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Posts Tagged ‘wine’

Drinks At Swans, The Victoria Brewpub That Serves Beer Made On-Site In Its Victoria Brewery!

July 3rd, 2010 No comments

Above and beyond providing first-class accommodations, Swans, the Victoria BC hotel, also proudly houses Swans Buckerfields Brewery, the on-site Victoria brewery that has been crafting award winning beers since 1989. The Victoria brewery produces British-style ales as well as Canadian and German beers–all with “old world care.” Special attention is given to all aspects of the brewing process. For example, in Swans Victoria brewpub and Victoria restaurant, the beers are served at 45F to enhance the fullness of their flavours.

The Victoria brewery uses 100 percent grain mashes: only wheat and barley malts and oatmeal in one stout. The specialty malts and Swans unique strain of yeast are imported from Britain. Swans swears against using syrups, sugars, or “adjunct.” The naturally carbonated ales are left to settle at cool temperatures as opposed to filtering because filtering can also extract the awesomeness.

Buckerfields selection of beers include the following: the Pandora Pale Ale, Arctic Ale, Swans Oatmeal Stout, Appleton’s Brown Ale, Buckerfield’s Bitter, Extra IPA, an Old Towne Bavarian Lager, Riley’s Scotch Ale, and a Raspberry Ale. The Victoria Brewery has won multiple national-level awards for its beers; they’re that good! Interested individuals can also book tours of the brewery, and Swans unique, house-made libations are served in Swans Victoria restaurant and Victoria brewpub and sold in Swans Wine & Beer Shoppe. The distinctive 650 ml bottles of beer make great souvenirs of a stay at the Victoria Hotel or of a tour of the brewery.

As you would expect from the name “Swans Wine & Beer Shoppe,” the store sells a number of vintages in addition to its brews. With a selection of over 400 varieties of red and white wine, you can find bottles from all over the world; however, Swans specializes in British Columbian and Australian selections, as well as French, Italian, and Chilean. Sparkling wines and champagne (including Dom Perignon) are also available to help you celebrate special occasions.

The store additionally carries an array of spirits with 150 offerings. With 30 varieties, Vodka is a specialty of the shoppe, and it boasts a fine collection of single malt scotches. Lastly, if you are looking for something a little different, you could try the Green Tree Absinthe (also known as “Le Fee Verte” or “The Green Fairy”). Rest assured, it is legal in Canada–though not in the United States!

If you are planning to visit the west coast of Canada and looking for opportunities to imbibe locally, check out this article on a unique Victoria BC hotel, Swans, connected to an on-site Victoria Brewery.

Napa Valley Wine Tours: California’s Finest Wine Region

June 5th, 2009 No comments
by Summer Wilde

Napa Valley is known for its famous wineries. Truthfully, the wine industry that is a large part of this region certainly holds its own amongst wine industry greats of the world; a wine enthusiasts Disneyland. Nestled in picturesque northern California, Napa Valley dominates the California wine tours industry.

Beauty and brains meet here in Napa Valley as picture perfect vistas combine with panoramic montages of rolling hills to add a warm feel to a well planned region of California. The planners had foresight that has served its inhabitants for generations and still lends itself to an air of pristine order. California wine tours in Napa Valley are proof to a provincial order long forgotten.

The topography of this region and the climate combine in a symposium of sensations to make Napa Valley one of the most ideal locales on the planet for growing wine grapes. Soil quality here is ideal for growing the grapes that line the orchards here where you will find some of the the best wineries in the world.

California wine tours in Napa Valley offer very many different services. There is the Napa Valley Limo Wine Tours that can be customized and tailored to meet your individual needs. Plan your itinerary accordingly as there are far too many wineries to see every one of them within a reasonable time frame. It would take at least a month, stopping at each and every winery to see all that this extraordinary region has to offer.

When scheduling a California wine tour, you can choose to participate in a variety of activities like wine tasting tours, blending seminars and sensory dynamics of food where your palate experiences the best of wine and.food. You can be entertained by classes that provide you with a breadth of knowledge and informative discourses into the dynamics of wine and food pairings. You do not have to be a professional wine connoisseur to benefit from these classes.

Wine enthusiasts one and all can enjoy entertainment and wine education as part of their Napa Valley California wine tour experience. Visit vineyards and wineries and observe the actual production of the wine. Enjoy the fine local restaurants staffed by expert chefs that blend ingredients in the meals to match the different palates of the wines available to you. Ride in hot air balloons, enjoy rounds of golf, visit the spas, take part in private cooking lessons, go on limo wine tours as part of your all inclusive experience in touring wine countrys capital in Napa Valley.

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