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Friday Wrap-up – News from Bad Apple, Boxing Rock, Stillwell, Big Spruce, Picaroons, Hell Bay, and more

Posted by acbbchris on 2014-11-14
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Bad Apple Brewhouse, Big Spruce Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, Bulwark Cider, Celtic Knot Brewing, Fredericton Poutine Festival, Hell Bay Brewing, North Brewing, PEI Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Pump House Brewery, Stillwell Beer Bar, Tatamagouche Brewing. Leave a Comment

Happy Friday everyone! We hope you’re able to stay dry and warm today, as some wet weather hits our region. Perhaps this toasty beer news will help a bit!

• Bad Apple Brewhouse in Somerset, NS is releasing their newest beer this weekend, Boxcutter IPA. A light coloured ale, weighing in at 6.92% ABV and light-bodied, this IPA is hop-forward without being too bitter. The IBUs are calculated at 45, however most of the secret hop blend was added in a massive charge at flame-out (in the kettle, after the burner is turned off), and then another boost as a dry-hop in the fermenter/conditioning tank. This beer will be making its debut at Stillwell Sunday during their First Anniversary party, and available on tap around the city thereafter, as well as growler fills at the brewery.

• Another beer debuting at Stillwell’s party Sunday is Merci Bière, from Shelburne’s Boxing Rock. The Stillwell crew visited Boxing Rock, and brewed alongside Emily and Henry last month. Their beer is a very special Saison, weighing in at 8.4% ABV and 20 IBUs. However, the numbers definitely do not tell the whole story, as the crew used some Beechwood smoked malt for a smokey hint, and used noble UK Goldings and Czech Saaz hops to complement. And with a French farmhouse yeast to ferment this beer, they were blessed with spicy notes, including clove, allspice, and black pepper. After its release at Stillwell Sunday, it will be available in growler fills at the brewery and Halifax Seaport Farmer’s Market on Saturdays, and in bottles at the private wine shops.

• Yet another new beer debuting Sunday will be Stillwell’s very own beer, Nuppeppo. Contract brewed at North Brewing, the grain bill reads like that of an Imperial Stout, with lots of oats and flaked barley, chocolate malt for colour and flavour, and some sugar to help achieve terminal gravity. The beer takes a left turn from the style in the choice of hops: UK Goldings for bittering and Czech Saaz for flavour and aroma. And another turn (onto a ramp?) when you realize this is a Saison, and was fermented with a Farmhouse yeast. The main event (or the 24 buses jumped, in this over-stretched analogy) are the 900 grams of spices added in the last minutes of the boil. Chef Graeme used his signature Tokyo Steak Spice mixture (featuring black and Szechuan peppercorns, chilis, and a few other secret ingredients) to complete the notes of heat, chocolate, pepper, and mint on the nose and tongue. While nervous during the process, the beer has turned out even better than the Stillwellers could have expected! This beer will only be on tap at Stillwell, and there are not many kegs, so be sure to drop by Sunday to ensure happiness.

• As if you needed more reasons to visit on Sunday, the SW crew is bringing in some more heavy hitters, including lovingly cellared kegs of Acadie-Broue Kiebitz Coti Berliner Weisse, Grimross Chantelope (100% Brett fermented), Garrison Brewing Grand Baltic Porter (2013), Dieu du Ciel! Bourbon Barrel-aged Péché Mortel (2013), and casks from Boxing Rock (U-889 [2013] and the Merci Bière collaboration), North Brewing (Saison de L’Acadie), and Bulwark (Cask-Conditioned Original Cider). Plus they will have some special bottles pouring by the glass for that day only (Propeller’s Lambic-Style Framboise, The Bruery’s Sour in the Rye, and the Merci Bière collaboration. In addition to the great beers, they’ll be serving cake, and the favourite food menu items from the past year. It will be quite the party, don’t miss it! Full tap/cask/bottle list is available here.

• Already on tap in the city and at the brewery is Big Spruce’s Statler & Waldorf Proprietary IPA. Weighing in at 6.4% ABV, it is their first ever beer brewed using 100% of their own farm-grown hops (located just behind the brewery building). Cascade, Centennial, Nugget, Chinook and Mt Hood were the 5 varietals used, dried in their own oast house, and stored until brewday late last month. It is a tannin rich, hop forward beer with deep citrus flavour and character. While Statler & Waldorf are famous for their heckles and puns on the Muppet Show, we don’t think anyone will be complaining about this beer and its #MuppetLevelHops! The beer will be on tap at Stillwell, The Stubborn Goat, and Lion & Bright in Halifax, and the Townhouse in Antigonish. While the IPA is not scheduled to be on tap for the Anniversary party, Big Spruce’s The Whole 9 Yards (their own First Anniversary beer) will be pouring Sunday afternoon at Stillwell. And don’t forget to submit your registration information for their Second Annual Home Brew Competition before the 21st. Beers are due at the end of the month, and the winner will be brewing their beer in Nyanza for release at the Local Connections Craft Beer and Local Food Celebration, Jan 15, 2015.

• Fredericton’s Picaroons has released a returning favourite, Feels Good Imperial Pilsner. Featuring a grain bill of Bohemian Pilsner malt with some malted wheat, this beer usually features traditional Saaz hops, however this release also features hops grown in New Brunswick, specifically Magnum, Nugget and Centennial. As the beer is brewed to support the local arts through Feels Good, it made sense to feature local hops. While the name may imply a lager, this beer was fermented with Picaroons’ house ale yeast, Ringwood. The beer weighs in at 7.0% ABV. Also, big congratulations to Picaroons for achieving B Corporation recognition. To become certified, they must demonstrate “social and environmental performance, accountability, and transparency”. They join only a handful of other companies in NB, and one brewery in all of Canada (Beau’s in Vankleek Hill, Ontario)

• Hell Bay Brewing in Liverpool, NS has released a brand new beer today, Chocolat. This 6.0% ABV beer is a Chocolate Wheat Ale (ala Brown Porter style), using a malt bill highlighted with wheat, oats, and darker roast and crystal malts. While these malts alone would offer a full chocolate aroma and flavour, cocoa and vanilla beans were extracted with a generous portion of  rum to really bring out its namesake characteristics. The hops used in this brew were all local Mt Hood and Challenger varietals, grown at Hightide Hops, in Dayspring. Grab it in a growler at the brewery, or on tap only at your favourite local watering hole.

• Like last year’s event, the 2014 Fredericton Poutine Festival was a great success! With over ten different poutines being served and over twenty different beers pouring, the sold-old evening session was hopping with great food and drink. This year’s “Best of the Fest” award went to the Doghut Canteen; they had three different poutines, including Traditional, Newfoundland, and Donair. Check out the festival’s Facebook page for lots of photos of the fun!

• Celtic Knot announced last week that they would be brewing their first batch of Toque and Mitts, an English Barleywine, for the season. Like last year, it’s a dark and malty beer brewed with Maris Otter, Chocolate Malt, Wheat Malt, and Crystal 120 L malts, and is hopped with Willamette, East Kent Golding, and Belma hops to approximately 33 IBUs. This batch has something new, however; Bourbon-soaked oak chips have also been added to the beer. A big beer at 7.5% ABV, it will require a bit of aging, but look for it to pop up on tap at Celtic Knot accounts sometime around Christmas. And, speaking of Celtic Knot accounts, the Old Triangle in Moncton just tapped the Dubh Loki (a Black IPA), their first CK beer!

• Pump House Brewery has released their latest seasonal this week, Schwarzbier. This is a traditional German-style black lager, featuring light hints of chocolate and coffee. Being a lager, it still manages a crisp mouthfeel and light-bodied, clean finish. It is available on tap now at the Brewpub, and at ANBL Dieppe this weekend for growler fills. Readers in NS and PEI should keep their eyes open for Pump House Stonefire Ale, their limited edition Steinbeir, which has been hitting the shelves in those two provinces.

• Tatamagouche Brewing has released North Shore Lagered Ale this week. A light and refreshing brew, it is lightly hopped, and cold conditioned. Available at the brewery in growlers, and on tap at your favourite watering bar. They also brewed up a holiday-themed beer earlier this week that will be out in December. We do not have any details, but gather it will be a “flavourful and festive ale”, out in time for the holidays.

• Bulwark Gold is heading to shelves in NS shortly. This cider is made from fresh-pressed apples and honey. 5.0% ABV. It will be joining Bulwark Winter already on the shelves, their spiced seasonal cider. We will have more details for next week’s write-up.

Finally this week, PEI Brewing has announced that they will be serving light food at their brewery location at 96 Kensington Rd. Enjoy nachos, chicken wings, poutine or pulled pork sandwiches while tipping a pint of their fine beers. Food will be served daily 4-7pm, except Sunday. The full menu is here.

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Shiretown, Big Tide, Boxing Rock, Hammond River, Railcar, Sunset Heights, and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2014-10-17
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Big Tide Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, Cask Days, Ducky's Bar, Grimross Brewing, Hammond River Brewing, Hell Bay Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Railcar Brewing, Red Rover Brewing, RockBottom Brewpub, Shiretown Beer, Sunset Heights Meadery. 2 comments

Happy Friday folks! Another busy week in our region, with plenty of new beers, and new news to share. Grab a pint of bitter or mug of coffee, and let’s dive right in!

• Shiretown has a new beer available exclusively for growler fills at the brewery. Runnin’ Down the Road Amber Ale comes in at 5% ABV and 30-35 IBUs, and was hopped entirely with an unknown variety grown at the brewery. Featuring “a beauty grapefruit aftertaste” according to the brewery, the beer was brewed as a small batch only, so won’t last long.

• Big Tide also has a new beer, currently on tap at the brewpub. The Darkening Imperial Stout is a big beer, clocking in at 8.2% ABV and 70 IBUs. Brewed with a grist containing both 2-row and Pale Ale malt, along with lots of Chocolate malt and some Caramunich, the brewery describes the beer as “rich and malty, sure to warm you up” with the high alcohol.

• We have more details on the new Amber Ale brewed by Boxing Rock – Unobtainium is a 5% ABV beer with a dark-mahogany color, full-bodied mouthfeel, and a “malty-rich backbone supporting some unexpected hop flavors”. The hops used for this brew include Simcoe, Centennial, Amarillo, and the hard-to-find Nelson Sauvin variety from New Zealand. Known for its strong fruity flavors and aromas that resemble white wine, or gooseberries, the brewery was able to get their hands on some whole-leaf Nelson… and won’t be able to again anytime soon. So, grab your chance to try this heavily-dry hopped beer! Look for it on tap around Halifax soon, and in 650 mL bottles at all four private liquor stores in the city, and at the Halifax Seaport Farmers’ Market.

• Boxing Rock also hosted some special visitors this week for a big brew day… the crew from Stillwell Beer Bar in Halifax made a visit to the Shelburne brewery to brew up a special collaboration beer, to be released in celebration of their First Anniversary. Details are being guarded closely, but we do know that Merci Biere is an 8.4% ABV Ale, and Smoked Malt was used in the mash. We’ll keep you up-to-date with this and other developments ahead of the Nov. 16th Anniversary party, where it will be launched, and then available in bottles shortly thereafter.

• Last month, we mentioned that Hammond River was brewing up a new beer, Imperial Vanilla Porter. Well, that 8.1% ABV beer is now ready, and pouring at The Barrel’s Head, 540 Kitchen & Bar, and the Saint John Ale House, alongside the version that has Maker’s Mark Bourbon added (exclusive to the SJAH).  Look for it to follow soon at Ducky’s in Sackville.

• Speaking of Hammond River, they’re planning another couple of new beers to be brewed in the near future. One will be an American Brown Ale; this style was chosen by popular vote on their Facebook page, beating out Black IPA and Coffee Porter. Owner/brewer Shane Steeves admits the beer will be “a fair bit bolder than other Browns here, and will no doubt be slightly out of style”. Sounds good to us! Not to disappoint Black IPA lovers, Hammond River has also confirmed that they will be brewing this style as a collaboration beer with newly-opened Railcar Brewing. Stay tuned for more news on these two beers soon.

• And while on the topic of Railcar Brewing, they’ve just announced that their retail location will be officially open for growler fills on Saturday, November 1st. Their Railcar Red and Artisan Brown Ale will be available that day; fill prices will be $5 for 1 litre growlers, and $10 for 1.89 litre, and they will happily fill any growler from any brewery!

• The first kegs of mead produced by newly-opened Sunset Heights Meadery has been delivered to Isaac’s Way in Fredericton! Queen’s Nectar is the 7.5% ABV base mead; it can be consumed as-is, or added to a variety of “mixers” to make different flavors of mead (all coming in at 5% ABV), such as Naughtea (Iced Green Tea), Shipwrecked (India Pale Mead), and Tart’n (Cranberry Pollen Angels). They’ll also be serving up some MeadMosa, which is, of course, a mixture of base mead and orange juice.

• If you live in Fredericton, your options for craft cider continue to grow! Red Rover Brewing has paired up with Real Food Connections (a local-foods grocery store) to make their ciders available to order online, to be either picked up at a later date, or delivered to your door (within the Fredericton/Oromocto area). Order by Tuesday to pick it up any time from Thursday  to Saturday.

• Grimross has updated us on the progress of their ongoing expansion. Owner/brewer Stephen Dixon is travelling to British Columbia this weekend to check on the progress of the 10 bbl brewing system being built by Newlands Systems, that will soon be shipped to the new location of the brewery at Bishop Dr. in Fredericton. They hope to begin brewing on the new system sometime in November, and open their tasting room the following month, where they will have growlers and cans of beer for purchase, as well as space to enjoy a pint or two. We’ll continue to keep you updated!

• After almost 10 years brewing for Picaroons (with about 4 years as the official Head Brewer), Andrew “Esty” Estabrooks has decided to leave the brewery to spend more time with his family. His position has been filled by one of Picaroons other brewers, Myles MacKenzie, who has been with the brewery now for several years. We wish Esty the best in his future endeavours!

• Ducky’s Bar in Sackville is celebrating their 25th Anniversary, and they have lots scheduled for the event! Starting last night and continuing through the weekend, they have several bands providing live music, as well as special cask offerings each night. The cask beers include Picaroons Best Bitter, dry-hopped with Chinook, Gahan Tall Poppy (Sir John A’s Honey Wheat with New Zealand Motueka hops), and a new beer from Garrison, Unfiltered Wheat, a slightly hazy, sweet and malty American Wheat Ale with ~13 IBUs and 5.4% ABV. There will also be lots of other local beers pouring (as usual), including Garrison Double Jack (it’s first appearance outside of NS) and Hammond River Harvest Ale and Imperial Vanilla Porter. Congratulations to Ducky’s on 25 great years!

• Rockbottom Brewpub is bringing back their Ultimate White IPA. Brewed in collaboration with Halifax Ultimate, this beer is a hybrid of a Witbier (Belgian Wheat Ale) and IPA (hoppy, hoppy goodness). Brewed with 2-row, Crystal 15, wheat and rolled oats, along with bitter orange peel and coriander, plus a blast of Comet, NZ Cascade, and Magnum hops, this beer features orange and citrus flavours, along with a low, but balancing, bitterness. The beer weighs in at 5.7% ABV and 8 IBUs (calc). To celebrate the new beer, a launch party is taking place tomorrow (Oct 18th), beginning at 4pm at the ‘bottom. In addition to the new beer, Halifax Ultimate member Cyra Belbin will be on hand with her award-winning Mexi Mac n Cheese Bites (as seen on CBC’s Recipe to Riches), raising money for Children’s Charities. We’ll see you there!

• Hell Bay Brewing has brought back another batch of their R.I.P.(A.) this week. Available only in growlers and kegs, look for this on tap at better beer bars around the South Shore and HRM shortly. They’ve also released a Honey Blonde recently, available in kegs, growlers and bottles.

• Cask Days is a three-day celebration of cask-conditioned beer, held annually in Toronto. Run by the folks behind Bar Volo, breweries from across Canada, and the US and UK, share their best cask beer. For the second year in a row, several Maritime Breweries will be sending up their best wares to take part, with the crew from Bar Stillwell there to serve and show off the great beers from our part of the world. We know many local brewers and good beer fans from the Maritimes will be in attendance, so if you’re free Oct 24-26, it would be worth a trip! Tickets are now sold out for the Fri and Sat sessions, however you can still drop by the Sunday “Last Call for Cask” session, to bat cleanup and grab some tasty beer.

Here are the beers the local breweries are sending up. The full list of beer from the rest of Canada, California, and the UK is also available. The list is subject to change, we know that cask beer can be temperamental!

Bad Apple / Delta Force Operation Green Ring (Cucumber Mint Pale Ale)
Bad Apple Black & Tackle Wine Barrel-Aged Russian Imperial Stout
Big Spruce Mr.IncREDible (Dry Hopped Irish Red Ale)
Big Spruce Cereal Killer (Oatmeal Stout)
Boxing Rock Temptation Red (American Red Ale)
Boxing Rock Crafty Jack (English Brown Ale)
Greg Nash/Bad Apple Terroir Wethop (Harvest IPA)
Grimross Chantelope (100% Brett Saison)
North Brewing Belgian IPA
North Brewing Winter Saison (Saison With Pepper and Ginger)
PEI Brewing Workshop (Wild Ale Barrel-Aged Saison)
PEI Brewing Blood Orange On The Tracks (India Pale Ale W/ Blood Orange)
Propeller Extra Special Bitter
Pumphouse 4 Alarm (American IPA)
Pumphouse Premium Lager (American Lager)
Uncle Leo’s Smoked Porter
Uncle Leo’s Dry Hopped IPA (American IPA)

Get on out for a pint or two this weekend; why not drop by the NBNano Takeover at Stillwell Saturday (tickets still available for the noon session), PEI Brewing Company to grab their re-release of Blood Orange On The Tracks IPA, The Stubborn Goat for their Nocturne Halifax kick-off party, or your other favourite local pub. Remember to drink local this weekend!

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Picaroons, Petit-Sault, Gahan House, Rockbottom, Shiretown, Hell Bay, Propeller and more!

Posted by acbbshawn on 2014-08-29
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Acadie-Broue, Big Spruce Brewing, Brasseurs du Petit Sault, Gahan House (Charlottetown), Garrison Brewing, Hell Bay Brewing, Ladies Beer League, OktoberFest des Acadiens, PEI BeerFest, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Propeller Brewing, RockBottom Brewpub, Shiretown Beer, Stillwell Beer Bar. Leave a Comment

Good morning! As August comes to an end and the long weekend begins, beer news in our region has slowed down… but only slightly. Let’s get right into what’s going on in our region!

• Picaroons is releasing a new beer next week, their first Double IPA! Selection Double IPA is brewed with no less than seven hop varieties: Pride of Ringwood, Bramling Cross, Cascade, Orbit, Galaxy, Sorachi Ace, and Slovenian. Coming in at around 80 IBUs and 7.9% ABV, this new beer will be released next Thursday, Sept. 4th for growler fills only, at the Brewtique when it opens. It will also be a part of the ANBL pilot program for growler fills; no word yet if this will be at all three ANBL stores participating in the program, or just the Prospect Street location.

• Distribution for Brasseurs du Petit-Sault is expanding, as one of their two inaugural beers, Tante Blanche (a Witbier) is now available at ANBL stores in Fredericton (York St. location), Dieppe (Régis St.), and Moncton (Vaughn Harvey Blvd.). Also, their Belgian Blonde, Bob LeBoeuf, should be following at the same locations sometime next week. Look for both beers to continue to make their way across the province; we’ll be sure to keep you updated as to their availability.

• Speaking of Petit-Sault, they’re currently hiring for the position of Sales and Marketing Rep. Are you in good physical shape, bilingual (a must for the position), and want to hang out with a very friendly staff (we can attest to this)? Well, now’s your chance! The position includes ordering, promotional events, ongoing relationships with bars/restaurants and ANBL stores, making deliveries, rotating inventory, etc. If you’re interested, send your resume to them via email, no later than September 5th. More info on the position is available here.

• And while on the topic of job-hunting, Garrison is also looking to fill some part-time positions at their retail store and promotional events in Halifax. If you’re hard-working and enthusiastic (read: love craft beer), send a resume via email to Jeff Green ASAP.

• With the grand opening of the new Gahan House location on the Halifax waterfront approaching, the Ladies Beer League is holding a special sneak peek on Monday, Sept. 8th from 7:00 – 9:00 pm. During this time, ticket-holders will be given a “Beer 101” and introduction to Gahan’s expansion to Halifax. They will then be led through a guided tasting of 10 different Gahan/PEI Brewing Co. beers by brewmaster Karen Allen. Tours of the new brewery will also be offered, and attendees are encouraged to stick around after to order food and more beer. The beer will be a combination of unique offerings brewed onsite by Allen, as well as those in the PEI Brewing lineup. Only 30 spots were available, and they sold out within 24 hours (sorry)! We understand this is just the beginning of an enduring relationship between the Ladies Beer League and Gahan, and we can look forward to a beer dinner this winter, as well as other exciting events from the LBL this fall. Keep an eye on their Events page for more details.

• Shiretown has another beer hitting shelves at the ANBL this week. Big Brown Ale has been available on tap at certain bars/restaurants across the province, and on tap for growler fills at the brewery, and is now joining Blonde du Quai and Siren’s T’Ale in 500 ml bottles. As usual, it should be hitting stores in the Charlo area first, but will spread to other outlets in the very near future.

• Rockbottom Brewpub in Halifax is releasing their latest new beer today, Rhubarb π. This beer weighs in at 4.6% and very low IBUs (from East Kent Golding), but the highlight here is the sour character imparted by the choice of Lactobacillus bacteria as the fermenting workhorse, which produces lactic acid for an acidic and tart flavour, hence the rhubarb name. Grab a pint of it at the ‘bottom today! This is the second lacto sour done by brewer Greg Nash, the first being last year’s Synaptic Illusion.

• Hell Bay Brewing has sent the final few kegs of their new India Brown Ale to Bar Stillwell for the city folks to enjoy (the rest was sold to thirsty locals in the Liverpool region). The beer is sweet and malty upfront, and leads to hints of rum and molasses with a dry finish, and weighs in at 6.5% and 45 IBUs.  Brewer Mark Baillie tells us that the next version of the R.I.P.(A.) will be out soon, and will make its debut in bottles for the first time (will also be available in kegs and growlers, as were previous versions). We’ll have more recipe details closer to the release.

• It’s Hop Harvest Time in our region! While several breweries in the Atlantic Provinces will be brewing up Wet Hop beers in the next couple of weeks, we believe the first to do so was Big Spruce in Nyanza. With help from some volunteers, they picked their own farm-grown Magnum, Cascade and Mt Hood hops, and brewed up Hoppily Remarried earlier this week. While the IBUs are not available, they used enough hops to get them into Imperial IPA range, with an expected ABV of 8.4%. Look for this beer at the brewery and select tap accounts in September.

• Propeller Brewing has released another One-Hit Wonder, the Cluster Bomb IPA. It weighs in at 7.1% ABV and 64 IBUs, thanks to a ton of Cluster hop in the brew. And what a great Lambic launch event at Stillwell last week! The Framboise Lambic was a big hit, and after selling out at Stillwell, the beer sold like hotcakes on Monday at both the Halifax and Dartmouth locations. Look for the other beer in the Lambic series in the coming months, including a blackberry, cherry, and non-fruited version.

• This weekend, the fifth annual Oktoberfest des Acadiens is being held in the village of Bertrand, NB. Starting yesterday and continuing through to Sunday, activities include Bavarian music and dancing, live entertainment, games, and of course, beer! There will be several beer tastings throughout the weekend, including two by Acadie-Broue owner/brewer Patrice Godin (these were by reservation only). Tickets and passes are still available online through their website.

• Our contest to win two tickets to the PEI Beer Festival next weekend has come to an end, and the winner is… Derek Stapleton! Congratulations, Derek! Contact us as soon as possible and let us know which of the three sessions you’d prefer to attend, and we’ll hook you up with the tickets. Since our post last week, they have announced After-Parties for both Friday and Saturday nights. Drop by Fishbones Oyster Bar for more food, drink, and music (Friday: In-Flight Safety + Coyote, Saturday: The North Lakes + Wildcat). Entry is $8 with your Beer Fest mug, $10 without. More details here.