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Friday Wrap-Up for July 20, 2018 – News from Upstreet and Upstreet BBQ Brewhouse, Maybee, Tatamagouche, Uncle Leo’s, Saltbox, Stillwell, 2 Crows, Good Robot, Boxing Rock, Horton Ridge, Roof Hound, and much more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2018-07-20
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Bootleg Brew Company, Boxing Rock Brewing, Chain Yard Cider, Good Robot Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Maybee Brewing, North Brewing, Port Rexton Brewing Co., Roof Hound Brewing, Saltbox Brewing, Stillwell Brewing, Tatamagouche Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Uncle Leo's Brewery, Upstreet BBQ Brewhouse, Upstreet Craft Brewing. 1 comment

We’ve got a ton of great beery news to share with you this week, from breweries expanding into new territories, new Beer Gardens opening, as well as at least a dozen new beers to wet your whistle. Let’s do away with the formalities, and get you the good word!

We’ve got big news from Charlottetown’s Upstreet Brewing, who are making the trek across the Northumberland Strait, and will be partnering with Chef Bill Pratt (of Cheese Curds and Habaneros) to open a restaurant and brewery at 612 Windmill Rd in Dartmouth, NS, as Upstreet BBQ Brewhouse. This address may sound familiar to HRM beer fans, as it is the former location of the Sleeman’s Brewery and Down East Beer Factory. Upstreet’s Brewmaster Mike “Hogie” Hogan will be in charge of brewing operations on the mainland, brewing up both full-time Upstreet offerings like Commons, Do Gooder, Rhuby Social, and White Noize, and will also flex his imaginative muscles to bring other new brews to life to pair with the restaurant offerings. Speaking of food, the Upstreet crew is drawing inspiration fact-finding missions to Kansas City, and bringing home some best practices for their own pit crew for an authentic BBQ experience, made with, and to pair with, their beer. They are currently looking to hire a General Manager for the location, and will continue the hiring ahead of their opening in September.

And in more immediate Upstreet news, they have a bevy of new bevvies for us to talk about this week. Out today is the latest in their Neon Friday series, Neon Friday 008: Huell Melon India Pale Lager. Weighing in at 7.0% ABV, this German-malt base was fermented low and slow with lager yeast, but bumped up with a darling of the newer German hops Huell Melon, known for melon (natch), strawberry, and apricot fruit aroma and flavour. Available at the brewery and Craft Beer Corner on tap and in growlers and 4-packs of cans to go.

Debuting this Sunday is Upstreet’s ode to Pride PEI 2018, Rainbrew Farmhouse Saison. Featuring ingredients of all colours of the rainbow, including PEI Strawberries (red), PEI-grown 2-Row and Vienna Malts (orange), Yeast (yellow), Belma hops (green), Water (blue), and PEI Lavender (violet). And this beer isn’t just another pretty face, the sale of each pint, growler, or crowler at the Taproom or CBC will mean $1 donated to Pride PEI.

And we may have missed the boat with this beer, released right after publishing last week, but we did want to let you know that they’ve released the first beer aged in their PEI-built foeder. Foeder-aged Sour Saison is 6.5% ABV, and lightly hopped (and then dry-hopped) with Nelson Sauvin to 15 IBUs. Flavours coming through include pineapple, lemon, and white pepper, thanks to the mixed fermentation and wood-aging. If you did miss out on the first iteration from the foeder, fear not, as they’ve filled it with another Saison (not sour this time, though it will almost certainly pick up some of those flavours while it hangs out). And to learn more about foeder production and what projects are next for the Island workshop building them, be sure to follow New World Foeders for the latest scoop.

Fredericton’s Maybee Brewing has a new IPA being released today at the brewery. Featuring 48 vanilla beans, 80 kg of raspberry purée, and lactose, Send It! is a fruited milkshake IPA coming in at 5.7% ABV and 46 IBUs. The hops are “mostly Amarillo” but we’ve been advised that there is also some Cascade and Centennial in there. With the current price of vanilla we can understand why this beer is being released draught-only at the brewery for pints. We also suspect it might not last very long, so if it sounds like your jam put Maybee on your itinerary for the weekend!

Tatamagouche continues with new releases this week with their latest Berliner Weisse-style kettle sour, Soaked. Those who have enjoyed previous Tata kettle sours like Jitney and Philaroma should be excited by this one. Starting with a simple and ultra sessionable 3.3% ABV base beer, Hallertau Blanc and Enigma hops were added and the beer was finished with a rest on passion fruit. This one will be packaged into kegs and cans. Look for it on tap at Tata licensees, in cans at the private stores, and, of course, at the brewery.

Also available at Tata this week is the Fish Hawke double-dry hopped IPA that we told you about last week. This one had an extremely limited canning run, and all the cans will be sold from the brewery directly. While you’re grabbing some of those, you’ll also find the newly-released bottles of Saltwater Cowboy, which was the tequila barrel-fermented gose brewed for Tata’s 4th birthday celebration last month. This 4.4% ABV refreshing easy drinker was packaged in 500 mL bottles of which a few should make it to the private stores in the city this week.

And coming next week to the North shore is something entirely new to our region. You may or may not know that breweries in Nova Scotia are limited to a maximum of 11.9% alcohol by volume (ABV) in any beer product they make and sell. While most beers aren’t even in the ballpark of this limit, bigger, heavier styles like barleywine, Belgian quad and imperial stout can graze it, especially when barrel-aging in spirit barrels comes into play. Further, it turns out that occasionally a brewery will conceive of a beer that doesn’t just bump up against the limit, it shatters it. How can that beerbe sold? It turns out that one answer is for the brewery to get a distiller’s license, which Tatamagouche Brewing has done. And their first beer to take advantage of that drops next week: Man-o-War is an extra strong ale at a staggering (for beer, anyway) 15.2% ABV. Intended to be a sipping beer, it began with an English-style barleywine recipe that was fermented with an extremely alcohol-tolerant Norwegian Kveik yeast strain to create a base beer that clocked in at 13%. From there it went into grape brandy barrels for 4 months of conditioning, where it picked up the additional 2.2%. Look for this one to appear in 500 mL bottles at the brewery next Thursday. Try it as an aperitif before a big meal or share a bottle around and raise a toast to big beers, you might also consider grabbing a second to put down to see how it develops over a few months or years.

Speaking of the North shore of NS, beer lovers in Pictou County now have a new place to enjoy a few malt beverages. The team behind Uncle Leo’s brewery in Lyons Brook have opened up a new Craft Beer Garden in the town of Pictou called Quayside Beer Garden. Next to the replica of the Ship Hector that brought some of the first settlers to our province, the patio is right on the water and has spectacular views of the harbour. The facility sports 8 taps, through which they’ll be rotating a wide variety of beers from regional producers. Their opening list included Unfiltered, North, Garrison, Chain Yard, and red and white wines from Jost Vineyards. Quayside is located at 33 Caladh Avenue in Pictou and has its own social media accounts (Facebook, Instagram) where you’ll find updated info on the current taps and any events that might be in the works.

Mahone Box’s Saltbox Brewing is launching a new beer today, another in their line of charitable beer releases. Dory Racer is a 5.8% ABV Northeast IPA, featuring that iconic hazy appearance, fruity hop aroma, and tropical citrus aroma with low bitterness. Available on tap at the brewery and licensees, as well as for growler fills and in cans, a portion of the proceeds from every can purchase will go to the Canadian Dory Racing Association based in Lunenburg. And drop by brewery tonight at 6 pm to try the new brew and for the presentation of Saltbox’s donation to SHAID, as a result of their previous charity beer, Homeward Bound. And you can use Dory Racer as inspiration to enter the Dory Racing Challenge as part of Mahone Bay Heritage Boatyard Weekend, August 3-5th.

We’ve got two kinda-sorta-brand-new-debut-launch bottle releases from Stillwell Brewing to tell you about this week. The first is Easy, which we’ve told you about previously when it debuted by-the-glass at Stillwell Beer Bar, but it will be for sale “to go” for the first time this weekend. To catch you up, this 4.7% ABV Saison spent a couple of months in their largest foeder, during fermentation with their house blend of yeast and bacteria, for a more sour take on their Stillwell 2 Saison, with a mix of lactic and acetic acid coming though, complemented with some floral and spicy hops. This one will be in 750 mL bottles. This weekend is also the debut of Merryweather, a blend of 10- and 5-month old oak-fermented farmhouse ales, aged with wild rosehips and blue juniper berries, foraged by FD WildFoods & Fine Products, before bottle conditioning for the past four months. It made its debut during SBC’s trip West to Farmhouse Fest in BC, it is now available on the yEast Coast. The Stillwell Brewing retail pop-up, located around the back of 2015 Gottingen Street, will be open both Saturday and Sunday from 12-3PM, with these two, as well as a handful of other recent bottle releases, plus label-inspired t-shirts, and branded hats.

[Ed note: at 5:30PM we learned that Vaquero’s release is being delayed by a month due to THP being detected in the beer. We are leaving the post up, but please note that the beer and Mexi-food pop-up have been delayed until further notice. More details here.]

Hot on the heels of their first bottle release a couple of weeks ago (and there are still bottles of Dandy left, folks!), Halifax’s 2 Crows Brewing has another bottle release set for tomorrow. Vaquero is a 5.3% ABV Tequila barrel aged sour, featuring black lime and agave, that has been months in the making. With Pilsner, Wheat, Spelt and a bit of Rye malts making up the grist, the beer was lightly hopped in the boil with Hallertau Blanc. First soured with a blend of Lactobacillus cultures, the beer was co-fermented with Saccharomyces and Brettanomyces yeasts. After primary fermentation was complete and the beer reached terminal gravity in stainless steel, the beer was transferred to a freshly-emptied Tequila barrel, with fermentation re-started thanks to the addition of several litres of agave nectar. After that, black limes were added for a conditioning phase, adding bright citrus as well as a lightly smoked character. Fresh lime zest was also added to increase that flavour. At bottling, champagne yeast was dosed in order to finish the entire package with bright, light, and spritzy carbonation. As you may have gathered from the description, there was only one Tequila barrel used in the production of this beer, which means this beer is available in short supply, and ONLY in bottles at the brewery. It will be available to takeaway from noon tomorrow, or better yet, grab a bottle pour at the bar and hang out while Chef Joe Martin slings some Mexican-inspired food, including Elote salad, shrimp tacos, grilled quesadillas, and Mexi dogs, from 12-7PM. Full info on 2C’s insta page.

This week at Good Robot in Halifax they’re doing things a little differently, with a beta brew release on MONDAY for a change. Doc Rauch was brewed with Lee MacDonald and his mentor Chris Thomas to celebrate Lee’s dissertation defense, which will take place Monday morning. That afternoon you’ll find the beer, a smoked lager (Rauchbier) reminiscent of beers that Lee and Chris enjoyed in Germany, on tap, during several research-related trips. Smoky, smooth, and balanced, it used Pilsner, Vienna and Smoked malts along with Tettnanger hops. Brewed June 4th, primary fermentation took roughly three and a half weeks before it was transferred into two casks. So if you miss this 4.7% ABV and 29 IBU beer on Monday, you might be able to get in on the second cask due to be tapped on Tuesday afternoon, on their normal Beta Brewsday schedule.

In other GR news, up for release this week is another lager, this one in the Vienna-style, smooth and malty with a touch of sweetness, a nutty smokiness and a touch of herbs and rye. Leveraging both Vienna and dark Munich malts along with Perle, Mandarina Bavaria, and Willamette hops, we don’t know the name of this 5% ABV and 24 IBU beer, but we can tell you it’ll be hitting the taps on Thursday. And if you’re a fan of GR’s Leave me Blue, their pre-prohibition Kentucky Corn Beer, you’ll find it on tap for Halifax Pride Week events including Comedy Night at Spatz on Thursday, the Bump at Garrison Grounds on Friday, and the Pride Parade on Saturday, among others. If the stocks somehow aren’t drunk dry from all of that, anything that remains will likely be put on tap at GR’s own taproom on Robie Street (but if you want to make sure you get some, we highly recommend checking out those Pride events!).

Down on the south shore of NS in Shelburne, Boxing Rock has a new beer out now, a collaboration with Horton Ridge Malt & Grain Co called Floor to Shore! Using a grist of 100% Horton Ridge malt, this 4.5% ABV beer is a dry-hopped Hefeweizen which means it no doubt contains a significant portion of wheat. Look for a smooth, possibly almost creamy mouthfeel, and a distinct hop aroma from the dry hopping. This one is in bottles, so look for it at the brewery, possibly the private stores in Halifax, and no doubt in growlers at BR’s usual farmers market locations as well. And look for it to join several other Boxing Rock beers (featuring their malt) at Horton Ridge during a Tap Takeover July 28th from 12-8PM, with live music 3-5PM, and an Open Mic starting at 7PM.

And up towards the Valley in Digby Roof Hound has a new beer they’re calling Lucille. Described as a “Rhubarbed Mojito Sour”, it’s known to have quite a bite. You’ll be able to find it in bottles next week, but for now it’s only on tap at the brewery. Roof Hound was unfortunately broken into this past week, with damage done and things stolen. A new and interesting beer is another great reason to head down and show your support for Les and his hard-working team!!

Corner Brook’s Bootleg Brew Co has a new beer available now, Breaker Room Grisette. This 4.3% ABV little sister to the Saison was brewed with Pilsner and Wheat malt, hopped with Strisselspalt, and fermented with New World Saison Yeast from Escarpment Labs. Brewed for French and Belgian miners, looking for a beer after their shifts underground, the style is ideal for delivering flavour and refreshment in a small package. Drop by their 92 West Street location for a pint of this and their other beers this weekend!

In cider news, Halifax’s ChainYard has a new and interesting cider hitting the taps that’s called Drunken Cherry. Featuring both house-made cherry wine and “rhumb” (unaged white rum) from neighboring Compass Distillers, it’s a 9.4% ABV robust and earthy brew with a hint of sour cherry. Fermenting juice to make wine before blending it into cider is a technique that’s fairly unique to Chain Yard and helps encourage a nuanced product that can be quite different from one where juice is added for primary or secondary fermentation. Look for the cherry to have brought cinnamon and nutmeg notes. You can try it for yourself on tap on Agricola Street where it’s pouring now!

Just one event to tell you about this weekend, but it’s a big one!

Port Rexton Brewing is celebrating their Second Anniversary this weekend, with Saturday being an all-day-party-and-new-beer-release-extravaganza! From noon until 12, there will be live music, magic shows, pop-up shops, fresh food, and more, plus the debut of not one, not two, not three, but four new beers!
– New-Foeder-Land is the first foeder-aged beer to be released in Newfoundland (and Canada’s most Easterly), an Imperial Farmhouse Ale
– High Fives is a Foeder-Aged Brettanomyces Kettle Sour
– Oatmeal Stout is a barrel-aged Oatmeal Stout, aged on local Partridgeberries
– Kölsch is the winning beer from the Newfermenters Home Brew Competition, brewed by Bill and Ryan late last month
Congratulations to the entire Port Rexton Family! And due to all hands needed at the brewery, their St John’s retail shop will be closed this weekend. But fear not, they’ll be open again next weekend, Friday 12-8PM and Saturday 12-6PM.

Just a few more Newsbites to tell you about today before we let you go:

Halifax’s North Brewing has brought back their Alloy Champagne IPA, with the second in this series a 6.0% IPA that is fermented extremely dry (low- to -no-residual sugar), thanks to the addition of an enzyme to break down complex sugars, making them more available to the yeast. This version features Callista, Huell Melon, and Vic Secret hops, and is available now at both their Agricola and Ochterloney Street locations. And speaking of their Dartmouth location, it is now open 7 days a week, from noon, for all of your bottle, cans, and growler needs.

Fredericton’s TrailWay Brewing is releasing their newest IPA today, Inception. Featuring loads of Falconers Flight, this 6.5% ABV IPA features notes of spice, citrus and dank, and is available on tap and in cans to go from the brewery now.

And a final “good news in the right direction” for inter-provincial beer, the provincial leaders agreed to raise the personal exemption limits for bringing beer across provincial borders last night, meaning fans can now move 49 litres of beer between provinces. No changes for breweries looking to ship beyond their provincial borders just yet, even though we’ve seen wineries and cideries in our region who ship country-wide, so maybe it is more of a case of “if no one complains, you can get away with it”. More at CBC News.

Friday Wrap-Up for July 13, 2018 – News from Evermoore Brewing, New Scotland Brewing, YellowBelly, Tatamagouche, Big Axe and more!!

Posted by acbbshawn on 2018-07-13
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Big Axe Brewery, Big Axe Craft Beer Festival, Breton Brewing, Evermoore Brewing Co, Foghorn Brewing, Garrison Brewing, Good Robot Brewing, Holy Whale Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Lake City Cider, New Scotland Brewing, Niche Brewing, Port Rexton Brewing Co., Propeller Brewing, Stillwell Beer Bar, Tatamagouche Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing, YellowBelly Brewery. 3 comments

Happy Friday the 13th! Oh, stop complaining, it’s just a silly superstition (knocks wood, tosses black cat over left shoulder). Plenty going on in the world of Atlantic Canadian beer news, as usual, including the opening of two new breweries in our region, one in PEI, and one in Dartmouth. So let’s get into it so we can all go about the rest of our day (read: waiting for the weekend to officially start).

We hinted last year about Summerside, PEI getting their own brewery, thanks to the work of Alex Clark, owner of the OpenEats restaurant in the downtown area. Well, it looks like all of that planning and preparation has worked out, as Evermoore Brewing just opened their brewery and taproom this week at 192 Water St. Featuring a 10 bbl (1200 L) brewhouse from DME, the brewery’s taproom will be open Sunday-Thursday from noon-8 pm, and Friday and Saturday noon-10 pm. They’re currently filling growlers of their first two beers, Summerside Light and Hoppy Lager, and you’re of course welcome to stay onsite to enjoy a pint! Summerside Light is a 4.0% ABV light and easy going lager, while the Hoppy Lager weighs in at 6.0% ABV and features solid citrus and grassy flavour and aroma, with a hoppy aftertaste. Look for food service to be available later in the year. We hope to have more info and a Profile of Evermoore, including specific details on the beers they hope to have in the future, very soon.

After some major renovations at 91 Alderney Drive in downtown Dartmouth, New Scotland Brewing Company is opening their doors tomorrow. Brewing on a 4 BBL (500 litre) system, their beer will be available in the taproom for flights and pints, as well as to take away in growlers. Keep an eye on their social media for musicians (and maybe even the owners and brewers, musicians in their own right!) to take stage in the taproom. Unfortunately, details on what beers will be pouring are scarce, and we haven’t been able to get hold of them for contact. We hope to have more (is this a trend?) in the near future.

While not a brand new brewery, it is certainly worth mentioning that St. John’s YellowBelly Brewery has opened their new location in the newly expanded Departures level at the St. John’s International Airport. The restaurant and bar is open from early until late (6AM until 11PM) to satisfy both the early business flyers for breakfast, and the rest of us looking for a pint and decent meal before leaving the Island. The restaurant continues the tradition set at their downtown locations of offering freshly-prepared pizza and a full menu, as well as casual bites. Borrowing from the aesthetics of their building at the corner of Water and George Streets downtown, the 150 seat bar and lounge features historical wood and stone features throughout. And, now for what you’re really interested in knowing: what about the beer? They will be pouring their core group of four beers, Yellowbelly Pale Ale, Wexford Wheat, St. John’s Stout and Fighting Irish Red, as well as a brand new beer, the YYT Cream Ale. Their Crooked as Sin cider will also be pouring. They will also be pouring a rotating line or two from other Newfoundland and Labrador craft breweries, as available, showing their love and support for the great shift happening in the province in the past few years. These will be announced on social media as they are tapped. Also available for sale will be YellowBelly merchandise and local treats, and there may even be the possibility of packaged beer available to go in the future (we’ll let you know when that happens!). Congratulations on the launch of the new location, it certainly proves that local beer in Newfoundland is taking off!

Tatamagouche Brewing is bringing back a favourite brew of theirs that first debuted at the start of 2018, their Crack of Dawn. This Breakfast Porter features a Horton Ridge Pale malt base, along with Chocolate Wheat and Oats to offer roast character and mouthfeel. The pièce de résistance is the addition of a cold brew preparation of barrel-aged coffee, this time around featuring Ethiopian green beans aged in a Bulleit Bourbon barrel before getting a light roast treatment from Tata’s neighbours at Meeting Waters Roastery just a few doors down Main Street. The resultant beer is 8.4% ABV, with significant coffee roast and barrel character complementing the full-bodied base Porter. This version, as well as the original release, was brewed with assistance and guidance from homebrew guru Brian Harvey (aka 1029Brewing) and our own acbbchris (former homebrewer, full time drinker). Due to the batch size, this version will only be available on tap, including at the brewery this weekend, as well as Battery Park and Stillwell in HRM, and at Tata’s tent at this weekend’s Big Axe Craft Beer Festival.

Tata is also debuting a brand new beer this weekend, one for the hop heads among us. Fish Hawke is an 8.4% ABV double dry-hopped Double IPA, featuring a variety of new school and old classic hops, all added after the boil is complete. Chinook and Centennial meet Azacca and Vic Secret insubstantial whirlpool and subsequent temperature-drop additions (this is the period while the wort rests post-boil, and helps to reduce the amount of trub is transferred to the fermenter). After fermentation is complete, two rounds of dry-hopping while conditioning were also undertaken with the same hop blend. Though the bitterness is tough to calculate, there will be some, but the flavour and aroma is the goal in this brew. Looks for Fish Hawke to debut on tap at the brewery and a couple of spots over the weekend, with a small number of cans being released at the brewery on Monday.

The fine folks at Big Axe Brewery have been extremely busy prepping for their second annual Big Axe Craft Beer Festival happening tomorrow (more on that in the events section below), but that hasn’t stopped them from brewing some new beers on their brand-spanking-new 10 bbl system in Nackawic! Launched this week if their Lumberjack East Coast Lager, a “Czech Amber Lager” brewed with summertime drinking in mind. Featuring a grist of Pilsner and Vienna malt, the brew was fermented with a Lager yeast strain and then allowed to lager at cool temperatures for four weeks. Richly malt, with bready and biscuity notes, it has a medium body to help support the sessionable 4.1% ABV, letting you enjoy a couple of these without feeling out of control (YMMV). On tap now at your favourite Big Axe tap account!

Fredericton’s TrailWay is releasing the latest iteration of El Generico, their constantly-changing fruited kettle sour. This time around, the 3.8% ABV beer had raspberry puree and lime juice added after fermentation, giving plenty of bright fruit aromatics, along with a high level of lime in the flavour. Look for it on tap and in cans at the brewery today at opening (11 am), and likely on tap at several licensees across the city. And in other TW news, they won a coolship (long, shallow, open-top vessel used to cool wort) at this year’s Craft Brewers Conference in Nashville, TN, which recently arrived at the brewery; they’ll be using this new addition to kick off their barrel-aged, sour beer program (naturally, don’t be looking for these beers anytime soon… it’s a long process!).

Heading over to Newfoundland, Port Rexton is putting two beers on tap at their taproom this weekend; while these beers aren’t new, exactly, they have been difficult to find in the past, making appearances at both Stillwell locations over the CBA weekend in May, and sporadically at Port Rexton. First up is Tyrannosaurus Brett, a Brett Porter brewed with acbbchris. Fermented entirely with Brett D, this one was aged for six months in fresh red wine barrels (one American, one French), giving aromas of “red wine, dark chocolate, berries and oak”, with fig and red grape notes as well. Finishing clean and dry, it weighs in at 5.9% ABV. Next is Brett Chops (6.3% ABV), which is the brewery’s flagship Horse Chops IPA, aged in red wine barrels (the very same used for Tyrannosaurus Brett) for six weeks with Escarpment Lab’s Brett D. The finishing beer has a light acidity, an aroma of “light barnyard funk, overripe mango, mild strawberry, and red grapes”, and stone fruit and a “pop rocks/candy” presence in the flavour, along with some wonderful Brett character. Stop by the brewery this weekend to satisfy your funk crave! Note that the brewery’s retail shop in St. John’s has extended their hours for the summer, Friday 12-8 pm and Saturday 12-6 pm.

Back over to Rothesay, where Foghorn has a new beer on tap, named after a Billy Madison reference that I was supposed to Youtube, but forgot (oops!). The Blue Duck is a dark lager brewed along the lines of a Munich Dunkel. With a grist made up mainly of Pilsner malt, along with some CaraMunich, CaraAroma, and Melanoiden, it was fermented with a dry Lager yeast strain, and then lagered for over a month before its release. Bready, with a touch of caramel, it finishes light, clean, and easy-drinking at just 4% ABV. Enough malt character to satisfy your needs, but not too heavy to scare of those of you afraid of dark beers (stop it!). On tap at Foghorn now for pints and growler fills, at a few accounts in New Brunswick, and pouring at this weekend’s Big Axe Craft Beer Festival.

Propeller promised us last week that they’d have a new variation of their summer-favourite Hefeweizen this week, and staying true to their word, they’ve released Azacca Hopfenweisse, their latest Gottingen Small Batch.The brewery is describing the beer as a “fusion” of Hefeweizen with a “New World IPA”; while staying at a very-drinkable 4.8% ABV, the Azacca hop is featured prominently, providing aromas of tropical fruit and citrus, to complement the typical banana and clove character found in all good Hefeweizens. Highly carbonated, with a medium-light finish, you can find it on tap at Propeller starting today, where it will be available for growler fills only.

Remember when we told you last week that Good Robot would be re-releasing their Burban Legend this week? Well, turns out they decided to hold off on that, therefore turning the ACBB into a house of lies. Being the fine, fine people that we are, however, we’ll still tell you all about their latest Beta Brew, Pink Flamingo. This “Watermelon Kiwi Radler” was brewed with Giovanni, and has fresh watermelon and kiwi added, giving the 5% ABV beverage a pink colour, and a light, refreshing tartness. An infusion of tea from David’s Tea was also added; Look for it on tap at GR next Tuesday. Look for Leave Me Blue this week as well, which will mostly be available at various Pride events.

After many months of renovations and other preparations, Alma’s Holy Whale Brewing has opened their Riverview taproom location. Located in a former shipping container along the Petitcodiac River, you can find it at 391 Coverdale Rd., in the parking lot of the Riverview’s Chocolate River station. They’ll be pouring on 12 taps, with six dedicated to Holy Whale beers, and six to guest beers, with a focus on New Brunswick craft. They’ve also taken their small, test brewery equipment from Alma and installed it in the shipping container, so expect to see some very small-batch one-offs on tap over the coming weeks! Everything sold at the location will be for consumption on-site only, where there is seating capacity for 70, including space on the boardwalk to enjoy your beer(s). They’re open Wed-Thurs 5-9, Fri 4-9, Sat 1-9, and Sun 1-6.

A few beer related things you might get up to in the coming week:

Tickets have been sold out for some time, but the 2nd Annual Big Axe Craft Beer Festival – the largest outdoor craft beer fest in Atlantic Canada – is happening tomorrow, July 14th, from 4-8 pm in Nackawic. Those of you lucky enough to have grabbed your tickets will be treated to a gargantuan (I’ve always liked that word… so rarely have an opportunity to use it in a sentence) number of vendors pouring their tasty beers, ciders, mead, and vodka, as well as five food trucks, 3 live bands, and one mechanical bull (BYO pen to sign the waiver, and BYO neck brace!). On top of all that, there’s outdoor drinking during a beautiful day, and free boat rides from 3-7 pm. The 40 attending breweries, cideries, etc. will be from across the Maritimes, as well as Ontario and Maine. One thousand people will be attending… have a great time!

The third “In Concert With” dinner from The Carleton will be partnered with Garrison Brewing and Upstreet, and is happening on Thursday, July 19th. “Chef Dolente’s Craft Draught Showdown” will involve five courses, each paired with two 4 oz beers (one from each brewery). Both Daniel Girard of Garrison and Mike Hogan of Upstreet will be in attendance to speak about the pairings, along with Chef Michael Dolente. Those of you attending will vote on your favourite beer at the end of the night. The event also includes live music; tickets are $55 + HST and can be purchased here.

Lastly, a couple more quick ones that might influence your weekend beer plans:

– Breton Brewing has just kegged the second beer in their Summer Sour Series, Strawberry Rhubarb Kettle Sour (4.2% ABV). It’s available now in their taproom for pints and growler fills, and should be hitting tap accounts in the HRM sometime next week.
– Lake City Cider has officially opened their taproom in downtown Dartmouth, at 35 Portland St. They’re open every day from 10am-8pm, so drop by to grab some cider-to-go, or to enjoy a pour at their new location.
– Niche Brewing has brought back their “Hibiscus Sour Ale”, Ruby Tuesday (4.4% ABV). This fruity, tart, bright red beer will be pouring at select locations in Fredericton and Saint John, as well as at tomorrow’s Big Axe Craft Beer Festival.
– Upstreet is now selling packaging two of their flagship beers, Do-Gooder and Rhuby Social, in 12 oz cans; the two join their other flagship, Commons, which they started canning a couple of months ago.

Friday Wrap-Up for June 8, 2018 – News from Stillwell Brewing, Propeller, 2 Crows, Tidehouse, Good Robot, Unfiltered, and more!

Posted by acbbaaron on 2018-06-08
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Annapolis Brewing Company, Good Robot Brewing, Heritage Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, PEI Brewing, Picaroons, Propeller Brewing, Red Racer, Saltbox Brewing, Scudrunner Brewing, Spindrift Brewing, Stillwell Brewing, Tatamagouche Brewing, The Coast, Tidehouse Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Unfiltered Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing, Yarmouth Craft Beer Festival. 1 comment

With two of your three writers traveling this week, we’ve decided to forgo the fancy introduction and get right to the important beer news. Wait, did I just write an intro without trying? Perfect. My grade 12 English teacher would be proud. Or sad that this is the height of my writing career these days… Anywho, here we go!

• We begin this week’s news with another new bottle release from Stillwell Brewing, a beer that follows with others they’ve released in the past, but also heads in a slightly different direction. Poptones started off as a hoppy pale ale when it was brewed last September, with a grist of Pilsner, Wheat, and Oat malts. Hopped in the kettle with Sterling and Saphir, it was fermented with a clean, American yeast strain. Once primary fermentation was complete, the beer started heading down a more-familiar road for SWB, as the brewery’s house cultures were pitched in the beer, where they were allowed to slowly do their work over the next three months in the tank, attenuating the beer further and working their magic in other flavourful and aromatic ways. Dry-hopped with more Saphir, the beer was then bottled (with a portion actually transferred over to barrels for some further aging; heads-up for this one in the near future), and is now ready for purchase. The brewery describes it as having “a nice hop bitterness, flavour, and aroma, with a light acidity from the house cultures and a really cool, rustic kind of fermentation character”, with a more-pronounced Brett funk that many of their other releases. You’ll be able to pick up bottles of this 5.3% ABV summer-drinker tomorrow at the brewery from 12-3 (2015 Gottingen, enter via the parking lot around the back); rumour has it that you’ll also be able to find some bottles of Gosh 2.0 and Preach, and maybe even some others as well!

• Around front/upstairs in the same space, Propeller Brewing has released the latest in their Gottingen Small Batch series, with yesterday’s tapping of Love the Way We Love. This American Wheat features loads of Mosaic hops (complemented by Azacca), for papaya, pineapple, and mango fruit nose and flavour in a 5.0% ABV package. As with all beers in the GSB line, these are only available on tap, with growler fills available at both their Windmill and Gottingen Street locations, plus pints on Gottingen and at licensees around the city. A portion of the sales are being donated to the neighbouring North End Community Health Centre. They are celebrating the release with a special cask of it today from 5PM, with a Mosaic Double Dry-hopped version, with pretzels from The Cake Lady for your pairing enjoyment. And you can enjoy LtWWL and a handful of other locally-produced beer and cider as part of Toast the Coast!, a Tap Takeover June 21 at Stillwell Beergarden celebrating The Coast’s 25th Anniversary.

• Let’s stay inside Halifax – and within walking distance, actually – with 2 Crows. They, too, have ventured a little outside their standard brew day (wait, does 2C even HAVE a “standard brew day”?) and created a refreshing, dry-hopped Lager. Named, appropriately enough, Refresh, this is their first Lager in some time. Brewed with German Pilsner malt, 25% Flaked Rice, and a touch of chit malt, it was hopped in the boil with Hallertau Blanc, to just 12 IBUs. Fermented cool with the Weingenstephan 34/70 Lager strain, the beer was lagered for close to two months before being dry-hopped with more Hallertau Blanc, and Huell Melon. The result is a 4.8% ABV crusher that has notes of “lemongrass, cucumber, gooseberry, and honeydew melon”. It was just canned this morning, and should be on sale at the brewery (also on tap) by the time you read this!

• Moving on to friends/arch-rivals of 2C, Tidehouse Brewing are releasing their very first Russian Imperial Stout, named The Sex (oh, those crazy kids!). It’s not like June has been that warm anyway, so why not sip on a 11.9% ABV dark beer? Featuring a mega-grist of Maris Otter, Midnight Wheat, Malted Oats, Carafa II, Pale Chocolate Malt, and Roasted Barley, it was hopped with Northern Brewer to help balance all of that roast and sweetness. After fermentation was complete, they decided to go with maybe a little more sweetness, and added a touch of Port, and raspberries! You can find this one on tap at the tiny tasting room starting today, and also in bottle form for aging/sharing/all the rest… at that ABV, we recommend against drinking an entire bottle by yourself. We’re not “Putin” you on (sorry)!

• The yang to The Sex’s yin is also being released today, Brew Swillis Hoppy Light Ale. Straw in colour thanks to the base malt of Pilsner, Carapils, Flaked Rice and Flaked Corn, this 4.5% ABV beer was bittered with Warrior at the beginning of the boil, and features aromatic/flavour hopping from Cluster and East Kent Golding. Light in body and colour, but still flavourful, this draft-only brew will be the perfect one to pour from your growler after mowing the lawn or doing some spring cleaning this weekend.

• Over to Robie St., where the fine people at Good Robot prepare to release their latest Beta Brew, Oh Captain, My Captain. Collaboratively-brewed with Meaghan MacDonald, this kettle sour was brewed with Pilsner malt, Flaked Oats, Red X, and Rye malt. Roasted beets were added to the wort during the first, brief boil; the wort was then soured overnight. Boiled again the next day, and hopped with Polaris to 40 IBUs, the wort was fermented out, and then pomegranate juice was added in two steps. The beer comes in at 5% ABV, and will hit taps next Tuesday. We also have a sneak preview for a special beer that will come out next Friday, Halifax North. Right now, we can tell you that it’s a collaboration beer (more on who with, next week), and it’s GR’s first Double IPA. We do have some recipe details: the grist was made up of Golden Promise, Maris Otter, Vienna, and Flaked Barley, and it was hopped and dry-hopped with Southern Passion and African Queen. Weighing in at 7.7% ABV and 90 IBUs, look for more info here next Friday, when the beer is released.

• And just a stone’s throw away, Unfiltered is launching a brand new Double IPA today at noon, Inducement. This “fruity, hoppy, and hazy” 7.5% ABV brew was hopped with (undoubtedly, plenty of) Mosaic and Falconer’s Flight, so rest assured the beer is full of tropical, fruity goodness as advertised. Nash also threw in a little Honey malt in the grist to give the beer just a touch of sweetness, to help balance all the hop presence that we can expect. Drop by Charm School today to pick up your pints and growlers.

• Ok, time to move out of the big city and visit Annapolis Brewing Co., where their brand-spanking new taproom is officially open! Located at 302 St. George St. in Annapolis Royal, the location will have eight Annapolis brews on tap, along with a few guest beers and ciders from other breweries/cideries in the province; wine and kombucha can also be purchased. You can stay for flights and pints, and/or leave with growlers and 355 mL bottles. While food isn’t available on-site, you’re more than welcome to order in or bring your own! Their hours are 12-8 pm Sun-Thurs, 12-10 pm Friday, and 10-10 on Saturday. And keep Saturday, June 30th on your calendar if you’re in the area, as they’ll be holding their grand opening (with live music) on that day.

• Let’s leave Nova Scotia for today and cross the ferry to PEI. Charlottetown’s Upstreet has two new beers for us as of today, both of ‘em split off from a single kettle sour. The first one is Dry Hopped Sour with Motueka, a 5.5% ABV brew featuring the lovely New Zealand variety (Motueka, if it wasn’t obvious enough to you!), which gives this particular beer aromas of lemon and pine, according to the brewery. Followed by a creature of a different sort, Strawberry Rhubarb Sour drops the hops and goes with an addition of strawberry and rhubarb juice (the same, actually, that they use in the flagship Rhuby Social). “Full-bodied and perfectly balanced with sweetness”, it’s here just in time for patio season (maybe?). Both beers are available today on tap and in growlers at the Upstreet taproom and at Craft Beer Corner. And as a little preview, there was a third split from that same original kettle sour… stay tuned for what they’re doing with that portion in the near future.

• Just across town, PEI Brewing has launched a new brand this week, Rix Light Craft Lager. The beer is named in honour of Bill Rix, who opened the short-lived Island Brewing Company in Charlottetown in 1986, the first brewery on the Island in decades. While it may have been a little ahead of its time and did not survive the decade, it had planted the seed of a local brewery for others to take up. The beer is very light in body and colour, and at 4.0% ABV, definitely an easy drinking brew. The beer is available at the PEILCC now, and there are launch parties being held across the province during the month of June, to help introduce the brand.

Speaking of events, there’s lots going on this weekend in our region, so be sure to get out and support your local brewery and good beer bar…

• Horton Ridge Malt & Grain is celebrating the First Anniversary of their brewery and taproom tomorrow, with food, fun, and beer. They will have Asado Wood Fired Grill onsite with plenty of chicken, ribs, sausage, brisket, and elote to keep you happy, with live music from 3-5PM and 7:30-9:30PM. The beers will be flowing, too, with plenty of their own brews as well as a couple of guest taps and cans, all brewed using their own malted grains. Drop by to tour the brewery and malt house. Congratulations to the Stewart family!

• If you wanted to try the Red Racer Across the Nation 12-pack, now’s your chance, as it is available in our region. If you wanted to taste all 12 of them in one sitting, and learn more about the beers and styles while doing so, consider signing up for the Collaboration Beer Tasting being held at Upstreet Brewing tomorrow afternoon. This ticketed event will have Certified Cicerone Bryan Carver pouring and chatting about each of the dozen beers from 2-4PM at Upstreet. Pop by to try Upstreet’s Salted Caramel Lager, 2 Crows’ Coast 2 Coast Ancient Grain Saison, TrailWay’s Three Beasts American IPA, YellowBelly’s Me Ol’ Trout East Coast Cream Ale, plus 8 others from across the country.

• Heritage Brewing in Yarmouth is celebrating their One Year Anniversary this Sunday, June 10th. From noon until 5pm, drop by their 19 Kirk Street location for samples and growlers of their beers, including their fan favourite Scotia Prince, a 6.0% ABV New England IPA. They will be serving cake, having some fun contests, before their move to their new location on Main Street later this month.

• And speaking of Yarmouth, next weekend is the Yarmouth Craft Beer Festival, being held at the Rodd Grand Yarmouth Hotel. The weekend kicks off Friday night with a 2.5k or 5k Hop Run through downtown Yarmouth, where participants are congratulated with a medal and a cold glass of beer. The festival itself is Saturday June 16, with two sessions happening that day: Afternoon 2:30-4:30PM, and Evening 7:30-9:30PM. General admission tickets get you in the door, your tasting glass, and your few few beer tokens (with more available for purchase after you use those). VIP tickets are available, allowing entry 30 minutes earlier, plus more 10 vs. 5 tokens, and an extra pint glass and bottle opener to take home. More than 100 beers from 15 breweries from across the province makes for a great day out. Beer pong onsite, plus a chance to win a brewery swag pack. Grab your tickets here before it’s too late!

• Mark your calendar and make plans to visit Tatamagouche Brewing next Saturday for their 4th Birthday celebration. With several brand new beer releases happening Friday and Saturday, the fun is happening all day with live music that afternoon and evening (including a ticketed concert at 7PM that evening). Route 6 Food Truck is onsite that day as well to keep you happy. We’ll have more details on the new beers next Friday!

• If you’re on the South Shore of Nova Scotia, be sure to drop by Saltbox Brewing to check out their Soapbox Races next Saturday the 16th. 28 cars have registered to take part in the all day event, as they will race down Clearway Street in Mahone Bay. Plenty of beer will be flowing, and food trucks will be set up onsite as well. All proceeds are going to the Bayview Community School Breakfast Program.

We’ve got a few Newsbites to leave you with today before you head out for a pint today:

– The seasonal Watermelon Wheat Ale, Melonhead, from Picaroons should be popping up in stores and on tap about now, with a new spokescat on the label (Henry Smith), and in cans for the first time. Also, Pivot #16 is now available; this time the rotating-hop(s) 8% ABV DIPA features Fuggles, Northern Brewer, and Willamette.
– For beer fans in St John’s who would like to try beer from the province’s latest-to-open brewery Scudrunner, but unable to make the trip to Gander, you’re in luck! They’ve dropped off a couple kegs of their Scudrunner Red to Blue on Water Hotel, at 319 Water Street, and the beer is pouring now.
– Spindrift’s latest Seventh Wave release is And The Hazy Sea. This 5.1% ABV fruited Witbier features blueberries and lemon zest to complement the coriander used in the boil. Lightly hopped to 17 IBU, this beer is available for growler fills at their Frazee Ave location now, and at the Toast the Coast event on June 21.
– Fredericton’s TrailWay had their Red Racer party earlier this week to celebrate the release of their Across the Nation collaboration brews, including the Three Beasts American IPA which represents the province of NB. As we mentioned in an earlier post, TW decided to brew that same beer on their own system, and it’s available now in limited quantities on tap and in cans at the brewery. Full of Mosaic, Citra and Galaxy, it comes in at 6.6% ABV.