If it feels like months since your last Zeke's Sweet Hops, that's because it has been! Being a creature of habit, I got out of the habit of daily content creation in the summer with vacations, adventures and running a business that never sleeps. So, I am hopefully BACK and will start with a #beersaturday post.

Beer blogging came naturally to me due to years spent brewing for myself, working with breweries on their technology & marketing, and the decades spent imbibing. Hence, the self-decreed title of the #Blockchain #Beerologist doing my best to consume, report and even brew to do that title justice.

This week, I am relaunching the Hops with a trip to a fantastic regional brewery.

Cowbell Brewing!

I have visited Cowbell Brewing https://cowbellbrewing.com/ a few times and even showcased them in a couple blogs in the past. They are approx. 45 minutes from home, in the wrong direction to anywhere, but I had taxi duty in the area and it would be rude not to pay a visit. Besides the new ownership from a couple years ago, I was curious to see whether anything else had changed.

Can I Start You With A Drink?

Fits the bill so let's see what you have! The expected draft lineup, some new ciders and seltzers, drinks, wine, cocktails and dessert! We are just getting started so I better stick with the draft beer which drew me here. A couple new brew and some old favourites from which to choose.

After some careful consideration, I opted for the beer I have probably had the most rather than a new one. When all was considered, I remembered that there was nothing new and thrilling, and Hazy Days https://cowbellbrewing.com/products/473ml-hazy-days-hazy-juicy-ipa-beer-x-24 is among my top 10 regional IPAs. Besides that, it doesn't get any better than straight from the keg which was brewed 10 meters away. Delicious as expected!
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Light Snack?

Let's take a look at the menu and see if anything jumps out at us. Appetizers, bowls and pizzas all do go great with beer.

Another page of slightly redundant categories (burgers are handhelds and this is all pretty much comfort food) and some pretty compelling candidates to help soak up some suds.

I was torn between one of 2 options and I love to use this opportunity for the opinion of the servers. James was fun company and gave some pretty solid advice.

And the winner is...

In the end, I went for the Coney Island Dog as we are only a couple hours from the border near Detroit, where some of the best Coneys are found. $18 may seem a little steep for a hot dog but it is only Canadian dollars, you can see they go the extra mile with the toppings, and the neat little basket of fries is a nice touch. Tasty dog and great companion for the hazy IPA.
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Of course I made my way to the bottle shop for some sodas for the fridge at home. I was a little disappointed to hear that the Growler section is a victim of Covid and there were no one-off, available only at the brewery bottles to bring home. Still, the new ciders would be a nice treat for my better half and I think I see a new IPA in there!

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Time to Hit the Road

After my quick visit, I jumped on the winter roads which were still clear before the expected snowstorm. Cargo in tow and happy to be visiting an old friend again.

I will have to leave you on a dramatic cliffhanger as to which pints I brought home with me so tune in next week and see if I have gotten back into my weekly installment of Zeke's Sweet Hops.

#BEERSaturday!

January sure was a long year ;) ! Warm up your liver and join @detlev and I at @detlev/bs-week-292 for this week's #beersaturday post. Grab a pint and join in the fun with a beer story of your own.

This week of #BeerSaturday, I would like to invite one of my newest friends @go-kyo who is from Japan and leverages joy and profit out of @splinterlands and @actifit! Check her out and chug a Kirin!