Damnbeerblogger Doesn't Live Here Anymore

It is with mixed feelings that I sit down to write this post, very likely my last one from Victoria, and certainly the last one I'll write from this apartment. Over the past few months, certain things have come together that are resulting in a move back to the mainland, specifically, North Vancouver.

It's a move from mostly-sunny to mostly-rainy. From the home of the cricketers to the home of the Canucks. From a place where people drive like they've had a stroke to where they drive like they're having an aneurysm.

I'm having mixed feelings about it.

On the one hand, missing the entirety of VCBW because work commitments meant the four+ hours of ferry travel back and forth were unworkable have sort of highlighted the drawbacks of Island Life. Certainly, it is with a great deal of anticipation that I look forward to being able to attend some of the fourteen trillion cask events CAMRA Vancouver seems to put on every month. Plus, we've bought a house with a basement, and that means homebrewing. I look forward to having you all over for blind taste tests, and by that, I meant taste-testing that may result in blindness. You can't spell "IPA" without "Antifreeze".

But Victoria's been very good to me. I've a great deal of fondness for both the brewing community here and the enthusiasts who spread the gospel. Probably nowhere else in Canada will you find such a huge amount of support for pub culture, and such camaraderie among the blogging community.

So, if you've been looking to me for information on local brews, then you'll need to start looking somewhere else. Actually, If you've been looking to me for information, then you clearly have a few other, more serious, problems. At best, I provide a blend of information and entertainment.

I call it, "entermation".

Even if you're not local, you should be reading these guys: Dan's Small Beer blog is what got me into this whole blogging thing: it's often got big-picture stuff you won't find elsewhere. Ian's left4beer brings a serious bent to things: if you're looking for a review that, y'know, actually describes what the beer tastes like, then it's the place to go. Dave is the guy to go to if you want poutine. Actually, he's probably the most active at keeping Beer On The Rock current and happening: it's a sort of beery Superfriends site that combines the efforts of all of them.

There's others too. Obviously you need to keep an eye on CAMRA Victoria as there's a sea-change coming there that's going to see an increased social media presence along with continued excellence in getting premium draft guest speakers in to spread the gospel. Brewery-wise, I expect to see great things from Vancouver Island Brewing and Lighthouse as well as continued excellence from Driftwood. I'll sure miss the growlers full of Phillips and the craic at Swan's and Spinnakers.

YADBB rolled over 10,000 page hits earlier today. As such, I've got something special I've been saving for just such an occasion: Brewdog's Tokio.

I'd like to use it to raise a toast to the Island, all who live on here, all who brew here and all who drink craft beer here.

Sláinte, my Island friends. You better believe I'll be visiting.