Those of you who follow us on Twitter or Facebook will know that we were featured along with a bunch of our local craft brewer colleagues on the Today Show on NBC. That show’s Phil Lampert incorrectly suggested that Canadian craft brewers paid more care to their beer than our American counterparts. Driftwood would like you to know that we are offended at the suggestion that our colleagues in the US are doing a poorer job than us of advancing our craft. We acknowledge that our movement began in the US, and we are proud to be a part of the North American craft beer movement! Our own local television station the A Channel got Victoria brewers’ take on the NBC piece. Check it out:

Our neighbors from Absolute Underground are living in a Limousine in Vancouver for the Olympics, and taking sustenance from Driftwood Ale. Check it out!

We have begun shipping our newest seasonal beer to retailers in the Victoria area today, and will be sending some to Vancouver on Monday. This Extra Special Bitter (ESB) marries a pallet of floor malted Golden Promise malt with about 55 pounds of Northwest hops. The result: a hop head’s delight. Get it while you can…

Our newest brew is nearly done fermenting…think HOPPY! The labels are off for printing…

If you are around the Drive tonight in Vancouver, check out our cask of Saaz dry-hopped Crooked Coast Amber at St. Augustines!

Today we shipped the first cases of Old Cellar Dweller Barleywine 2009. We boiled this brew for a full five hours to concentrate the wort sugars and produce a powerful ale indeed! Bright, fruity and super hoppy when young, this beer will gracefully age for years. With time the hop flavor and aroma fade, and are replaced with caramel and sherry notes. Enjoy now, and save a few for next year!

Thank you to our friends at The Alibi Room for your hospitality; and to all you beer geeks who showed up for the hundredth rotation of their beer list. It was a great honor to be included in the event.

We’ll be tapping a second cask of dry hopped Driftwood Ale at The Office this Friday, at 5:00. Hope to see you there!

Those of you following us on Twitter may have noticed some recent posts describing our mission to the Columbia Valley to pick up some hops. This was a pilgrimage we had been waiting a year to make!

Once a year, during the late summer hop harvest lucky brewers can get their hands on fresh hop flowers. Usually hops are dried to be used year-round, but that doesn’t mean we can’t use them fresh!

That is the idea behind this “wet hop” IPA; the hops from Sartori Cedar Ranch, a fledgling hop farm south of Chilliwack were spirited from the farm to the brewery and immediately used in this one, very special tank of beer.

Sartori Cedar Ranch, along with a few other farms are breathing new life into a hop industry in BC that was nearly extinct; this beer is a celebration of BC hops!

Oh this is going to be GOOD! Check it out!

Amuse
White Bark
Arctic char gravlax with prawn mousse and citrus

First
Farmhand
“Moule Frites” Leek, watercress and mussel stew with hand cut fries

Second
Crooked Coast Amber Ale and Driftwood Ale
Veal and Sauerkraut Two Ways
Weisswurst with braised sauerkraut, and braised veal cheek wrapped in sauerkraut leaves with celery root puree

Main
Special Lambic Blackberry
Braised Pork Belly and Smoked Spare Rib, onions and braising jus

Dessert
Brother Bart Belgian Brown and Old Cellar Dweller Barley wine
Dark Chocolate Ganache, toasted almond praline, malted barley gelato and sweet beer sabayon