Big Spruce Brewing

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Friday Wrap-up: Picaroons Brewmaster Dinner, Garrison Brewmaster vs. Winemaker Event, Big Spruce is Now Open

Posted by acbbchris on 2013-04-05
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Atlantic Beer Festival, Big Spruce Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, Garrison Brewing, Hell Bay Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Propeller Brewing, Saint John Beer Fest. Leave a Comment

Another week, another bunch of great beer happenings in Atlantic Canada. Here’s the Friday Wrap-Up:

Picaroons Brewmaster Andrew Estabrooks is putting on a dinner tonight, at the Shadow Lawn Inn in Rothesay. Tickets are $70 (inc. tax and gratuity), available by phone or email. The menu features 5 courses, each paired with a different Picaroons beer. A great opportunity to enjoy some excellent food and beer, with tasting direction from the brewer himself.

For those of you not in Rothesay, Garrison Brewing Co.‘s Daniel Girard is taking part in a Brewmaster vs. Winemaker event tonight at the Halifax Club (1682 Hollis St, Halifax), squaring off against Avondale Sky Winemaker Ben Swetnam. Call or email the Club for tickets, pricing is $89 plus tax and tip. Both Daniel and Ben were given the menu in advance, and have chosen beer or wine that complements the five courses.

Big Spruce Brewing in Cape Breton has begun selling their beer! They have been open for a few hours each day this week, selling their Kitchen Party Pale Ale and Cereal Killer Oatmeal Stout in growlers, as well as t-shirts and glassware. They are also now on tap at the Bras d’Or Yacht Club in Baddeck, where their official release party will be taking place this Saturday at 4pm. Drop by to say hello to the folks behind Cape Breton’s only Craft Brewery. Release parties in Sydney (April 12 at Governer’s Pub) and Halifax (April 20 at Wooden Monkey Dartmouth) are also upcoming.

Propeller Brewing has announced that they will be bringing back the Prop’r Cask Nights. It is held on the last Friday of the month (the next one is April 26th), and features a special cask of their beer (previous casks have been dry-hopped or had cherries added), and pair with a local food provider. This month’s catering will be provided by Jane’s Catering (formerly of Jane’s on the Common), and is sure to be a great time. Tickets are $20 ($25 at the door, but they don’t last that long), and available at the Propeller Shop on Gottingen St.

We’re seeing lots of great things happening on Nova Scotia’s South Shore. Hell Bay Brewing is brewing at their new, bigger, location in Mill Village (beer available on tap at Lane’s and elsewhere and in bottles at Premier Wines and Spirits in Halifax) and Boxing Rock Brewery is pouring the foundation for their brewery in Shelburne. We’ll have more news and profiles from these breweries soon.

If you don’t get your fill at next weekend’s Saint John Beer Fest, tickets for the Atlantic Beer Fest in Moncton are available now. It takes place May 25th at the Moncton Coliseum, and only afternoon session tickets are still available (2:30-5pm) for $49 (inc. tax). We hope to have a beer list for that shortly.

And finally, don’t forget to get out and buy a pint, bottle or growler from your favourite local brewery or brewpub. It’s one thing to talk about beer events, but the real fun is enjoying (responsibly, of course) the fruits of labour of your friendly neighbourhood brewer. Maybe we’ll see you out on a patio soon. Cheers!

Friday Wrap-Up: Picaroons’ Easter Keg Hunt, Big Spruce Brewing Opening, and more

Posted by acbbchris on 2013-03-29
Posted in: Atlantic Canada Beer News, Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Beerthief, Big Spruce Brewing, Garrison Brewing, Picaroons cat contest, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Propeller Brewing, Saint John Beer Festival, Shiretown Beer. 1 comment

Hello beer fans! Another busy week in Atlantic Canadian Beer News.

  • Picaroons‘ Easter Keg Hunt is on now! Search around downtown Fredericton, NB for the 4 painted kegs and snap a picture of yourself to win a prize. Check their Facebook Page for more details.
  • Also, with their upcoming Melonhead release, they are looking for a photogenic kitty to grace the label. Email them a picture of your favourite cat, and it could be famous!
  • Big Spruce Brewing in Nyanza, NS is ready to open, and is having a pair of parties to mark the occasion. Saturday April 6th 4-8pm at the Bras d’Or Yacht Club in Baddeck, and Saturday April 20th 7pm at The Wooden Monkey in Dartmouth (upstairs at the Alderney Ferry Terminal). Come out to support the Atlantic Provinces’ newest brewery!
  • Last week, Propeller Brewing Co released a new 1L flip-top Growler, for when you only want one litre of your favourite beer. Fill it with their Double IPA or current One Hit Wonder Black IPA (only available in growlers at the Prop Shoppe on Gottingen in Halifax for a limited time).
  • Not to be outdone, Garrison Brewing Co released their own version, a 1L “Growlito” this week. Think of these as a three-pack of beer, for when you have to be up early the next morning 🙂
  • Garrison has released their 2013 Ol’ Fog Burner, as well the 2012 Barrel-Aged version, which spent 9 months in Glenora Distillery barrels. Only 1000 bottles of these available, so make your way to the brewery to pick them up.
  • Following up on a recent post, Mike Buhler has launched Beerthief.ca, complete with forums for chatting about the beer scene in Newfoundland, as well as homebrewing and everything else. Keep up to date with the next offerings from the Newfoundland Beer Club.
  • The Saint John Beer Fest (April 13 at Market Square in Saint John) VIP tickets are sold out, but there are still regular tickets available through the Harbour Station. We are eagerly awaiting the brewery and beer list, and will release our interview with them next week.
  • Shiretown Beer‘s Blonde du Quai is now available in 500mL bottles. Since their move to Charlo in January, they’ve been busy, including “Best of the Fest” at the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival. Congratulations and keep up the great work, Derek and Tim! You’re helping folks in Northern New Brunswick drink great beer.

Stay tuned for more news and profiles as we keep our eyes and ears open. If you’ve got any news or events we should cover, please leave us a note.

Big Spruce Brewing to open in Nyanza, Cape Breton this month

Posted by acbbchris on 2013-03-07
Posted in: Atlantic Canada Beer News, Profiles. Tagged: Big Spruce Brewing. 2 comments

BigSpruceSignBig Spruce Brewing is in Nyanza, just seconds off the Cabot Trail in Cape Breton, NS. Owners Jeremy and Melanie White are getting ready to open this month, so I dropped by recently when I was in the area.

Since our profile on them in the fall, there’s been a lot of activity! They are putting the final touches on their purpose-built building, which is surrounded by acres organic hops plants they use in their beers.

MashTunKettle
Their 7bbl gas-fired QualityBrew brewhouse from DME is all set up, and they’ve done the cleaning and water testing and are ready to brew. They also have a great cold storage room for conditioning their beer in five tanks, as well as storing kegs. Speaking of which, they will have kegs available for accounts in Sydney, Halifax, and parts in between, so their beer will be available to drink across the province. They will also be selling 2L growlers from the brewery as production ramps up into high gear.

What about the beer? They will be starting out with two beer, that Jeremy has perfected after years of homebrewing, an Oatmeal Stout and Pale Ale. Look for seasonal offerings soon, too.

ViewFromTheTop

Later in the Spring, their small restaurant above the brewery will be open a couple of nights a week, by reservation only. The view of the Bras d’Or Lake is spectacular, and I can see this becoming a destination for Cabot Trail travelers and locals alike.

Congrats to Big Spruce, you are a welcome addition to the Cape Breton and Atlantic Canadian Craft beer scene! We’ll keep you posted as the details of their beer releases become available. You can also check out their Facebook Page for pictures and info.