Sep 08
24
When I was a kid I was a Saskatchewan Roughrider fan and my hero was Quarterback Ronnie Lancaster.
Twenty years later I was working as a stringer and covering the B.C. Lions of the Canadian Football League for United Press Canada. As a result I got an invitation to the CFL playoff dinner and there I was lucky enough to sit at a table with Lancaster. The first time I saw him he had a drink in one hand and a cigarette in the other.
On Sept 18, Lancaster, nicknamed the Little General because he was only 5’9”, died of lung cancer aged 69. So this week in his honour I decided to toast his great career – 4 Grey Cup championships 2 as a player and 2 as a coach – by sampling wheat beer for the first time.
Why wheat beer? Well Lancaster led Saskatchewan to their first ever Grey Cup in 1966 and what is the symbol on the Saskatchewan flag but a sheaf of wheat.
The nearest pub in my domain is Christie’s Carriage House and they have on tap West Coast Wheat a product of Vancouver Island Brewery.
I found the taste medium strong with a ‘grainy’ flavour. I have quite a few friends that are big fans of the wheat beers but for me I think it would be an acquired taste. It’s probably better out of the bottle on a hot, dry day.
The West Coast Wheat had a nice gold colour and thick head. Vancouver Island Brewery imports its yeast from Germany for authentic European flavour.