Friday Wrap-Up

Friday Wrap-Up for July 15, 2022 – News from Bannerman, Port Rexton, Village Green, Tanner, Unfiltered, The Brewery by Quinn’s, 2 Crows, Stillwell and more!

Posted by acbbdevon on 2022-07-15
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Annex Ales, Bannerman Brewing, Blind Enthusiasm, Cabin Brewing, Modern Brewer's Village Green, Port Rexton Brewing Co., Stillwell Beer Bar, Tanner & Co Brewing, The Brewery by Quinn's, The Establishment, The Joyce, The Quinn's Arms, Unfiltered Brewing. Leave a Comment

Welcome to full-on summer here in Atlantic Canada where our region’s breweries, cideries, and meaderies are in the full swing of tourist season and are no doubt are all pulling back-to-back-to-back brewdays for the foreseeable. We don’t have a super long post this week, but there’s certainly a few new things around that a person who loves beer ought to be aware of. So read on and inform your beer buying for the weekend!

East Duckworth’s Bannerman Brewing has a new beer on tap this week, a special take on a traditional Blonde Ale. Starting with a grist of Pilsner and Wheat malts, it was dry hopped with the French Barbe Rouge hop, before spending some time on hibiscus flowers. Offering both a brilliant pink colour and floral notes, the hibiscus complements the fruity ester notes of candied orange and strawberry from the hops and yeast. At 4.5% ABV, it’s super refreshing and light, and is available for pints and growler fills only, due to the small batch size.

New beers and events at Port Rexton this month, located on the Bonavista Peninsula. First up, the return of some fruited seasonal favourites, Summer Anthem and Gluten-Free Kiwi Sour. Summer Anthem embraces the music program at their taproom, accessible via QR code on the cans. What’s in those cans is a Coconut and Lime Milkshake IPA, made with a whole bunch of the aforementioned fruit, as well as lactose and vanilla to complete the dessert-like qualities. Plus, with the hops and brewing technique, there’s a touch of bitterness along with a light acidity to balance the sweetness. 5.8%, perfect for an afternoon delight!

For those who are looking to avoid gluten, PRBC continues to expand their GF portfolio, and the return of the Gluten-free Kiwi Sour will have plenty of you smiling once again. It was brewed with gluten-free ingredients, rather than being treated with additives after the fact, ensuring those who really need to avoid gluten can do so safely. Tart, refreshing, and bursting with kiwi, it will definitely quench your thirst! The 4.5% beer joins the Summer Anthem on tap and in cans at the brewery, as well as their St. John’s Retail Shop.

Those who make the trip to the brewery in Port Rexton today will be able to take part in the “Get Out Of Town” Concert Series, as presented by Lawna Vawnya, with Andrew Smith and DJ Kitty Kells playing from 6 PM tonight. And keep your eyes peeled for more details on next weekend’s 6th Anniversary. On Saturday, July 23, from 12 PM, there will be new beers, old favourites, plenty of food options to complement the Oh My Cheeses! food truck, plus plenty of musical acts that will have you up and on your feet! Keep an eye on their Social Media for more!

Jumping down to PEI, Village Green continues to roll out the new releases with Kylefornia. This 8% DIPA, named for the California-residing brother of a Village Green regular, lives up to its west-coast billing with additions of Crystal and Victory malt added to the base of 2-row. The hops feature a combo of traditional and modern American varieties with additions of Columbus, Cascade, Citra, and Amarillo. Cans of Kylefornia are available at the brewery now, where you can also find it on tap for pours. 

Chester’s Tanner Brewing has a new version of their Tart Saison out this week. The tweaked recipe sees the ABV reduced down to 5.7% on their kettle soured and dry hopped take on a French Saison. Expect lots of tropical and citrusy notes with the dry hop featuring the ever popular combo of Citra and Mosaic. Bottles and ours of Tart Saison are available now at both Tanner locations.

Speaking of returning favourites, Unfiltered is releasing a fresh batch of their 7.5% Inducement DIPA today. Expect tons of tropical aroma and flavour from big additions of Mosaic and Simcoe. Cans and growler fills are available now at the brewery, along with pints next door at Charm School.

And in “pretty much open” news, the latest brewery in Nova Scotia is set to serve their first beers in the coming weeks, but in the meantime, The Brewery by Quinn’s has opened their doors at 6273 Quinpool Road in Halifax. Sister to the Quinn’s Arms Pub located a few doors down, the Brewery is currently serving both local and macro beer, while their first releases are finalised. Indoor and outdoor seating, with a full food menu to complement. We’ll have more on the beer and people behind it soon!

A few beery things going on this weekend in the region:

If you find yourself in Fredericton this evening (Friday), head on over to the Joyce for a Meet the Maker tap takeover with Halifax’s 2 Crows Brewing. The event will feature the Joyce’s first ever collab brew, Ode to Joyce. This one uses a similar base recipe to 2 Crow’s regulars Jamboree and Jubilee, which feature a combo of Pilsner malt, wheat malt and flaked wheat/oats, before being slowly soured with lacto and fermented with a kviek yeast.  From there, Ode to Joyce saw a conditioning stint with watermelon and kiwi puree and a dry hop with Galaxy. Instead of being forced carbed, the kegs heading to the Joyce were spunded for a gentler, natural carbonation. A small amount was also left behind at the brewery, where it is likely to see the slushie treatment on the recently added beer slushie machine. In addition to being able to grab a pint of this one-off collab, the event will also give you a chance to talk beer with 2C brewer Jeremy Taylor.

If you find yourself in downtown Halifax tomorrow for the Pride parade, why not stop in at Stillwell HQ (the parade route goes right along Barrington St.) for an Alberta tap takeover. From noon until close, the team at Stilly will be serving up beers from the Annex Ale Project, Establishment Brewing Company, Cabin Brewing and Blind Enthusiasm, with a special menu of prairie themed snacks.

Friday Wrap-Up for July 8, 2022 – News from Big Spruce, Candid, Copper Bottom, Propeller, Trailway, Tatamagouche, North, Annapolis, Lunn’s Mill, Shipwright, Village Green, and more!

Posted by acbbdamian on 2022-07-08
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, 902 BrewCast, Annapolis Brewing Company, Big Spruce Brewing, Candid Brewing, Copper Bottom Brewing, Lunn's Mill Beer Company, North Brewing, Propeller Arcade, Propeller Brewing, Shipwright Brewing, Tatamagouche Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Village Green by Modern Brewer. Leave a Comment

We’re firmly into the throes of Summer here in the Atlantic Provinces, and with some lovely sunny weather and dryer air on the way, you’d be remiss if you didn’t get some beers together to enjoy outdoors (y’know, if you’re into that kind of thing). Luckily, our region’s breweries are also fully into the swing of summer, with new and returning favourites hitting the shelves and the taps this week across the region. So read on and see what new treats might be available at your locals in addition to your usual faves.

Let’s start things off in Northeastern Nova Scotia, where Big Spruce and Candid are releasing a new collab called Talus. This 7.4% hazy double IPA showcases the Talus hop, along with some complementary additions of Sabro and Mosaic hops, leading to prominent citrus notes, including grapefruit. Check out the label art for a fun play on the ever popular Wordle, where the breweries add a few more descriptors of the beer. Cans are available now at the Sprucetique and for delivery via Big Spruce’s online store. In more Spruce news, keep your eyes peeled for a new can design for their Tag! You’re It! IPA, which to date has raised more than $110,000 for the Ocean Tracking Network.

We’ve got a special release out of Montague, PE, this week, as Copper Bottom Brewing releases Betty’s Ale, a Golden Ale that has a lot of heart behind it. From the brewery: “Betty, who was affectionately known as ‘Captain Izzy,’ was one of the first women in Eastern PEI to captain her own fishing boat, had a heart the size of PEI, and was the best doggone biscuit maker this side of Kings County.” This golden ale is 5% ABV, very drinkable and approachable (like Betty!) with flaked rice additions to the malt bill,  this adds to a crispier mouthfeel and dry finish, pairing with balancing Columbus hops at 20 IBU. This beer is also being released to help support emerging female entrepreneurs in PEI, with $1 from every can and pint going towards the PEI Business Women’s Association. This is available now in cans and on tap from the brewery. 

A re-release from Halifax’s Propeller Brewing this week, just after Canada Day, but featuring New Zealand hops. NZ Pils (not to be confused with NA Lager), is a New Zealand Pilsner featuring the pairing of hops, Nelson Sauvin and Motueka, native to NZ.  With a nice malt backbone and citrus and white wine aromas, this is 40 IBU and 5.2% and very nice and crispy. Watch for this in cans and on draught at the Prop Shops, and at licensees around HRM. 

And as they continue to celebrate their 25th Anniversary in 2022, July is the time for events to really ramp up, with 90s Karaoke Night at their Quinpool Tap Room on July 16, Propeller Arcade holding a block party screening of The Texas Chainsaw Massacre in the parking lot of their Gottingen location (previously Wormwoods Cinema) July 24, and on July 29, you can get the VIP treatment as you tour their Dartmouth brewing facilities to learn about all facets of the design and making of the beer and how it makes it into fridge and/or your glass! Click here to learn more and grab tickets! And hey, if you want to learn about the events, upcoming special release beers, and more, be sure to subscribe to the 902 BrewCast now, so you’ll get the episode with Cam and Pat of Propeller when it drops on #902sday!

In the category of returning beer with a new recipe (new hops, who dis?) we turn to Fredericton’s Trailway, as Shades is an IPA back for another year with a new batch of hops. This year, it’s made with a blend of 100% Aussie hops, using Eclipse, Vic Secret and Topaz which are sure to bring big flavours and aromas of orange, pineapple, pine, with some floral notes as well, in this 6.6% IPA. We can’t wait to stick our noses (with open mouths) in this one. Other people say that, right? Grab this one in cans and on tap at the brewery. 

You may spot this one in the wild this week from Tatamagouche Brewing, Waterlily Belgian Witbier is their take on a traditional Belgian wheat. It’s 4.9% and uses raw wheat, with additions of curaçao orange peel, freshly cracked coriander, and elderflower. Bringing iconic flavours and aromas of citrus and spice, you’ll be able to find this one around the province in kegs and we’ll be sure to keep you updated on any canning and retail releases.

And while we’re talking Tata, a heads up that their collaboration with Dartmouth’s North Brewing, Cool Melon Kolsch, which sees kilos and kilos of fresh watermelon added to the tanks, is set to release at North July 14. To celebrate, North is holding a Tata Tap Takeover at their spot at 899 Portland Street all weekend (while kegs last), with 4 options from the visitors, in addition to the collab beer, and slushies! Stop by to take part in the fun!

It’s Annapolis Royal Pride Day tomorrow, and to celebrate, Annapolis Brewing Company and Lunn’s Mill teamed up to bring us Saisons of Love. A 5.0% Saison with hibiscus, this beer starts in the classic Franco-Belgian style, and then is enhanced with the addition of hibiscus, for floral and fruity notes on the nose (enhanced by the dry-hopping with Mandarina Bavaria), and a lightly tart kick on the palate, finishing dry. Refreshing and fun, the beer is available on tap and in cans today at both establishments.

Let’s head to Nova Scotia’s South Shore, to Lunenburg’s Shipwright Brewing. They have released a cool hybrid of a beer on the weekend, Full Sail Smoked Pale Ale. Drawing on the best of both worlds, Full Sail features Smoked malt in the grist for just a touch of smoke on the palate, while remaining bright and fresh, and at 5.5%, perfect for patio sippin’. Grab it at their spot on Montague Street for pints and cans this weekend!

If you had to pick which brewery has the mostly new releases every week, who would it be? Village Green always seems to be in our weekly posts and this week they’ve got not one, but three! They decided to up the ante on their popular (and tasty!) Modern Bitter, to brew a straight up Extra Special Bitter. ESB is a classic recipe using Maris Otter as the main star of the grain bill, along with crystal and chocolate malts. Balanced with East Kent Goldings and Bramling Cross hops in the boil and then again for some dry-hopping action, this English wonder is 5.3% and available in cans and on tap from the brewery in Cornwall. Joining it is a brand new IPA named Oceanside, weighing at 7.0% and full of classic Cascade, Simcoe, and Amarillo throughout. And for good measure, they’ll be releasing a 5.2% Simcoe Pale Ale this weekend, so be sure to pop by (open 12 – 10 PM today and Saturday, 1 – 6 PM Sunday).

And finally this week, if you recently said to yourself (or your beer buddies) “I need some more short cans for beach/camping/summer/grillin’,” then 2 Crows was listening. Their flagship IPA, Pollyanna is available now in 6-packs in that lovely 355ml format. This beer has evolved over the years, but if you want a 7.3% NEIPA at 64 IBU with mega-juice, haze, and citrus, this one is for you. This 6x355ml format is only available at the taproom on Brunswick Street in Halifax

“Friday” Wrap-Up for June 30 2022 – News from Landwash, Gahan, Lake City, Spindrift, 2 Crows, Tanner & Co, Village Green, Barnone, Big Spruce, Quidi Vidi, Serpent and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2022-06-30
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, BarNone Brewing, Big Spruce Brewing, Bishop's Cellar, Gahan House (St. John's), Garrison Brewing, Halifax Pride, Lake City Cider, Landwash Brewery, New Scotland Brewing, Quidi Vidi Brewery, Serpent Brewing, Spindrift Brewing, Tanner & Co Brewing, Village Green by Modern Brewer. Leave a Comment

Happy Thursday, friendos! We wanted to hit you with the blog a day early, to help you plan your drinking for this long weekend. Fingers crossed that the weather cooperates enough to make imbibing on a patio a part of all of our weekends and make sure to check the long weekend opening hours at your favourite producers and tippling locations before you go out and about! No more dilly-dallying, let’s get right to the news!

We’re starting out with a pair of collaborations based out of Mount Pearl, Newfoundland, featuring Landwash Brewery. First up is one with the Charlottetown-, St. John’s-, and Halifax-based Gahan. The Bridge and Ferry is a classic Extra Special Bitter, using Simpsons Maris Otter malt and a variety of IREKS Bavarian malts to bring a full bodied, caramel sweetness pairing with UK Admiral and Godiva hops for a bit of fruit and bitterness. This one came out last week and is available in cans at the Landwash brewery and on tap at Gahan Harbourview and Landwash.

The next collaboration is Anarchy in the MP! a release with Admiralty House Communications Museum and their new Punk Rock Pearl exhibit. The beer is an English-style IPA with a Golden Promise and Caramalt malt bill pairing with two newer English hops (courtesy of Charles Faram), Jester and Harlequin, all coming together for a lovely, balanced ale with plenty of malt character, notes of marmalade, grapefruit, and a perfectly bitter finish. This one is 6.5% ABV and is available today in cans and on tap at the brewery. Check out the launch party for this at the exhibit Saturday July 2nd at the museum from 7 – 9 PM with Karaoke, BBQ and beer

Staying in collab-land, we’ve got an all-Dartmouth release with Lake City Cider teaming up with Spindrift for a Black Currant Snakebite Rosé. A classic snakebite is a British pub classic, with equal parts lager and cider, but here, our friends are mixing the lovely Killick lager from Spindrift and Lake City’s Darkside Dry, topped off with a bit of house-fermented black currant wine. At 6.5%, it brings a crisp, tart, and dry finish in a beautiful package. This is available in 473ml cans and on tap directly from both breweries!

If you’re a fan of consistent naming and delicious IPAs, 2 Crows Brewing has another in their series of juicy, saturated  New England IPA series. Coming today is Mystic Incantation. Joining the ranks of the past releases Perfect Situation, Second Situation, Another Iteration, Cause for Celebration, Vivid Imagination, Perfect Saturation, (we think that’s all of them) this version features a new, magical, mystical and delicious combination of El Dorado and HBC 630 hops.  Still super smooth, creamy, and tropical, it features flavours and aromas of pear, pineapple, raspberry, and green papaya. Out today, so there will surely be some left for you, but make sure to sign up for their newsletter, where they’ve consistently been putting out pre-orders and early deliveries for their loyal subscribers. At 6.1% and 44 IBU, find this one on tap and in cans at the brewery and online! Pop in today for one of those, and stick around for their AC Lager Tube Night!

Flying southwest from Halifax, we head to Tanner Brewing next, who have a new release in their Hive series of beverages that feature honey, which is used to make mead! (cut to 902Brewcast’s Kyle uncomfortably shuffling his feet and averting his gaze) Raspberry Rhubarb Sparkling Mead is a new release available now which leverages their house sparkling mead but with additions of raspberry purée and fresh rhubarb prior to fermentation. A touch more honey was also added before the mead was carbonated to add some more sweetness to this 5.5% refreshing and dry beverage. It’s available in 500ml bottles from both of their physical locations and their online store.

We’re staying on the honey theme, as PEI’s Village Green has a Spruce Honey Saison on tap and in cans. This is a 5.8% Saison with spruce tips that were picked in Spring of 2021 and then aged in honey (from Canoe Cove Honey) for a whole year. This aged spruce honey was then added to the whirlpool with some fresh picked spruce tips from this season. Pick this one up today directly from the brewery.  

In Rose Valley, PEI, Barnone Brewery has announced their Summer Hours, which kick off this week! Open Wednesday 11 – 4 PM, Thursday and Friday 4 – 10 PM (yes, even tomorrow!), Saturday 12 – 10 PM, and Sunday 12 – 7 PM. At Barn One (that joke never gets old, right?!), you’ll be able to grab pints and explore their large seating area while checking out the view of the nearby rolling hills. And maybe even catch an impromptu show! So, what can you enjoy while there? How about two beers released in the past couple of weeks, including Back Forty IPA. At 6.5% ABV, balanced and battle tested, much like the doors of the barn, enduring many years of wind and snow but remaining rock solid. Or, how about their new Riptide Lager, 4.5% ABV, super-drinkable and crisp. They are holding a little contest to name their mascot (the one sunning themselves on the can), check this post to take part in the fun!

If you find yourself in Cape Breton this long weekend, Big Spruce is featuring a new release and the return of a previous Homebrew challenge winner. First up is Thirst Trap, a 6.7% ABV Apricot Milkshake IPA. Expect lots of fresh apricot flavour and some sweetness from the lactose addition. This weekend also sees the return of Heffalump, originally concocted by Halifax homebrewer extraordinaire, Ian Wheatley, during the 2018 Battle of the Wits homebrew challenge. You can expect traditional hefeweizen notes of banana and bubblegum in this 5.2% take on the style. Both releases are available in cans at the Sprucetique and for delivery through their online store

Down in the Gut, Quidi Vidi is releasing Pop’s Pale Ale. An homage to Quidi Vidi founder (and Pop to Justin Fong) David Fong, Pop’s features Magnum, Cascade, Falconer’s Flight, and Calypso hops, leading to lots of floral, citrusy and tropical notes. Cans of this 5.2% ale are available now at the Hops Shop and will see wider distribution at the NLC and convenience stores on Monday. The can design alone is worth the price of the tin!

Serpent has two re-releases with a twist this week, with both being can-conditioned for the first time. Can-conditioning (like bottle-conditioning, natch) is a process that involves unfermented sugars and live yeast doing their thing after packaging to give the beverage a natural carbonation. The first one to see this treatment is 33 their 8.75% Belgian tripel. Expect notes of sourdough bread and some candied sweetness. Next up is The Bite, their 5.2% cider featuring Annapolis Valley apples. Both beverages are available for can pours or to-go from the taproom now. 

Breweries across the region are hiring, here are two more jobs that popped up on our radar.

Landwash is looking to grow their team with the addition of a Distribution Assistant. Doubling as a delivery driver, the role will entail working with Landwash’s various retail partners across the Avalon and greater Newfoundland. Check out Indeed for the posting and details on how to apply.

Jumping islands, PEI’s Barnone Brewery is getting their on-site hospitality operations fired up for the summer and are looking for a Bartender to join their team. If the thought of interacting with happy beer drinkers at a beautiful farm brewery for 25-30 hours/week sounds like a job for you, you can apply by submitting your resume to info@barnonebrewery.com. 

Just a couple of newsbites before we let you go this week. Enjoy your weekend, responsibly!

In case you missed the news, New Scotland Brewing has joined their sibling New Scotland Clothing at their new location just around the corner at 16 Portland Street. The larger location will give them the opportunity to expand production, as well as taproom and performance space, as they continue to support local music. Running an on-site kitchen is Root Down Scullery, with the Timber Lounge Axe Throwing operating in the same building. Sounds like a perfect way to spend an evening in downtown Dartmouth!

With Halifax Pride approaching in a couple of weeks, Garrison Brewing has this week released their official (craft) beer of the festival, Queer Summer Brew. This “Proud Hazy Ale” is 5.0%, light, and bright, with citrus notes throughout. It’s available now at Garrison’s locations at Halifax Seaport and Oxford Taproom, as well as at Bishop’s Cellar.