What is unspeakable joy?

I believe it means a substantial joy. It is not based on good circumstances or wonderful weather. It’s a joy that cannot be described this it is unspeakable. (Awesome)

What is the purpose of unspeakable joy?

The purpose of unspeakable joy is stability. No matter what the circumstance, we are comforted by the Holy Spirit. Instead of surviving and enduring life, we enjoy our life. W are positive people and we release the unspeakable joy of our hearts to people around us. (family, friends and neighbors). People will know you possess this unspeakable joy because you will be a peaceful person that people want to be around.

How do we obtain Unspeakable Joy?

By opening our hearts to accept the wonderful gift of grace that Jesus gave us when he was born in a stable on that first Christmas.
“And now I am coming to you, I say these things while I am still in the world, so that my joy may be made full and complete and perfect in them (that they experience my delight fulfilled in them, that my enjoyment may be perfected in their own souls, that they may have my gladness within them filling their hearts) John 17:13.

May you have a merry Christmas and a Happy New Year! Enjoy the season, and love, and help people practically.

We are a group of members who have strived to follow the Mission of Victoria's Quilts, to provide comfort and warmth to those individuals who have cancer. Harrowsmith Branch is entering it's ninth year as a branch and we deliver quilts, free of charge, from Verona to Nappanee, Sharbot Lake and Harrowsmith into Kingston and area.

Harrowsmith is a hard working group but also enjoy the companionship of each other. Many lasting friendships have developed and the social part of our meetings have also become important as is our making of quilts.

Members can either be sewing quilts, ironing or helping to deliver quilts to recipients. These quilts are a gift and the feeling you get when you see the faces of those receiving these quilts is the answer to why we do this.

We are always looking for volunteers, so if you think you might be interested in joining us, we meet at Trinity United Church in Verona on the second Friday and the fourth Tuesday of each month from 10:00am until 3:00pm.

Recipes

Maple Vanilla Baked Pears
Serves 8 (or 4 because I don’t like to share!)

Ingredients:
4 Anjou Pears
½ cup Maple Syrup (Use good local stuff!)
½ teaspoon Cinnamon
1 tablespoon Vanilla
1 cup granola
Yoghurt or Ice Cream (Do what ever you want, I’m not the
boss of you!)

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350f. Find a baking sheet in that crazy
   baking sheet cupboard. I’d suggest you use some parchment
   paper, because nobody wants to have a hard time
   cleaning up when it’s dessert time!
2. Slice your pears in half and then cut a little off the skin
   side so they’ll lay nice and flat. Use a melon baller (or a
   teaspoon) and core out the pears. Place pears face up on
   your baking sheet, sprinkle the cinnamon over top (they’ll
   look better if you don’t try to get it too evenly!)
3. Mix your maple syrup with your vanilla. Save some of
   it for the end and drizzle the rest on the pears.
4. Bake pears for about 25-30 minutes. (In my experience,
   all ovens are different and so are most pears, the
   last time I made these it took about 40 minutes! Start them
   early, they can always be heated up again! In fact, you can
   do these a few days ahead of when you need them!
5. Throw some granola on them, put them on a plate with
   some yoghurt or ice cream, drizzle your maple vanilla over
   top of everything and enjoy!

- Submited by the hungry chef - Dan Keeler, Black Kettle Catering

Parmesan Sausage Stuffing
Serves 8 (or 1 if you’re me…)

Ingredients:
12 cupsBbread
1 lb Sausage meat (Apple Sage from Seed to Sausage)
8oz Chicken Liver, chopped
3 cups Onion, chopped
1 cup Parmesan, grated
1 cup Celery, chopped
1 cup Chicken Stock
¼ cup Parsley, chopped
2 Large Eggs, beaten
2 Tbsp Olive Oil
1 Tbsp Thyme, chopped
2 tsp Sage, chopped
1 tsp Rosemary, chopped
1 tsp salt
1 tsp Course Black Pepper

Directions:

1. Preheat oven to 350f. Bake Bread, spread out, until dry. Set bread aside to cool.
2. Butter a glass baking dish. Heat 1 TBSP oil in heavy skillet on medium. Saute sausage for 5 minutes. Add chicken liver; cook until sausage and liver are cooked through. Transfer to large bowl with bread.
3. Add 1 TBSP oil back to skillet. Add onions, celery, thyme, sage, and rosemary. Cook until celery is tender. Add to bread mixture.
4. Stir in ¾ C parmesan, parsley, salt, and pepper.
5. Mix eggs into stuffing.
6. Transfer to buttered dish, cover with foil and bake for 40 minutes.
7. Uncover, sprinkle remaining parmesan on top and bake until lightly browning.

- Submited by the hungry chef - Dan Keeler, Black Kettle Catering

Cathedral Windows

Ingredients:
1 cup butter or margarine
1 cup sugar
1 egg
4 hard-boiled egg yolks, mashed
3 cups all-purpose flour
1/4 tsp grated orange rind
1 cup mixed candied fruit
1 cup glazed cherries

Directions:
Cream butter and sugar until light and fluffy. Beat in egg. Stir in mashed egg yolks, flour, salt, orange rind, then fruit and cherries. Shape into rolls, 1½ inches in diameter. Wrap rolls in foil or plastic wrap and chill thoroughly. To bake, slice dough very thin (1/4 inch), spread on greased cookie sheet. Bake at 300F until set but not brown (8 – 10 minutes). Careful! These cookies bake quickly!

- Submitted by Marg Desroche

Poems

A Granny’s Christmas Wish

If I were ol’ Santa, you know what I'd do?
I'd dump silly gifts that are given to you,
and deliver some things just inside your front door,
things you have lost, but treasured before.
 
I'd give you back all your maidenly vigor,
and, to go along with it, a neat tiny figure.
Then restore the old colour that once graced your hair,
before rinses and bleaches took residence there.
 
I'd bring back the shape with which you were gifted,
so things now suspended need not be uplifted.
I'd draw in your tummy and smooth down your back,
‘till you'd be a dream in those tight fitting slacks.
 
I'd remove all your wrinkles and leave only one chin,
so you wouldn't spend hours rubbing grease on your skin.
You'd never have flashes or queer dizzy spells,
and you wouldn't hear noises like ringing of bells.
 
No sore aching feet and no corns on your toes,
no searching for glasses when they're right on your nose.
Not a shot would you take in your arm, hip or fanny,
from a doctor who thinks you're a nervous old granny.
 
You'd never have headaches, so no pills would you take,
and no heating pad needed since your muscles won't ache.
Yes, if I were ol’ Santa, you'd never look stupid,
you'd be a cute little chick with the romance of cupid.
 
I'd put a smile on your face when those wolves start to whistle,
and the joys of your heart would be light as a thistle.
But alas! I'm not Santa, I'm simply just me
getting older myself, as it’s plain to see.
 
I wish I could tell you all the symptoms I've got,
but I'm due at my doctor's for an estrogen shot.
Even though we've grown older, this wish is sincere:
Merry Christmas to you and a Happy New Year!

Christmas Holiday Day Remembered

The Christmas holiday had so many jolly days with bands parading throughout the town.
The Christmas holidays had so many folly days with rooftop icicles hanging down.
The traffic hurried and people scurried with snow-capped street lamps to guide their way,
voices singing, church bells ringing, the angel faces came out to play.
The Christmas holidays had so many merry days with salutations sent through the mail.
The Christmas holidays had so many cherry days, cranberries and popcorn by the pail.
Dreaming, young hearts believing, our Shortbread cookies scattered on a tray,
The hour was nearing, the elves were cheering, Santa’s reindeer were on their way.
The Christmas holidays had so many swirly days, snowflakes dancing into the air.
The Christmas holidays had so many twirly days with frozen ice drops inside our hair.
The trees were brimming with sparkle trimming, beneath the boughs the presents lay,
hugs with kisses and yule-tide wishes to celebrate our Christmas day.

- Susan Elizabeth Radford

We thank all the children, who worked so hard on their drawings for our contest, and all the teachers and parents/ caregivers who encouraged them to enter. This is our last edition of 2016 and we will now take a two-week break. The office will close on Friday, December 22 at 2:00 p.m. and will reopen on Monday, January 5 at 8:30 a.m. Our first edition of 2017 will be published on January 12 and the deadline for that edition will be 5pm Monday, January 9. We also thank our readers and advertisers for their support this past year.

Christmas Art Contest Winners

Overall Winner

Leah Rymbolt , Grade 2, Loughborough P.S.

Grades Kindergarten & Grade 1

First place: Reid Tooley, (Santa’s Sleigh) Grade 1, Clarendon Central

Second Place: Blake (Oval Christmas Tree) S.K., Land o’ Lakes Public School

Third Place: Michaela Clancy, Grade 1, Land o’ Lakes Public School

Grades 2 & 3

First place: Coen Turner, (Little hanging lights) Grade 3, Land O’Lakes Public School

Second Place: Brooke Gunsinger (Northern Lights, Blue), Grade 3, Clarendon Central P.S.

Third Place: Audrey Bateman (Pencil House) Grade 2, Land o’ Lakes Public School

Grades 4 & 5

First Place: (Tie) Jake Bodurtha (Reindeer), Grade 4, Loughborough Public School

First Place: (Tie) Eva Devries, (Santa Claws) Grade 4, Loughborough Public School

Second Place: Emma Fox (Christmas Tree), Grade 5 Prince Charles Public School

Third Place: (Tie) Hector Nielson – MacAlister (Christmas tree in house) Grade 4 St. James Major

Third Place: (Tie) Kayson-Lee Marjorie Dewolfe, Grade 5, St. James Major Caltholic School

Grades 6-8

First Place: Andy Gemmill (Hockey Santa), Grade 6, Loughborough P.S.

Second Place: Amber Minutillo, (Merry Christmas Tree) Grade 8, St. James Major Catholic School

Third Place: (Tie) Poppy Limber (Indoor Christmas Tree) Grade 6, St. James Major Catholic School

Third Place: (Tie) Benjamin Wooby, Grade 7, St. James Major Catholic School

Honourable Mentions:

Angelyn Wood, (Santa’s Sleigh over Christmas tree) Grade 2, Land O’ Lakes P.S.

Cloe (The angels are looking for baby Jesus) SK, St. James Major

Kya Betke, (Tree with Santa Head) Grade 5, Loughborough

Miles, (Santa and Reinduck) Grade 3, GREC

Evan B, (Wolf and tracks) Grade 5, Loughborough P.S.

Phoenix, (Santa and cute reindeer) Grade 3, GREC

Haylee Barker, (Santa and Stars) Grade 2, LOLPS

Lillie Marshall, (Patterns) Grade 6, Loughborough P.S.

Nevaeh Teeple, (Skinny Tree and Santa) SK, NAEC

Draven C, (Christmas Owl) Grade 7, GREC

Maya Wolf, (Santa, Rudolf and Mrs. Claus) Grade 4, Prince Charles

Mason England (Santa, Elf and table) Grade 5, Clarendon Central

Hunter Dale Cooke, (Santa in night) Grade 2, GREC

Prepare yourselves for a delightful afternoon of fiddles, friends, and Chnstmas cheer! Join the Blue Skies Community Fiddle Orchestra for their 17th annual "Little Christmas Concert' on Sunday January 8 at the Maberly Hall from 2-5pm.

The concert will feature the joint talents of the Prep Orchestra (who have only been playing together since October), the Intermediate Orchestra, the BSFO, and the always anticipated Lanark Fiddler`s Guild. The Unspoken Rests, a talented youth ensemble group representing the BSFO, will also play a lively set of tunes.

Admission is $10 and refreshments are available. Be sure to arrive early. It's always a full house! Bring your family and friends to enjoy the Christmas spirit through music.

This is it, the last seven beers in our month long journey. This week, with the holidays fast approaching the focus is on the biggest, strongest, most flavourful varieties. The solstice is hear and Christmas is at our door so it is time for beers that have been aging and picking up flavour and spice and character in the barrel and the bottle for a couple of years. I have also engaged an expert, DJ Softcell (AKA Surah Field-Green) to put together a millenials guide to alternative seasonal music to go with the beer. The list of songs comes at the end of the list of beers and can also be heard at our Youtube channel (Google Youtube Frontenac News – you can’t miss it)

Sunday – The last week of work beckons and before moving into the heavy beers I will make one more pitch for the Imperial IPA. Beaus Brewery, as part of their Wild Oats series, makes Screaming Beaver, and oak aged IPA that is mellower than other IPA’s (ie less hoppy) but full of fruitiness. Although we are devoted to Ontario here, another option that is sometimes available are IPA’s from Dogfish Head, the 90 minute IPA is superb and they also make a 120 minute that I have never had, and a beer called Burton Baton that is an oake aged IPA that is mellowed by the age and alcohol.

Monday – What the hay, lets hit the Barley Wine. Mill Street of Toronto is a brewery whose beers I don’t always like but I am starting to enjoy them more, even as they have moved out of the independent beer scene by being sold to an international brewing conglomerate. They make an 11.5% Mill Street Barley wine that is only availbale this time of year. No matter what I thought about their ales and lagers, this beer is sweet and full, without being too sticky on the tongue. I like to our only a small amount of barley wine in a glass, and drink it pretty cold, almost like port or strong wine. I the pour another and another, but filling a large glass with it makes it too daunting.

Tuesday – It’s close enough to the solstice now to pull out a 2 year old bottle of Flying Monkey’s Chocolate Manifesto. Milk chocolate stout, not exactly. It is a chocolate stout, with lots of dark chocolate nibs, and also a milk stout, with lactose in it. The lactose makes it smooth, the chocolate and aging make it sweet and strong and all together it is a great beer. A note for anyone who gets to Quebec. One of the best milk stouts around is called La Vache Folle by Charlevoix brewery. I could drink that on summer and winter solstice and every day in between.

Wednesday – It’s no time to worry about the normal rules, it’s the shortest night of the year. Sorry Ontario, I need some Solstice D’hiver tonight. Dieu du Ciel, one of the best breweries in Quebec or anywhere make this barley wine elixir. It has everything. Again, small sips, slow drinking, it’s like a sweet whisky.

Thursday – not only back to Ontario but back to Kingston. On Monday night, my wife was lucky enough to get two bottles of Juggernaut from Stone City. It was released on Friday and never lasts long, but we got some. It is a bourbon barrel aged Imperial Stout. Not really for drinking with food, more of an after dinner, around the fire beer. Very full and very heavy but frothy at the same time. It reminds me a bit of Nicklebrook’s Kentucky Bastard (which is delicious) but it is not as heavy. It really is the holidays when these beers come out.

Friday – Christmas Eve, eve, and again I am going to cheat, only because people in Ontario need to know about this Barley Wine and this brewery. Trois Mousquetieres makes specialty beers. They are all unusual. Their Barley Wine Americain benefits from aging and I buy a bottle each year and drink a two year old one if I can. It is an experience. So much flavour. It has lots of caramel, but no sticky finish as long as it is not let to warm up too much. A 750 ml bottle shared with 2-4 friends is a great antidote to everything that hurts after a hard year of work.

December 24, the final night, the final beer. Cuvee from Nickelbrook, brewed in Hamilton by a guy from Sydenham. This I also wait two years to drink. It is not as heavy as a barley wine, but full of spice, and with a hint of sourness. A beer like no other, I wait all year for it.

Millennial's Christmas Mixtape by DJSoftcell

I don't want a lot for Christmas, there is just one thing I need.. a playlist. Christmas music isn't for everyone. And by the time you're trudging through slush to shop for last minute gifts, jingle bells is the last thing you want to hear. So sit back and enjoy an eclectic mix of songs that you may not have heard yet. Pour a fine beer, shut off the Netflix noise, and enjoy.

Click here to listen to the playlist.

Tracks
Maybe this Christmas by Lapland
Purple Snowflakes by Marvin Gaye
Just Like Christmas by Low
O Tannenbaum #1 by Vince Guaraldi Trio (A Charlie Brown Christmas)
Merry Christmas Baby by Otis Redding
Goodbye England Covered in Snow by Laura Marling
Joy to the World by Eef Barzelay
Snow, Lights by Flora Cash
Winter Wonderland by Cocteau Twins
What Christmas Means to Me by Stevie Wonder
And Anyway it's Christmas by !!! Chk Chk Chk
A 'DC' Christmas Medley by Destiny's Child
Last Christmas by Future Islands (Wham! Cover)
Another Lonely Christmas by Prince
Winter is Passing by Luluc
River by Joni Mitchell
All That I Want by The Weepies

There was a broad array of hand crafted gifts, late season produce, fresh baking, sweet cider and peroghi’s for the holidays that were Charles Public School last Saturday (December 10).

While many were taken with the fact that a winery, Three Dog Winery from Prince Edward County, was on hand as the result of changes in regulations permitting Ontario beer, cider and wine producers access to farmer’s markets, there was another unusual display. Just off the gym near the north exit, Family and Children’s Services of Frontenac and Lennox and Addington (FACSFLA) – formerly known as the Childran’s Aide Society, had two senior managers on hand to talk about fostering and adopting children.

Angela Woodhouse handles recruitment of foster and adoptive families and Mary Margaret Fuller is the Manager of Resource Services, and her team guides families through the process of fostering and adopting.

“We wanted to participate in the Christmas show here because we know a lot of people come out for it,” said Woodhouse, who lives nearby, “and because we thought Christmas is a time when people think about family and community and the roles each play in people’s lives.”

Mary Margaret Fuller said that the reason FACSFLA wanted to come out to Verona in particular was that there is a need for rural families for certain foster children who are either from the area or are looking to get out of the city to be able to participate in more outdoor activities.

There are currently 25 children, most of them in the middle to older age range of 12 years and up, that FACSLA is looking to place in foster or adoptive homes at the moment.

She also said that FACSFLA has worked very hard in recent years to make sure that before any child is fostered that all avenues for family reconciliation have been explored.

“We work with families and with extended families to keep children in place or with kin, but when that is not possible we look for foster families,” she said.

FACSFLA has produced a somewat tongue in cheek “15 reasons to foster” teens as part of their recruitment campaign, which is aimed at families in the midst of their chld rearing years and also at “empty nesters” who have the time, space and inclination to live with young people again.

The list points out that “no diapers are required” and that “teens sleep through the night” and “will tell you when your old clothes are back in style”. It also offer added bonuses such as “You can teach teens to drive” and “Every kid deserves a family to rebel against” and finally “Goodbye Dora the Explorer and hello Walking Dead!”
Fostering is a serious pursuit, of course, and the process of becoming a foster family takes a year, and requires training.

The process starts when an individual or family contacts FACSLFA to express interest in fostering. This is followed by a meeting with a resource worker who lays out all of the details about how to become a foster parent, what expectations and supports there are.

This is followed by two concurrent courses. On is Parent Resources for Information, Development and Education (PRIDE) a provincial training program delivered locally over 10 three hour sessions. The other is called Structured Analysis Family Evaluation (SAFE), set of tools that are used to determine eligibility, suitability, and readiness. It takes about 10 hours of meetings to complete.

Once the entire process is completed, which can take six months or longer, efforts are made to make the best match between children with families. Heritage elements such as an indigenous background are important factors, and that is one of the reasons why FACSFLA is looking to southern and northern parts of Frontenac County for new foster families.
“Fostering is not the ideal solution for children, but good fostering is vey important to us, for the children and the foster families,” said Angela Woodhouse.

On their website, FACSFLA outlines how fostering fits into the vision that the agency has been developing over the last 4 years.

“On this journey, foster care is a temporary stop along the way. We will try to find a way for them to return home or to live with extended family. If those aren’t options, then we will find them an adoptive family. Our new vision will see foster parents take on the role of adoptive parents if and when a child needs them. This is our vision.  Our goal is to give every child the permanency they deserve.”

FACSLFA has about 200 children in care, a number that has been on a steady decline as the results of efforts to maintain children with their birth families whenever possible.

Of those 79% are over 12 years old. In the near future, however, the numbers could rise substantially as the Ontario government considers upping the age where agencies like FACSLFA have jurisdiction from 16 to 18.

Two students from North Addington Eduation Centre, Emma Fuller and Cassidy Wilson are taking an online course in environmental resource management this semester. Part of their course work includes setting up and executing an event or program. One of them, Emma Fuller, is an avid birder and came up with the idea of organizing a Christmas Bird Count (CBC) in the local area to tie in to the Audobon Societies 117th annual Christmas Bird Count.

Last year 471 bird counts were done in Canada, and over 1,900 in the United States and another 132 in Latin America. The counts are done in circles with a diameter of 24 kilometres.

The NAEC sponsored count will be centered in Bon Echo Park and will take place next Monday (December 19th) . Fuller and Wilson as well as their sponsoring teacher Beth Hasler will be aided by a Biology class, whose students will spend the day in the park identifying bird species with the help of Bird Guides that they will be carrying. Residents from the region and beyond who are interested in surveying any area within the circle, which extends to Skootamatta and Mazinaw lakes and all points within a 12 kilometre distance from the Centre of Bon Echo Park, are encouraged to call NAEC at 613-336-8991 to coordinate with the student run count. All information that is gathered will be entered into the online reporting tool that the Audobon Society has developed.

For Emma Fuller, who comes from Denbigh, the CBC fits with her growing interest in bird watching, a hobby she shares with her father, and which has brought them to far flung locations over the past year, including a trip to Presqu’ile Park, a migration hot spot on Lake Ontario near Brighton. They have also taken several trips to Wolfe Island and Amherst Island, where they have seen 36 snowy owls, bald eagles, and 5 species of hawk as well.

“The goal of the count is not only to identify birds and help build the Audobon database, but also to  broaden people’s knowledge about things you can do in outdoors,” said Fuller, who intends to apply to the biology department at Trent University this winter, hoping to eventually specialize in ornithology.

The ever expanding Blue Skies Community Fiddle Orchestra packed the Oso Hall on Saturday (December 10) during the final day of another succcessful Festival of Trees. The orchestra is preparing for their annual concert on January 8th at the Maberly Hall. We will have full coverage of the Festival of Trees in our Christmas edition next week.

The ever expanding Blue Skies Community Fiddle Orchestra packed the Oso Hall on Saturday (December 10) during the final day of another succcessful Festival of Trees. The orchestra is preparing for their annual concert on January 8th at the Maberly Hall. We will have full coverage of the Festival of Trees in our Christmas edition next week.

We have passed the midway point in our month long daily exploration of Ontario craft beers. I have tried to mix and match some more familiar flavours with some of the more unusual tastes, trying to coax readers along a more adventurous beer drinking path. I am aware that a majority of beer drinking readers of this paper feel strongly that “beer should taste like beer” and have no interest in any kind of assault on their taste buds by bitter and sour and sweet combinations of flavours. I have chosen some more mainstream options for those who are interested but not convinced that alternate beer flavours are worth the effort to find, amid all the selection and the odd looking cans that are crowding the beer and liquor stores and large supermarket shelves.
This week the weather is turning colder, the Christmas season is ramping up, and with it stress levels are up as well. This is not a time for light beer, friends, and as I stick to my maximum one beer a day limit in the interest of following the rules of Advent  I feel the by now each beer should be an event.

Sunday – It was calm and not too cold in the morning, but the snow was coming and by the time the evening hit there was a storm brewing. Had to start the week off with a stout, so we have a choice. Stalwart is a brewery in Carleton Place, specializing in India Pale Ales and Stouts. They make a Bad Moon Rye Stout (6.1%) with a bit of spice added in, that fit the weather well. It is available at the Cardinal Cafe in Sharbot Lake. Other options for this type fo night include Railway City out of St. Thomas,  a classic rich, black coal stout with a bit of a bitter edge, and Beaus makes Tom Green, a smooth milk stout. All good choices.

Monday – The storm had come, gone, and been shovelled away. Something light on the palate bit with teeth was in order. So, I chose a fortified whitbeer was in order. I happened to have been in Kingston the previous Friday,  and there was a new release day at Stone City. The beer is called Tannenbomb, an “Imperial Whitbeer brewed with Cranberries, Orange Peel, and Spruce”. Whitbeer is made  from Wheat, but is also known as White Beer because of its light colour and champagne like texture. It is belgian style, and it has a yeasty flavour that tickles the nose. This version was strong, 8% with added flavour and body, but still had a frothiness and the alcohol was hidden by the spruce flavour.

Tuesday – Busy day, not time for fuss, but my tastebuds were still alive from the Tannenbomb. Luckily, the Sharbot Lake Country Inn has Big Rig Beer on Tap. Everyone loves their Golden Lagered Ale, but they also have Big Boot, a Hefeweisen, a German Whitbeer that is light and a bit hazy, sweet and yeasty sour. A great lunch or Tuesday beer.

Wednesday -  I chose a  pretty big beer for mid-week, but I wanted to mention a little brewery from Sarnia. They say they “started out as a foolish bunch of backyard brewers using propane burners and frozen hoses and now we're a real life nano-brewery.” The Refined Fool Brewing company makes a Double IPA, called Short Pier, Long Walk. It's a good example of the style. High alcohol 8.4% and bitter (it scores over 100 on the IBU – International Bittering Units – scale, there really is such a thing) As i said before, after that first bitter assault on the first sip , Short Pier delivers lots of flavour and balance. For a strong beer it is easy to drink, and has the trademark tart flavour of a good IPA.

Thursday – In the first installment of this series I talked about Bellwood Brewery in Toronto, which earns raves on beer websites but does not ship beer from its home base on Ossington Ave in Toronto. We had some visitors come out from Toronto last week, and we sent them to Bellwoods before they came our way. They brought the most popular of Bellwoods beers, Jutsu (a 5.6% pale) and Jelly King (a 5.6% sour ale) Jutsu is musty and cloudy and fruity, not too bitter and delicious. Jelly King has the taste like very dry apple cider similar to other sour beers, a style that is all the rage now but is taking some getting used to for me. Both of these beers are distinctively musty.  Belwoods brewers have a  funkiness scale for their beers along with alcohol content and degrees of bitterness.. If Jutsu and Jelly King are their most pedestrian beers, their more adventures beers are sure to be spectaculour.

Friday – Might be time to try a Porter. Again, Porters are not my favourite style. They are dark, malty and smooth, but I often think they are just stouts that lack character. Strong Hammer Brewing of Guelph make a good one, however, called Continuity Baltic Porter at 7.8%. It is rich and very smooth, with lots of flavour and an easy finish for a Friday Night.
Saturday – Last day of the second to last week. Time for my favourite of the IPA’s from Amsterdam breweries, one of Toronto’s oldest craft breweries. They make a 5% Cruiser, a 7% Bone Shaker, and a 9% Imperial IPA called Fracture. Amsterdam’s Boneshaker is aptly named. It is a lean, uncompromising beer, refreshing but sometimes even more bitter than I like. Fracture, because it has so much alcohol, also has more fruit flavour and weight to go along with the hoppy bitterness. If you are having one beer at a Saturday night party, this is the one.
Next week, the finale, including special Solstice and Christmas Eve beers.