Sour Beer

Sooo... we went to Quadra Island for a little getaway a few weeks ago. It was quite lovely and a beachcombers paradise! On the first evening, we went to the Heriot Bay Inn and I had a Philips Blue Buck ale - quite delicious.

On our second evening, we went to a pub for dinner (the name of which shall remain nameless). They didn't have a huge selection so I ordered a Cameron's ale or some such thing. As I sipped it, I crinkled my nose and stared at it with suspicion. It tasted sour. Yuck. I'm usually the designated driver when we go out for dinner and end up having one beer on normal occasions. But on this night, my partner had volunteered to be the driver and so I was OK to have another beer. I ordered a Shaftsbury or a Vancouver Island Brewery beer. One that I've had before. It too was sour. Grumble, grumble... shitty pub. The place was empty and I suspected that their kegs of beer were old and stale. Very disappointed.

On our third and last day, we bought some beer and wine at the local store and had a picnic in our room in the afternoon. I looked at the selection of beers and chose a Canterbury Ale, a Prince George brewery. I love Canterbury ale... yum! It is a delicious mild dark brew. We got back to our room, I cracked open a can and took a sip. And... guess what... yup. It was sour! I stared at the can in dismay. Clearly it wasn't just the pub... it was me!!

I glumly looked up "taste disturbances" and learned that it could be a sign of menopause. Great. Hot flashes might not be in my future but taste disturbances would alter my life! That evening, we ate at the lodge/resort we were staying at. They had an even more limited selection of beer and I chose a Coors Light. I cut my teeth on Coors Light when I started drinking beer in my 30s. I hate it now because it tastes like water really. I received my glass and took a sip. Ugh... sour!!!

Oh dear... well... this would make it very easy to quit drinking beer, that's for sure. I stared at the glass with disgust. Lovely... just bloody lovely!

But now... for the myterious part. We spent three nights on Quadra and when we got home, I cracked a can of the Canterbury just to see and... it tasted normal. Perfectly normal. We've been home for a couple of weeks and beer tastes just fine to me. Was it a Quadra thing? Or was it a PMS thing? Only time will tell.