Mad Zack Brewing
Purveyors of fine ales, ciders and meads for the discerning post-apocalyptic survivor...

Blog of Mad Zack Brewing

Keyword: beerreview

Thu, 21 Mar 2024 17:00:00 -0400

Brewery Review: Rising Silo Farm Brewery

Rising Silo Brewery is a little roadside farm brewery and eatery located just outside of Blacksburg, Virginia near Virginia Tech (erm, "Go Hokies"?). more...

kelly jacklin

Mon, 02 Oct 2023 17:58:04 -0400

Brewery Review: Microbrasserie Saint-Arnould

We were on an RV voyage in eastern Canada, enjoying the fall colours, and happened upon this brewpub called the Microbrasserie Saint-Arnould, in Mont-Tremblant, Quebec. more...

kelly jacklin

Fri, 09 Sep 2022 13:45:00 -0400

Review: Stein Brewing Company, Mt Vernon Ohio

We took an RV trip to drop off my younger son at college in Ohio, and found ourselves in Mt Vernon, where my wife and he had (while touring a different college) eaten dinner at a local brewery. Since it was after lunch and we were hungry, we decided to visit that same brewery, the Stein Brewing Company. more...

kelly jacklin

Sun, 21 Aug 2022 23:32:59 -0500

Coal Creek Coffee and Tap

During a cross country trip, we stopped in Laramie, Wyoming for lunch, and after finding out that our usual Laramie haunt (the Prairie Rose) wasn't open for lunch on Sunday, we drove around until we spotted a place that was open: the Coal Creek Coffee and Taproom, a funky little corner side place down near the tracks in downtown Laramie. There was another place across the street, but this place caught my eye more, so we went there. more...

kelly jacklin

Thu, 09 Jun 2022 17:25:00 -0700

Brewery Review: 7 Devils Brewery in Coos Bay, Oregon

It's been a while. I didn't do much brewing during the pandemic, mostly because our beer fridge was reserved for provisions, since we were doing a lot of cooking at home, and I was a bit paranoid about supply chain disruptions (still am, actually, perhaps even more now that inflation is hitting). I did do some mead that turned out OK, and a California Common that was pretty darned good, but other than that, nothing. Then I broke my ankle and fibula last year, and after three surgeries, I'm only now getting to the point where I can walk unaided, so the idea of a brew day, with the accompanying cleaning up, was not too appealing. Starting to think about brewing again now, though. more...

kelly jacklin

Sun, 22 Sep 2019 18:24:06 -0700

Brewery Review: R&B Brewing in Vancouver BC

Now this is more like it! Super-sweet neighborhood brewery, with really good beer, not crowded, and a funky, unique ambience. Not too sketchy neighborhood, mostly couples and groups, friendly staff, and funky furnishings. Very good beer, with some adventurous choices. This is for what I've been looking... more...

kelly jacklin

Sun, 22 Sep 2019 17:30:00 -0700

Brewery Review: 33 Acres in Vancouver BC

This was a tiny neighborhood brewery tucked away in a sleepy area of the Mount Pleasant neighborhood of Vancouver. It's a small, modern-looking space with a clean look. Quite loud from crowds. Pizza (from a permanent-looking food truck parked in front) and snacks like pretzels, jerked dried sausages, scones, etc. more...

kelly jacklin

Sat, 21 Sep 2019 21:00:00 -0700

Brewery Review: Steel & Oak Brewery in New Westminster BC (near Vancouver)

Steel & Oak Brewery more...

kelly jacklin

Fri, 20 Sep 2019 21:00:00 -0700

Brewery Review: Central City Brewpub in Surrey near Vancouver BC

Central City Brewing (Red Racer) more...

kelly jacklin

Fri, 26 Jul 2019 17:36:37 -0400

Brewery Review: Trestle Brewing in Parry Sound

Trestle Brewing Company9 Great North RoadParry Sound, Ontario, Canada more...

kelly jacklin

Sun, 21 Oct 2018 18:31:31 -0700

Restaurant Review: Tyrolean Inn Restaurant

Tyrolean Inn Restaurant (here) is a German restaurant nestled in the redwoods of the Santa Cruz Mountains. I've been there for dinner a few times over the years, and it has never disappointed, but I've never written about it from a beer perspective before, so I thought I do a write-up. more...

kelly jacklin

Fri, 24 Aug 2018 18:03:29 -0700

Brewery Review: Shanty Shack Brewing (in Santa Cruz)...

I'm just now getting around to posting a review of a local brewpub, Shanty Shack Brewing. This is a tiny brewery on Fair Street, in the Harvey West area of Santa Cruz (near Costco). Not the nicest neighborhood around, but a cool little shack. more...

kelly jacklin

Tue, 31 Jul 2018 17:15:55 -0400

Brewery Review: Mill Street Toronto

Mill Street Brewery are a big thing up here. Their organic lager is everywhere, and lots of restaurants have other offerings from them available on draught. Their main brewery is in Scarborough, but their original location was in Toronto's historic - and beautiful - distillery district, and when they moved the main brewery to Scarborough, the re-opened the original location as a brewpub. After a slightly disappointing dinner venture the previous evening (see my review of the 3 Brewers Adelaide), I still had the bug for a good brewpub experience, so when I learned about this place, it sounded just the ticket. more...

kelly jacklin

Mon, 30 Jul 2018 19:51:55 -0400

Brewpub Review: Les 3 Brasseurs (3 Brewers) Review

We happened to be in Toronto for a couple of days, staying at the downtown Hilton, and looking for a place to dine, I stumbled on a brewpub called the 3 Brewers. It seems to be a Québécois outfit, since their real name appears to be Les 3 Brasseurs, and they have locations in Montreal, Quebec, Ottawa and Toronto, the latter being located near the corner of Adelaide and Sheppard in the downtown financial district, just a block from the Hilton. more...

kelly jacklin

Tue, 03 Jul 2018 06:52:00 -0700

Standing Stone Brewing Company...

On a recent trip northwards, we found ourselves in Ashland, Oregon around dinner time, so we headed downtown to find something to eat. A quick web search informed me that there were two brewpubs in town, and on advice from a local (our Lyft driver), we elected to go with Standing Stone (over Caldera), which also matched with my instinct from looking at the web search results and Yelpage. more...

kelly jacklin

Fri, 25 Nov 2016 09:40:59 -0800

Beer Review: La Fin du Monde Belgian-Style Tripel...

Over American Thanksgiving we served an interesting beer that I thought I'd comment on. I happened to have a bottle of this "La Fin du Monde", which is a Belgian tripel from the Quebec brewery Unibroue. The name translates as "end of the world", which refers not to any sort of apocalyptic event (unfortunately), but rather to the erstwhile European view of North America as being the literal end of the world; a name thus referring to Europe, and tying into this unique beer style, which utilizes a form of yeast commonly used by the trappist monks in brewing their beers during the middle ages. more...

kelly jacklin