Day 8

The smell of freshly baked bread woke me up at 7am.  I tried to go back to bed, but had some difficulty.  I put the covers over my head, due to the great smell, and finally was able to sleep until 8:30.  Once we finally decided to get out of bed, we did some research on different breweries in the area, but did not have much luck.  None of the breweries in the area were open for tours today. After some breakfast, we headed out for 8.7 miles on the bikes, while Hartmudt slept.  We got to see a different side of the city which was kind of nice.  The path that we took used to be railroad tracks.  Next, we decided to drive to downtown and try to find a place to park…big mistake.  It is ridiculous to try to find a parking place, especially for free.  After an hour, we decided just to pay the $17 for all day parking and walk. 

Sarah and Hartmudt wanted to check out a place called the “3 Brewers” due to their beer menu along with their emphasis on German food.  Both the food and the beer were disappointing. 

Each beer had a Belgian style flavor, probably from the yeast which they do not share on the menu.  The IPA (2.5/5) had a decent hop flavor, but the Belgian flavor overtook it.  The Brown Ale (3/5) was a little better in that the Belgian flavor was not as apparent. The food was mediocre at best and their sauerkraut was not at all what Hartmudt expected. 

From there, we headed to the bank to exchange some money and then to the Bier Markt.  It had an amazing menu!  I wish so much that we had gone there for lunch instead of 3 Brewers.  The beer was much better here. The Rogue Yellow Snow (3.5/5) had a full hop flavor to it, but was still very easy to drink.  Ty’s favorite was the Flying Monkey Smashbomb Atomic IPA (4/5).

Hartmudt was going to the Blue Jays game tonight, so we walked toward the stadium. We walked along the waterfront for quite a while.

Then we headed to the Amsterdam Brew House.  Ty and I each had a flight of their beers and Hartmudt had a pint of their blonde ale.   The best beer of the flights was the Tempest (4.5/5).  It was a stout with a 105 IBU. It had a wonderful coffee flavor that was matched well with a hoppy bitterness.  It was nice to sit outside by the water in the sunshine.  I thought it would be warmer than it has been.

Hartmudt needed to get to the game, so we parted ways, and walked along a very interesting boardwalk.

We headed back to the house with a pit stop to the local grocery store for some catfish and broccoli and had a feast.  I am not accustomed to eating dinner at 9:30-10, but that is what it came down to today.  Our hosts, Yohann and Sarah came down to chat with us for a while, which was very nice.  I never want to visit Toronto again (it is very over-priced for what is in the vicinity), but I do highly recommend staying at their house.