Central City Brewers + Distillers: Oktoberfest Social

It’s tiiiime…time for another one of Surrey Eats’ Seasonal Socials! This time around the crew donned our finest lederhosen and teamed up with Central City Brewers + Distillers for a beer-swillin’, polka pumpin’, schnitzel suckin’ Oktoberfest celebration.

Central City Brewers and Distillers is not to be confused with the Central City Brewpub at Surrey Central station. Central City Brewers is where the magic actually happens, the brewery for all your Red Racer faves as well as their signature gins and whiskys. Tucked away in the shadow of the Patullo Bridge, it’s worth trekking into Bridgeview for. Read on for a handy map to guide you on your adventure.

I arrived just after three PM and not one to pass up on any excuse to get day-drunk I bee-lined for the first sample bar. There were four flavours of Fzzz sugar-free gin and soda mixes, and gin and soda being my all-time favourite cocktail (yup I’m simple like that) I had to try all four.

Blackberry Guava, Grapefruit, Lime, and Jalapeno Melon. They were all amazing with a clean, crisp flavour along the lines of the Nude beverage series, but the Jalapeno Melon was noticeably lacking in bite. Too bad as this was the most intriguing sounding of the lineup. But hey, at 147 calories per tall boy I’m willing to let some things slide if it means I can keep my abs!

Next I sampled Central City Brewers’ Twist lineup, also crafted using their signature Queensborough Gin. These ones throw a teaspoon or two of sugar into the mix. While I’m definitely a fan of their gin, these all tasted a tad artificial for my tastes. But that didn’t stop me from trying all three! Which led to the questionable decision I made next…

Now all this alcohol was free. And I have an inner cheapskate who has a very hard time saying no to freebies. Kind of like a little devil sitting on my shoulder whispering, “I know you just put away three Costco hot dogs, but those fat-filled triple-creme brie samples aren’t going to eat themselves!” So my plan of the best course of action went something like this:

Step 1 – Make way through entire Central City Distiller’s hard bar shot by shot

Step 2 – ???

Step 3 – PROFIT

I recruited Vic and Winnie from Fat Pants Forever plus Damon from Surrey604 as co-dependants in this Herculean task and while Vic and Damon popped in and out of the lineup Winnie held her own and we made it through the entire lineup of gins, rum, and liqueur. By the time we got to the whiskys however I was feeling an ominous spinning sensation and realized this may not be as profitable as initially forecast.

Not one to have my dreams dashed so easily however, we hit upon the bright idea to mix all the whiskys into one nasty shot of swamp water. My stomach was lurching at the thought of it but our bartender picked up on the idea and egged us on. Hell, she was even down to do one with us so why not…how bad could it possibly be? Pretty goddamn bad.

So no comment on the whiskys but I will highly recommend Queensborough Gin. The Omakase version stood out with its yuzu and tea infused flavour and the Wine Barrel Aged gin tasted as wonderful as you’d expect, but you can’t go wrong with any of the lineup.

Alright, let’s get some food to soak up all that booze! All attendees got a free meal with their ticket courtesy of Red Racer which had their Roadside Diner food truck parked outside serving up a special Oktoberfest menu.

Still in frugal freeloader mode I eyed up everyone’s plates and estimated the Roast Chicken was the best bang for my food voucher. A few scant slices of onion tantalized on top of the crispy brown grill-marked skin, and the grainy mustard in the light gravy it was topped with spoke of untold marvels in my mouth. Yeah, basically I was drunk and it was good. Nuff said. Oh and the potato and cucumber salads had lots of dill which me likes.

The Schnitzel was the shnizznit or so I’d heard from other attendees, so I pestered my way into another food ticket in the name of this here review. The schnitzel was honey coated with more of those mmm-mmm good mustard seeds and even less onion than the Roast Chicken, but whatevs I wanted to taste the meat more anyway. Again, great drinking food. The thick cut and flavourfully battered fries were just crispy enough while being kept warm under their schnitzel blanket.

As usual Surrey Eats had a ton of local restaurant gift cards on hand to give away along with plenty of branded Surrey Eats streetwear and merch, and we also held a traditional Stein-holding contest. These 1 Liter mugs were only $8 to fill up and must have weighed a good few pounds once full. The game looks simple at a glance but most were trembling and faltering after just a minute or two.

Was there any doubt who was going to emerge victorious? With strength like that I had the winner pegged as a tradesman, and sure enough he is a data cable installer by trade. Good job fine sir. you did us sparkies proud. Enjoy your hard-earned $50 Red Racer Taphouse gift certificate!

I think everyone left happy and holding something of value, as the steins were on the house as souvenirs as well. The cheap little devil on my shoulder was appeased in my case as well as I walked out with Red Racer’s Across the Nation Mixed Pack of provincial beers at a buck a pop. Score!

Don’t miss our next pop-up event November 11th at Dude’s Coffee out at Crescent Beach for more deals, steals, and of course meals! Stay tuned to the blog and our Facebook page for further details.

Pictures courtesy of Fatpantsforever & Mavyj

Author: Matt

Prior to joining the Surrey Eats crew, Matt's love of all things edible and passion for writing led him to long-running food blog Eat 'n About where he penned articles under the nom de plume Hitman Howdy for several years. Matt's also been published in various local magazines, and is an extremely adventurous eater who has dined on things that would make Anthony Bourdain blush. Matt enjoys the melting pot of international cuisine on offer in Surrey and hopes to help put his beloved stomping grounds on the map as a smorgasbord for food-lovers of all ethnicities. SURREY WHAT!!

• beer
• gin
• oktoberfest
• potato salad
• roast chicken
• schnitzel
• whiskey