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Friday Wrap-Up for March 24, 2023 – News from New Scotland, Bannerman, Banished, Backstage, Propeller, 2 Crows, Rough Waters, Village Green, Tusket Falls, and much more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2023-03-24
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Baccalieu Trail Brewing, Backstage Brewing, Banished Brewing, Bannerman Brewing, Craft Brewers Association of Nova Scotia, Gahan Atlantic Home Brew Challenge, Iron Rock Brewing Co., Modern Brewer's Village Green, New Scotland Brewing, North Brewing, Propeller Brewing, Rough Waters Brewing, Tanner & Co Brewing, Tatamagouche Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Tusket Falls Brewing. Leave a Comment

Another big week for beer releases, with more than a dozen from all four Atlantic provinces gracing our pages; it’s always nice when we can share a little bit of beer love for all of our readers. And remember, for our out-of-region folks, many breweries are still offering Canada-wide shipping, so don’t be shy about clicking through on brewery links to see what they’re offering! Now that we’ve exited the season of deep freezes (fingers crossed), breweries are more inclined to send beer out.

Let’s kick off the week with an overwhelming number of stouts hitting the taps in Downtown Dartmouth. New Scotland Brewing’s Brew Crew has been working overtime the last few months to put together a six-pack of new beers to celebrate “Darkside Days”. On tap tomorrow, you’ll see the return of McCoy’s Contraband, their 8.5% Foreign Export/Tropical Stout. Plenty of malt in here to enhance flavour and body, as was traditional to survive the long voyage from the UK to the Caribbean (just as pertinent now to survive the Halifax-Dartmouth crossings), think molasses and fruitcake, with a hint of sweetness too. While it is on tap now, you’ll be able to enjoy it in cans from the brewery in early April.

Joining McCoy’s are mixed-six of other stouts, in a wide array of flavour alcohol levels. Let’s start with Darkside Sunrise, a 5.2% stout brewed with whole bean coffee (of the “Breakfast Blend” variety), giving major coldbrew vibes with a hint of sweetness complementing the roast from the beans. Continuing the theme is Spread the News, a 5.5% Peanut Butter Stout, the perfect pairing to your morning toast and jam. Hints of dark fruit with a smooth head, and, of course, a nutty finish. It’s time for dessert with Darkside Forest Cake! A 5.5% chocolate cherry stout, blending the best of the base chocolatey stout with a bright fruit character from the cherry addition, it boasts a touch of sweetness and then finishes with tart cherries. 

Continuing your day in this overwrought analogy, let’s gather ‘round the fire for the Gimme Gimme s’more stout. Notes of honey and graham cracker, plus marshmallow vibes, on top of the chocolate and dark fruit from the base beer and a slightly warming 6.5% ABV from this beauty. And finally, coming in from the fire and lounging around the sitting room, it’s time to enjoy a pair of boozier offerings. O Sailor is just 5.5% ABV, but features notes of spiced rum with a touch of vanilla, herbs and spices, plus some black currant too, although this is most apparent on the aroma, rather than any harshness on the palate. Rounding out the group is Anastasia Bluegrass, a Bourbon Wood-aged Russian Imperial Stout. Again shining through in the aroma with vanilla and whiskey being the prominent notes, but not overwhelming the hefty base Imperial Stout, this one is definitely a “sipper” at 9.5% ABV. All six of the brews will debut Saturday at open, and we do not expect them to last the whole weekend, so make trails to New Scotland to avoid disappointment!

St. John’s Bannerman Brewing has a new beer on tap, teasing us with the warmer weather that’s just around the corner (right??). Four-Way Tie is a 5.5% pale ale, dry-hopped with plenty of El Dorado for big notes of pineapple and citrus on the nose and tongue. The grain bill contains a fair amount of both malted and flaked Oats, giving the beer a full body and mouthfeel without significant residual sweetness. Find it, and everything here, on tap and to go in cans at their East Duck location, and coming to local beer stores soon.

Nearby in Paradise, Banished Brewing has a new release that’s all about that feeling at the end of a long workday… Clockin’ Out is a 5.2% Red Ale, perfect for grabbing as you get back home after a day in the mill or on the front lines of retail. Their top-requested style since they opened, they are delivering what the people have demanded! With a touch of roasted barley in the grist to complement the other specialty malts, the German and UK hops provide some light floral and herbal notes on the nose. As always, the cans feature great artwork by Paul George Hammond, with some familiar and new cartoon animals to keep you company as you drown your Sunday Scaries. Available now on Maverick Place, and at the usual retailer spots real soon!

Hey all you Fortunate Sons and Daughters, Look Out Your Back Door, and ask yourself, “Have You Ever Seen The Rain” worse than last night? Well, Backstage Brewing in Stellarton is sure to cancel out any Bad Moon Rising, and make you feel like a Proud Mary (or Marty) with their latest release, the Creedence Coconut Revival IPA. This 5.9% ABV IPA features a bale-full of Azacca, Citra, and Mosaic, with a late addition of coconut right in the boil. Run Through the Jungle, drive through Cotton Fields, and head Down on the Corner to Backstage to grab this beer on tap and in growlers (Hey) Tonight.

Propeller Brewing has been embracing new styles, ingredients, and techniques since their inception in 1996, and their latest release embraces all three! Tundra is a 6.1% ABV Cold IPA, the newish style that was borne out of a bit of a rejection of the super-hazy presentation and full mouthfeel of NEIPA. Using a light grain bill, and fermenting cooler (but not at lager temp), the body is crisp and refreshing. Being an IPA, hops have to be the star of the show and they certainly are here, with the new HBC 1019 hop being used. Notes of Valencia oranges, candied peaches, and honeydew are first and foremost on the nose and palate.On tap and in cans at all Prop Shops now, this beer will also be at some of the private stores soon.

Lots of news from Brunswick Street’s 2 Crows Brewing this week. First up is a remix on the much-loved Jamboree fruited sour, with this version featuring mango, coconut, and vanilla. Starting from the same base of local Pils and wheat malts, in addition to flaked wheat and oats, the beer was first soured with Lacto Plantarum, and then fermented with Escarpment’s Ebbegarden Kveik yeast strain. Post-ferm, a load of mango purée (to the tune of 100 grams per litre!), toasted coconut, and whole vanilla beans were added while it finished conditioning and carbonating. The result is tart, fruity, tropical, and ready for you today! In cans and on tap now, and will be on their slushie machine tomorrow for the full fruit smoothie experience! Sandos will be popping up at noon, with live music in the brewery space starting at 7 PM. More info here.

And in a whole new line for the Dual Corvids is SANS, a line of non-alcoholic beers. They’re dialling in their no-ABV process with two releases this week: the first is Raspberry Sour, which leverages their souring and fruiting experience while producing Jamboree, but on a non-alcoholic base. Lots of raspberry in the glass, for a jammy and tart bevvy. Also now gracing the shelves is Hoppy, a light, fresh, and tropical IPA-kinda non-beer, with lots of Galaxy hops added late in the process to shine through. These are both small test batches, available on tap only, so be sure to pop by soon to test them out and report back to 2 Crows on what you think!

Rough Waters Brewing in Deer Lake has a new beer, named in honour of their Red Heeler Ella, who of course graces the beer’s label. Rascal is a 7.8% Double IPA, packed to the brim with Eclipse and Lotus hops, lending major citrus and pine to the flavour and aroma. Cans are available on the West coast, as well as at their regular distro spots on the Avalon, so head out on an adventure to grab them!

Cornwall, PEI’s Village Green has a new beer on tap this weekend for pints and growler fills, in the perfect “I can drink a couple, yet it has plenty of flavour” category. Polite Pale is a 4.8% pale ale brewed with a blend of English, German, and American hops for a truly complex aroma and flavour. Added to that was a warm ferment of English yeast to express some fruity esters on the nose as well. Pop by tomorrow evening at 7 PM, and you can even try your hand at The Simpsons trivia!

Tusket Falls Brewing has a new beer on tap and in cans this week, available at both their brewery in Tusket and their Halifax Beer Project spot on Gottingen. Differently Wired is a 6.5% Raspberry Sour, fermented using their house sour blend of bacteria, before a hefty dose of Citra and Amarillo was added to complement the vanilla beans, lactose, and the eponymous fruit brought this beauty to fruition (ha!). It features a smooth mouthfeel with a bit of sweetness to balance the acidity from the bacteria and fruit. Head out and grab some today!

Another fruited sour is out in the wild this week, albeit 1,500 km from Tusket, Nova Scotia… Baccalieu Trail Brewing in Bay Roberts, NL is embracing the American Southwest with the release of Cactus Crush. Using Prickly Pear puree, you can enjoy all the flavour of that fruit, without having to pull small needles out of your lips (ask us how we know!). The fruit imparts a lovely pink hue to the beer, and shines through flavour-wise with notes of kiwi, melon, and watermelon, all in a tidy 4.2% ABV package. Available on tap at the brewery now, with cans to go as well at NLC, Urban Market, and Maries in St. John’s today!

Not to be outdone by Backstage and 2 Crows, North Brewing also has a beer this week that features coconut (seems to us some brewers may have been visiting, or at least dreaming of, warmer climes over March break). But there’s more to it than that! Member of the North brewteam Alex Wong was inspired during a trip to Singapore to make Shiok Cream Ale, a cream ale made with coconut and pandan. Pronounced “she-oak” the term is slang for “very tasty” or “delicious” which is what Alex hopes you’ll say about this beer. A tribute to the Singaporean/Malaysian breakfast treat kaya, which is an egg-based custard spread that also features coconut and pandan, this beer aims to be a little sweet but still crushable. Look for a prominent coconut aroma which follows through to the palate along with lemon, nuttiness, and an earthy citrus. Somewhat hazy in appearance, with a slightly-creamy medium body, there’s a light acid balance and a higher-than-usual carbonation as well. This was a pilot batch so it’s limited in quantity and only available on tap at the North taprooms in Cole Harbour and Timberlea.

Fredericton’s Trailway is reminding everyone that they’re not just all about the hops this week with a new batch of Ramifications, their Helles lager. Intended as an all-day easy drinker, you can safely expect a clean flavor profile, round and soft, with some malt sweetness and minimal bitterness in a crushable 5% ABV package. You’ll find this one available at the brewery in Fredericton and in Saint John at the recently opened Union House, as well as in cans to go.

Bucking the recent trend away from mixed fermentation beers are our pals at Tatamagouche Brewing. Trusting their customers will appreciate a well-made example, they’ve brought a second iteration of Glad Alchemy, a mixed ferm pale ale. Described as, “vibrant and bursting with funky flavors,” it is a showcase of the fruity and funky character that can be derived from hops when driven by fermentation with wild yeasts and bacteria. Expect a light and sparkly mouthfeel, a big pop of pink grapefruit, passion fruit, and pineapple, and a bit of vanilla on the finish. This one was conditioned for eight months in neutral oak barrels which no doubt has added a touch of tannins to the mix as well. You can get your hands on this 5.5% beauty in cans at the brewery, and we expect maybe a couple of kegs will make it around the region, but you can also order it online. And to make that even more attractive, Tata is doing free Canada-wide shipping this weekend (March 24 – 26th)!! Just use the code MARCHFREESHIP at checkout.

Rounding out the release news this week we travel to possibly the most remote brewery in our region, Iron Rock in Labrador City. A revised version of the beer they made for Iron Fest 2022, it’s a 3.7% ABV golden-hued ale, a crushable brew that can be enjoyed all afternoon long and into the evening. It’s currently only on tap at the brewery right now, but they’re planning a bigger batch so they’ve got more to share. This one will also be the beer of record at Iron Fest 2023 in August, when Luce Ends, who won the Battle of the Bands event where this beer was released last week, kick off the concert portion of the proceedings.

There’s a big NS beer event on the horizon along with news of a region-wide event that finished up last weekend:

Big congratulations to the winners of last weekend’s 4th Annual Atlantic Home Brew Challenge, by Gahan House. With more than two dozen entries from across the four Atlantic provinces, Al MacLeod reigned supreme with his Herr Dustig German Pils. Al will be brewing a stepped-up version of his brew with Matt at the Saint John Gahan Pub location later this year. Taking First Place in the Altbier category was Ben Hussey with his Atlantic Alt, who also scored some cash for his homebrew. Other successful breweries taking home some dough are Andre Reichel, Robert Schnarr, and Patrick Hogan. Congratulations to Al and everyone who took place, we hear the judging was tight, as the quality of homebrewing continues to elevate across the region!

We’ve got the first beer show of Spring coming up next weekend, with the Craft Brewers Association of Nova Scotia kicking off NS Craft Beer Month with the Together We Brew Festival April 1. Taking place at Pavilion 22 on Halifax’s waterfront, it will see 40 breweries from across the province together again in one place. This is your best chance to do a “tour de province” under one roof, before you plan your beery travels this summer! There are two sessions happening next Saturday, either 2 – 4:30 PM (VIP can enter at 1 PM) session to kick off your evening, or 7 – 9:30 PM (VIP @ 6 PM) to set your night into high gear. Tickets are available here and your ticket price now includes all samples (no individual drink tickets needed anymore!), and for those interested in volunteering before, during, or after the festival, check out the options and sign up here. More details are available here, should you like to review their safety protocols.

Looking to get into the beer business? Breweries are expanding their workforce as they prepare for fast-approaching busy season!
Chester Basin’s Tanner & Co is preparing for a busy summer by hiring for a seasonal full-time Brewery Production and Cellar Assistant. While no previous brewery experience is necessary, an interest in the field and hard working ethic are going to be key to your success. Could be the perfect job for someone looking to get in the Beer Biz on the South Shore! Check out the full job listing and how to apply here!

Friday Wrap-Up for February 10, 2023 – News from News from Upstreet, Annapolis Brewing, Horton Ridge, Tatamagouche, Serpent, Garrison, Bannerman, and more!!

Posted by acbbchris on 2023-02-10
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Annapolis Brewing Company, Bannerman Brewing, Big Spruce Brewing, Black Cultural Society of PEI, Breton Brewing, CAVOK Brewing, CBANS, Garrison Brewing, Good Robot Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Lake City Cider, Landwash Brewery, Stillwell Beer Bar, Stillwell Brewing, Tatamagouche Brewing, Tire Shack Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Tusket Falls Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing. Leave a Comment

As we roll through another mix of strange temperatures and precipitation in the Atlantic Provinces, our local breweries keep trucking along and bringing out the news and brews to serve the people. In more general beer news, one of the classic pairings of Beer and Football will be featured on this Sunday’s Superb Owl! If your chief priority is to get some beer stocked up for the weekend, then your eagle eyes should look no further than some of the new releases and news below. 

We’re kicking off this week with some beer-adjacent news and the importance of celebrating African Heritage Month. The PEI-based folks at Upstreet have been working since the fall with the Black Cultural Society of PEI on a collaborative drink to honor and raise funds for the organization. The theme of the month for PEI’s month-long programming of events is Sankofa, a Twi (primary language in Ghana) word, meaning, “to look back into the past to guide the future.” Sankofa Tropic Punch  is also the name of the resulting drink collaboration between Upstreet and BCS! This is a 5.5% ABV cocktail which brings in big flavours of banana, grenadine, and passionfruit. 10% of all sales of the cocktail will be donated to the Black Cultural Society. You can grab this sweet and juicy cocktail on tap at the Upstreet Taproom and Craft Beer Corner in Charlottetown. Be sure to check out all the events this month from the BCS of PEI and try to engage in-person or online if possible. And if you’re not on PEI, check out your own provincial or municipal events to celebrate African Heritage Month now or anytime throughout the year. 

Keeping up with another collaboration, the Valley folks of Horton Ridge Malt House and Annapolis Brewing Company have teamed up to bring you Valley Helles. This is a Valley-based take on the German style Helles Lager but is made with local barley, of course. This crisp and refreshing lager brings classic notes of bread and crackers and a bit of malt sweetness with a very clean finish. It comes in at 4.3% and 16 IBU and is available in cans and on tap at both breweries. 

From the Fundy shores over to the Northumberland Strait of Nova Scotia, Tatamagouche Brewing has a new release to get your hands on. Zin Gin is a grapefruit and rosemary saison that’s been waiting to come out of the barrel for a while! The main brew started out in the kettle where Mistral and Chinook hops were joined by grapefruit peel and fresh rosemary. For fermentation, the wort was inoculated with a blended culture of French saison yeast and some Brettanomyces to bring out more herbal and citrus character. After primary fermentation, the beer went into gin-infused Zinfandel wine barrels for 8 months of maxing and relaxing, while making some botanical flavor friends along the way. After barrel-aging, it was blended with a neutral sour beer and then racked onto a dry hop of Saaz and more grapefruit peel. The beer was then can-conditioned and is available to you now. There is a dry and bitter profile to this one, but the sour component and racking really help balance this one out for a very complex and refreshing brew at 7% ABV. Find this one now in 355ml cans at the brewery or online. (and potentially on tap and in cans around Halifax). 

Another new release this week comes from Spryfield’s own Serpent Brewing. Available on Saturday, February 11th, Tanks but No Tanks is a Pale Ale that’s been boosted up with floral, citrus, and pine character while remaining well-balanced with toasty and sweet malt notes. Boasting a generous dry hop of Amarillo, this 4.4% beer is packed with flavour and should be a refreshing and juicy brew as we struggle with “will they or won’t they” Winter. This will be available in cans and on tap directly from the brewery.  

Someone’s been busy on Quinpool Road recently and that’s the Garrison brew team on their pilot system at their Oxford taproom. They’ve got not one, not two, but three small batches for you to sample and savor this week. Up first is Nuts about Honey, a peanut butter and honey (natch) ale. Starting with a base of Pilsner, with biscuity Victory and sweet crystal specialty malts, it was was bittered with Bravo and, we believe, saw additions of both peanut butter and honey, yielding a creamy smooth, sweet, and nutty final product at 6.3%. A variation on that theme arrives with the second beer, Nuts About Molasses. This one is 5.2%, and was largely Munich malt in the mash with a bit of Victory for character, Bravo again for bittering. This time to go with the peanut butter there was molasses, which gives some dark fruit, and some spices for clove and nutmeg notes. Lastly, we’ve got what they’re calling a “Red Hot IPA” that they’re calling Caliente. Pilsner, dark Munich, crystal, and chocolate malts come together in this one to provide a platform for hops and spice. Bravo was used here too, for bittering, but the stars of the hop show were Citra, Cascade, Mosaic, and Simcoe. To that very citrusy and no doubt dank base was added habanero, which bring characteristic flavors and, of course, a lingering heat. All three are available only at the Oxford taproom.

Never let it be said that Trailway is unwilling to experiment, even with the tried and true. After the rousing success of their Hu Jon Light variation of their OG Hu Jon Hops IPA, they decided to attempt a yin to that yang and are now releasing Hu Jon Heavy. Boasting the same hop varieties as its smaller siblings, you’ll get the same fresh tropical fruit, sticky pine, and kushy dankness, but with a fuller flavor and body. Probably no need to mention this one hits quite a bit harder as well at 8% ABV. You can grab it now at the brewery, and, we expect, this one will probably see some wider distro; you can also keep your eyes peeled as kegs have been released into the wild as well.

Whether you’re way down in the Southwestern Nova Scotia, or in the HRM, you have the chance to try a new one from Tusket Falls. An American Porter (think English Porter with a higher ABV and more hop character), Original Experience comes in at 6% and brings with it a full body and rich mouthfeel along with a creamy head. Old school c-hop Columbus adds a firm bitterness along with some earthy and citrus character that balance the malty, roasty, nutty, and chocolatey flavors provided by the specialty malts used, namely roasted barley, chocolate malt, Golden Naked Oats, and crystal malts. Grab it now in cans or on tap at either of their locations, in Tusket or on Gottingen Street in Halifax.

Let’s jump up to Newfoundland for the first time this week, starting with Bannerman who are releasing a new lager, Aces High.  Coming in at 4.5%, it’s essentially a light lager, aided by the addition of toasted rice. A Sorachi Ace dry-hop provides notes of peach, lemongrass and tea to keep things interesting. It’s on tap and in cans now at the brewery on Duckworth St., with cans also hitting NLC locations today (Friday) and Bannerman’s other retail spots later this weekend. 

You already knew that Moncton’s Tire Shack can bang out the dessert stouts, with their toasted marshmallow stout, Society, being a mainstay in their core offerings. They’re doubling down on those credentials this week with the release of Peanut Butter and Chocolate MIlkshake Stout. This one takes its chocolate notes from substantial quantities of dark malts, sees an addition of over 25 kilos of peanut butter, and also incorporates Lactose for added sweetness and mouthfeel. 

But if boffo big sweet stouts aren’t your thing, and you like to play more on the lighter side, or perhaps you’re more of a beer curious cocktail lover, Tire Shack also has you covered for that. Previously done as a pilot batch that was so popular it had to be scaled up and banged out in quantity, Cosmopolitan Sour is what it says on the tin: a beer version of the classic citrus and cranberry cocktail. You’ll find this one and the Society both now available in the tap room for pints and growler fills and also in cans to go.

Staying in the Moncton region of NB, but just down the road in Dieppe, CAVOK has a long-term project coming to light this week. Vega is named for the brightest star in the constellation Lyra (“the Lyre,” of course), a once (14,000 years ago) and future (in another 14,000 years or so) pole star, fifth-brightest star in the night sky, and one corner of the famed Summer Triangle asterism. But enough about the name, what about the beer? A raspberry pale ale that was fermented with Brettanomyces and aged in an oak foedre, at 5.3% you should find it a light and refreshing variation on an aged beer, which are most often bigger beers. You can confirm or deny this by visiting the brewery and grabbing one or more, either on tap or in 750ml bottles to go.

One of the region’s longest-running Homebrew Competitions, the Big Spruce Homebrew Challenge wrapped up this past weekend, as always at the Wooden Monkey in Dartmouth. This year’s event harkened back to the first edition of the competition, with a single wide-open IPA category where anything goes, and if you thought that an open IPA competition in 2023 would see a podium full of hazybois you’d be (⅔) wrong. In third place was Leo Arsenault and Jonathan Gavel of Antigonish with a British IPA, a rarer than hen’s teeth style in this day and age, but a very interesting and satisfying one. In second was Ryan Swinamer of Hammonds Plains, who had the requisite Hazy IPA. And coming in first place was Alex Hunt of Halifax, with another rather rare style (although familiar to longtime Spruceheads), a Cascadian Dark Ale, better known to many as a Black IPA. Congrats to all who placed and indeed, all those who entered, and thanks to Jeremy White, the team at Big Spruce, and the judging crew for putting on another great competition. Look for Alex’s winning beer with be scaled up and brewed for inclusion in the BS 10th Birthday Beer Box for April 1st!

We’ve only got one event for you this week, and it’s a ways away, but the sweet cheap tickets are on sale this weekend only!

No events to announce for this weekend, but we want to share some exciting news about an April event whose tickets are going on sale today. Together We Brew NS will take place on April 1 at Pavillion 22 at the Halifax Seaport. The event is being hosted by CBANS (replacing the Full House event from previous years), and will see over 50 CBANS members proffering their beers and ciders for sampling. Expect more than 250 locally produced beverages, live music, fun & games, and a bunch of different food options. Early bird tickets are available this weekend (only Sunday at midnight), with VIP tickets also available that will earn you extra samples and facetime with the brewery crews. Check out their website for more details on what is sure to be one of the highlights of the craft beer calendar this year. 

Looking for a little work in the beer industry? See below.

The gang at Stillwell Brewing is looking for a little hand with their retail, with casual Saturday morning market hours and other retail/taproom hours coming available in the near future. If you love beer and love sharing your love for beer with the public at large, why not get paid for it? You can reach out to nikki@stillwellbrewing.com for more information.

…aaaaand we finish with a couple of quick newsbites you can wash down with your first beer of the weekend.

Fans of Good Robot may have noticed a distinct lack of some of their favorite GR brews in the last little while. The truth is, they’ve been focused on volume lately, what with their big shiny new brewhouse and plenty of orders to fill for their core brands. But this week sees the first of what they’re intending to be a trend in their offerings, the return of Tom Waits Imperial Stout. Still big, still dark, still dangerous. Only on tap at the GR Robie Street taproom.

As mentioned in our intro above, fans of American football know what weekend it is, and unless you’ve got your head in the sand you know Tuesday is also everybody’s most favorite* Hallmark Holiday, Valentine’s Day! Both of these events, tending to occur in the deep of winter, often see breweries offer special products, special deals, or special events and this year is no exception. Check out your favorite brewery’s or bar’s socials and websites and see whether they might be offering a bundle deal like 2 Crows with their AC Light Lager flat of 24 for $50 or a Valentines package like Breton Brewing’s Valentine’s Day Beergram Package, or an event like Bar Stillwell’s Loner’s Valentine. We’ve seen some offerings in these veins from Lake City Cider, Landwash, and Garrison as well. Now is probably also a good time to remind you that the easiest way to find out about these sorts of things is by signing up for your favorite producers’ email list, which will often get you access to early and/or special purchases, occasional discounts, and more (always MOAR!).

* “nobody’s most favorite” and “everybody’s least favorite” are also possible.

Friday Wrap-Up for Jan 27, 2023 – News from North Brewing, 2 Crows, Propeller, Trailway, Bannerman, Port Rexton, Ateepic, Lake City, and plenty more!

Posted by acbbdevon on 2023-01-27
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Banished Brewing, Bannerman Brewing, Lake City Cider, Lone Oak Brewing, Microbrasserie Ateepic, North Brewing, Péché Day, Port Rexton Brewing Co., Propeller Brewing, Stillwell Beer Bar, Tide & Boar Gastropub, TrailWay Brewing. Leave a Comment

Happy end of January! For some of the region, this was the first time we’ve seen significant snowfall, for others, it just piled on. Wind and rain throughout the area was de rigueur, and we’re pretty sure we can expect the same weird mix in February as well. Thankfully, the region’s cideries and breweries have been keeping busy inside, giving us plenty to warm us up this time of year. Let’s start off with two big anniversaries being celebrated this weekend…

When North Brewing (known as Bridge Brewing at the time) opened their doors January 25, 2013, Rozina, Josh, and Peter were so busy with keeping up with demand that the idea of a Grand Opening fell to the wayside. 10 years later, they have moved from their original Agricola Street location to Cole Harbour, and opened a second location in Timberlea (in addition to the retail shop at Battery Park in downtown Dartmouth). And they are taking a beat to finally have that Grand Opening they deserve, in beer form! Grand Opening Saison began life back in September 2022, when they brewed a pale-coloured wort, and initiated fermentation with a mixed culture of yeast, Lactobacillus bacteria, and Brettanomyces yeast. Balancing the acidity and aromatics in a blended beer is a fine line that North has trod before, allowing both sides to shine through without either overpowering the other. After an extended 3 month fermentation period, the beer was bottled (and kegged) just before Christmas, and allowed to naturally carbonate and condition since. This 4.9% Saison is available for purchase at all of their retail locations and on-line shop now, look for orange and apricot, ginger and pepper in the glass and on the nose, with a full mouthfeel yet dry-finish on the palate.

Celebrate with the North crew at both their Portland Street and Timberlea locations until Saturday. Happy Hour runs 3 – 6 PM, there are door prize drawings today and tomorrow at 5, 6, and 7 PM, and they have special items on the menu for the fun, including a Pani Puri Party Platter (perfect pretty puff pastries), braised lamb poutine, and even a birthday cake cookie to top it off! Leveraging their foray into spirits, they are also serving up cocktails made with their Kaleidoscope Vodka, as well as their North X Compass Distillers Neighbours Whisky. Congratulations to the North family on 10 great years, and here’s to at least 10 more!

A newer kid on the block is also celebrating their anniversary this weekend, with Brunswick Street’s 2 Crows Brewing celebrating the sixth anniversary of their opening, January 28, 2017. And to celebrate this milestone, they are releasing six beers tomorrow! Talk about overachievers (and/or beer blogger haters)! The first four of the group are all related, so let’s start there… In Fall 2022, the 2C Brew Crew decided to throw caution to the wind, and go all out for a massive stout. Achieving a nearly 10% beer is no small feat, and they chose to use a reiterative mash to do that. In short, instead of sending the wort (sweet and sugary water) from the mash tun directly to the kettle, as most normal breweries would do (boring!), they instead sent it on to a second mash, to bump up the fermentable sugar level even more! The mash consisted of Maris Otter, Vienna, flaked oats, honey malt, and 6 various caramel and roast malts for colour, depth, and complexity. We can only imagine the stickiness experienced that day, and the lucky buggers who had to clean it up after. And the craziness continues, as to increase the sugar level, as well as encourage some deeper flavours, they boiled the wort for 20 hours! Whoa! During that time, they used Columbus and Bramling Cross to keep it from being too cloying, before fermenting with a robust yeast from Imperial. Post-fermentation, they just packaged the beer, and here we are… Not! Wanting the spread the madness even further, they split the batch into four, in order to explore four unique flavour profiles:

  • Mambo No. 1 is the original 9.7% base Double/Chocolate/Imperial Stout: smooth, full mouthfeel, and full of chocolate, and hints of roast and liquorice.
  • Mambo No. 2 was conditioned in the tank with a (metric?) shit ton of cocoa, as well as marshmallows and Graham crackers. Think S’mores in a glass, with all the fun things that come along with that.
  • Mambo No. 3 was also conditioned on cocoa, but in the spirit of “EVEN MOAR” saw even more toasted coconut in the tank. Chocolate and coconut, we’re thinking Bounty bars or classic choco-coconut balls.
  • Mambo No. 4 may be the most out-there of them all, as in addition to getting the cocoa treatment, this beauty saw the addition of coffee directly to the tank, as well as maple syrup. Chocolate chip pancakes with a cup of joe, natch.

Cans of the Mambos will be available tomorrow (Saturday) at noon in the taproom, or for delivery from their online shop, and are sold in a responsibly-sized 4x355ml variety four-pack. (FYI, subscribers to their newsletter were able to order and receive these a day early!)

Just when you think the 2 Crows would be taking their foot off the gas, they accelerate, and are releasing another wild and economically irresponsible beer, Squeezie. If you’ve heard the term Smoothie Sour, this is it. If you haven’t, strap in! Starting with a pale wort (grist of Pilsner, Golden Promise, and wheat), it was fermented with an acid-producing yeast to give a slightly acidic character. After fermentation was complete, the high alcohol beer was blended with an equal part of fruit puree, something that you would see at your local juicery or smoothie-ery… mango and banana in near-equal parts, with hints of passion fruit and coconut cream making up the rest. After thoroughly combining the beer and puree, the new concoction was carbonated and canned, and immediately sent through a pasteurization step to stop any (dangerous!) further fermentation in the can. Thick, juicy, a touch acidic from both the fruit and beer, and just begging for a shot of wheatgrass (resist that urge). Tall cans of  the 5% Squeezie will be available online and at the retail shop tomorrow during the celebrations.

Rounding out the half-dozen weekend releases is the return of 2C’s massive Triple IPA, Space Words. Triple the hops, triple the booze, six* times the fun! Right around 10% ABV, this beer was dry-hopped during and post-fermentation four times with Galaxy, Eclipse, and a hint of Comet (all space words, get it?), leading to a super aromatic, bold, and juicy big IPA. Also available on tap and in tall cans this weekend, it’s also joined by the latest of their Hop Water series, this one being Mojito. At 0.0% ABV, no need to worry about over-imbibing this beauty, which features lime zest and mint leaves, and a refreshing zip to clear the palate. This one is available to everyone today!

Lastly, let’s talk about 2 Crows’ party tomorrow. Open and available from noon, the folks from Coda Ramen (FKA Water and Bone) will be doing a slurpy pop-up in their space, with a couple of different ramen choices available along with some accompanying dishes. There’s only so much broth that can be transported, so this means you’ll want to get there early to avoid disappointment. And for those on the later shift (or arrive early then come back), there’s the return of Rock at the Brewery. From 7 PM til close, hear some wicked tunes from Touched, Norc, and Customer Service, to accompany your stout, smoothie sour, and TIPA imbibing. And speaking of stouts, Sunday from noon will be a Stout take-over, with seven in-house brewed stouts complemented by a trio from brewery friends: North Brewing will join Borden’s Lone Oak Brewing and Moncton’s Tide & Boar Brewing on the draught list. For those not stout-savvy, plenty of other options by the bottle and can pour will be available. Phew, what a weekend!

* or is it nine? Can we get a math ruling here?

Staying with (in?) the dark, Trailway also has a brand new release that’s available now. Sundae Best is a Chocolate Vanilla Soft-Serve Stout. This is a deep and dark but sweet stout with milk sugar (lactose) added, along with vanilla. It boasts a dominant chocolate flavour, but the beer remains soft and balanced, with just the right ABV richness ABV at 6.5%. It is available in cans now directly from the brewery in Fredericton. 

From the dark of winter to dreaming of summer days, Bannerman has teamed up with their friends and cohabitants NAMJIM for their second collaboration. Dubbed Beach Comber, it’s an IPA and features Thai tea dust, which is a mix of thai spices and Ceylon black tea. In what they’re already calling a staff favourite, this sweet, bold and juicy IPA uses Pilsner malt, toasted rice, and milk sugar in addition to a huge dry-hop of Sabro and Eclipse hops. It was then conditioned on the Thai tea dust and came out at 7% ABV. Medium-bodied, it brings some subtle flavours of citrus, coconut, cardamom and cinnamon; it’s available now directly from the brewery.

It’s been a bit of a delay to winter here, but if you’re up near Port Rexton, Newfoundland, generally, and Clarenville specifically, the White Hills Ski Resort is opening this weekend! Thankfully, the Port Rexton Brewing crew has a new brew for après ski. Golden Ale is a 4% crisp, clean, and balanced post-ski/board/work/anytime crusher. This will be available on tap or in cans at the Tips Up Lounge inside of White Hills, Port Rexton’s shops, on their website, and in distribution Newfoundland-wide next week wherever on the Rock you buy craft beer. 

In addition to the breweries celebrating anniversaries this weekend, you’ll want to head to Dartmouth tomorrow, here’s why:

Lake City Cider is in the heart of Dartmouth’s Downtown, and, in fact, their taproom is right in the centre of the action for Saturday’s Downtown Dartmouth Ice Festival Street Party! Portland Street is going car-free 12 – 5 PM, and there will be fun for all with ice carving, games, princesses, and more. Plus, nip into Lake City to grab a cup of hot cider (both alcoholic and non- so the kids can experience the delight of warm cider too), try their new cider cocktails like the Apple Spice, and maybe even grab a sweet dessert, as Antoinette’s Cheesecakes will be there with dipped cheesecakes from 12 PM until they sell out.

We’ll leave you with two final releases and a few events that fall under the “coming later” category

Up in the winter wonderland of Northern NB, Edmunston’s Microbrasserie Ateepic has a new wheat ale out. Wheatpecker comes in at 5% ABV and is infused with orange and raspberry. Grab it on tap now at the brewery. 

It’s still winter and Propeller is keeping things dark too; this week they’re releasing a new batch of their Mocha Oatmeal Stout, this one extra smooth and creamy owing to being packaged “on Nitro”. This oatmeal stout is 5.5% and brewed with chocolate and locally roasted coffee. Warm and sweet notes of brown sugar, milk chocolate and fresh espresso are all present in aroma and flavour of this 5.5% beer, which is nicely balanced at 28 IBU. It is available in cans at the three Prop Shops, for ordering on their website, and at private stores in Halifax. 

This next event is still a few weeks away, but given that it’s an annual favourite on the beer nerd calendar, we thought we’d remind you that February 18 is Péché Day. Every year, Brasserie Dieu du Ciel! rolls out kegs featuring variants of its legendary Péché Mortel imperial coffee stout, with distribution hitting a limited number of better beer bars around the world. As in previous years, Halifax’s Stillwell and Moncton’s Tide and Boar have been selected to participate in the event. We’ll have more details closer to the 18th, but we know this year’s variants will include Péché Latte, Péché Mortel Stout Mexicain, Péché Mortel Bourbon 2022 and a special coffee edition with beans from Mystique Café.

In beer venue news, we have a teaser from our friends in (on?) PEI: Lone Oak Brewing started as the beloved brewpub and brewery in Borden-Carleton’s Gateway Village. Since then, they’ve opened a second brewpub and retail location just outside of Charlottetown. In 2023, they’re taking their game to the centre of the PEI tourism universe and opening Lone Oak Beer Garden in Cavendish! More info to come, but it’s time to get excited if you’ll be hitting PEI’s north shore this summer (paging D.F.). 

One last thing before we let you go… One of the Banished Brewing family is having a tough time, and they are looking to support their own, and give you a chance to do the same. Thacker, pup of Head Brewer Duncan Tennant, is a Nova Scotia Duck Tolling Retriever, that just underwent surgery to correct Intervertebral Disc Disease. He is on the mend now, with a successful recovery expected. In order to help with the (significant) bills, Banished is holding a fundraiser to pay for the surgery, and enter you into a random draw. Check out their GFM here, and every donation you make can go towards an entry into the draw. More on Thacker here!