If you haven't figured it out yet, we take our mobile pop-up tap bar business pretty seriously here at The Tapped Truck. Which means you'll often find us frequenting breweries in the Shuswap & Okanagan, exploring new ones on our travels and with a collection of craft brews in our fridge at Tapped Truck HQ!
So instead of being greedy and keeping all of that to ourselves, we thought we'd start letting you in on our adventures. Check back every Thirsty Thursday for a new beer tasting or brewery showcase.
Without further ado: earlier in the Fall season, Beth from Exploring The Okanagan and I set out to do something unique. We wanted to showcase breweries and cideries in the region that had female leadership of some type for a blog post at HerOkanagan.
One of those visits was to Rustic Reel in Kelowna. This was one of my most
anticipated stops: Susi and I bonded on Insta over starting business around the same time, and our love for Bernese Mountain Dogs. And I'm delighted to tell you: my anticipation was well founded.
This brewery loves their IPAs: and we can see why! Their Hazy IPA is one of the best we've had in the Okanagan. While packing plenty of hoppy punches for your tastebuds, we appreciated that it lacked in a bitter aftertaste, allowing for some REAL easy drinking.
I personally took to their Red IPA. The tasting card describes this one as "Big Bold and Malty". And while I didn't experience it to be "big bold" I loved the color of this brew and found the flavor profile to be almost nutty. I went home with a growler of this liquid amber and enjoyed it around a campfire: this beer I suspect, was brewed for such chill hangouts.
Beth on the other hand gravitated towards the Blonde Ale – this beer took Beth to floating down the river in Penticton…and who can refuse that kind of nostalgia?
And a quick note about the food: it's amazing! When we arrived we were famished. We delighted in a Sausage Flight and the Cheese Spaetzle Skillet – everything was house-made right down to the mustard & pickles!
So many thanks to Susi for creating such an inviting space, and for taking some time to sit down and chat with us about her journey. We can't wait to come back, as the brewery continues to mature and new brews are added to their menu.
With the holidays upon us, we'll definitely be heading in to give their Black IPA and Ginger Bread Cookie Ale a go...cause duh!
Check out Rustic for yourself, and let us know what you think!