In Canada, eh. On a recent trip to Toronto I didn't have to search far to find a brewery to hit. Elsinore had a commanding view of the city from its perch on a hill. The brewery was first opened in 1983 and runs a taproom out of it's huge facility, oddly enough near an old Royal Canadian mental asylum. Crazy, right? The brewery stands as a monolith of older times when beer was king. The factory was large with two smoke stacks that didn't appear to be running while we were there. It's almost spooky now as it runs at a much lower capacity than it once did, according to the bartender, a nice older guy with a funny accent, wearing all black. I bet the place has many secrets to tell.
The taproom was a little cold as it sits just off an ice rink inside the brewery. Don't laugh, cliche, right? Ok, laugh. It's funny. You'd expect an ice rink in a brewery in Canada if you were to ever find one. I wish a game had been going. There was a bar and they had ten tables and three spots outside to park, so that was a little odd. Besides beer you could also order back bacon and poutine. They also allow you to smoke in there, which surprised me a little.
The first beer I had was their flagship, called, strangely enough, Elsinore. It consumed most of the taps and nothing actually said what kind of beer it was. Perhaps it was obvious to the Canadians as to what it was. After it arrived, with a gold color and light foamy head, I guessed it was a pilsner. It smelled like a a pilsner and had a crisp lighter flavor you'd expect from a pilsner. It was pretty drinkable, like you could drink a vat of it on a bender some weekend. None of the Canadian beers I've ever had were very flavorful. Moosehead, LaBattes, Molson, all sort of similar and this was just like those. Probably a local favorite, but I had never heard of it before, so maybe they had limited distribution. That's ok, I'd rather find the genuine, hard to find beers any way. It makes the trip to a foreign country worth it.
The next beer was also strangely called Elsinore, but the tap said Bohemian Czech Pils on it. Maybe older breweries in Canada don't name their beers, like modern brew pubs do. Marketing and label are much bigger now than they used to be. This beer was far better. A slightly darker golden color with a light lemon and floral hint. It was more hoppy with bread malts and I found it pretty good. This would be a great summer beer. Czech pilsners are served cold and made with noble spice hops and this lived up to its namesake. Since it was winter, I kind of wanted a darker beer, but Elsinore had none. It was almost like Elsinore had something in the beer to keep the locals drinking it and never asked for any variety. I guess I'd have to find a Nut Brown or Porter somewhere else. Besides the place being strange, I guess I'd recommend it for new comers. It was unique, had history to it and hell, bring your skates too. It's time to take off, eh, so check out Elsinore for an interesting experience. ;)
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