Went to arguably one of the worst stores in Canada, The Beer Store. The logo is awful. It’s a government run entity. It stinks of stale beer. There are usually 5-10 people loitering around there (not really buying anything). Some people are returning bottles and getting cash for them. You don’t go there for the experience.
The only reason I go there (occasionally) is for the Esterella Damm that you can only buy in this store. Except this time was different. I got to the front and asked for my Estrella, to my horror, they don’t stock it in this branch. Dejected, I started to think about what I could get instead.
I said, ‘What about a strong IPA?’ The guy responded, ‘Now you’re talking my language.’
And thus began a little education of Canadian IPAs from someone who loved beer and was super knowledgeable about the subject. Reminded in part of going and hanging around the comic book store with people that loved the medium. The whole interaction took maybe 2 minutes, but I gained a damn good beer and some additional knowledge. Finding those people that can actually help you is such a rarity these days.