Cranky Review

1700 Reviews

A Beer of Cultural Significance

A Beer of Cultural Significance

In the Nashville of the North back in the day The Mattagami was the city’s cultural center, although the Maple Leaf could be a contender for the crown as well. The more sophisticated residents and visitors to Timmins would venture to the Mattagami for a libation or...

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Burdocks Beer Ducks

Burdocks Beer Ducks

Ducks I have no problem with. The otter that shits on my dock, that’s a different matter. The Department of Morality loves the playful little rodent but she isn’t the one washing down the dock. Today he left the remains of a crayfish (claws that’s all) and his calling...

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Nothing Short of A- Märzen

Nothing Short of A- Märzen

When it comes to German, the only words I learned in my youth were from Hogan’s Heroes. In other words “I know nothing, nothing!”* That’s one reason why the COMDB translation department gets so much work around Oktoberfest time. However, in this case Sawdust City has...

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Back to Basics

Back to Basics

The Jackson 5 took us back to basics, teaching us our ABCs and 123’s. Of course, MJ was too young to be having a beer in those days,* let alone hooking up with the girl he’s singing to, but no one seemed to notice  back in those “innocent’ times. A 12 year old singing...

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Ratclops Times Two

Ratclops Times Two

According to Bellwoods, the Ratclops is a mythical brewery beast. I picture a Darwinian metamorphosis of the Muridae family , hunkering down under the vats, feasting on yeast, gorging on ungainly grains, and ferreting away festering fermentations. The results being...

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Amber Coloured Ale

Amber Coloured Ale

Holman’s description sounded great. “Golden toffee aroma, grainy malt flavours, and a dark chocolatey finish.” In fact it sounded almost too good to be true, like those ads on TV.   And me, a self-confessed amber lover, well I wasn’t over the moon in anticipation of...

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Working the Night Shift

Working the Night Shift

I remember working the night shift back in the day. Blackout blind on the window, do not disturb sign on the door. Eleven o’clock alarm clock. A thermos of Joe to go. No big bosses around to boss you around. It wasn’t bad once you got used to it. But 6 months of...

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Hair of the Dog that Bit You

Hair of the Dog that Bit You

This hair of the dog looks dark, dank and dangerous. The Kame & Kettle crew make it clear that this is no run of the mill dark lager, but is in fact a black ale. They tell us “one sip and you’ll be wagging your tail”. I don’t know about all that tail wagging...

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A Bird in the Hand

A Bird in the Hand

Out of Left Field and into my glass, one Bird Watcher. Our baseball crazy brewer is obviously referring to a major league baseball team. Of the 30 teams in the major leagues only three of them have gone to the birds. The Orioles, the Cardinals, and the Blue Jays are...

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Get the Drift

Get the Drift

Dobie Gray just wanted to drift away. Clint was on the high plains drifting. And Bow Wow was doing the Tokyo drift. In case you aren’t familiar with Bow Wow perhaps you know him from his original stage name, Lil’ Bow Wow.* Back here in the COMDB land of semi-reality I...

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