Savour the Southeast has quickly become one of my favourite events of the year.
And I know I’m not alone when I say this.
Dozens of restaurants, food vendors, breweries, wineries and distilleries will be offering their best products for the public to sample. It’s a great opportunity to try something new or, in the case of the restaurants, to enjoy food you might only get once a year.
Of course, my stature as a self-professed beer geek is well-documented. It started in university, when all of my friends (at least those who drank) were enjoying products from breweries such as Sleeman, Granville Island and Okanagan Springs. If you drank mainstream beer, it was grounds for ridicule.
Needless to say, when I moved to Estevan in 2000, I found the beer options to be lacking. Not only was there a dearth of Saskatchewan-based craft beers, but there were few microbreweries selling their products locally.
Thankfully, we have seen a surge in the popularity of craft breweries in Saskatchewan in recent years, and consequently, we’re seen a number of craft breweries open in Saskatchewan. This province will always be a Pilsner and light beer area first and foremost, but tastes are changing.
We’ll never catch up to B.C. when it comes to craft breweries, but it’s great to see some businesses opening in Saskatchewan that bring people together through their love of beer.
It’s one reason why an event such as Savour the Southeast is so cool. Many people who attend have their beer preferences. They opt for a mainstream beer because of habit, cost, or because it’s what their father and grandfather drank.
But if you’re open to new things, and want to sample something different, you’ll like what you taste.
There are some things to keep in mind. If you’re used to drinking a traditional lager, or even light beers, then maybe a blonde beer or a traditional pale ale might be for you. Don’t start off by drinking a double India pale ale (IPA) or an imperial stout. You won’t like what you taste, and it’s easy to get drunk
There is more than twice as much alcohol in a double IPA than a light beer.
One other warning: be careful with really dark beers. Not the reds, ambers and browns. I’m talking about stouts and porters. I’m a big fan of them. But they’re not for everyone.
Those who have tried a Guinness stout in the past, and liked it, will enjoy any one of the stouts or porters available at Savour. In fact, the really dark beers at Savour are vastly superior to the Guinness stout.
But if you haven’t tried a milk stout before, I can’t guarantee you’ll like it. And I know a lot of people into craft beer who are not fans of the stouts.
If you’ve sampled IPAs in the past, and you’ve liked what you taste, then I encourage you to indulge. The IPA is a staple with beer geeks, and there are some great IPAs brewed in Saskatchewan that I really enjoy, and are as almost as good as the IPAs brewed in B.C.
There are all sorts of other craft beers that will be available to appeal to a variety of taste pallets.
Thankfully, the days of Canadian breweries being limited to lagers, pilsners, light beers, non-alcoholic beers and “premiums” are over.
Savour the Southeast will offer a lot more than just beer. Saskatchewan is also home to some very good wineries that will also be present at the event. And you can also look forward to seeing some good Saskatchewan distilleries.
And then there’s the food. You’ll see the local restaurants that we’ve come to enjoy over the years. We all have our favourites, and they’re all worthy of a visit. But there are also some coming from out of town that will be interesting to try.
The food vendors, just like everyone else, will be offering their best products, not only in an effort to keep you coming back that night, but to create more business in the future.
There’s one other wonderful part about Savour the Southeast, and that is the support it lends for non-profit organizations in the community. In this year’s case, it will benefit the Envision Counselling and Support Centre.
And it will be a chance to have great conversation while enjoying good beer brewed in Saskatchewan, by people from this province.
Ten years ago, who would have thought we’d be saying that?
