmond Payne.

3:00pm - Hey…there’s that cocktail buzz again, right on time.

3:30pm - Hit Fairmont lobby bar with rest of “the truly committed” for gin cocktails courtesy Beefeater’s Dan Warner before tasting session. First up - Almond Ice tea. This is a drink that says “I’d start setting up the next one, if I were you.”, but I draw on every fibre of self-restraint and stick with one. What an idiot.

4:00pm - Desmond starts gin tasting session. No idea different gins could have such complexities in odor, taste, finish etc from the different ways it’s diffused & distilled and the myriad of botanicals used to flavour it. Fascinating stuff. Also, tasty stuff. Have new found respect for the drink. Also discovered new way to drink it - with just water. Serious. Why ruin it with tonic?

5:00pm - One word: done.

So yeah, that’s it. Day 3 rating? 8 drinks out of 10.

Looking forward to next year, and stay tuned, we’ll be posting a “highlights of TOTC” here soon. Thanks to TOTC for a cracking good time. And after the past three days’ boozetravaganza - apologies to my liver. Now it’s time to rehydrate…

Tales of the Cocktail - Day 2 (Monday) So it’s Day 2 of...

Tue, 15 Mar 2011 00:24:00 -0700

Science class - packed.

Dave Arnold & Don Lee demo'ing.

Um...science?

Yup....SCIENCE!

Canadian whisky panel.

Whisky tasting 'left overs'. Heresy.

FUCKYEAHPRETZELS!

Only shot from gin seminar. Sorry.

Mixin' at Closing Party.

Boozecan idiot on right.

Tales of the Cocktail - Day 2 (Monday)

So it’s Day 2 of TOTC. It’s a Monday, and we’re in for a long day of drink-related shenanigans. No wait… “enlightenment”. It’s an unfamiliar feeling this getting up to go drink. But there’s something so right about it. Here’s how the day progressed:

8:40am - Drag ass out of bed, pry eyes open with butter knife. Nothin’ new there.

10:30am - Roll into first seminar of the day “The Science of Cocktails - New Techniques Behind the Bar”. Holy shit - packed. Demo table with all kinds of stainless steel shit: burner, flasks, strainers, etc set up. Sitting in front row like uber-nerd/pyro kid who needs closely watched. Having serious flashbacks to first period high school science class.

10:40am - Presenters Dave Arnold and Don Lee from TOTC take stage.

10:45am- First cocktail of day: mint-infused Daiquiri w/Brugal rum. Oh yeah, that’s the stuff…

10:50am - More flashbacks, there’s like…graphs and shit on screen. Thankfully presenters are hilarious - like Adam and Jamie from Mythbusters doing a show all about cocktails. Dave all hyper and enthusiastic, Don slightly more grounded and dry-witted.

11:00am - Good Lord, info coming fast and furious. Brain unprepared for onslaught of knowledge. Presentation kind of all over the map - and our pea-brains. Clarification of juices, physics of effects of ice size/shaking vs stirring technique on dilution and chilling, high-tech distillation using rotary evaporators, rapid infusing techniques via whip cream dispenser, back to clarification. Still, fun to watch/listen to even though brain broken.

11:20am - Eyes glazing over. Could be due to cocktail #2: vodka infused w/ coffee. Or just from smelling vodka infused with habanero or horseradish.

11:45am - Unable to explain anything, including own existence. Please visit Dave’s blog at www.cookingissues.com for actual useful tips. Too much info, not enough booze.

12:10pm - Lunch & brain break. Hey, Bols ginger twist cocktail! C’mon brain, suck it up, you pansy.

1:30pm - Grab a coffee. Yeah, that’s right - at a cocktail festival. Shut up.

1:40pm - Start afternoon seminar “The Birth, Death and Rebirth of Canadian Whisky”. Cripes. From morning science class to afternoon history lesson. Rye cocktail received at door will help. If high school was like this, I might’ve paid more attention. Or perhaps even less.

1:55pm - Panelists are using the word “exciting” too much when referring to Canadian whisky. “Sensible” and “restrained” would be better words wethinks, it’s Canada for God’s sake, not Rio.

2:00pm - Getting into the nitty gritty of Canadian whisky history. WTF? Canadian “rye” whisky is actually mostly made from corn, wheat and barley? We have been GROSSLY mislead. Better check that “maple” syrup at home…

2:05pm - Barrels can be used over and over making “rye”. God bless our thrifty country. Used to be called “brown vodka”. LOL - love it.

2:15pm - Crowd is itching to start sampling. Lots of fidgeting. Maybe those lunchtime chicken wraps aren’t sitting too well.

2:18pm - Hear chainsaw (!?!) in ice seminar next door. Awaiting screams of “Oh God no, not again!” followed by sirens…

2:35pm - Hellz yeah! Sampling time! 11 to try - it’s a rough life. First up: Royal Canadian. Guy tastes notes of pickling juice? WTF? Isn’t that the point? SHAZAM! Next up: CC, Wiser’s, Forty Creek, White Owl, Caribou Crossing, Alberta Premium, Alberta Springs, Centennial, Gibson’s, Century Reserve. Crowd is quite passionate and getting good dialogue going with presenters, except for buddy in crowd who reps a brand and must have his say. But descriptions now blurring together, much like rest of afternoon probably will.

2:45pm - Best quote of the day: “Maybe it’s the whiskey talkin’, but…”

2:51pm - Tasting descriptions getting too technical for our retarded palate. Would be happy with “This one makes me feel warm and laffy inside”.

3:00pm - Yup, like Sunday, got a respectable buzz happening. Top marks for consistency, Boozecan.

3:10pm - Canadian whisky seminar done. Spill out into foyer. There’s some sort of Caesar tasting/ranking competition going on and HOLY SHIT THEY’VE GOT PROPER GERMAN PRETZELS OUT HERE! TOTC, I love you…

4:01pm - Mmm…pretzels. Oh, next seminar is starting: “For the Love of Gin”. Beefeater/Plymouth Gin master distiller Desmond Payne gets into 500 year history of gin itself. Guy’s a great presenter - informative, funny. Seriously, who doesn’t love a drink that was once safer than water? We love you gin, you saved us…

4:37 - Desmond’s voice is getting a bit hoarse. Know what he needs? Yeah - gin. Also, us need too.

4:51pm - Laptop making knees sweat. Must shut down. Also need gin, still.

5:00pm - Oh, thank God. First gin cocktail tasting. Beefeater Gin Collins. Aw yeah…that’s the ticket. “Vancouver Cocktail” next, invented at grand old dame of hotels, The Sylvia. Quickly followed by “English Breakfast” cocktail.

5:20pm - Head home for break. This “work” is exhausting.

7:50pm - Roll into TOTC closing reception (there’s still one more day though, right?) at swanky, old boys’ Vancouver Club. Sponsored by a crap-load of booze companies: Wild Turkey, Skyy Vodka, Sailor Jerry’s, Appleton Estate, Glenfiddich, Tullamore Dew (not going to link - just Google that shit, writing this at 12:16am for God’s sake). Cocktails of note: Bourbon milk punch. Yeah sounds weird but so good - like a boozey vanilla milkshake. Also, Sailor Jerry’s rum punch.

8:45pm - So tired. So very, very tired.

9:30pm - Lights on, everyone out. There’s more going on but energy depleting. De…plet…ing. Hit L’Abbatoir with Kemp (Wayne 2.0) and friend for more drinks. Need something straight up. Cocktails all good, but need a break from sweet. Ah…bourbon on the rocks. Hello old friend….

10:45pm - Done. Yeah it’s “early”, but got to quit while ahead. Fantastic day. Rating? 9 drinks out of 10. Huge shout outs to TOTC et al for bringing it to Van. Let’s hope this becomes a regular thing. We need more events like this.

Tales of the Cocktail - Day 1 (Sunday) So what we thought might...

Sun, 13 Mar 2011 23:49:00 -0700

Some contents of swag bag

Don Julio tequila cocktail bar

Tasty tasty Root & Snap

Mixing an Appalachian Flip (avec Root)

The tasty, yet dangereux Appalchian Flip

Boozecan's Andrew & Kemp (aka Wayne 2.0)

Bartenders puttin some muscle into it

Damn right it better be 40%

Packed house

Rye shot & pickle juice chaser

Tales of the Cocktail - Day 1 (Sunday)

So what we thought might be a kind of quiet, possibly even lame first day of TOTC given there was only one “official” event set up, turned out to be…well, not lame. Here’s how it went:

2:15pm - Saunter into Fairmont Pacific Rim for TOTC registration. Nice to see a mix of industry people and regular ol’ cocktail enthusiasts. Grab media pass & kit, swag bag. Between kit, freebies, umbrella, courier bag, camera, and coat - look like an alcoholic sherpa.

2:22pm - Alcoholic sherpa downs first drink of the day (FDOTD?), a spicy “Yellow” (chartreuse, tequila, cayenne pepper) courtesy Don Julio tequila who have a mixing bar set up. Yowzers, this drink’ll put hair…uh, never mind where it’ll put hair. Grand Marnier also have cocktail bar set up, but not a fan, so pass on that.

2:31pm - Head up to the Root & Snap courtesy suite. Try a straight up Snap - a gingery, slightly spicy spirit not unlike really nice European bitters. Next up - a straight up Root - slightly root beer-ish spirit but not as sickly sweet. Next - a mixed-on-the-spot Root Flip, followed by tasty Snap Punch. These soon-to-be-introduced spirits will do well here in hands of talented bar tenders. Also, you know - yum.

2:55pm - Jesus, got a buzz going already. Engage in hazy chat.

3:30pm - Forgo invite to unofficial TOTC event at Aquarium. Rather not end up face down in interactive tidal pool display. Home to re-group and eat. If this is just the beginning, a well-lined stomach will be required.

7:50pm - Clear-headed & recharged, we head into the Gibson’s Canadian Whisky’s “True North” soiree at that bastion of old boys’ networking glory, the Terminal City Club. Basically an orgy of Gibson’s-based cocktails. Some good (Gibson’s Mule - sharp and “limey”, Gibson’s Beauty - contains more fruit than we’ve eaten in a week), and some not so good (Atlantic Maiden - kinda sickly sweet and minty).

8:30(ish)pm - The place is packed. DJ spinning, all the various bar stations cranking out cocktails for thirsty punters at lightning pace. It’s also getting hot. Very hot. But it’s fun. Peeps gots they glad rags on, and it’s one big-ass cocktail party in full effect. Also - poutine station!

8:45pm - Despite being denied a Gibson’s on the rocks earlier (?), we knock back a shot of rye followed by a shot of pickle juice. Interesting. In a “don’t knock Durian fruit ‘til you’ve tried it” kind of way.

8:50pm - Thank God. Realize same bar dispensing shots of rye and pickle juice is also making whiskey sours (a Boozecan fave). And they pass the test. They’re good. Damn good. Also, no pickles.

9:05pm - Actually manage to focus eyeballs and notice little plaques with Canadian whisky history adorning the walls. Wow, boozey AND informative. Who’d a thunk it?

9:45pm - Bar stations staring to run low on supplies, tangible collective panic in the air. Desperados vying for last drops of rye. Crowd is thinning.

10:13pm - Yup, in true Van city style, they want the crowd out by the official event end time of 10:30pm. Whatever, was a good night for a Sunday.

Day 1 rating: 7 drinks out of 10. And that was only a Sunday. Jebus.

The Boozecan hits Tales of the Cocktail for some libation...

Fri, 11 Mar 2011 15:07:00 -0800

The Boozecan hits Tales of the Cocktail for some libation edumaction.

If you’ve ever been to a conference of any kind, you know they can range from so incredibly informative you think your brain might pop like a balloon, to so dull you feel like your skeleton will leap out of your body and beat what’s left of you to death. So more often than not, the best part of these gatherings is the booze. It’s either the only break your grey matter gets, or the only escape. Then there’s Tales of the Cocktail. A three day “conference” (for lack of a better term) that’s just all about booze. So, you know, for rubes like us, um…WIN!

Unless you’ve been hiding in that crawlspace under the stairs eating expired Cold War c-rations for the last 10 years, you’ll know that the whole cocktail culture has seen a massive resurgence, with a whole new breed of bartenders & drink enthusiasts obsessively giving their creations the same devotion, care, and attention-to-detail Michelin-rated chefs would give to their last meal.

So it stands to reason that in this day in age someone’s going to figure out a way of getting all these alco-geniuses together in one place to share recipes, techniques and probably more than a few bar horror stories. That’s where Tales of the Cocktail comes in. TOTC (as it’s affectionately known) is probably THE premier cocktail festival, in North America, if not the world.

TOTC started out in New Orleans, where it’s been going gangbusters for eight years now. But this year by some miracle, the Gods of Alcohol smiled upon us, the great planetary martini glasses aligned, and they decided to take the show on the road to none other than our humble little burg: Vancouver. Three days of speakers, seminars, demos, competitions–and before you think it’s getting haughty–a pub crawl. And yea, The Boozecan shall attendeth.

Stay tuned for a day-to-today recap (with writing getting progressively shittier as the days go on).

Squeeze on in to Elwoods and get your drink on. Elwoods -...

Mon, 21 Feb 2011 16:11:25 -0800

Squeeze on in to Elwoods and get your drink on.

Elwoods - 3145 W. Broadway - www.elwoods.ca

If The Fringe Café were to have a kid brother, Elwoods would probably be it. Conveniently tucked away right across the street, you get the feeling it wants to be The Fringe, it’s just lacking that worn-in, rough-around-the-edges look that give its neighbour that extra bit of character. Or, maybe they just clean it too well.

But that’s not to say Elwoods isn’t a great little place to imbibe. It’s a bit larger than its big brother neighbour, but still relatively small and cramped (read “cozy”—we just hate that word). But that’s what makes good pubs good, n’est pas? Sadly, a lot of places around town, for whatever reasons, never seem that “social” to us. You’re either confined to a booth you can’t escape from, or you’re seated in a room that’s twice the size of an aircraft hanger and half as inviting. But if you’re elbow-to-elbow with your fellow drinkers, you’re going to start talking one way or another—whether you like it or not. And isn’t that half the fun of boozing with your fellow humans? Fortunately, Elwoods is of the elbow-to-elbow school of thought.

As far as hitting the sauce, there isn’t tons on the fancy/innovative cocktails front. It’s more of a pints and pitchers kind of hangout. That said, you can’t knock Elwoods Friday $3.99 highballs. And if you ask nicely, Colin the Bartender might show off some of his fancy-ass cocktail makin’ acrobatics, what with the flipping and the spinning and the twirling of the shaker. (Word to the wise—watching the flipping and the spinning while inebriated can swiftly facilitate a painful introduction of skull to tiled floor.)

You also can’t knock the $10 burger and beer special everyday. They’ve got a decent selection of brews on tap too:

GI Honey Lager & Pale Ale
OK Springs Hefeweizen & 1516 Lager
Big Rock Traditional Ale & Grasshopper Ale
Sleemans Original Draught
Rock Creek Cider
And for you hipsters out there - $3.99 pints of Pilly!

Nothing out of this world, but better than a row of taps drawing big brewery piss—well, save for the Pilly maybe. They also serve the mind-fucking Snakebite should thoughts of blacking out or a good ol’ fashioned lose-the-plot gong show seem attractive to you. But hey, no judgment.

So next time you’re in this neck of the woods or you’re dying for a post-movie beer (The Hollywood theatre’s within spitting distance), squeeze into Elwoods and belly up to the bar.

Hey Monday to Thursday, you suck. Love, Friday. Friday I’m...

Fri, 18 Feb 2011 11:06:47 -0800

Hey Monday to Thursday, you suck. Love, Friday.

Friday I’m in Love - The Cure

The Neon Bonfire This goes out to all of our fellow drinksters,...

Sat, 29 Jan 2011 11:57:32 -0800

The Neon Bonfire

This goes out to all of our fellow drinksters, pub players, barflies, club casualties and even the douchebag barstars. A brilliant short film by Thom Stitt called The Neon Bonfire. As the tagline says:

1. Collect painful burdens into container.
2. Assemble at the downtown fire.
3. Burn contents.*

* Contents may not burn. At all.

So Cascade Room, we meet again. The Cascade Room - 2616 Main St....

Fri, 28 Jan 2011 09:38:22 -0800

So Cascade Room, we meet again.

The Cascade Room - 2616 Main St. - www.thecascade.ca

This here review needs a little backstory to set the stage: Rewind to a couple of years ago when The Boozecan’s debut issue as a humble-but-pain-in-ass-to-put-together e-newsletter was sent to an astounding thirty recipients, and The Cascade Room got the “honour” of being one of the first places we ever reviewed. So how’d it go? Well, let’s put it this way–summoning all the power of our sophistimicated wordsmanship, one bar received a glowing review illuminatingly titled “Bar of the month”. The Cascade’s review, on the other hand was brief, brutal, and bore the headline “Not bar of the month.” Yeah, in short, we trashed it.

Not to dwell on it, but it wasn’t a good experience obviously. We’d heard so much buzz about the place, and ended up being colossally disappointed (mainly by the drinks, to be honest). But before you hardcore Cascadians start baying for our alcohol-saturated blood, like many did after our first review, keep in mind that we did give them the benefit of having an “off” night and actually went back a couple of times, only to be let down twice more. So we wrote it off.

Fast forward back to the here and now, and legions of Main Street hipsters and thirsty Vancouverites have proved us wrong–obviously–‘cause the joint’s going gangbusters. So we thought it was about high time we put first, second, and third impressions aside and make a return visit. We’ve got to admit, we were a little bit nervous. It was kinda like repeating a blind date that didn’t pan out the first time.

Well, we’re happy to say it was a way hot date, yo. The place was packed, the tunes were pumpin’ and the drinks were…well, way tasty. And going by the wait to get in, the Cascade’s reputation for said bevvies precedes itself. You can sit at the moderately sized bar if there’s room, but there’s plenty of tables in all manner of configurations in a big cosy room decorated with a mash up of 1940’s style wallpapers. But let’s face it, we weren’t there to eat. And judging by the tables full of the hipster-elite crowd knocking back the sweet stuff, neither were they.

To their obvious credit, the ambitious folks at The Cascade offer up a metric shit-ton of cocktails–too many to list here–but most range from a bit over $8 to just under a tenner (and all containing a generous 2-3 oz of booze and made right with fresh, house-made ingredients). We recommend getting a drink before you start reading, lest you die of thirst before you make it through it. But so you’re not totally overwhelmed by choice, their extensive cocktail menu is nicely categorized:

Vintage Standards (Daiquiris, Bloody Marys, Tom Collins etc.)True American Players (Manhattans, Bronx Cocktails etc.)
Deeper South (think Mint Juleps and Old Fashioneds)
Champagne Supernova (4 different champagne-based cocktails)
Other European flavours (Sidecar, and for the brave/foolhardy – an Absinthe cocktail)
Old School Classics (think Mojito, Pisco Sours and more)
Martinis (more than you could probably name)

Specifically, we were digging the Ward 8 (Tennessee sour mash whiskey, lemon & orange juice and a dash of housemade pomegranate grenadine) and their signature Cascade Room Cocktail (bourbon shaken with apple & lime juices, vanilla bean, bitters and egg white). Actually, we were digging several of them.

They’ve got an admirable selection of seven local brews (Red Racer, Russell Cream, Driftwood Ale to name a few) and three imports on tap all in proper 20oz UK pints ranging from just over a fiver up to seven bones, AND they offer half pints at–wait for it–just about half the price (huge shout outs for doing the right thing)! Plus, there’s a good 20 or so beers from around the world available in bottles or cans.

Our only real complaint was slow service. Hence the quote of the night: “Where’s that chick? I need more booze!” (classy, huh?). But hey, it was busy. So kudos to the Cascade. You won us over. At last.

BarBird iPhone App You know, we here at The Boozecan have sat...

Thu, 27 Jan 2011 12:53:00 -0800

BarBird iPhone App

You know, we here at The Boozecan have sat around many an evening discussing and contemplating our next move to boozy dominance like supervillains holed up in a secret lair … obviously we’ve done this over a few drinks. We’ve hatched many a scheme that were both brilliant and revolutionary … only to be forgotten the next day with the onslaught of gargantuan hangovers. Even those scribbled on bar napkins were rendered indecipherable by overspill and illegible drunken hand writing.

However, an iPhone app was not one to ever be forgotten. Many times had we thought of a magical app that would tell us where to go, what to drink, where the cheap drinks were and maybe where the vibe was right. But alas, we did not possess the superhuman powers to conjure such an app. Blog - sure! Twitter stream - we have the technology! Facebook account - kids play. However, the elusive bitch that is an iPhone app escaped both our intellectual know-how (not surprising) and our meagre pocket books.

Then, like the dawn of new morning light came the app … BarBird!

“Happy hours? Drink Specials? Ladies Nights? Live Music? No Cover? If any of these phrases put a smile on your face, BarBird is the app for you.

BarBird provides a real-time picture of what is happening in the bar, restaurant & concert scene in your area so you can discover deals near you, save money and always know the next best place to go.”

Now, we here at The Boozecan have tried to provide a service such as this, but BarBird does automatically via an iPhone app what we’ve haphazardly tried to take on manually by monitoring various social networks. That is, the following of local bar type establishments and the retweeting of said establishments’ specials, deals and events.

BarBird pulls in relevant tweets from local establishments to find live music venues, bar specials and happy hour deals (although, unfortunately we don’t have drink specials for happy hour - stupid archaic Vancouver laws. BarBird at least included Vancouver as a location otherwise we wouldn’t be writing this).

BarBird has loads of US cities and you can also use the app if you’re in Vancouver (as we mentioned), Toronto, London, Sydney, Melbourne, and Brisbane!

How does BarBird work you ask?

We suggest you download the app and try it out as the app is FREE (as in beer) but if you need a few details, here they are extrapolated from BarBird’s blog post.

The list view streams tweets from twitter and shows you what’s happening right now in your city.
The map view displays map pins for bar locations around you that you can click to see tweet details. From the tweet details pop-up, you can navigate to venue details and get directions.
Both views can filter results by ‘Happy Hour’, ‘Specials’, ‘Music’, ‘Ladies Night’, ‘No Cover’ and ‘Tonight’. (Take note establishment Twitter users … start hashtagging accordingly!)
Both views are ‘time-aware’ to filter stale content. On the map view, icons become more transparent the older a tweet is. In list view, the time stamp on a tweet will change color and begin to fade.
You can tie the app in with your Facebook account!
You can add venues if they don’t already exist!

For full details and screen shots check out BarBirds blog post:
http://barbirdinc.wordpress.com/2010/12/10/barbird-iphone-app/

Does this mean The Boozecan is obsolete? HELL NO! We’ll continue to bring you our brand of acerbic wit, sarcasm and caustic attitude to our local (and occasionally not-so-local) watering holes both on www.theboozecan.com and www.granvillemag.com. There’s always room for more. After all … great minds drink alike.

Bravo to the boys of BarBird … finally an app worth downloading!

Merry Boozemas to one and all! And may your 2011 be 40% by...

Fri, 24 Dec 2010 13:54:00 -0800

Merry Boozemas to one and all!

And may your 2011 be 40% by volume, 100% of the time. Uh…whatever that means.

All the best to all our followers from The Boozecan!

The Fringe Café - the little bar that could. 3124 W....

Wed, 22 Dec 2010 09:29:22 -0800

The Fringe Café - the little bar that could.

3124 W. Broadway - www.fringecafe.ca

You know, it’s absolutely amazing that The Fringe is still around. And that’s not a slam, by the way. That’s the ultimate compliment in a city where, more often than not, as soon as a bar/pub/restaurant/whatever opens, the countdown to closing begins. Eating and drinking establishments in Vancouver are like tubs of yoghurt, they seem to come with an expiry date. In fact, we used to joke that there must be a secret city bylaw requiring places to implode after two years. And if that didn’t do it, what establishment could possibly withstand the awesome business-withering power of fickle Vancouverites who can turn the hottest room into last week’s cold porridge at the drop of a martini glass?

The Fringe could, that’s who. Twenty years in business and this humble institution is still going strong. And it really hasn’t changed much. Why would they? People come here to drink ‘cause it’s “real”—no pretense, no ‘tudes and (at least the night we were there) no douchebags! It’s small (like 48 seats small), dark and cramped—just the way we like it. Honestly it’s the kind of place that would seem more at home on Commercial Drive, or tucked away on a San Fran side street. And yeah, there’s a bit of a boho vibe to it, but that’s what makes it different.

But enough of our rambling—onto the drinks, or specifically, beers. Here’s the mostest bestest thing about drinking at The Fringe - $3.99 pint specials EVERY DAY! Hellz, YEAH! And it’s not big brewery swill either. It usually rotates through a choice of local beers on tap. Take your pick of:

Russell “Dirty Girl” lager
Russell “Ugly Boy” ale
Russell Cream Ale
Russell Honey Blond
Lighthouse Beacon IPA
Lighthouse Keeper’s stout

Or, you can order from their impressive selection of canned and bottled brews. The giant fridge is stocked like a beeraholic’s wet dream—everything from Smithwicks, Cooper’s, Newcastle Brown, Anchor, Red Stripe, Tsing Tao and on and on and on. There’s even Smirnoff Ice on hand just in case the ‘bag crowd does show up. Isn’t that thoughtful?

The Fringe is proof that character trumps corporate every time. So come early, grab a seat or sidle up to the bar, and along with your drink, soak up some atmosphere you rarely get in this town.

‘Twas the weekend before Christmas… So make sure...

Fri, 17 Dec 2010 10:19:00 -0800

‘Twas the weekend before Christmas…

So make sure you’re around to see it.

Not to be total downers at this time of year, but it’s the weekend preceding Christmas, which means there’ll be a shit load of parties and soirees going on. And that means a shit load of drinking going on. Now, we here at The Boozecan love to have a good time and obviously love to imbibe and we kid around about drinking. But one thing we absolutely cannot tolerate is DRINKING AND DRIVING. Just don’t fucking do it! Don’t even think about it! In this day and age there is no fucking excuse for that type of shit. If you’re drinking and driving, YOU are in a rolling fucking death machine of glass, plastic, rubber and steel. This is probably one of the best anti drunk driving campaigns we’ve ever seen. Actually it’s a montage of all the Australian Transport Accident Commission’s road safety commercials from the last 20 years. Be warned - it features some very graphic scenes and images but we don’t think we’ve ever seen something that really gets the fucking point across as effectively as this does. And yes, that last f-bomb was absolutely necessary. So drink responsibly, or don’t drink at all.

‘Tis the season of relentless imbibing. Ah, Christmas -...

Tue, 14 Dec 2010 10:08:00 -0800

‘Tis the season of relentless imbibing.

Ah, Christmas - the holiday of excess; presents, mountains of grub, so many tasty seasonal drinks, and so many reasons to have one. And here’s a goody even your Grandma will knock you down for: The Egg Nog Martini.

Of course, there’s tons of egg nog martini recipes out there, but we like this one best ‘cause it’s super easy. And that’s good, ‘cause we’re super lazy. Here’s what you need:

1 oz Eggnog
1 oz Amaretto
1 oz Vodka
Cinnamon or Nutmeg

Shake ‘nog, Amaretto and vodka (with just enough ice to get it nice and cold without being watery), and strain into a martini glass. Sprinkle with cinnamon or ground nutmeg. Of course, making your own egg nog from scratch is always an admirable undertaking, but it’s a pain in the ass, so we recommend a good quality store-bought one - preferably without any “guar gum” in it.

Merry Boozemas!

UPDATE: ‘K, we got a little bit of flak from some purists out there regarding the ingredients: Yes, most store-bought egg nogs contain crap, but with a little bit of effort you can find some that aren’t too bad (click on the link above for one locally made ‘nog that’s pretty good). And yes, home-made is always better and the ingredients are basic, but this is about low-effort. But hey, if you’ve got the time, have at it! We’d just rather not waste valuable drinking time.

And yes, “technically” you should only ever put rum in egg nog, but that would just make it a shaken up rum and egg nog, no? This is an egg nog MARTINI. But if you’re a purist, technically this shouldn’t even be called a martini either and…MAN! It’s Christmas! Can’t we just all get along?

Suck it, Bono - this is Ireland’s greatest band. Teenage...

Fri, 10 Dec 2010 13:45:00 -0800

Suck it, Bono - this is Ireland’s greatest band.

Teenage Kicks - The Undertones