Horton Ridge Malt & Grain

All posts tagged Horton Ridge Malt & Grain

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Off Grid Ales and Think Brewing, North and Stillwell, Boxing Rock, and much more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2016-05-13
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Big Tide Brewing, Bore City Brewing, Bourbon Quarter, Cask and Kettle Irish Pub, Celtic Knot Brewing, Craft Brewers Association of Nova Scotia, Flying Boats Brewing, Fredericton Beer Run, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, James Joyce Irish Pub, Maybee Brewing, North Brewing, Off Grid Ales, PEI Brewing Co., Picaroons, Stillwell Beer Bar, Think Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing, YellowBelly Brewery.

Happy Friday! We hope that those of you in Nova Scotia have been participating in the many excellent events this past week for Nova Scotia Craft Beer Week, with more scheduled for the coming weekend (Brews Cruise tonight, Full House tomorrow, Cape Breton Kitchen Party Sunday)! Once we get our act in gear, we’ll post some pictures and thoughts on the week. In the meantime, it’s time to get caught up with beer news in our area, including the announcement of more breweries for New Brunswick…

• Attention, residents of Harvey, NB… there’s not just one, but two new breweries planning to open in your area in the near future! Longtime homebrewers Scott MacLean and Randy Rowe have been brewing weekly 1/2 BBL (~60 L) batches together for the past two years, and work is underway on both sides to open small-batch breweries at their homes in Harvey:

Randy Rowe and his wife, Denise, plan to open Off Grid Ales sometime this coming summer. Specializing in “full-bodied ales”, including a Honey-infused Double IPA, the 3 BBL (~360 L) brewery will be solar- and wind-powered, and housed in a barn located on the couples’ property. The brewhouse equipment from Stout Tanks and Kettles arrived last week, with work progressing on set-up for commercial production. The brewery now has an active Twitter account, and will be launching their official website soon.

Scott and Denise MacLean’s 1 BBL (~120 L) brewery, Think Brewing, will also be housed within a barn (over 100 years old) on his property. Scott recently purchased the brewhouse equipment from TrailWay (who have now moved to a 10 BBL system). Hoping to open sometime mid-summer, the brewery will initially focus on English and American style ales. Stay tuned to Think’s Twitter and Instagram accounts for updates; of course, we’ll also be providing more info on both breweries as they progress further!

• North Brewing and Stillwell have teamed up to release their latest collaboration beer, Gose. The Gose style is growing ever-more-popular… tart and refreshing, the North/Stillwell take was brewed with a grist of Pilsner, Wheat, and Acid malt, it was kettle-soured with Lactobacillus to provide a slight acidic character, with “wet hay and lemon aromas”.  Hand-harvested Black Whale Salt from PEI and toasted coriander were also added. Hopped with the new New Zealand variety, Wai-Iti (which reportedly provides “fresh peach and apricot character”), and Mandarina Bavaria, it’s easy-drinking at 4.5% ABV and 10 IBUs. Just released yesterday, it’s available for growler fills at North, and is on tap at Stillwell and other better beer establishments across the HRM.

• North is also releasing another new beer, Grisette. Historically brewed for the mining class in Belgium, it’s another low-ABV style (but not sour/tart), intended on being light and crisp, and able to be consumed in quantity. Similar to the Gose grist, and hopped again with Wai-Iti, as well as the Australian Summer variety, it weighs in at a supremely-sessionable 3.5% ABV and 15 IBUs. Dry and citrusy, with a light peppery finish, according to the brewery. Available today in growlers at both North locations (Agricola and Ochterloney), it will also be out in the wild very shortly.

• Continuing the new beer releases for #NSCBW, Boxing Rock has released 4 (four!) new beers this week, and we’ve got the scoop direct from the brewery:

Mutiny! (Subversive Amber Ale, 5% ABV). This amber ale is a collaboration with Garrison, Hell Bay, Propeller, and Schoolhouse and forms the base for the Grog raced to Gahan House for Race the Kegs on May 8. This is an English style Pale Ale, amber in colour with a bold malt backbone and moderate hoppiness… lots of spicy and citrus hop aroma and very smooth and drinkable.

Over the Top (Sour Mash Cranberry Wheat Ale, 4% ABV). This beer is a collaboration with Karen Allen from Gahan House and we believe it is the first sour mash beer to be brewed and packaged in NS. Refreshingly tart and awesomely sessionable, this beer began with a 48-hour sour mash, in which our lactobacillus friends thrived, partied and arm wrestled. A late hop addition imparts a fruity aroma to balance the sour malt base. Nova Scotia cranberries dry out the finish and add a subtle depth of flavour and give it an amazing colour.

Carbon-14 (Strong Dark Belgian Ale, 8.2% ABV). Runner-up in our Homebrew Competition, the Black Box Challenge, this beer is as rare as the C-14 isotope. A strong, dark, Belgian ale made in the classic style, this beer is altogether perfectly balanced with that unmistakable Belgian character. It will have a very short half-life, so get it while you can. Carbon-14 was brewed in collaboration with Professor Jason McDougall.

Where There’s Smoke (Smoked Pale Ale, 6.5% ABV). Winner of the Black Box Challenge, our first homebrew competition. This beer is made with copious quantities of beech smoked malt, hops and steeped on cinnamon. The result is a beer that is bold, unexpected, in your face, and totally crushable. Brewed in collaboration with Black Box Challenge winner, Brian Harvey.

Try many of these, and several more (including a few past favourite from the archives) at Lion & Bright tonight, when the Boxing Rock crew drop by for a Tap Takeover starting at 5pm. And be sure to try many (all?) of what’s available, as $1 from each pint sold will be going to Red Cross Canada, in support of people affected by the fires in Fort McMurray.

• Another NS launch is a new/old beer from Good Robot. Awesome Beer, Great Job! is their own take on a Fall Saison, featuring darker malt CaraMunich 120 and Rye, spicing up the underlying Wheat and Pilsner malts. Lightly hopped with Mt Hood, it was fermented with Old World Blend from new yeast producer Escarpment Labs. The resulting beer is a hazy orange, with notes of plum, banana, and phenolic spice from both the rye and yeast character. Originally to be released in Fall 2015, due to difficulties with the beer, it was re-brewed, then re-re-brewed, and is now on tap! Check out their honest reporting of the ordeal. And keep an eye out for the launch of their American Wheat, Pryor Offences, this weekend, featuring lots of Amarillo and Mandarina Bavaria hops. And a new version of Burban Legend APA, dry-hopped with Cascade and Citra.

• There’s a new beer hitting taps from Riverview’s Celtic Knot Brewing – Monkeytown Mango Ale is a 4.5% ABV “light-drinking ale” that features the addition of real, frozen mangoes to the beer after primary fermentation was completed. Lightly-hopped with Cascade to add a bit more fruit character, kegs were delivered earlier this week to Plan B and Ducky’s. Look for Celtic Knot’s other accounts to be pouring this beer in the near future.

• YellowBelly has a brand new seasonal on tap at the brewpub, Tilt Cove Golden Nugget Ale. This APA was brewed with a mix of Canadian and West Yorkshire Pale Ale malts, along with some Scottish Carastan. Hopped entirely with the Nugget variety (including two dry-hop additions), the resulting “earthy, herbal, leafy character” comes through nicely. Clocking in at 6% ABV and 50 IBUs, this slightly-hazy beer will also be pouring at NLC Beer Expo this weekend, with a limited supply of bottles following shortly at the brewpub. In other YB news, they’ve rebrewed their East Coast Cream Ale, which should be available in about three weeks, and plan on brewing a “Summer Wheat Ale” dry-hopped with Sorachi Ace in the near future. As always, we’ll keep you updated!

• Sad news in Saint John this week, as it has been announced that Bourbon Quarter Restaurant, a true friend to local craft beer, is closing. On the bright side, BQ owner Shawn Verner is teaming up with Mike McPartland to open the Cask and Kettle Irish Pub, which they assure us will continue the BQ tradition of supporting craft beer. Located in the same space on Prince William, construction is underway now, with an opening expected in the next 4-6 weeks.

• After a year of construction and many test batches, Horton Ridge Malt is now open for business in Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley. Specializing in floor-malted organic malts, their first product deliveries were made earlier this week, and Cape Breton’s Big Spruce brewed up a batch of the Kitchen Party Pale Ale with the 2-Row pale malt. Look for more breweries to use the local malt very soon, including Tatamagouche Brewing. In addition to selling to breweries, Horton Ridge will also be available to home brewers looking for a local organic product. As locally-grown organic grain suitable for malting is not yet available in large enough quantity, HR has sourced the initial deliveries from outside of the province, but hopes to achieve a truly Nova Scotian-grown and -produced malt very soon. In addition to lighter barley-based malts, look for specialty and rye malts to be available in the future. For those commercial and amateur brewers attending tomorrow’s Full House beer fest, be sure to drop by their table for samples and to learn more.

A few more events worth checking out in the next little while:

• Tonight, the PEI Brewing Co. is holding Fortnight: Fundraiser for Fort McMurray at the brewery. Starting at 7 pm, it will feature “music, fun, and fundraising”, with all proceeds going to the Red Cross (and being matched by the Federal Government). One of the items up for auction is a chance to brew a full-size batch of beer with Upstreet‘s Mike “Hogie” Hogan, on the Upstreet system. Homebrewer or not, the lucky winner will be able to pick the beer style, help develop the recipe and take part in the brewing, name the beer, and ever pour the first pint at the Upstreet taproom! This is for a great cause, so get out your wallets and dig deep!

• Tom’s Little Havana is hosting a Tap Takeover today (and all weekend) by friends Bad Apple Brewhouse and Unfiltered Brewing. Featuring seven beers between the two breweries, look for some old favourites, as well as some new … well, favourites too! Look for a new collaboration American Wheat, and a pair of iterations of the Tom’s Smoked Porter, including a barrel-aged version, today through Sunday.

• A reminder from last week, tonight‘s Meet Your Maker event at the James Joyce will feature Big Tide; four BT beers will be available on tap, and brewmaster Wendy Papadopoulos will be on hand to chat about our favourite beverage!

• This year’s Inspire Arts Festival (June 15th-19th, in Moncton) will be holding their first beer-themed event, the Picaroons Craft Beer Village, on Saturday, June 18th. Taking place at the Riverfront Park in downtown Moncton, it will all start at 12 pm with the opening of the Picaroons Beer Tent; later in the afternoon, at 4 pm, the rest of the craft beer village will open, with NB breweries Bore City, Celtic Knot, Flying Boats, and Maybee also pouring their beers. Entrance is free, just pay for your beer as you go, and enjoy the live music, circus performances, fire spinning, and more that’s going on during the festival!

• The Fredericton Beer Run is returning on Monday, August 1st (New Brunswick Day)! The fourth year for the event, it will once again feature three options of either a 4, 6, or 12 km distance. Your ticket will get you much more than just another run, however! Including a custom-designed beer glass and 14 x 4 oz beer tickets, there will be over 20 breweries present with plenty of beer to choose from! This year’s run will start at the Lighthouse on the Green, at 10 am, with the beer sampling occurring afterwards at the Crowne Plaza Hotel. Tickets are $60 (tax included) and are available now.

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Fredericton Craft Beer Fest, “Johnny Be Good” Beer and Pub Crawl, BarNone, TrailWay, Bore City, Spindrift, North, and much more!

Posted by acbbshawn on 2016-02-26
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: BarNone Brewing, Big Spruce Brewing, Cicerone Certification Program, Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, Garrison Brewing, Good Robot Brewing, Grimross Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Maybee Brewing, North Brewing, NSLC, PEI Brewing Co., Propeller Brewing, Spindrift Brewing, Stillwell Beer Bar, Tide & Boar Gastropub, TrailWay Brewing, Unfiltered Brewing, YellowBelly Brewery. 5 comments

Good morning! Welcome to your weekly dose of beer news, let’s kick it off with some new beers and events coming soon…

• Over the past little while, there have been several new beers brewed to be released at the upcoming Fredericton Craft Beer Festival on March 12th. First off is a collaboration brew devised by Andrew “Esty” Estabrooks that included representation from almost every brewery in Fredericton: Grimross, Maybee, Picaroons, TrailWay, Mama’s Pub, soon-to-open Gray Stone, as well as Red Rover Cider House and Sunset Heights Meadery. The beer brewed was Johnny Be Good, a 5.4% ABV, 21 IBU Nut Brown Ale, in support of local brewer John Evans, who has been undergoing treatment for cancer over the past few months. The brewers teamed up at Grimross to produce the beer; when finished, it will be split between all taking part, and will then be free to put their own individual spin on it. To celebrate the release, a special Pub Crawl (open to the public) will be held next Saturday, March 5th at 6 pm. Starting at the King Street Ale House, attendees will visit several bars, and enjoy the different variations of the beer at each stop. Tickets are $45 + fee and include six 9 oz pours of different variants; proceeds from the pub crawl and sales of the beer will go to Evans.

• Next up, BarNone has brewed up a new iteration of their Little DIPA for the festival. Described as darker than the original version, it was heavily hopped with Cascade and Columbus in the boil, with a large late addition of Amarillo, Cascade, and a bit of Citra. It will, of course, be dry-hopped when fermentation is complete, with an as-yet-undetermined variety. It should clock in around 7% ABV. No need to worry for Islanders not able to attend the festival – while the beer is being released as FCBF, there will be some available at select accounts in PEI afterwards.

• Local Fredericton brewery Picaroons will be taking up permanent residence at Vault 29 in the week leading up the FCBF, March 8-12th. Pics will be taking over half of their 32 taps with a variety of seasonal, specialty, and core brand beers. On the 12th, V29 hosts the official FCBF “Afternoon Session After-Party”, with music from The Hypochondriacs, and food and beer specials starting at 3:30pm. Entry to the event is free, and more details can be found on Facebook.

• Finally, TrailWay teamed up with our local homebrewer and our own Shawn Meek to brew their first Belgian IPA. Currently unnamed, it features a grist made up mainly of Pilsner malt, with some CaraRed, Aromatic, and Wheat malt to bump up the malt character. Hopped in the boil with large whirlpool additions of Galaxy, Mosaic and Vic Secret, it will be further dry-hopped with Citra and Galaxy for plenty of tropical fruit character. It was fermented with two yeast strains, one Belgian and one American, and should weigh in at ~6.5% ABV. While this one will make its official debut at the fest, look for a possible sneak peak at our ACBB Trivia Night at the King Street Ale House on Thursday, March 10th at 8 pm!

• Back to regular releases, Moncton’s Bore City will be releasing their first Black IPA, Night and Day, in the near future. Described as a very hop-forward version of the style, it was hopped with Cascade, Summit, and Zythos in the boil, and dry-hopped with more Cascade and Summit. Clocking in at 6.4% ABV and 63 IBUs, look for this one to pop up on tap at Marky’s Laundromat any day now. And keep your eyes peeled for the latest version of their Mondo IPA, which should be hitting tap accounts, soon.

• Spindrift will be releasing Riptide, their first India Pale Lager, today on tap at the brewery. Described as a Northeast-style hoppy Lager, it has a simple, light grist, complemented by a blend of American and German hop varieties, giving the beer “aromas of pine, prefacing hop flavours of stone fruits and citrus”. Coming in at 6.5% ABV and 40 IBUs, Riptide is joining Coastal Lager and Abyss as a core brand, with this initial release on draft at the brewery and accounts now, and in cans by mid-April.

• There’s an interesting new brew available now from North Brewing: Sauer Sagen Hat is a kettle-soured SMaSH beer brewed with Pilsner malt and Sorachi Ace hops. From North owner Peter Burbridge, “When we asked our four-year-old son Noah what we should call this beer, he yelled: ‘Sauer Sagen Hat! It means sour super hero hat!’ … It actually means “has to say sour” in German, but we like Noah’s translation better.” And so do we! Combining the grapefruit- and pineapple-like acidity/tartness from the bacteria-souring process with the lemongrass characteristics from the hops, it comes in at 4% ABV and 15 IBUs. It’s currently available at both store locations on Agricola and Ochterloney in both bottles and growlers, and will be on tap around HRM, including in rotation on their new nitrogenated tap at Battery Park.

• Over in St. John’s, NL, YellowBelly Brewpub has a couple of returning favourites to talk about. First off, Top Shed Cream Ale is back on tap at the brewpub. An interesting take on the style, it was originally brewed as a collaboration with Top Shed, a brewery in Australia, late last year. The recent brew was tweaked slightly, with a lighter malt grist and shorter dry-hop period. Still with a light body, and brewed with plenty of corn and wheat (as per the style), it was lightly hopped with Pacific Gem and Mosaic, with a “gentle” dry-hop of more Mosaic. This batch will also be available in bottles in a limited run, which should be at YellowBelly and the NLC within a week or so. Second, their Paddy’s Pale Ale – a 5.7% ABV, ~45 IBUs American Pale Ale – will be returning soon. Hopped entirely with Cascade – including multiple dry-hop additions – it should be kegged sometime next week, with bottles following shortly after. And in other bottle news, YB’s cider, Crooked as Sin, should be available for purchase any day now, at NLC stores only.

• Last month, Big Spruce brewed a “simultaneous collaboration” with Stone City Ales out of Kingston, ON. Well, that beer is now available, and it sounds delicious! Watchtower Conspiracy DIPA is a big beer (9% ABV, 85 IBUs) featuring “piles” of late addition Amarillo, Galaxy, and Waimea hops, giving lots of tropical fruit character in the aroma and flavours. In addition, the beer was fermented with Vermont Ale yeast from Escarpment Labs. Better known as “Conan” to homebrewers everywhere, it’s a strain well-known for accentuating hop flavours. Available for growler fills now, and on tap at select locations, it will also be pouring at FCBF.

• Last week, we reported that this year’s edition of Ice Boat, PEI Brewing Co.‘s barrel-aged stout, would be released this week. However, after some tasting sessions with staff, they’ve determined that the beer is not yet ready for release, and will be allowed to age in whiskey barrels for a longer period (approximately 6-8 months). Kudos to the PEIBC for allowing the beer to reach its greatness with more time! We’ll keep you updated as to its eventual release. Luckily, the next round of Transmitter Coffee Stout will be released March 1st (including a release in Nova Scotia), ReAnimator (their Doppelbock) will be released shortly thereafter, and a new Saison is in the works. Stay tuned!

• There’s a new beer joining the lineup at Maybee Brewing, an “Espresso Stout” named Elevensies. Brewed with lots of organic Italian Roast coffee from Just Us!, a coffee roasters co-op, it weighs in at 5.5% ABV and 41 IBUs. You can find it on tap now for growler fills at the brewery.

• Good news if you’re nearby Unfiltered Brewing today: they’re releasing two beers at noon! The first is the return of the popular SMaSH DIPA, Double Orange Ale, brewed with all Citra hops (7.5% ABV). Next is an oak-aged version of their regular-release DIPA, Twelve Years to Zion. Coming in at 8% ABV, it was aged on oak for 6 weeks to bring out lots of oak flavour. Drop by the brewery and/or Charm School today to fill up your growlers, and then yourself.

• Looking to expand your beer knowledge? The Atlantic Chapter of CAPS is running a training course, designed to prepare you to take the Certified Beer Server exam, which is part of the Cicerone certification program. Running on four subsequent Thursdays, beginning March 10th, the classes are designed to introduce students to the ingredients involved in beer making, style guidelines, history of brewing, and flavour profiles. Class size is limited, so sign up today.

• Halifax’s Garrison Brewing is releasing the second in their Cellar Series of beers today, Grand Baltic Porter. Black in colour, this lager has a complex body aided by the addition of blackstrap molasses and whole dates, and is balanced with German hops. Like last week’s Ol’ Fogburner Barleywine, and next week’s unnamed release, the Baltic Porter’s robust 9.5% ABV will allow it to be set aside for cellaring and enjoyment for years to come. It is only available in bottles, launched at the brewery today.

• Congratulations to the 40+ entries in this year’s Home Brew-Off, in the Experimental IPA category. The Top 10 has been chosen by a team of BJCP and industry judges, with the Garrison crew now having the tough job of choosing the Final Four. The winners will be chosen next Thursday, and announced that evening at a Gala at the brewery. There are a few tickets available to the public who wish to take part in the fun, including tasting the finalists’ beers, and perhaps the first sips of last year’s winning beer, Mr. Robusto, from NS homebrewer Dave Martin. Contact the brewery for more details.

• Halifax’s Propeller Brewing has brought back their Irish Red Ale, and it is available in bottles and growler fills at both Prop Shops now. This 5% ABV, 25 IBU Red Ale features a pleasant toast character from the Crystal and Melanoidin malts, with a light balancing bitterness from Willamette. And the IRA will be the feature cask at tonight’s Prop’r Cask Night at their Gottingen location, featuring  The Other Bean & Rinaldo’s Italian American Specialties. The last few tickets just sold this morning, so hopefully you’ve already grabbed yours!

• Halifax’s Good Robot Brewery brewed up a beer to celebrate Nova Scotia’s African Heritage Month, putting their spin on the Ale to the Chief Honey Porter recipe released by President Barack Obama’s administration in 2012. Converting the extract recipe to all-grain, they used Annapolis Valley honey and Maritime malt, with Hallertau and Nugget hops, and switching to the clean-fermenting Cali Ale yeast to allow the malt and hops to shine through. Sadly (for those not in attendance), the beer was so popular that they blew through the entire pilot-system batch during Tuesday’s launch party! That is certainly an ode to the recipe, brewers, and community involvement behind the release. Want another great excuse to visit GR’s Taproom? Their monthly Silent Reading at the Imbibrary event will be happening this Wednesday, March 2nd, from 6-8pm. Previous evenings have been absolutely full, so be sure to arrive before 6pm, put down your cell phones, and pick up a book.

• A reminder that tomorrow is Péché Mortel Day, and two bars in our region will be taking part: Moncton’s Tide and Boar, and Halifax’s Stillwell. Starting at 11am in Moncton, and noon in Halifax, both bars will be pouring Dieu du Ciel!’s Péché Mortel Imperial Coffee Stout, plus several variants. Look for other rarities like Péché Mortel Dry (higher ABV due to a lower finishing gravity), Péché Mortel Véniel (lower ABV, with a special coffee blend), Péché Mortel Bourbon 2015 (last year’s batch aged in Bourbon barrels for six months), and Péché aux pêches (the original Péché Mortel with an addition of peaches). No tickets are required, and both locations will be offering small pour sizes, to accommodate the wide variety, and high ABV, of brews on tap. A special food menu will also be available at both locations.

• The NSLC has released stats on the three months of 2015, and it was another period of great growth in the local beer segment. Sales of NS-produced craft beer rose by 25% over the previous quarter, while the overall beer market rose less than 1%. While out-pacing the overall segment is heartening, it does highlight the fact that NS-produced beer accounts for just $2.0M in a $66.2M beer market, or 3.0%. Coupled with the fact that there are only 50-odd listings for the 23 local breweries (many do not sell through the NSLC stores for a variety of reasons), there’s still lots of room for growth in the province! The full details are available here.

Thanks, as always, for reading! As usual, a few parting notes…

– BarNone is currently fermenting a new addition in the ‘Sessions’ line; this one, Summer Sessions, is hopped entirely with Summer, an Australian variety that is light on citrus, melon and apricot.
– Edmundston’s Brasseurs du Petit-Sault is hosting an evening of beer and beer-friendly bites tonight at their location on rue de l’Eglise. Drop by at 6pm for the fun, including a tour of the brewery.
– Horton Ridge Malt and Grain are approaching the deadline of their second CEDIF offering. With the first malting rounds to take place in the next month or so, look for their products to be available to brewers (commercial- and home-) soon!
– Details are coming into focus for this year’s Nova Scotia Craft Beer Week, being held May 6-14. Early Bird tickets for the Saturday’s Full House Main Event are on sale now, be sure to snap them up now to avoid disappointment.

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Big Spruce, Bishop’s Cellar, Maybee Brewing, Hammond River, Railcar, Good Robot, and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2016-02-05
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Bad Apple Brewhouse, Battery Park, Beerocracy, Big Spruce Brewing, Bishop's Cellar, Boxing Rock Brewing, FirkinStein Brewing, Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, Good Robot Brewing, Grimross Brewing, Hammond River Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Maybee Brewing, Picaroons, Propeller Brewing, Railcar Brewing, Spindrift Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing. Leave a Comment

Another weekend, another snow storm! Let’s celebrate the lovely season that is winter with some local news on our favourite beverage…

• Big Spruce recently announced that they have received a bottling machine, and will begin releasing some special beers this way. Their first bottled offering will be a barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout, Ra Ra Rasputin. This beer started out as an 8.5% Imperial Stout, brewed with loads of black and dark malts, and kicked up with Just Us! organic coffee in the boil to lend some bitterness and roast aroma to the beer. After fermentation, the beer spent two months in 14-year Single Malt Glenora barrels. The finished brew is 10.5% ABV, with some lovely caramel and vanilla notes. Due to the low volume available, it is in very short supply; there are only four kegs of the beer available (one of which will be heading to Battery Park shortly), so be sure to grab a glass if you spot it. For those interested in buying bottles, they will only be available for purchase at the Nyanza brewery, beginning late next week, so keep an eye on social media for the official announcement.

• In other Big Spruce news, Bishop’s Cellar in Halifax will be dedicating all five of their growler taps to them this weekend. Beers pouring will include Kitchen Party Pale Ale, Cereal Killer Oatmeal Stout, Read Between the Pines, and two surprise beers rotating through (sorry, we can’t tell you what they are!). There will be two free tasting sessions (Saturday 11 am-4 pm, Sunday 12-5 pm) with Big Spruce owner/brewmaster Jeremy White; remember to bring your empty growlers! Bishop’s is also holding a separate tasting event tonight from 5-7 pm; the $20 ticket price (available for purchase online) includes samples of a variety of beers on their shelves, along with several appetizers. And be sure to sign up for BC’s Behind the Tap beer-centric monthly mailing, for the scoop on sales and events.

• After having their beer on sale at the ANBL and on tap around town for a few weeks, Fredericton’s Maybee Brewing location will be officially opening their doors today at noon. Growler fills and cans of their Roseway Red and Work Horse IPA will be available, as well as a limited amount of their newest release, Belgian Tripel, an 8.5% ABV Belgian Golden Strong. Drop by their 559 Wilsey Road location for a sample (they are not yet licensed for pint sales) and fill up on their offerings; they’ll be open 12-8 pm both today and tomorrow. Congratulations to the entire Maybee family!

• The “Nut Red Ale” brewed by Hammond River last month is now at select accounts in New Brunswick. Nut Your Everyday Red Ale was brewed with a good portion of specialty malts, to give the beer lots of “toasty, biscuity, and nuttiness both in the flavour and on the nose”, according to the brewery. It was bittered with the Nugget variety, and further hopped throughout the boil with Hallertau. Think of it as an easy-drinking (5.1% ABV, 33 IBUs) English-style Red Ale; sounds like this one may become a regular brew for HR!

• In more HRBrew news, their Imperial Breakfast Stout is currently in the wild in the River Valley: Barrel’s Head, Bourbon Quarter, and the James Joyce in Fredericton. It’s an 8.0% ABV Imperial Stout, with additions of oats, local coffee from Java Moose, cacao nibs, and home-smoked (Applewood) bacon. Look for a special oaked version of the IBS to be pouring at the evening session of the Fredericton Craft Beer Fest. And the winners from last month’s Wee Heavy Homebrew Competition will be brewing up their winning recipe, Tilted Kilt, on the weekend, which should be making its debut at the FCBF.

• Railcar brewed a new beer this week, their first Red IPA. The grist is made up of several specialty malts (including Crystal 40 and 60 L, Munich, and Chocolate) to go along with the Pale base malt, to provide notes of toffee sweetness and caramel. Hopped in the boil with Northern Brewer and Columbus, the beer will be dry-hopped with Amarillo after fermentation is complete. This amber-coloured ale should come on the higher end of the spectrum for this style, at ~8.5% ABV, and with 62 IBUs. Look for it to show up on tap at the brewery within a few weeks. Also, Fredericton’s Prospect St. ANBL will be launching Railcar’s Artisan Brown Ale in bottles tomorrow, where it will join their previously released Cafe Buzz Porter. The brewery has also announced another expansion, as they will be receiving two additional 50-gallon fermentors within the next two weeks.

• Good Robot has just released a new beer, a Smoked Ale named Samsquamptch!. At 5.2% ABV and 27 IBUs, the beer features a healthy dose of Cherrywood-Smoked Malt (about 15% of the grain bill), Rye, Caramel and Vienna on a 2-Row base, for a smokey and spicy brew; it was bittered with German Magnum and Tettnang hops. As with most of their beers, it has been gluten reduced to less than 20 ppm. Never ones to hold back from a good idea gone bad, they attempted to reproduce the same effect by smoking hops. As in, pipe smoking hops… Exploiting the quasi-relationship between hops and Cannabis, which are both members of the Cannabinaceae family. Rumoured to share the relaxing properties of Cannabis when smoked, hops do lack the “psychoactive properties” of the drug. You’ll have to watch the video for yourself! As for the beer, it is on tap at the brewery for growler fills, and their adjacent taproom.

• On February 12th, the Good Robot taproom is hosting a New York City food and beer day. Starting at noon, they are hosting Rinaldo’s Italian American Specialties for some NY-style sandwiches. In addition to their own taps, they will be pouring bottles of several Brooklyn Brewery beers, including the perennial favourite Lager, as well as Black Chocolate Stout, Local 1, and Sorachi Ace. Grab a lean at the bar, lower (or increase, depending) your expectations for politeness, and bend an elbow or two. More details here.

• Next Monday, Feb. 8th, Picaroons will be re-releasing their Afterglow Aphrodisiac Ale. A dark, full-bodied beer featuring the addition of chocolate, cayenne pepper, ginseng root and liquorice root, it’s released every year just in time for Valentine’s Day. It will be on tap at the Brewtique, and at better beer bars across New Brunswick.  They’re also holding a Winter Warmer Party tomorrow at Crabbe Mountain, where all of their taps will be pouring Picaroons beers, with live music from The Backyard Devils. Finally, the brewery has announced that they’re now hiring for their Picaroons General Store, to open in Saint John. If you’re interested, fire them an email.

• With the explosion in the number of craft breweries in New Brunswick over the last couple of years, it’s no surprise that there’s a documentary currently being filmed on the subject. Produced by Shauna Chase and Alex Vietinghoff, Beerocracy will examine the current craft beer surge in the province through interviews with both brewers and beer event organizers alike. Filming is currently underway (Chase and Vietinghoff have been in Fredericton for interviews with the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival‘s Lloyd Chambers and Grimross‘ Stephen Dixon), with a projected completion sometime this Spring. You can follow their progress through their Facebook link above; more news to come!

• Upstreet Brewing will be holding a special event Feb 14th, For the Love of Beer. This Valentine’s Day event will feature a brand new beer release, a Scottish 80/ (aka Scottish Export) named Eighty Bob. An amber-coloured beer that is definitely on the malty side of the spectrum, Upstreet’s take involves a grist made up of Pale Ale malt as the base, with a mixture of Crystal malts and Chocolate malt. Phoenix and EKG hops were used in small amounts to keep the bittering low (20 IBUs) and add just a touch of flavour to the malt character. According to the brewery, the beer has “toffee, caramel, raisins, and a little bit of nuts”, just as a complexly malty brew should! It weighs in at an easy-drinking 4.5% ABV. The launch event, held from 12-4 pm at the brewery, will feature a special brunch menu, live music from Salt Licks, and a special open mic with brewer Mike Hogan, who will be on hand to successfully (?) answer all of your relationship questions! Disclaimer: BYO Divorce Attorney.

• Dartmouth’s Battery Park will also be holding their own Valentine’s Day event. A four course prix-fixe menu (with optional beer pairings) will be on that evening, featuring ceviche, pork loin or lobster bisque, oxtail roulade or seared local halibut, plus gingerbread with spent grain ice cream. Seating is by reservation only (either by phone or email). Full details here. And on the Friday before (Feb 12), they are one of the stops on a Downtown Dartmouth Food Crawl, featuring 15 stops. Running 5-7 pm, people can visit as many of the cafes, restaurants, and bars as they wish, enjoying some locally-sourced and -prepared food and drink. Details are available on their Facebook page.

• Attention readers in the GTA: Thanks to a recent visit from Brewmaster Greg Nash, Bar Volo’s taps will soon be pouring Unfiltered beer! During a recent visit to Toronto, Nash joined together with House Ales brewer Dan Beaudoin, and the rest of the Bar Volo team, to brew a small batch of Twelve Years to Zion DIPA. The beer will be released today at 4pm, so leave work early to get on the good stuff! (We had incorrectly indicated Exile on North Street was being released, apologies for the error)

• The boys at FirkinStein in Mount Pleasant, NS will be releasing their newest beer in the next week. Anchors Aweigh is a big American Pale Ale, very light in colour, and with a nice crisp flavour. Though it weighs in at 8.5% ABV, the hopping is relatively light, with a pleasant Cascade-based citrus aroma shining through. Look for it to be available at their Lunenburg Farmers’ Market stall next week (Thursday the 11th), and for their weekly deliveries, and on tap shortly as well.

• Things are coming along nicely at the Horton Ridge Malt & Grain in the Annapolis Valley. While not quite malting yet, they are getting ever closer to that point, with production launch expected next month. Ahead of that, they have opened up a second round of CEDIF offering, after a very successful first round of almost $400,000 raised in 2015. The goal of round two is $200,000, with the funds planned to be used to pay down the mortgage on the building. Potential investors are welcome to visit the Malt House Feb 13 for an Open House to learn more about the CEDIF offering, and check out the great progress made so far. By investing in a Community Economic Development Investment Fund (CEDIF), residents may be entitled to an initial 35% Provincial tax credit, in addition to other benefits going forward.

• Another CEDIF offering currently open is from FarmWorks Investment Co-op. They have enabled at least three local microbreweries (Big Spruce, Boxing Rock, and Meander River) and the list of farmers, food producers, restaurants and others keeps growing. In loaning startup funds since its creation in 2011, it currently has over $1 million at work around the province, investing in food production and distribution to increase access to sustainable food.  Deadline for investments with this offering is March 15, 2016 and this can be used for RRSP tax deferral.

• Propeller Brewing is releasing their newest One Hit Wonder today. Black Heart is a 6.3% ABV Black IPA, heartily hopped to 90 IBUs. It is on tap now at their Windmill location, Gottingen later today. As always, their OHW releases are growlers and draft only, due to the smaller batch sizes. They have also announced details on their next Cask Night: it will be held on Friday, Feb 26th at 6 pm at the brewery on Gottingen St., and will feature a food “mash-up” from The Other Bean and Rinaldo’s to pair with the multiple beer samples. Tickets are $30, and available now at the link above.

Have a great weekend! Before you move on, here’s a few last blurbs/reminders…
– Bad Apple Brewhouse has released Alternate Ending, a 4.8% ABV Altbier. Brewed with Mike Orr and Keith Forbes, two members of the Brewnosers Homebrew club, it is currently available at the Somerset brewery, as well as on tap at Good Robot’s taproom, Primal Kitchen, and Stillwell (including a special cask). This is a small batch, so be sure to grab it when you spot it on tap!
– Boxing Rock has re-released Unobtainium, a beer best-described as a 5% ABV Red IPA featuring Simcoe, Centennial, Amarillo, and Nelson Sauvin (for more info on the beer, click here).
– The Maritime Black IPA, Grimross’s newest beer that we just mentioned last week, is now available. Drop by the brewery for growler fills, and check out their regular accounts to try it by the pint.
– Look out for a new beer from Schoolhouse in Falmouth, their first Lager. An experiment of sorts, they wanted to do a small test batch to test the recipe and technique, before brewing it on their expanded brewhouse later in the year. Look for it on tap at the Spitfire Arms, as well as their Wolfville Farmers’ Market stall Saturday.
– This week’s limited 7th Wave release from Spindrift will feature a cask of The Fix, which is their Schwarzbier (The Abyss) cold-conditioned on Espresso and vanilla beans (4.2% ABV, 25 IBUs); as always, this is a small batch, growler only beer, available today at the brewery at noon.
 – Tatamagouche’s Oyster Cloister Stout has returned. A 5.3% stout, brewed with local hops and oysters for a bit of a subtle character. It is on tap at the store right now for growler fills, and will be returning in cans very shortly.