We’ve got plenty of great news for you today, as our region continues to make excellent strides in flattening/eliminating the curve of COVID-19, restrictions are being lifted and in turn more breweries and beer bars are re-opening their doors. We all know we’re not out of hot water by any stretch of the imagination, but the recent days and weeks have been very promising. If we keep this up, that Atlantic Bubble will soon be a thing! Let us waste no more of your time and jump right into the good news, so you can enjoy the wonderful weather that we’ve waited a long time to arrive!
We’d like to kick off the main body of today’s post with a big Happy Birthday! to our wonderful friends at Tatamagouche Brewing. That’s right, they’re turning the big 0-6 this week, and when you’re a brewery and have a birthday, you’ve got to celebrate with lots of beer (it’s one of the many/few perks)! In Tata’s case, they’ve got several new brews they’re releasing, along with a great deal on a birthday sixer of new and “old” brews. Let’s start with the new beers, shall we?
Instinct is a 5.4% ABV Brett Pale Ale brewed with the base of their popular Nelson’s Park APA. This one was barrel-aged, however, with a blend of Brettanomyces strains from Escarpment Labs, and was dry-hopped twice (once before going into the barrels, and once after blending) with Vic Secret and Nelson Sauvin; tropical and funky!
Observe keeps the Brett train going, billed as a “Brett Lager”. Coming in at 4.9% ABV and described as “deceptively complex”, the wort underwent secondary fermentation in red wine barrels from Jost Vineyards, with Brett Q and Brett M.
Remused is a different take on another fairly recent release, Muse Sour Red. This time around, the beer was aged in neutral and former red wine barrels, blended, and then aged again, this time on cherries (the same cherries used for Muse). It’s 5.6% ABV, and is tasting very tart, dry and complex.
All three of these beers are available in bottles (Instinct and Remused in 500 ml, Observe is in 650 ml), and can be purchased as a special 6th Birthday 6-pack – along with Muse Sour Red, Ferry Boat Fantasy Golden Sour, and Toro (barrel-aged Quad w/ Brett) – for just $60, a savings of $15! And along with all that, they’ve re-released two popular canned beers, Guava Heist (fruited Berliner Weisse) and Kitty Clyde (DIPA), so you might as well tack those beauties onto your order as well. Happy birthday TataBrew, and here’s to many, many more!
Euston Park Social is back up and running in Moncton, and you couldn’t ask for nicer weather this weekend as an excuse to get outdoors for a local pint or two. Luckily for those of you able to do just that at Euston Park, O’Creek Brewing just released the latest in their DUOH series (that’s Duo Hopped, as in hopped with two different hop varieties), DUOH Mosaic/Idaho 7. With this version of this 6% ABV NEIPA, it’s not just the addition of Mosaic and Idaho 7 hops that’s different – the brewery also fermented this batch with a Kveik strain, to boost those lovely tropical, juicy vibes even further. If you’re a fan of super-hazy, super-hoppy IPAs, we highly suggest you get down there before the beer has kicked and the sun has disappeared!
Speaking of IPAs fermented with Kveik (this is definitely becoming more popular with breweries in our region, and we don’t expect it to change anytime soon), Newfoundland’s Bannerman Brewing has their own available at the taproom in St. John’s. Rhymes With Orange was double-dry-hopped with Citra, which combined with the Kveik fermentation leads to huge flavours of orange, grapefruit, and tropical fruit. This 6.5% ABV haze-bomb is currently available at the taproom for pints, as well as in growlers and cans (limited supply).
Those crazy buggers at Good Robot are officially back… well, ok, maybe they never went anywhere, but the Good Robot taproom and patio (aka Gastro Turf) are officially open to the public, starting today! Certainly, at a safer and more-socially distant capacity, but open just the same, and with this weekend’s weather, they couldn’t have planned it any better. They also have a new beverage to mark the occasion, Mint Berry Fizz. Available in cans only, this 4.7% ABV fermented seltzer is fruity, bubbly, and refreshing. They’ll also have all of their taps flowing, of course, so there will be lots of options!
Your newest hoppy brew, Golden Repair, is freshly available at TrailWay Brewing as of earlier this week. A pale-coloured, hazy American IPA, this 6.6% ABV beer was hopped with a combination of Strata and Vic Secret. Dry-hopped twice with equal amounts of each, the final beer is tasting pretty juicy, “saturated with tropical fruit, with pineapple being the frontrunner, along with citrus and passion fruit”. Available on tap and in cans exclusively at the brewery.
Sober Island Brewing is celebrating the opening of their Beer Garden this weekend, featuring wide open spaces for you and your pals to enjoy the fruits of their labours. Thursday through Sunday, 12 – 7 PM, both the Beer Garden and indoor taproom are open for on-site enjoyment at 22462 Hwy 7 in Sheet Harbour (BG hours are weather-dependent, natch). Due to the nature of the current restrictions still in place, reservations are encouraged, via phone (902-885-2072), and soon a fancy app! And while you’re there, you’ll be able to enjoy their latest releases, which includes a brand-new IPA, a 6.4% ABV West Coast style IPA (stellar hops like Cascade, Centennial, and Simcoe in here), and the return of The Blueberry Express, their 5.0% ABV Blonde brewed with blueberries. Both of these, plus a few more, are also available for home delivery through their online shop.
On the Western side of Newfoundland, Port au Port’s Secret Cove Brewing has a new beer out that should be perfect for warm summer weather. Lingo is named for the well-documented “native-tongue” of the folks in Newfoundland, including their tendency towards turns of phrase not known outside the island. Taking things in a little different direction than a traditional fruited sour, where fruit or juice is added during fermentation, Lingo leverages the Radler style, where fruit juice is blended with finished beer, although generally not a sour beer. In this case, lemon and blood orange were the fruit juices of choice and the result is a refreshing and low-alcohol (3.2% ABV) beverage with plenty of sour bite. This limited batch has been canned and is not available in growlers; you’ll have to hit the Curb Shop to get a hold of this one. Meanwhile, check out Secret Cove’s Father’s Day contest on Instagram for a chance to win some sweet beer swag.
Speaking of fruited sour beers, but bringing it back down to Nova Scotia, Propeller has released Strawberry + Kiwi Sour, a beer that’s bursting with fresh fruit flavors. This was an experimental small batch brewed at the height of physical distancing, but without the taprooms to distribute it, they decided to bottle it up in 750 mL bombers and make it available for purchase hoping folks might be interested in trying it. And boy were they ever: all of the bottles that were available on the website for order have already sold out, but there’s a limited number remaining for sale in the three Prop Shops today (Windmill, Gottingen, and their new Quinpool spot). Light in body, this 4.8% ABV beer has plenty of fruit character and a tart finish. Hopefully the strong interest will lead to this one being made again, possibly in a bigger batch. On the topic of bigger batches, fans of Prop’s Common will be happy to hear that 24-packs of this California Common-style beer will be selling for $39.99 at the Prop Shops and through on-line ordering (shortly) for the duration of the summer. And in another round of great news, the Propeller Arcade in the basement of the Gottingen taproom is open again, Thursday to Sunday, 4 PM until late. Tackle modern and vintage pinball machines, as well as your fave cabinet games too.
One more trip across the water to The Rock, where Ninepenny Brewing in CBS has released an English Brown Ale. At 5.3%, Old Glory may be a bit higher ABV than more traditional ones, but that just means more fun crammed into every bottle! Malt-forward notes of toffee, biscuit, and touch of dark chocolate, with the Foggy London yeast adding some light fruit character in there as well. Joining Old Glory are two returning favourites, the Route 60 Sour and 12 Bricks Milkshake IPA, with all three, plus a few more, available for order on their webshop for local delivery tomorrow. And if you get your order in before midnight, you’ll be entered in their Father’s Day giveaway!
Let’s say you can’t, or would rather not, make it out to the great restaurants, bars, and taprooms that continue to open this weekend. Fear not, chill you favourite beer, cider, wine, or other beverage, and tune into the Sip Into Summer Virtual Festival event tomorrow. Hosted by the fine folks at Uncorked Tours in Saint John, NB, the event is tailored to anyone, anywhere, to enjoy popping in and out, or stick around for the full 8 hour event. The full schedule is up on their FB page, but starting at 1 PM with some circuit training to get the juices flowing, and then some live music, followed by a tasting of Summer Stouts with Alyssa Donaldson at 3 PM. Craig Pinhey takes over for a New World vs Old World wine talk and tasting, before a tour and tasting at Brasseux d’la Côte and Magnetic Hill Winery. Cap it off with a beer tasting with the Moncton Beer League, and you’ve officially done a tour of the province’s beverages! Grab your tickets through that first link, and happy Sipping!
A few more newsbites for you today before we dismiss the class…
Up in Woodstock, NB, Cross Creek Brewing has a new American IPA called Over Across that features 100% Centennial hops grown locally. At 6% ABV and 60 IBU it sounds to be in the more traditional AIPA vein. Check it out soon on tap at The Joyce in Fredericton with other tap accounts surely to follow. Cross Creek is also planning their first packaged product for this summer, Cross Creek Pale Ale; we’ll let you know when that one makes its debut on the market.
If you’re in Quidi Vidi this weekend and like sour and/or hoppy beers, you could check out the namesake brewery’s new Sour IPA #2. It’s 6% ABV and canned up for maximum portability. A small batch beer, there are only 300 cans of this one so they’re limiting customers to 2 each. Also available for ordering via their online store.
We’ve mentioned the new meads coming out of Chester Basin’s Tanner & Co. over the past few weeks and there’s another new small/experimental one available this week. Sauvage Sparkling Mead is the result of introducing the Scotia Sauvage yeast strain to Tanner’s mead base and letting it work for a few months. The result was then kegged and carbonated and is now available only at the brewery. Act fast if you’re interested though, there’s literally only the one keg!
Halifax’s tiny Tidehouse has two new ones available for curb-side pickup tomorrow. Sotil 2 is, of course, a remake of their original Sotil, a dry saison with some Marquette grape skin contact and a slight sour character. Not entirely unlike a wine cooler or even a seltzer, but maybe a little more refined. Fjort is a DIPA with plenty of weight (8.5% ABV) and lots of Citra, Mosaic, Amarillo, and Simcoe hops. Canned this week, so super fresh, low on the bitterness and high on pineapple, grapefruit, and melon notes. Give them a call at 902-407-2550 to place your order for Saturday pickup between 12 and 5 PM.
And in the “Hub of Nova Scotia” Truro Brewing Company has a new beer for you to try, a thirst-quenching Berlinner Weiße with Key Lime that they’re calling Summer Crush. Grab a pint at the brewery and/or get a growler to go and enjoy it wherever you like to sit in the sun and have a refreshing beer!
And with the good news happening around AtlCan, we’re seeing some spots hiring and expanding their scope, here are two such businesses looking to bring some folks onto their team.
Word is coming out that there’s going to be a changing of the guard at The Church Brewing Company in Wolfville, as one of Nova Scotia’s larger “rural” breweries is on the hunt for a new head brewer to operate their semi-automated 4-vessel, 35 hectolitre (~30 BBL) system including centrifuge and 6-head canning line. The successful candidate will have at least a few years’ experience in the industry and a willingness to take on the challenge of maintaining and operating the brewery, carrying on the existing brands, and setting the course for the future of the brewery’s beers. This will all take place in support of the distinctive on-site 250-seat restaurant as well as the retail channels through NSLC, other retailers, and tap accounts. If you’re interested, you can go ahead and request more details and/or submit your resume to matt.haysom@churchbrewing.com.
Good friend to great beer Old Road BBQ in Truro is re-inventing themselves yet again after 3 months dedicating their efforts supporting front line workers throughout the province, and beyond. That work continues through Cooking for Canada, and is still worthy of your time and attention. They are poised to re-open their restaurant with an expanded size and breadth of offerings in the next couple of weeks. They have a brand new massive patio, takeout offerings, including locally-produced staples like bread, milk, coffee, and ICE CREAM! To that end, they are looking for a bunch of awesome people to join their team as servers, bartenders, ice cream folks, and prep cooks. Anyone 19+ is welcome to apply, the best way to do that is hit them up via email. And of course we’ll remind you closer to their opening date, which is July 1st! Welcome back Aaron and crew!