Big Ridge Brewing Company - Review 1

This is named review 1 as i am sure i will be here a few more times and not every time but will definitely give an update here and there on how they are doing. I live out in the suburbs of Vancouver. This is a great place to live and work, but unfortunately the craft beer scene is not all that flourishing. Although, there are a couple of us living out this way, there is still not a lot of places to go. Most of the time a trip into the big city is in order. But there is Big Ridge Brewing.

Big Ridge Brewing is a part of the Mark James Group who have 5 different brewpubs throughout BC. I have been heading to Big Ridge for approximately the last 8 years and a couple of friends and even my sister worked there for awhile. They closed down there original shop last year, or maybe the beginning of this year and finally reopened in their new location in May.

We headed there shortly after their opening and from the outside the building looks very nice and as planned parking was definitely better, but not sure that will last. We walked in and the hostesses were very friendly, but I felt like I had walked into a place in Yaletown. This is not a bad thing, but it definitely takes away from the warmth. Overall for the suburbs I think the design is a little too flash, but that's me, I like things cozy and subtle.

Now on to the food. The food at the previous location was always good, but I found the menu to be a little limited. Well, not so at the new location, you can definitely tell that they have focused more on the food at this location, which is a good thing. Of the 3 meals I have had there, everything has been excellent. My favourite has to be the Fried Chicken and the Meatball Sandwich. And of the beers, I've only had one the Clover Ale(their IPA) it's a solid IPA, very tasty with a nice hop forward taste.

That pretty much sums up Big Ridge for me. I will definitely be back and look forward to seeing what their seasonal offerings will be.

Sierra Nevada Pale Ale

Was down south of the border this weekend. Picked up some pretty sweet beers and also a two four(case in American) of Sierra Nevada. Mainly picked this up because it is cheap and pretty refreshing. I can remember my first Sierra Nevada Pale from about 5 years ago. I was in Vegas at a restaurant in Mandalay Bay, can't remember the name, but they had great steak. I ordered it as at that time I liked to try different beers. It was different but good. I had never had such a bitter beer, but I liked it. Well, I still enjoy it. I wouldn't put it in my top 10 overall, but definitely one of my favourite pales.

It's very typical of an American Pale Ale, light, malty and with a decent hop bitterness. If you haven't had one, try one. Nuff said.

Stay Tuned. I've got some great beers in the fridge ready to go.