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Friday Wrap-Up for October 6, 2017 – News from Crooked Feeder, PEI Brewing, Moth Lane, Hammond River, TrailWay and more!

Posted by acbbaaron on 2017-10-06
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Annapolis Cider Company, Big Axe Brewery, Big Spruce Home Brew Challenge, Chain Yard Cider, Crooked Feeder Brewing, Garrison Brewing, Graystone Brewing, Hammond River Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, King Street Ale House, Lunn's Mill Beer Company, Maybee Brewing, Mill Street Brewpub, Moth Lane Brewing, PEI Brewing Co., Picaroons, Tide & Boar Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Uncle Leo's Brewery, YellowBelly Brewery, York County Cider. 2 comments

Maybe it was the unseasonably warm September, but October seems to have come out of nowhere and slapped us around a little with fall temperatures, wet hopped and pumpkin beers, and Oktoberfest celebrations. Those themes definitely continue this week as we slide into the long weekend. Here’s an update on some of the new beers you might want to consider bringing to your Thanksgiving dinner, and the events you might slip away to when the pressures of “family time” get to be too much.

• It is a near-weekly occurrence recently, but we never get tired of writing it: we are happy to announce that Crooked Feeder Brewing will be joining the Atlantic Canadian Beer scene in the near future. Located in Cormack, just outside of Deer Lake, Newfoundland, the 3 BBL (375 litre) brewery is located in a disused lumber mill. Three homebrewers are taking their passion to the next level and will be offering their beer to the wider public in the coming months. In the meantime, they have launched an Indiegogo campaign, giving you a chance to grab some Crooked Feeder swag ahead of their official launch. Hoodies, hats, t-shirts, and growlers, there’s plenty to choose from the perks. Take a look at the offerings, and keep an eye on their social media pages (and here) for more details on when Crooked Feeder’s first beers will be available.

• The PEI Brewing Co. has released the latest entry in their After Hours Series, Winola, a “German-inspired IPA”. A collaboration of sorts with their brewing friends from Stone City Ales out of Kingston, ON, this is a new-school IPA made up of 100% German ingredients. Pale ale and Wheat malt straight from Germany made up the grist; the beer was then hopped with Huell Melon, Magnum, and Mandarina Bavaria in the boil (to ~40 IBUs), and dry-hopped heavily with Hallertau Blanc, and more Huell Melon. Fermented with a Kölsch yeast, this hazy brew weighs in at 6.2% ABV and has aromas and flavours of “tropical fruit, white grape skins, dried orange peel, and some spice”, with a medium bitterness in the finish. You can find it on tap now at various PEIBC accounts, as well as on tap at many ANBL growler stations over the weekend.

• Staying on the Island for the next new beer, Moth Lane Brewing has released a beer inspired by a childhood family pet. Owner Eric Wagner’s Aunt had purchased a monkey from a bloke at the Bloomfield Legion in the 1960s (how’s that for a setup?). While playing, Louie the monkey jumped on Wagner’s shoulder and got comfortable. When Wagner began to descend the stairs, the monkey circled his head and neck a few times, the leash getting caught and holding back the monkey. Thinking Wagner was the one restraining him, Louie wrapped himself around his head and bit him on the cheek! Monkey Bite is a Belgian/German-inspired IPA, with 50% Wheat Malt, fermented warm for plenty of banana and bubble gum, to 4.8% ABV. Taking a turn from the traditional, however, is the high hopping rate, weighing in at about 90 IBUs. This beer with bite is available at the brewery, and check out their market stall this weekend.

• Hammond River Brewing has released some early details on the HRB Beer Club, which should be going live in roughly two weeks. There are a ton of advantages to joining the yearly club: a free 5 oz HRB pour for every pint purchased in the taproom, a free growler fill with every 10 filled, a 15% discount on all HRB merchandise, a bottle of beer for any new beer that the brewery bottles, free flight on your birthday, a HRB-branded Belgian chalice, your choice of a HRB-branded ball cap or toque, and insider info on tastings of select special beers before they’re released to the public. Wow! For only $50 a year, that seems like a pretty sweet deal to us! If you’d like to sign up in advance, drop by the taproom today.

• Earlier this week, TrailWay released their latest new hop-bomb, Keejay. Like many TW beers, this one was heavily-hopped – this time with Cashmere, Idaho 7, and Mosaic – but also features the addition of lactose powder, to up the mouthfeel a bit, providing a “pillowy, creamy, juice-like body”. Extremely sessionable at just 4.2% ABV, the bitterness is kept low, like many TW beers. It’s available now at the brewery only, for a limited run of pints, growlers, and cans. As for next week, they’ve provided a sneak peek as to their next new beer, and it’s looking like another fruit beer (likely… grape?)… we’ll have more details next Friday.

• After a summer hiatus, Tide & Boar is bringing back their Growler Fill Day tonight from 5-7 pm. Three beers will be pouring at the brewpub, and it looks like all of them are new. We don’t have a lot of details on the beers, but we can tell you they are Blaster IPA, Herbie’s Lumberjack Stout (brewed with coffee and maple syrup), and Peach Muffin Sour (we’re pretty sure the name gives away the ingredients for this one). As always, all growler sizes will be accepted, and you can order pints as well, in the bar/restaurant. Keep an eye on their social media sites for updates as to beer availability.

• Picaroons has brought back their seasonal Harvest Ale, a series-of-sorts of beers that feature local grain and local hops. While the grist remains the same, different batches feature freshly-harvested hops from different hop farms in the Maritimes; just check the batch number on the bottle, then visit this link to learn more about what varieties were used, and where they came from. More batches will be added to the website over the coming days as they become available. And speaking of availability, the eighth in their Double IPA series of beers is available now. PIVOT 8 features local Sorachi Ace (from Moose Mountain Hops), plus Warrior, and Azacca as a dry-hop addition. Weighing in around 8% ABV, this batch is a little drier than previous in the series, as well as notably more bitter. Light floral with cirtrus and tropical hop notes are the name of the game with this beer.

• We have more details on the Big Spruce Home Brew Challenge: your yeast is now available for pickup! Drop by the Noble Grape in Burnside, or contact Big Spruce owner Jeremy White to pick up your yeast at the brewery. You must have registered and paid to be able to pick up the yeast (due to its limited nature), but fear not, there are still some spots open! Send an email to Jeremy to grab a registration form, and check out the yeast specs and homebrew chatter on Facebook and The Brewnosers.

• Up in Lyon’s Brook on Nova Scotia’s North Shore, Uncle Leo’s has a new beer to share, another traditional German style, this time a Schwarzbier. One of the darkest lagers, it usually features dark, but not necessarily roasty flavors in an easy-drinking package. And Uncle Leo’s new NACHTical Illusion certainly fits that bill, at 5.0% ABV, expect a quaffable brew with notes of chocolate, coffee, and maybe even some vanilla. It’s available now from the brewery, but also as part of an excellent 4-pack of German styles that Uncle Leo’s has put together for the fall. Featuring the Schwarzbier along with the Ceilidh Ale (Kölsch), the 2016 ACBA Gold Medal-winning Altbier and Silver Medal-winning Vohs Wiezenbier, all in 473 mL cans, you’ll also get some information about where in Germany these styles originated and Brewmaster Karl Whiffen’s particular takes on each style. It’s selling for $16.60 at select NSLC stores until November 19th (or while supplies last), and Bishop’s Cellar will be carrying it as well. And you can certainly also pick up a pack at the Brewery if you’re in the area!

• In St. John’s the folks at Mill Street are pouring a new beer for the season. Hailing from the Koln (Cologne) region of Germany, Kölsch is a great style for the fall, known for a lovely yellow straw color, grainy malt character, a slightly fruity presence and a smattering of noble hops. Mill Street’s version, called Cabot Kolsch is being featured in 1 L steins at the bar and limited release in growlers. It’s got a golden straw color and a soft mouthfeel, coming in at 5% ABV and 26 IBU. Prost!!

• Fredericton’s Graystone Brewing has released their annual community brew, United Hops. Featuring plenty of hops donated by the public, plus bumped up with El Dorado and Idaho 7, this 6.2% ABV and 80 IBU beer is on tap at the brewery now. For every pint, crowler and growler sold, Graystone is donating $1 to the United Way.

• There’s a tasty-sounding new cider pouring over at Annapolis Cider Company in Wolfville – Currant & Cardamom is an unfiltered, sparkling cider made with early-harvested apples, including Vista Bella, Paula Red and Jersey Mac. A 6.8% ABV dry cider that was fermented at cool temperatures, it was blended with fresh blackcurrant juice and green cardamom pods. As you might expect, the resulting product is quite purple in colour, with “notes of tangy blackcurrant and subtle aromatic autumn spice, with a hint of bitterness in the clean, dry finish”. Available at the cidery now, 50 cents from each fill will go to support the Valley Hospice Foundation.

• Yarmouth’s Heritage Brewing released their Wet Hop Pale Ale yesterday. Only 180 L of this one were made, so act fast if you want to try it. It contains fresh hops from the Annapolis Valley and Yarmouth used within hours of harvesting. Fitting nicely into the pale style, with a light grain presence to show off the hops and a sessionable 5% ABV, it was bittered to a hearty 50 IBU. You can expect fresh floral and citrus aromas from the wet hopping. Heritage is open tonight from 4-8 PM and tomorrow 11 AM to 5 PM for you to come in and grab a taste or a fill (or sample some of their other offerings). And stay tuned in the coming weeks for details on three more new beers they’ve got on the way!

• Moving back to Newfoundland, YellowBelly has Yes B’y, a new small-batch brew, pouring at the brewpub. An American IPA brewed with Wheat and Oats in the grist, it was hopped in the kettle with Columbus and El Dorado, then dry-hopped with more El Dorado, as well as some Citra. Copper-coloured, with a firm bitterness in the finish, this 5.9% ABV, 60 IBUs brew was brewed, as mentioned, as a small batch only, so won’t be making it into bottles. Which really means, get down to the brewpub now before it’s gone!

• If you’re into cider and maybe just a little sick of everything-pumpkin, York County Cider has you covered! Head to the cidery on 418 York St. in downtown Fredericton to pick up some Can’t Catch Me, a “gingerbread-inspired cider”. Their base cider was infused with ginger, cinnamon, cloves, and “the right amount of molasses” to provide all the aromas and flavours you require to remind you of a sassy gingerbread man who kind of gets what’s coming to him when he decides it’s ok to use a fox as a boat (I’m not the only one who feels that way, right?).

• And in Halifax cider news, Chain Yard Cidery is pouring their new Cherry 3.14, a blend of two fermentations: the wild version of their foundation cider and a wild-fermented cherry. At 5.5% ABV it should be easy drinking, a blend of refreshing crisp cider meeting a big cherry flavor with accents of spiced cherry pie. It’s available at the cidery now.

• While “harvest season” to beer usually means wet hops or pumpkins, to Nackawic’s Big Axe it means cucumbers! While in the beginning stages of their expansion, they’ve brewed up Cucumber Saison, a pale orange, light-bodied beer brewed with New Brunswick-grown cucumbers. Bittered with noble hops to give a bit of spiciness, the cucumbers offer a “freshness” to the beer that complements the pepper character (we assume from the fermentation). Look for this 5.6% ABV Saison at your favourite Big Axe tap account, or right at the source in Nackawic (which very well may BE your favourite Big Axe tap account… makes sense, no?).

• Things may be a tad slower in the brewery at Good Robot this week, as head brewer Doug is off cavorting in South Africa (see, just become a brewer if you want to be a rich jet-setter!), but that’s not stopping next week’s BetaBrewsday from happening! Stingy Jack Coffee Pale Ale was brewed by Julian Carvery and Kelly C, and features a grist of Pilsner, Crystal 15, and “Toasted malt”. Hopped to 20 IBUs with Willamette, and fermented with an American Ale yeast strain, a special coffee roast from Low Point Coffee Co. was added in secondary. Pretty easy-drinking at just 4.4% ABV, you know when and where to find it (ok, Good Robot, next Tuesday)! And if you’ve been waiting for Leave Me Blue Kentucky Common, it should be back on tap next week.

• Rothesay’s Long Bay Brewery has released their first IPA, and they’re going hazy! Using tons of Citra and Mosaic hops during the boil and in the dry hop, this big and juicy New England-style hop bomb is sure to satisfy your hop cravings. Currently unnamed (as they say, “It will have to earn one!”), it weighs in at 7.0% ABV and 60 IBUs. It is available now for growler fills and kegs, only at the brewery. However, we understand that LB may begin bottling soon (maybe even this beer), which will mean wider availability to grab their brews. Of course, we’ll get you up to speed when that happens!

• Dartmouth’s Nine Locks Brewing is looking to add to their crew, with a job posting for a Brewer. This full-time position is for those who already have brewing experience, and are able to work independently to get the beer flowing on time, while keeping quality high. More details are available on ProBrewer.

Plenty going on this weekend, including the launch of Tanner & Co Brewing in Chester Basin (full details here), plus, there are not one, not two, but three Oktoberfest celebrations in our region tomorrow!

• First we have the OktoBEERfest at Lunn’s Mill in Lawrencetown, NS that we first tipped you off about back in September. It will feature two new brews, a true-to-style Vienna Lager that finished just in time and a Hefeweizen that features the characteristic notes of banana and clove the style is known for. They’ll also be serving their Berliner Weisse with (or without!) locally grown and homemade Sweet Woodruff Syrup. And several of their usual beer lineup as well. Tickets are $45 and are available from their website. They include a commemorative glass, a meal, your first pour, and live music. There’s also a shuttle running from Bridgetown to Middleton from 3-5 PM to get you there and again from 7-10 PM to get you home.

• Meanwhile, the Lunenburg Oktoberfest will take place at the Lunenburg Community Centre, from 6-11 pm. Tickets are $25 each, and include entry, a special Oktoberfest glass, and your first 5 oz pour. Food and additional beers may be purchased onsite, of course ($2 per 5 oz ticket); local breweries Boxing Rock, FirkinStein, Hell Bay, North, and Saltbox will be pouring their beers. Live music and dancing is also included with your ticket, with all proceeds going to the Boxwood Festival Society. Tickets can be purchased online through the event link above.

• Last but not least, the Cape Breton community of Marion Bridge will be celebrating with their own, Marion Bridge Oktoberfest, tomorrow. Entry is just $5 at the door, with the event offering live music, a variety of sausages and other German-inspired food for purchase, and Big Spruce beers (including their Oktoberfest Ale Spruce Bringstein Amber) on tap.

• If you’re more into beer than wine (and we assume if you’re reading this, you must be), and don’t feel like attending the Fredericton Wine Festival in two weeks’ time, why not take part in Fredericton’s Wine-NOT Beer Tour? Held on the same day – Friday, October 20th – ticket holders will hop on a bus leaving from the Delta Fredericton at 6:45 pm. You’ll be taken to both TrailWay and Maybee over the next couple of hours, for 4 samples at each taproom, before ending up at the King Street Ale House for a full pint. Tickets are $46.50 each and can be purchased through the link above.

• Moving along with even more Oktoberfest news, Horton Ridge is putting on their own Oktoberfest in Hortonville on Saturday, October 21st, from 11am-8pm. The all-day event will feature live music, ranging from polka to rock, with plenty of food available for purchase, including sausages and sauerkraut. As well, Horton Ridge will be releasing their very first collaboration beer, brewed with Sea Level Brewing. We’ll keep you updated on that beer as the date approaches.

Just a couple of things left to tell you about:

– The beer brewed by Garrison under license from the Federation of Beer for Hal-Con this year, Borg Ale, is now generally available. A 5.6% ABV black ale prominently featuring Munich and black malts and hopped with Hallertauer Tradition to 25 IBU, you’ll find it at the brewery now and in the private stores in Halifax soon.
– Petit-Sault has brought back their Oktoberfest, La Padrix (5.6% ABV, 25 IBUs), just in the nick of time; it’s available right now on tap at the brewery and licensees, and at ANBL growler stations this weekend.

Friday Wrap-Up for September 8, 2017- News from Upstreet, Foghorn, Tatabrew, Horton Ridge & more!

Posted by acbbshawn on 2017-09-08
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Alexander Keith's Historic Brewery, Big Axe Brewery, Big Spruce Brewing, Escarpment Laboratories, Foghorn Brewing, Good Robot Brewing, Graystone Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Loyalist City Brewing Co, Meander River Farm and Brewery, Moosehead Breweries, Moth Lane Brewing, Nine Locks Brewery, PEI Beer Festival, Picaroons, Propeller Brewing, Schoolhouse Brewery, Sunset Heights Meadery, Tatamagouche Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing. 1 comment

Well, it’s official…September is here. Unofficially, summer is over, the days of Pumpkin Ales are upon us, and wet-hopped beers are approaching soon! If you’re not a fan of one of these (or both), don’t worry…while this week may be a bit slower in the new beer department compared to the last few, there’s still some interesting brews newly released or coming soon that we’d love to get you caught up on…

• Charlottetown’s St. Paul’s Church will be celebrating their 250th Anniversary in 2019, and they’ve partnered up with Upstreet to have a special beer brewed as a means of fundraising for this important milestone. Head brewer Mike Hogan decided to brew a beer similar in style to one you’d see in England in the 18th century…hence, Red Stone Stock Ale was born. The grist is made up of English Pale malt, Medium Crystal, and Chocolate malt. A 60 L grain-soured starter was whipped up, and added to half of the 30 BBL (3500 L) batch, resulting in a pH drop that gave some, but not too much, sourness. After boiling the wort and hopping it with English Fuggles, this half was then blended with the other, non-soured half (brewed with the same hop schedule), and the resulting wort was fermented. Afterwards, house-toasted PEI oak cubes were added, with the final product exhibiting an “oaky and sharp finish similar to the aged beers of the time”. This brew will be released on September 17th, on tap at the brewery and a few select accounts, and in bottles, with all proceeds going to St. Paul’s.

• There’s a new beer flowing at the Foghorn taproom in Rothesay, an Extra Special Bitter named after its proud brewer, Andrew Estabrooks. Esty Special Bitter is a 5.5% ABV, 38 IBUs beer hopped with three new-to-Foghorn varieties: Challenger, Target, and Olicana. Fermented with, of course, an English yeast strain, expect a dry, slightly fruity brew that goes down easy. Available now for pints and growlers, it’s also popping up at a few tap accounts in Saint John.

• More breweries in our region are working with Escarpment Labs – a company in Guelph, Ontario, that produces liquid yeast cultures for breweries – to develop their own unique cultures for fermenting wort. Tatamagouche Brewing has joined this list, with the release of a new Saison, Edel, yesterday. The grist of this new beer is comprised of 70% Pilsner malt, and 20% raw wheat and 10% raw Rye from Horton Ridge, to 5.2% ABV. Hopped with organic French Strisselspalt to 21 IBUs, the wort was fermented with a special blend of yeast that Tatabrew worked on with Escarpment, that incorporates both a traditional Saison yeast, and a North American Brettanomyces strain. The resulting beer was split into two batches; the first, being released today, was dry-hopped with more Strisselspalt, while the second has moved on into Tempranillo wine barrels and will be getting an addition of wine must this fall (look for this half to be released next spring). Edel is a keg-only beer, so look for it at the brewery for growlers and pints, as well as on tap at both Stillwell locations, and Battery Park. Next spring’s barrelled version, however, will also be released in bottles. We’ll be sure to remind you when it’s available!

• Loyalist City Brewing has released a variety of hoppy beers since they opened last fall, and this week they launched their third American IPA, Point Blanc IPA. This is a “New England IPA” brewed with a blend of Maris Otter in the grist, which provides a “light toasted malt presence” to balance the hop character provided from large whirlpool additions of Citra, Centennial, and Mandarina Bavaria, along with a heavy dry hop of Centennial, Hallertau Blanc, and Mandarina Bavaria. Fermented with the brewery’s Vermont yeast strain, expect lots of citrus and grapefruit, and a high bitterness in the finish. Seek it out on tap at your favourite Loyalist City account!

• Good Robot is bringing back version 2.0 of their Damn Fine Coffee and Cherry Pie Pale Ale today; to remind you, this is the one featuring the addition of Kenyan Nyeri Gatina coffee beans, roasted by Java Blend Coffee Roasters and brewed by Low Point Coffee Co. The resultant cold brew was added to the beer, along with hop additions of Falconer’s Flight and Cascade, giving you interesting flavours of coffee, chocolate, slight fruit, and some acidity. Look for it on tap at Good Robot, and, of course, other GR-friendly establishments in the HRM. Also, next Tuesday’s Beta Brewsday (brewed by Robyn, Heather, and Kelly C.) will be Low Hanging Fruit Milkshake IPA (6.6% ABV, 54 IBUs)- hopped with Mosaic Cryo hops, as well as pelletized Amarillo, Citra and Columbus. It was then rested on fresh Ontario peaches for a week; the fruity notes from both the hops and fruit help balance the slight sweetness from the addition of lactose powder. And finally, note that there will be no Cask in the Sun release today.

• Nackawic’s Big Axe has finally confirmed that they will be expanding their 1 BBL brewery, which has been operating since April, 2014 out of co-owners’ Peter and Tatiana Cole’s Bed and Breakfast under the same name. The Big Axe Brewery and Saloon will be housed in a “wild west-style log home”, built on the banks of the Saint John River in Nackawic. Scheduled to open in April, 2018, the 10 BBL (1150 L) brewhouse is being built by Charlottetown’s DME. With 20 BBL fermentors also being constructed, expect plenty more Big Axe beer, including bottle and can distribution. The two-level saloon will have a wrap-around deck overlooking the Saint John River; food will be served as well. We’ll be sure to update you as their progress continues. Congratulations to the Coles!

• After backing out of their original plan to open a small batch brewery in downtown Saint John early this year, Moosehead has announced that they will indeed be adding a 20 BBL (2300 L) brewhouse and taproom to the company’s original brewery at 89 Main St. West in Saint John. A 3 BBL (350 L) pilot brewery will also be constructed, with the idea behind both smaller brewhouses being experimentation, according to Moosehead. Current plans are for the new location to be up and running in May, 2018.

• And speaking of crafty (and pumpkin ales!), A. Keith’s Historic Brewery has a new batch out of their pilot system. Brewmaster Stefan Gagliardi, a self-proclaimed pumpkin head, perfected this recipe as a home brewer over many iterations and it’s one of his favorites. Ingredients include Vienna and Munich malts from Horton Ridge, pumpkin purée, and pumpkin pie spices including fresh ginger, Ceylon cinnamon, cloves and nutmeg. Look for malty, toasty and sweet pie crust elements to meet a full body and smooth mouthfeel highlighted by the spices. This is a small batch, with only three kegs going on the growler station at the brewery today.

• Those who have hops growing on their property are surely aware that the time is nigh for harvesting. Hop flowers, or cones, are starting to sound papery when squeezed, are going a little brown around the edges, and smell of the resinous lupulin that contains the essential oils and acids hops are known and loved for. We know that a couple of hop growing breweries in the region, including Meander River and Big Spruce, have already had their picking parties and other producers will no doubt harvest soon if they haven’t already. Most of the hops harvested in our region will no doubt be processed normally: dried with warm, moving air, before being baled or pelletized and stored cold. But some hops are destined for nearly immediate use with a special technique known as “wet hopping”, “fresh hopping” or “green hopping” – adding freshly-picked, undried hops to a batch of beer during the brewing process. For best effect, wet hops have to be as fresh as possible, ideally within hours of picking, so that they do not spoil. Cold storage and shipping, if necessary, should not exceed 48 hours before the hops hit the beer. This gives breweries with their own on-site hop farms a leg up on making wet hopped beers. Using wet hops is much more risky than processed hops; with no laboratory analysis, alpha acid and essential oil levels are completely unknown. Because of this, to keep some control over the result, some breweries will use processed hops with known alpha levels for bittering and will save the fresh hops for flavour and aroma additions. When picked, hops are ideally still roughly 80% water and aren’t nearly as potent as dried, so significantly higher hop amounts must be used in wet hopping, often as much as 5 or 10 times the dried equivalent. Meanwhile, compounds that lose their potency during the drying process are still present and can make significant, and sometimes unwelcome, flavour contributions. Wet hopped beers, at their best, present a different side of hops, earthy and somewhat grassy, with a more subtle presentation of other flavour and aroma characteristics than usual. Look for wet hopped beers, often termed harvest ales to start appearing in the region over the next month or so!

• Speaking of which, if you’ve got hops growing on your property that you’re not planning to use, and you can get them to Fredericton quickly after picking, Graystone Brewing has put out a call for hops to be used in their Harvest Ale. Proceeds from the beer with go towards the United Way of Central New Brunswick’s campaign.

A bit of a quiet week for beer events and event announcements this week:

• A reminder to those in Halifax that Stillwell is bringing one of the big (but little!) guns of American Farmhouse styles for a two-stage takeover this weekend as Maine’s Oxbow Brewing comes to town. Starting at 4 PM today some of the best Belgian-inspired beers you can imagine will be pouring at Stillwell HQ on Barrington Street. And tomorrow starting at noon the party moves on up to The Stillwell Beergarden on Spring Garden Road. The full tap and bottle list is now available for this evening’s festivities and chef Graeme Ruppel has put together a burger-focused menu that’ll melt your butter. If you’ve found yourself going into withdrawal after the Stillwell Belgian Takeover two weeks ago, if you’re curious how American Farmhouse compares to the original, or if you just like really great beer, you owe it to yourself to get out today or tomorrow. No tickets required at either session.

• If you’re in Charlottetown, PEI, or planning to be there in the next 24 hours, and you don’t already have your tickets for the PEI Beerfest (part of the Fall Flavours Festival) at the Delta Prince Edward Hotel, what are you waiting for?! Tickets are still available for tonight’s 6:30 – 9:30 PM session ($48 + taxes & fees) and Saturday afternoon’s 2:00 – 4:00 PM shift ($36.50 + taxes & fees), but tomorrow evening’s session is now sold out! The brewery list is as up-to-date as it’s going to get and the live entertainment is locked-in. A reminder also that Designated Driver tickets ($13.50 + taxes & fees) are available as well to help you arrange to get home safely.

• The Maritime Honey Festival will be taking place in Fredericton in a couple of weeks, and with beer’s popularity continuing to rise, of course it has to take part! On Saturday, September 23rd, the “Bee-R Garden” will be held between 10 am – 3 pm, at the Capital Exhibit Center. At least seven different local craft breweries will be taking part, each of which has been matched up with a beekeeper, and will be brewing a style of beer different from others attending, featuring, of course, honey. Ranging from a “Brett Honey Saison” from Maybee to an “Imperial Honey Porter” from Foghorn, attendees can expect a wide variety of brews! Be sure to check out the link for the list of styles from breweries who have committed to participate. And what honey-centric festival would be complete without mead? Sunset Heights Meadery will be pouring seven different varieties of mead to satisfy your sweet tooth. Drink tickets can be purchased now – $8 for four 4 oz drink tickets, or $45 for unlimited samples – or at the door, where $11 gets you four drink tickets (no unlimited samples option).

And a few last items before you get on with your weekend…

– Garrison‘s Rise ‘n Stein Hefeweizen (5.5% ABV, 13 IBUs) has returned, with this year’s batch being available almost-exclusively in bottles at the brewery and HRM private stores; a limited amount may be available on tap, so keep your eyes open.
– PEI’s Moth Lane has released a new beer, The Gorbine Double Black IPA (8.8% ABV, 85 IBUs), that is available now across the Island at Moth Lane tap accounts, and at the brewery.
– Nine Locks Brewing led the pack this year with the release of their Harvest Pumpkin Ale earlier this week. It’s available now in cans at the brewery and will appear at the NSLC in October.
– Bad news for fans of Picaroons Dark and Stormy Night: due to an ongoing legal dispute with “a big name in the spirits world”, the beer has been discontinued and will not be brewed again. It doesn’t appear that it will return under a different name, so if this is a brew you’ve enjoyed in the past, you may want to grab a bottle or two if you can find it.
– In Cask Friday news, the Propeller Organic Blonde on Yuzu we told you about last week is actually going on this evening at 5 PM. Schoolhouse’s cask today is called Oaked Grog Chequers obviously their Chequers Robust Porter aged on Oak, but what’s the “grog” angle? Stop by the brewery this evening and find out!

Friday Wrap-Up for September 1, 2017 – News from Meander River, Horton Ridge, PEI Brewing, Chain Yard, and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2017-09-01
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Acadie-Broue, Big Axe Brewery, Boxing Rock Brewing, Chain Yard Cider, Craft Beer Attraction, Garrison Brewing, Good Robot Brewing, Halifax Beer Run, Heritage Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Loyalist City Brewing Co, Lunn's Mill Beer Company, Mill Street Brewpub, NLC, NSLC, Oxbow Brewery, PEI Brewing Co., PEILCC, Picaroons, Propeller Brewing, RockBottom Brewpub, Schoolhouse Brewery, Stillwell Beer Bar, Tatamagouche Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Unfiltered Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing, YellowBelly Brewery. Leave a Comment

With September upon us, a reminder that grain and hop harvests have started around the region, which means it will only be a few weeks until those Wet-hopped beers will be available. With a vibrant hop farm scene here in the region, we expect to see Pale Ales and IPAs made with fresh hops in all four provinces. Until then, enjoy the rest of the new arrivals and returning favourites below…

• Speaking of the hop harvest, Meander River Farm is calling for all hands on deck tomorrow morning at 9AM to help pick their hops. Drop by the farm at 906 Woodville Rd in Ashdale that morning to help out, and you may even earn yourself a sample or two!

• It’s also a busy time for the folks at Horton Ridge, harvesting their own rye grain, grown adjacent to the Malt House and Taproom, which will be hitting the malt floor shortly. And we imagine the trucks filled with raw grain from other farms will be headed their way shortly! Luckily, they’ve released a new beer this week to keep the delivery folks happy. PEI SMaSH is a 4.9% ABV Pale Ale, whose recipe features a Single Malt and Single Hop. The malt bill consists entirely of Queens Two-Row Barley, developed at Agriculture Canada’s Charlottetown location in the 1990’s. While not developed with malting as a priority (its higher beta glucan content undergoes the malting process a little slower than “malting grains”), but the grain thrives in our climate, making it a great choice for local farming. That slower malting process also allows Horton Ridge to take their time and work their magic. Mandarina Bavaria makes up the entire hop bill, which is used in moderation to balance the malt sweetness and add citrus aromatics, but as with all Horton Ridge beers, malt is the focus. The PEI SMaSH is also a nice contrast to their Rye’s Up Pale Ale, which features a mixed grist of 50% PEI Barley, with 25 % PEI Wheat, and 25% Rye (grown at the Malt house), showcasing the flavour profile from this special malt. As with all of the HR beers, the best place to enjoy them is at their Hortonville taproom, whose patio is still open, and you may be able to catch them harvesting the grain this weekend.

• Summer may be just about over, but it’s not too late to report on one of the latest beers from PEI Brewing Co., Sin Bin. A Witbier brewed in collaboration with the PEI Mudmen, a local rugby team, the grist contains a majority of the very-light Heidelberg malt, along with small amounts of Malted and Torrified Wheat. Hopped to 15 IBUs with Tettnanger and Mt. Hood, the wort was spiced with Indian coriander seed and orange peel, in true Witbier fashion. Outside of the norm for the style, however, the beer was dry-hopped, on Day One of fermentation, with another hop variety that they don’t want to tell you about (hint: it was used due to its similar qualities to coriander). Dry and spicy, and coming in at 5.7% ABV, you can find it on tap at several PEIBC accounts in PEI, as well as at Battery Park in Dartmouth.

• Up on Agricola Street in Halifax’s North End, Chain Yard Urban Cidery released another new blend this week. Aptly called Wild Flower, it’s a blend of apple, fruit and flowers complemented by the use of wild yeast. Cider maker Jay Hildybrant started by making a wild blueberry wine, arresting the fermentation when it reached a point where spice notes were emerging and the berry flavour was “distant”. He also created a wild apple cider base using the same indigenous wild yeast and the juice blend from Chain Yard’s Foundation (McIntosh, Northern Spy and Jonagold). From there, the cider was used to macerate lavender from Meander River Farms, just to the point before any soapy or off flavours were extracted. Lastly, the wine and the cider were blended to yield a “perfectly floral”, smooth, and easy-drinking cider that features spice and floral notes. It’s available for samples and pints at the cidery.

• There’s a new easy-drinking beer from Loyalist City hitting tap accounts in Saint John and Fredericton… Barefoot Blonde is a “New Zealand Blonde Ale” that takes your typical Blonde Ale a couple of steps further with the addition of fresh pineapple, as well as a dry-hop punch with Nelson Sauvin. A simple grist of 2-row and Wheat malt provides a light, sweet malt character, backing up the pineapple and grape notes from the fruit and hop additions. With a light bitterness to round off the finish, this 5% ABV brew should hit the spot during these last warm days of summer.

• Following the releases earlier this summer of their tasty fruited Berliner Weisse series, Guava Heist (guava) and Philaroma (cherry), Tatamagouche Brewing has another fruited Berliner available for your immediate enjoyment! Rushton’s Peach is another light (3.5% ABV), tart, kettle-soured brew, but this time it’s been aged on 100 lbs of organic apricots and 300 lbs of peaches. Sound like another perfect beer for the end of summer? Even better news: like the previous two, it’s available in cans, as well as growler fills and pints at the brewery, and at Tatabrew tap accounts.

• If you’re feeling a bit overheated and need to get out of the sun, or just want to head downstairs for some beer and grub, the Rockbottom just tapped a new beer, The Aristocrats. A 100%-fermented Brett IPA, it combines the hop characteristics of “tropical fruit, hard candy and citrus” with the “pineapple, pear, wet hay, overripe berry, and an understated Brett funk” from the yeast. At 7% ABV and 60 IBUs, it’s available now at the ‘Bottom, while supplies last.

• If you missed it the first time around, Grafted, the orange peel-infused kettle sour from Boxing Rock is back. Created by Brian Harvey, this beer won the 2017 Boxing Rock Black Box Challenge. Thanks to some process tweaks at the brewery we’re promised a deeper sourness and more orange flavour in this batch, but otherwise it’s still a 5.5% ABV beer with low bitterness, a refreshing sourness and and sweet orange finish. This is a limited release of 650 mL bottles in the province, available at the brewery and making an appearance at the private liquor stores in Halifax. We’re told that later in September it will also make its way to Prince Edward Island via the PEILCC so folks can get a taste outside Nova Scotia. In other Boxing Rock news, they’re rocking an all-new website, featuring a modern and responsive design, a list of their current beers, and online ordering for their swag shop and keg club. Check it out!

• Yarmouth’s Heritage Brewing should be releasing Strawberry Rhubarb Wheat, their last summer seasonal for the year, sometime today. A light American Wheat Ale, it was fermented for two weeks before 45 lbs each of locally-harvested rhubarb and strawberries were added to secondary. Described by the brewery as being “light and refreshing, with a naturally tart flavour and a hint of sweetness”, this 5% ABV brew will be available for growler fills and samples at the brewery only. Keep your eyes peeled for a slew of other new beers from Heritage in the near future, including a single-hop Session IPA featuring Experimental Hop #07270, a new IPA with Chinook, Citra, and Ekuanot, and a wet-hopped ale.

• Sit down, and prepare yourselves – Good Robot does NOT have a new beer release this week on the alpha brew side of things. No, no one is dead (that we know of), but don’t worry, it sounds like there will be plenty coming through the pipeline next week! And there’s still a new Cask in the Sun entry for today at 4 pm: Damn Fine Coffee & Cherry Pie Pale Ale (damn, that’s a lot of typing for a beer name) with Low Point cold brew, cherries, and “very, very toasted oats”. And next Tuesday’s Beta Brewsday is Hard Corgi Black Lager (4.2% ABV, 34 IBUs), brewed by Drella Green-Simony and Johnny ‘Burger’ Heighton, with Kelly Costello. Fermented with California Lager yeast to keep it clean, it’s a slightly-roasty beer hopped with Cascade and Mosaic.

• There has been a passing of the torch at Mill Street St. John’s this week, with Head Brewer Dan heading off to the Toronto Mill Street location. In his place, Matt Chevrier has taken over the reigns. However, Dan’s legacy lives on with a new release this week, Tic-N-Tuff Hopfenweisse. At 6.0% ABV and 32 IBU, this hybrid German style features banana and clove from a Weisse, with a healthy dose of hops, in this case Wild Turkey, lending Passionfruit-like character. Grab a sample or pint today, and keep an eye out for its debut on the growler station this weekend.

• The NSLC recently released their first quarter financial results for Fiscal Year 2018 and the results continue to be encouraging for fans of craft beer in the province. You might be aware that the quarter being reported here corresponds to the period starting this past April when the number of Nova Scotia Craft Beer listings at many NSLC stores jumped considerably. What impact did that have? Although overall beer sales were down 1.2% to $74.6 million and volume was down 2.7%, both significant declines over the same quarter last year, NS Craft Beer sales were up an impressive 48% to $3.2 million, a growth rate matching Q1 last year. Further, this implies that NS craft beer accounted for 4.3% of overall beer sales this quarter compared to 3.3% last year. After watching year-over-year quarterly growth decline over the course of FY 2017, it will be interesting to see whether that trend is mirrored this year or whether the wider selection will have a lingering impact. The news was also good for NS spirits and cider producers, with local spirits more than doubling sales over last year and the ready-to-drink category, which is mostly ciders when it comes to NS products, up 75.7%. Hopefully this continued growth will encourage the NSLC to continue the trend of adding SKUs and shelf space for local products, and maybe soon we’ll even see them supporting the smaller, non-bottling/non-canning producers through an in-store growler program.

• Attention AtlCan Brewers: the invitations for the Atlantic Canadian Beer Awards have gone out this week, so if you have not received them, let us know! Submissions are due in Halifax October 2nd-6th, with the judging taking place October 13-15th. The announcement and Gala is happening the next Sunday, October 22nd, at the Stubborn Goat.

We’ve got brand new events, as well as updates and reminders for a whole slew of them coming this month. We strive to keep our Calendar up-to-date, and you can help us by sending heads up emails or tweets our way!

• After a wildly successful Lambic-fest last weekend, the Stillwell crew are inviting the fine folks from Oxbow in Newcastle, Maine to take over their taps next Friday and Saturday (September 8 and 9). “Loud beer from a quiet place”, Oxbow launched in 2011 and has been brewing farmhouse and eccentric beers in the woods of coastal Maine (and recently at their blending location in Portland) ever since. Featuring a full twelve-tap-takeover on Barrington on Friday, and ten taps at the Beer Garden Saturday, both locations will also receive a healthy number of Oxbow bottles to complement.

• Get ready, Charlottetown… Unfiltered is coming your way! And not just a couple of beers, but the most Unfiltered beer that has ever hit PEI at one time. Starting Thursday, September 14th, Unfiltered will be taking over all 10 taps at Hopyard. And it’s not just beer you’ll be enjoying, head brewer Greg Nash has paired with HopYard master chef Jane Crawford to create a fully collaborative food menu, to go with all those tasty beverages. Tickets for the 7pm kickoff event are available now, and be sure to keep an eye on their social media pages as hints on the food and beer pairings drop. If you’re not able to make the Thursday night event (shame on you!), be sure to drop by Friday, as there will certainly be enough great Unfiltered beers to keep C’town happy for a couple of nights!

• If you’re planning your September weekends, you might want to pencil in a little time with Garrison as their annual Oktoberfest extravaganza is coming up down at the brewery. Friday, September 15th, from 6:30 PM to 11 PM is Hops ’n Brats, a celebration of Nova Scotia Craft Beer and Sausages. A $25 ticket will get you entry, 8 sample tickets, and a commemorative glass. Additional sample tickets can be purchased on-site. Designated Driver tickets are also available at the door for $10 that include a non-alcoholic beverage. Bringing their best beers will be Garrison, of course, 2 Crows, Big Spruce, Boxing Rock, Breton, Good Robot, Nine Locks, North, Spindrift, Tatamagouche, and Tidehouse. The next day, Saturday, September 16th, is the original all day, all night Oktoberfest celebration in Halifax. Garrison Oktoberfest Halifax starts with a day long all-ages free-entry party from 11 AM to 5 PM featuring traditional German food, 3 bands worth of oompah music (The Swell Guys, Die Brew-misters, and The Roving Steins) and, of course, Garrison beer! At 5 PM the kids go home and the ticketed portion of the proceedings start. For $16 you’ll get your first beer (12oz) and entry to the rest of the evening’s proceedings, scheduled to go until 11 PM. There will be dancing, games, and food will be served throughout the evening. And of course, MOAR BEER. Proceeds from the event will benefit Cystic Fibrosis research and care through CF Atlantic Canada.

• There are still tickets available for Newfoundland’s Craft Beer Attraction, presented by the Newfoundland and Labrador Artisanal & Craft Beer Club. With Grand Tastings taking place 7-10 PM Friday and Saturday, Sept 22 & 23 at St. John’s Curling Club on Mayor Avenue. There will be more than 100 different beers available on a pay-per-pour basis. The Premium Tour is taking place at 12:30 Saturday, hosted by Certified Cicerone Mike Buhler, and will feature 21 beers from across the world. A guided tasting of Sam Adams Utopias, and a Brewmaster’s Luncheon featuring Trou du Diable, round out the events on the weekend. Check out the full beer list and grab your tickets before they sell out!

• The Canada Beer Run is happening in Halifax on Sunday, September 24th. Held in several cities across the country, the Halifax Beer Run involves non-competitive running to four different breweries (approximately 10 km total). With a pre-drink at 11 am, runners will then proceed to Propeller, Garrison, Spindrift and Good Robot, with 20 minute breaks at each stop for some beer sampling. Sound crazy? Well, we’re pretty sure that’s what they’re going for! It costs $65 to participate, which includes a shirt and swag, race bib, brewery party favours, beer run buff, and a finishing medal. For more details on specifics, check out the link above. Registration is open now.

• The James Joyce’s first-ever sour beer tap takeover, Tarte Diem, was a huge success last weekend, with Big Axe‘s Seaberry Sour taking first place from the panel of three judges. Following up with second and third place were Acadie-Broue‘s Tête de Cochon Lichtenheiner and Unfiltered‘s Daytimer, respectively (and an honourable mention to Upstreet‘s Island Hopspitality 2017). If you missed out on the fun, don’t worry… they’ve already set the date for next year’s event, Tarte Diem II – 2 Sour 2 Acidulous, on Saturday, August 25th.

A few returning favourites, new releases, and casks to let you know before we sign off today

– As we teased last week, 2 Crows has a new beer dropping today at noon, Promiseland Double IPA. This juicy, hop-forward beer, features Citra and Simcoe late in the boil, during active fermentation (biotransformation for the win!) and during final conditioning. Grab the 8.3% ABV, 64 IBU, DIPA at 2 Crows today on tap (samples, pints, and growlers) and in cans, with cans also hitting the HRM private stores shortly.
– Lawrencetown’s Lunn’s Mill Beer Co has dropped a new beer today, Roadside Attraction Pale Ale. A 5.0% American Pale Ale featuring 100% Cascade hops, the lighter malt body lets the hop floral and citrus characters shine through, with medium bitterness. Grab it at their taproom today!
– Fredericton’s Picaroons has released the latest in their Pivot DIPA Series, with Pivot #6. Keeping to the 8.0% / 80 IBU specs as previous releases, this version features Mosaic and Warrior hops for tropical and candy-like aromas. As with all of these releases, they can be found at their locations in Fredericton, Saint John, and St. Andrews, with delivery to the ANBL expected early next week.
– TrailWay has re-released their Green Island American IPA (6% ABV), with some slight tweaks to the hop additions, resulting in strong pineapple flavours, according to the brewery; available on tap and in cans at the brewery.
– Unfiltered releases their Front Line Rocker DIPA (8% ABV) at Charm School today, for growlers and pints; look for it to pop up around the HRM on tap as well, and select establishments in PEI and NB.
– Upstreet‘s seasonal Pumpkin Ale (yes, it’s that time again), Gravedigger (6.5% ABV), drops today (bottles and kegs);
– At Schoolhouse in Windsor, NS, their Cask Friday beer this afternoon is their witbier, Summer Break, with blackberries and raspberries. Sounds like a lovely beer to sip on the first day of September.
– And not to be outdone on the cask front, Halifax’s Propeller will have some of their Organic Blonde Ale aged on the Japanese citrus fruit Yuzu on tap this evening at 5 PM. But wait, there’s more! Tomorrow at 2 PM they’re tapping a special 20 L keg of their Cascade Pale Ale that will be dosed with fresh Cascade hops picked less than 24 hours before. You won’t find beer with fresher hops than that.
– And on the Rock, Yellowbelly has their East Coast Cream Ale, a collaboration with Top Shed Brewery in Goonengerry, NSW, Australia, back on tap and available at the brewery in bottles as well. Limited bottles will also be going to the NLC tomorrow. Kangamoose is on the loose!