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Hop City Barking Squirrel

A lager by Hop City Brewery.

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"Barking Squirrel" won't help you get hot bikini-clad women!

Jan 2, 2010

by cpw1952

Rating:

The clever, sardonic and obviously cynical marketing types at Ontario craft brewery, Hop City, take a satirical swipe at the TV marketing of their larger competitors and remind potential drinkers not to confuse their new beer "Barking Squirrel" with perfect teeth and a trust fund. That's what'll help you get the women, they suggest, not their new mellow, dark lager. They also add the clever but all too telling reminder that their beer isn't lime-flavoured, it's "beer-flavoured".

My reaction from the consumer's point of view ... perfect truth in advertising for a change!

"Barking Squirrel" - as a Canadian, you just gotta love that name - is a robust, full-bodied, rich, mellow, smooth-drinking lager with a hoppy, beautiful beer flavour that hangs on the edge but avoids the trap of tipping over into bitterness. Attractive and crystal clear in the glass, this 5% alcohol/volume beer sports a lustrous, burnt orange colour, darker than most lagers, that I don't think I've seen matched in any other beer I've ever sampled.

What a lovely New Year's Day treat! I went to my local and asked the lady behind the bar for something different and dark. She very kindly poured me a pint of "Barking Squirrel" and I found it a most delightful accompaniment to a roast beef Reuben sandwich. It might be of particular interest for Canadian beer drinkers to know that, while owned by Moosehead, Hop City is being operated as a separate entity. Brewing is taking place in the Brampton facility where the operations of Moosehead-owned Niagara Falls Brewing moved a couple of years ago.

Now, if there's a God in this world, I'll be able to find "Barking Squirrel" at the beer store and not just at the odd enlightened pub or two.

Paul Weiss

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devora January 04, 2010

How do you keep finding all these beers with such cool names? Too awesome. Thanks for sharing, Paul! :)

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About the reviewer

Paul Weiss (cpw1952)
Ranked #18

A modern day dilettante with widely varied eclectic interests. A dabbler in muchbut grandmaster of none - wilderness camping in all four seasons, hiking, canoeing, world travel,philately, … more