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Friday Wrap-Up for July 27, 2018 – News from ShipWright, Grand Banker, Unfiltered, Lunn’s Mill, Niche, Hell Bay, North, Propeller, Fils du Roy and much more!

Posted by acbbaaron on 2018-07-27
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 13 Barrels, AKA Beer, Au Bootlegger, Battery Park, Big Spruce Brewing, Brasserie Retro Brewing, Brasseurs du Petit Sault, Brasseux d'la Cote, Distillerie Fils du Roy, Four Rivers Brewing Co., Good Robot Brewing, Hell Bay Brewing, King Street Ale House, Lunn's Mill Beer Company, Niche Brewing, North Brewing, Port Rexton Brewing Co., Propeller Brewing, Quidi Vidi Brewery, Savoie's Brewhouse, Shipwright Brewing, Split Rock Brewing, Stillwell Beer Bar, Stillwell Brewing, The Auction House, The Grand Banker, The Joyce, Tidehouse Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Unfiltered Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing. Leave a Comment

It’s been a blazing hot week in our region (remember all of our jokes back in spring about winter never ending and summer never getting started? Haha.), with temperatures that can only be mitigated by proper hydration. Fortunately, our Atlantic Canada beer producers specialize in tasty liquids to help keep your fluids up. With more hot weather in the forecast, we suggest you might want to stock up on your drive home today or at your favorite beer-enabled farmers market in the morning. And if you’re in the HRM region, maybe check on the status of our newest brewery, The Harbour in Musquodoboit Harbour, as their plans were to open this weekend. Either way you can check our profile from yesterday here in anticipation of their grand opening.

Speaking of new breweries, we wanted to get you up to speed with the progress of ShipWright Brewing in Lunenburg. Located in the same building as The Grand Banker on Montague Street, ShipWright will be launching in August, the first brewery in this picturesque South Shore town. With a 1 BBL (120 litre) brewhouse, and three 400 litre fermentation tanks, they are starting small in their current space, but plans are already in the works to expand to a separate facility on Victoria Road in 2019. With a separate tasting bar located upstairs in the brewery space, the ShipWright beers will add four more taps in the restaurant downstairs, joining the more-than-a-dozen NS Craft Beers currently flowing at Grand Banker. Given their size, production will focus on in-house draught and growler sales, with their expansion offering the possibility of keg sales to licensees and small-format packaging in the future. The brewery is a homecoming for Brewer Kellye Robertson, who grew up in the area before moving to Ontario to take the Niagara Brewmaster’s program, and working at Garrison and launching Spindrift. And for Grand Banker owner Adam Bower, opening a brewery on site is a natural progression of his passion for local beers, as demonstrated in the extensive taplist and events showcasing producers from across the province. Stay up to date with ShipWright’s progress here (including a full profile closer to launch, as well as on their social media pages (FB, IG, Tw).

From a brewery Coming Soon, to one that’s been established for a while, Halifax’s Unfiltered Brewing is celebrating their Third Anniversary this Sunday, July 29th. And to mark the occasion, they are looking to release a beer with a bit of history behind it, thanks to Brewmaster Greg Nash. Dementia is an 8.2% Double IPA with some underlying malt presence, but as the name implies, an insane amount of hops added in the boil, as well as dry-hopped three times during conditioning. Long-time beer fans may remember a Nash beer of the same name brewed elsewhere in the region, so this is sure to stir up some happy memories (or maybe erase them completely!). Grab pints and fills of Dementia from noon today, and then come back from noon Sunday for an all-out bash with $5 pints, bottles of the 2017 Commissar and 2018 Mise en Garde, and Chef Joe Martin working the grill and serving up some great food worthy of pairing.

Lawrencetown’s Lunn’s Mill Beer Co. has brewed up a new beer to celebrate the achievements of one of their local patrons, Danny Frame. Danny recently set the Guinness World Record for most caber tosses in 3 minutes (check out the video on Lunn’s Mill’s Facebook page), and is now aiming to travel to Germany to compete in the Masters World Championships. To help him in his goal, the brewery has released Caber Crusher Stout, a 4.3% ABV, 33 IBUs Dry Stout that they describe as “roasty, rich and smooth”. For every glass sold, Lunn’s Mill will donate $1 to Danny’s fund to compete in Germany. If you’re in the area, drop by and order up a pint to show your support!

While Valonray Farmhouse Brewery, located in MacDougall Settlement, NB, just opened a few months ago, they’ve been busy brewing up a variety of Belgian-style beers. This Saturday, they will be holding another of their bottle releases, from 10am-5pm. This launch will be the first batch (labelled 001) of their Farmhouse Ale, a mixed fermentation Saison. After being brewed, the beer was fermented in stainless for one week with Saccharomyces, before being transferred to a larger stainless tank for an extended aging period, before finally being bottled with a Champagne yeast strain for 3 weeks prior to release. Total time from brewing to your eager hands is about 5 months. Future batches of this Saison will feature rotating yeast strains (both Saccharomyces and Brettanomyces), as well as rotating adjuncts (which make up 30% of the grain bill). Coming in at around 6% ABV, batch 001 is showing a tasting profile that includes “funk, slight tropical flavours, and overripe strawberry”. And keep your eyes peeled for another bottle release in August, which will be a limited edition Bourbon Barrel-Aged Tripel, at over 10% ABV.

Near Fredericton in Hanwell, NB, Niche Brewing has both a newish release and a re-release to talk about this week. First up is a beer that was initially poured at the Big Axe Craft Beer Festival back on July 14th in Nackawic, NB. The second entry in their one-hop Session IPA series dubbed You Had Me At… Mosaic, this 4.7% ABV light and hoppy beer is packed with, you guessed it, Mosaic hops for a fruity and dank flavor profile with plenty of pineapple character. You’ll find this one on tap at The Joyce Pub, Wilser’s Room, and Buddha Bear Coffee Roaster & Holy Whale Brewing Co. (and also at the Buddha Bear Riverview location). It will also be on tap on August 2nd at the King Street Ale House for their IPA Day celebration. Also coming out of Niche this week is a re-release of their popular Belgian-American Pale Ale that they’ve titled Bruges Afternoon. Marrying a Belgian Trappist yeast to modern American hop varieties Azacca and Mosaic yields a light and refreshing beer at 5.2% ABV with both spicy and fruity notes from the yeast, and stone fruit and a tropical presence from the hops. Look for this one at The Joyce, KSAH, Snooty Fox, Graystone Brewing, Tide & Boar, and the Laundromat Espresso Bar.

Down in Liverpool, Hell Bay Brewing has a brand new draught-only beer to quench your summer thirst. Lime and Black Pepper Ale features two ingredients that we’re pretty darn sure you can guess if you think really hard! With a grist that includes Barley, Corn, Wheat and Oats (to help boost the mouthfeel), the brew was hopped with Jarrylo to 28 IBUs. In addition, lime zest and peppercorns were added late in the boil, to give “a refreshing lime flavour and aroma throughout, followed by a slight black pepper kick”, to accompany the otherwise-light beer. It weighs in at 5.8% ABV and can be found at Hell Bay now, for consumption on their outside deck. There IS a chance this beer will pop up in bottles in the future; keep an ear to the ground for that.

Our North friends have been busy brewing new beers, while keeping up with their regular releases, and this week is no exception! Coming out today is Perseid IPA (named after the Perseid meteor shower currently taking place, and scheduled to peak sometime around August 11th-13th), their latest American IPA. This 7% ABV brew was hopped with Jarrylo, ADHA 529, and Simcoe cryohops and Mosaic cryohops (which are starting to become popular around these parts). With notes of “mango, melon, and pineapple”, it’s a super-refreshing hop bomb for summer drinking, and is available in cans as well as on tap in the HRM. Drop by either of the two North locations to pick up a four-pack!

Staying with North, they’ve teamed up with Propeller to brew Whip It!, a “Lemon Meringue Pie Sour”. A 4% ABV Sour Ale inspired “by diner pies of days gone by”, it had several special additions while brewing, including graham crackers, lactose powder, and lemon zest. It’s going to be released next Thursday, August 2nd, at the Propeller Tap Takeover at Battery Park, where you’ll also find a wide variety of Propeller classics and rare/limited edition beers. Note that Whip It! will also be available in cans on that date.

Big news from Northern New Brunswick this week, so let’s start off with a few beers recently released. Distillerie Fils du Roy in Petit-Paquetville is continuing their line of historically-inspired beers with Grande Barbe, La Beausoleil, and 732.
– Grande Barbe is a 5.5% ABV Wheat Beer, brewed in the Belgian tradition with spicy phenolics and fruit esters, telling the story of Nicolas Denys, a French aristocrat who explored and founded towns and villages throughout New France in the Seventeenth Century.
– La Beausoleil is made in honour of Joseph Broussard, one of many heroes of the Acadian resistance in the Eighteenth Century. Born in Port-Royal (Annapolis Royal), NS, and died in Louisiana, he fought against the British in many skirmishes in what are now Nova Scotia, New Brunswick and PEI, alongside fellow Acadians and First Nations fighters. Today, La Beausoleil is a 5.0% ABV Oyster Stout, made with oysters from Néguac’s Maison Beausoleil, located nearby. Bottles are available at the brewery retail shop now, and should soon be available at the ANBL as well.
– 732 is an American Standard Lager, made in celebration of the 50th Anniversary of the incorporation of Grande-Anse. In reality, Grande-Anse was founded in 1808 by Acadian Simon Landry, borrowing from the Mi’kmaq name of Walayik (Big Cove or Grande-Anse in French). At just 500 bottles of this 4.5% ABV beer, this release will only be available at the brewery.

And big news for all of the breweries of Fils du Roy’s region, as this week saw the launch of the Northern New Brunswick Beer Trail/ Route de la Bière du nord du Nouveau-Brunswick. Featuring 9 breweries from Edmundston to Tracadie the 320 kilometre route also marks the four tourist information offices and 21 restaurants, cafes, and bars that serve the products made nearby. The breweries are, from West to East,  Les Brasseurs du Petit-Sault, Savoie’s Brewhouse, AKA Beer at Au Bootlegger, Four Rivers Brewing Co, 13 Barrels Brewing (coming this fall), Distillerie Fils du Roy, Brasserie du Village (brewing at Village Historique Acadien with the help of Fils du Roy), Brasserie Retro Brewing, and Brasseux d’la Côte. We have the map here for your perusal or printing, or pick one up at one of the many spots along the way. And you can celebrate the official launch at any one of the breweries next Friday, August 3rd, from 5-7PM, to join your fellow beer travellers.

Over at Quidi Vidi Brewery, just outside of St John’s, they’ve got a pair of new beers on the shelves these days. Three Seasons Saison (playing on the “fact” that Newfoundland celebrates fall, winter, winter again, and then spring… although we’re starting to think this may apply to all of Atlantic Canada) was brewed along the lines of a “classic” Saison. Pale-coloured, dry, crisp, and lightly tart, it comes in at a very manageable 5.1% ABV, and 26 IBUs. Next is Folk’d Up, an American Pale Ale brewed in celebration of the 2018 Newfoundland and Labrador Folk Festival (happening August 3-5 in Bannerman Park). Hopped solely with Cascade (to 28 IBUs), it has “subtle malty notes, light citrus aromas, and a slight apricot finish”, and clocks in at 5% ABV. Both of these beers were canned, and are/will be on the shelves of your local NLC, so grab a few before heading out this weekend. And for fans of their Iceberg beer, and its iconic blue bottles, the QV Crew is sending out a friendly, but urgent reminder: they are running low on empties, so please return them to your local depot, or direct to the brewery, ASAP. If you do, they may even give you a peek at their on-site bottle washer/sanitizer, which is a massive engineering feat in its own right.

We’ll stick with Newfoundland, as there’s a couple more interesting beers being released there this weekend. In Twillingate, Split Rock Brewing Co. has a new entry in their kettle sour series with Sour Patch B’ys: Squashberry. The squashberry is a red, tart, clustered berry “with a unique flavour, and their aroma might remind you of a walk in the woods”, according to Split Rock. Difficult to find, and locally picked on a recent family hike, they provide the bulk of the flavour in the latest entry in this series (as well as the bright red colour), balanced by the tartness of the lactic acid produced in the souring process. Only a limited supply of this brew is available; you can find it on tap at the Stage Head Pub.

Let’s finish off the Rock with Port Rexton Brewing, releasing a new beer designed to help beat the heat (yes, apparently Port Rexton has had a heat warning for a whopping two days in a row!). Some Day on Hops (named after a description Newfoundlanders use to describe the weather…? Here’s a video for an explanation) is a 4.3% ABV Session IPA featuring a heavy dry hop of Azacca, Huell Melon, and Mosaic. Thanks to these three wonderful varieties, expect a “super tropical nose with a light, mango, pineapple punch, and a light pine vibe giving a tingly-but-present bitterness”. Drop by the retail shop in town this weekend for a growler; they’ll also be pouring Blue Steel, T-Rex Porter, and Chasing Sun (oh, the irony).

Your favourite Amherst craft brewery – that’s right, Trider’s – has a new, summer-drinkin’ beer out this week, a Belgian Witbier (one of the finest of the hot weather beers). The Wit Rabbit was brewed with a traditional Witbier grist, a 50/50 mix of Barley and Wheat malt, and fermented with a Witbier. Sweet orange peel was added in the boil, along with a light touch of Cascade hops for a low, balancing bitterness. Taken in a non-traditional direction, they then added a dry-hop of Triskel, a floral/herbal/citrusy variety developed in France. Cloudy, light golden, with moderately-high carbonation, it’s light and refreshing, and at just 4.5% ABV, can be enjoyed in quantity. You can find it at the Trider’s taproom for pints and growlers now, with some kegs heading out to local licensees, soon.

Good Robot has a new American Pale Ale scheduled to be released for next Tuesday’s Beta Brew, Agricola Street Ale. Described as “very, very light” thanks to a grist made up of Pilsner malt, corn, and rice, it weighs in at an easy-drinking 4.6% ABV. Hopped with Polaris and Perle to 25 IBUs, the beer is “lightly floral, and nicely balanced toward hop bitterness”. And look for the return of the brewery’s flagship Gose, Goseface Killah, next Thursday… or, they tell us, it could be something completely new. For the love of God, why won’t someone think of the bloggers??

Today marks a very small bottle release in the Upstreet Million Acres series, Chardonnay Barrel-Aged Apricot Cream Witbier. Brewed and added to a few Chardonnay barrels in January, the recipe includes lactose powder in the boil, and apricot puree in the barrel; the lactose adds a bit of sweetness, while the puree gives plenty of apricot aroma and a “nice tartness in the finish”. It’s been conditioning in bottles since April, and is now ready to be taken home with you. Bottles of this 5% ABV Witbier will be available only at the Upstreet taproom and Craft Beer Corner (max 2 bottles per customer); it will also be on tap at both locations for pours only (no growlers/crowlers).

Beer things are going on this weekend, and next, and maybe even the week after!

Beer fans in Nova Scotia who have limited access to beers from New Brunswick take notice! A tap takeover of NB craft brews is currently underway at the Auction House on Argyle Street and will continue today and probably into the weekend (while supplies last)!! You can check the Facebook Event Page for the full tap list and details, but the summary is that you’ll find beers from: Big Tide, Flying Boats, Foghorn, Grimross, Half Cut, Maybee, Niche, Petit-Sault, Picaroons, and Trailway, many of which have never before seen the shores of Nova Scotia. Tapping began last night, so ideally they’ll open with a full slate this afternoon. A few Grimross kegs are en route this afternoon and may not make it on until later tonight, but everything else is in the house and ready to pour. Happy Hour pricing ($5 pints from 4 – 6:30 PM) will be honored all weekend, which we think will make the Auction House an especially popular spot today after work. Come check it out and enjoy some of the high-quality beers that are coming from our neighbors to the west!!

Bar Stillwell returns to their beer-bringing-from-far-flung-fields-ways tomorrow when five selections from Calgary, Alberta’s Dandy Brewing hit the taps at HQ on Barrington Street and at the Beer Garden on Spring Garden. They’re also serving brisket nachos for the occasion (no doubt made with ‘Berta beef) and rumor has it some brewery folk might be in attendance. And as if that wasn’t enough, next weekend, on Sunday, August 5th, you’ll find an event featuring one of the bright lights of farmhouse brewing in North America, Jester King, at the bar. Not seen in these parts since the last time they came to Stillwell in September of 2015 in a joint feature with Quebec’s Brasserie Dunham, this is a reason for beer geeks to get excited. Next week you’ll find 6 taps pouring farmhouse styles and 6 more beers from their SPON series pouring by the glass. As usual, Chef Graeme Ruppel will be serving a topical menu, this time with Texas-inspired snacks on the go. And you might find yourself imbibing elbow-to-elbow with Jester King’s head brewer, Averie Swanson!! Look for more details (we’re thinking tap and bottle lists) to appear on Stillwell social media as next Sunday approaches.

Next Wednesday is Regatta Day in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Well, it should be, but as the only weather-dependent holiday that we’re aware of, we encourage you to play Regatta Day Roulette, and prepare for Wednesday off. Celebrate at Quidi Vidi for another of their Day Boil event, with the Regatta races livestreamed in the taproom, along with music and pints flowing all day. The doors open at 10AM, with music from The Blue Mood, Hot x Proxy, The Daisy Cutters, and Waterfront Fire. May the odds forever be in your favour!

International IPA Day is held on the first Thursday in August every year, which means that it’s crept up on us and is next Thursday, August 2nd! No doubt that there will be celebrations and special beers throughout our region, and Fredericton’s King Street Ale House is no exception, with their IPA Day Takeover. All 32 of their taps will be dedicated to hoppy beers, from a number of breweries throughout Atlantic Canada. You can simply show up and sample as many as you’d like, or you can also pre-purchase a ticket for $35 (+tax), which will get you twenty 5 oz samples! The fun starts at 6 pm (although the beers will likely be pouring all day); you can buy your tickets here (just click on the IPA Day tab under reservations).

If you’re in the Fredericton area and haven’t been to The Joyce since their beautiful renovations earlier this summer… well, we’re not really sure why you haven’t. But we have yet another excuse to drop by soon, as they’re holding a PEI and NS Tap Takeover on Saturday, August 11th. All taps will be dedicated to craft breweries from both provinces, with many sending representatives to mingle and chat beer! There’s no cost to attend, just show up when you can and start imbibing!

And a couple more quick mentions before we leave you to another summer weekend full of delightful local beer:

– Our friends at Big Spruce in Nyanza have tapped another new one, an Altbier without a fancy name. Weighing in at 5.9% ABV and 35 IBU, it’s malty, bready, toasty and a touch bitter, in short, everything we look for in an Alt. Check it out now at the Sprucetique and possibly at tap accounts throughout the province.

– Fans of Stillwell Brewing’s blended funky farmhouse styles will no doubt be happy to hear that they’re beginning regular retail hours every Saturday at least until the end of the summer, from 12 – 4 PM at their 2015 Gottingen Street location (rear entrance). This week (that’s tomorrow) will feature their two newest releases, Easy and Merryweather, along with some other previous releases and mercy!

– This week Halifax’s Tidehouse Brewing sees the return of their popular Shannon Rockwell-brewed Hibiscus City, a dark pink sour brew featuring flavors of cranberry, pomegranate, field berry and lemon with a pinch of salt. This is Volume 2, Number 2 of this beer and limited quantities are available by the bottle and by the glass at the Tiny Tasty Beverage Room on Salter Street.

– TrailWay is bringing back their DDHHJH (that’s Double Dry-Hopped Hu Jon Hops), an extra-hopped version of their flagship IPA, today. This is only the second time this beer has hit the market, due to the amount of delicious, pricey hops that go into a batch. This one is going to be available on tap and in cans at the brewery only, so be sure to drop by ASAP to grab some before it’s gone.

Finally, we have to close with some sad news. New Brunswick’s Bogtrotter, a 1 BBL (120 L) brewery that opened two years ago, is closing. Owner/brewer Rod Croucher made a recent announcement on the brewery’s Facebook page concerning his difficult decision. Bogtrotter beers were available on tap at several locations in Fredericton, with 500 mL bottles available for purchase at select ANBL stores in the area as well. We wish Rod the best of luck in his future endeavours.

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 June 29, 2018 – News From Dildo Brewing, Bent Nail Brewing, Grand Monk Ales, and much more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2018-06-29
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Annapolis Cider Company, Big Spruce Brewing, Bore City Brewing, Breton Brewing, Dildo Brewing, Garrison Brewing, Grand Monk Ales, Grimross Brewing, Heritage Brewing, Lunn's Mill Beer Company, Motion Bay Brewing, Niche Brewing, North Brewing, PEI Brewing Co., Quidi Vidi Brewery, Roof Hound Brewing, Tanner & Co Brewing, Tatamagouche Brewing, Tidehouse Brewing, TrailWay Brewing, Unfiltered Brewing. Leave a Comment

Happy Canada Day Weekend! Now that the frost warnings are finally done [uh oh, did I just jinx us?], and we’ve seen the sun poke through a few times, it’s time to leave our home and get out to visit the local breweries and cider houses. We’ve got two new spots we’re excited to share with you today, plus a dozen new beers and events to seek out locally, no matter where you live. As always during holidays, be sure to double-check that the brewery or bar is open, as some are taking a bit of time off to enjoy the much-needed vacation, too!

• About an hour outside of St. John’s, the small town of Dildo is now home to the latest brewery to open in our region. While the origin of the town name may be up for some debate, there’s no arguing that they are ready to join the wave of great beer that is now available on the Rock. Located in the same building as the Dildo Interpretive Centre on Front Road, the Dildo Brewing Company and Museum features a beautiful taproom which borrows the same aesthetics, and even some pieces, from the now-closed Centre. Launching with four beers (a Red, Blonde, IPA, and Stout, with a Blueberry Blonde set to be released shortly), visitors can enjoy beer by the pint or sample flight while enjoying a meal, with growlers available to go as well. Their hours are 11AM – 11PM, and we hope to share a Profile with the DBCaM family next week. Congratulations!

• Also opening this weekend is a new Winery slash Brewery at the start of Nova Scotia’s Annapolis Valley. Bent Nail Brewery is located on the grounds of the Bent Ridge Winery, at Daniels’ U Pick on Highway 14 near Martock. Opening this Sunday, they will be pouring their Cream Ale, English Ale, Pale Ale, and IPA, brewed on their 2 BBL (240 litre) system. The taproom features a wood fired pizza oven to complement the beer, and will be open 10AM – 6PM daily, starting Sunday. Congratulations to the Bent Ridge/Bent Nail crew!

• Our third “new brewery” news is actually a re-launching and re-branding of a familiar New Brunswick brewery. Bore City Brewing opened in 2015, brewing on a ½ BBL (50 litre) system in the basement of one of their owners in Moncton. Shortly after launching, they realized that they were working very hard to only produce 3 kegs at a time; as a natural result, expansion was on their mind. When building issues stalled their expansion plans for a 10-15 BBL (1200-1800 litre) brewhouse and taproom in 2017, they regrouped. They hired a new brewer in Spring 2017, whose favourite styles to drink and brew lined up nicely with their own: bold IPAs and traditional and modern Belgian beers. They have recently settled into their current location with a 3 BBL (360 litre) system from Stout Tanks, and are ready to unveil their new name. Grand Monk Ales is a portmonteau paying ode to their expansion, their love of Monc(k)ton and Belgian beers. While this new spot is not open to the public, they have been able to send more of their beer further across the province, frequently available on tap at the Laundromat, Tide & Boar, Les Brumes du Coude, as well as at The Joyce in Fredericton and Cask & Kettle in Saint John.  Look out for their favourites, including Causeway IPA (Mosaic/Vic Secret hopped), Mondo IPA (dank and fruity), Vent d’âme Belgian Pale Ale, and Spacetime Odyssey Porter, as well as plenty of new releases throughout the summer. We’ll keep you up to date with all of Grand Monk’s goings ons, including their Launch Party this summer.

• Big Spruce has released a new lager, and they need your help in naming it. Fear not, there’s some great prizes for the winner for your hard work! Made in collaboration with Sydney’s Governors Pub, it’s a German lager with a slight North American twist, made with 100% imported Weyermann Pilsner malt and Bohemian Lager yeast, but finishing with a slight citrus bite from the use of classic American Cascade hops. Slowly fermented for 2 weeks before entering a 7 week lagering period, it’s super crispy and perfect for summer lager drinking. Drop by Governors for a pint and check out their new Beer Garden, as it’s the only place you can find the beer outside of the brewery, and submit your idea. The winner will get bragging rights, plus a BBQ Party for Ten on the Governors beer garden patio. You have until July 7th to sip and submit, so don’t delay!

• Meanwhile, Jeremy and the gang have a plethora of other beers on the go right now as well, starting with Fake News, a 5.6% ABV and 30 IBU modern American Pale Ale made with Idaho 7 hops and fermented with the Foggy London Ale yeast from Escarpment Labs. Gimme Citra, originally developed as a collaboration with Stillwell, is back again, a hoppy beer with a prominent Citra hop character that weighs in at a supremely sessionable 4.8% ABV. Watches & Jet Skis, Big Spruce’s ode to questionable business practices is a new Berliner Weisse, soured in the kettle and finished with Citra. At 3.8% ABV it should be a lovely refresher on hot summer days and all the inducement you need to drink some NS craft beer. Lastly is a shandy (of all things!) comprised of a 50/50 blend of slow-lagered Kölsch with housemade lemonade. The name? Comedy of Errors.

• The collaboration brews from 2 Crows just keep-a-comin’, with their latest hitting shelves today at noon… and don’t worry, like the high majority of 2 Crows beers, it’s an interesting one! Slam Jam was brewed with Vancouver’s Parallel 49 Brewing, when head brewer Graham With was in Halifax for the Canadian Brewing Awards last month. Brewed with Pilsner, Malted Oats, Wheat malt, and Aromatic, it was hopped in the whirlpool with Huell Melon, Vic Secret, and Azacca. Fermented with two Brettanomyces strains, they dried the beer out further by adding the enzyme glucoamylase (which brought the beer down to a gravity of 0.998… just for comparison, distilled water is 1.000). Once fermentation was complete, 400 lbs of blueberry puree was added for conditioning, and finally a dry hop with more of the three hop varieties mentioned earlier… plus Galaxy! The result is a very dry, fruity, funky, highly-carbed beer with a deep blue/purple colour, with “a ton of aroma from the blueberries and the blend of dry hops”. This 6.7% ABV beauty can be found in cans and on tap at 2 Crows today; cans will likely be on the shelves at the private liquor stores in the HRM, and on tap at a few lucky licensees.

• Today, North Brewing is launching the first beer in their new Breakwater series, which will feature a total of three fruited sour beers being released over the summer. Breakwater Coconut-Lime was first soured with Escarpment’s Lactobacillus blend, and then fermented with their Vermont Ale strain. Both lime zest and lime juice were added to the beer after fermentation, along with chunks of coconut, to give the 5.5% ABV brew its two name-worthy flavours. Sounds perfect for summer, no? Drop by either of the North bottle shops to pick up some cans for the weekend; it’ll also be pouring on tap at Battery Park.

• Just outside of Fredericton in Hanwell, NB, Niche has another new beer, a sour IPA they’re calling Wayfarer. Leveraging a pure lab culture of Lactobacillus plantarum (a bacteria found in all manner of fermented foods and even human saliva) for souring, and with lactose powder added in the boil, the beer was finished with hefty amounts of Centennial and El Dorado hops from post-boil whirlpool onwards to prevent any untoward bitterness that might clash with the sour profile. The result is a 6% ABV and 14 IBU beer that is bright, refreshing and citrussy. You’ll find it at tap accounts in Fredericton, Moncton and Saint John. And look for the return of another Niche beer, Ethos, their house culture-fermented saison. It’s got more Brett character this time around, with light fruit and peppery spice notes highlighted against a slightly acidic body and a dry finish. This one weighs in at 6.3% ABV. Expect to see more Niche re-releases in coming weeks, giving you a chance to enjoy those beers again or try ones you might have missed for the first time.

• Yarmouth’s Heritage Brewing is feeling rhubarb-y lately, so much so that they are planning at least three beers to be featured in a special Rhubarb series from the brewery. This weekend, we’ll see the first beer in the series, Rhubarb Gose. Slightly tart, salty, with some coriander notes like a traditional Gose, a “light addition” of rhubarb was thrown in during fermentation to add “a hint” of rhubarb character. If you’d like to grab a growler or two for the long weekend, be sure to stop by the brewery soon, as there’s only 180 L available (growlers are only available at the 19 Kirk St. location for now). As mentioned, expect to see at least two more rhubarb beers from Heritage over the coming weeks, one of which is the return of their Strawberry Rhubarb Wheat Ale from last year (which sold out in just 90 minutes!). They’ve also just opened up the taproom section of their ongoing expansion at 250 Main Street, so sit and enjoy a pint while you’re there! Finally, they’re expecting their new brewhouse to arrive next week, which means more Heritage beer for the thirsty public in the near future.

• Tanner & Co. Brewing, in Chester, NS, have already expanded to a larger brewhouse, and have one of their first bigger-batch beers ready for you to try. Nelson Saison is as you might expect from the name: a Saison hopped with the always-amazing-and-not-so-easy-to-find Nelson Sauvin variety, from New Zealand. This wasn’t just a measly, light hop addition, however; the Nelson was added at several stages throughout the boil, and also in the dry-hop, for “aromas and flavours of gooseberry, pineapple, and lemon”. It weighs in at 6.8% ABV and 30 IBUs, and is available now at the brewery.

• This year marks the 20 year Anniversary of the formation of the Mudmen, a rugby team in Charlottetown, PEI, and the PEI Brewing Co. has brewed up a beer in their honour. Sin Bin is a Kölsch brewed in the traditional sense, meaning that it was fermented with a Kölsch yeast strain at temperatures somewhere between those typical for a Lager and Ale, and then lagered for a brief period to allow the flavours to meld together. The final product is “bright and crisp, with some German noble hop character”, with some fruity esters from the yeast. It’s easy-drinking at just 4.4% ABV, with a light bitterness in the finish. You can grab cans of this one at the PEIBC taproom tomorrow from 12-2 pm during their launch party. And drop by the taproom today from 4PM for the last in their Growlers of Summer release, Sangria Pale Ale. Bold, yet easy drinking, it features bright hop flavours with an addition of Blood Orange juice.

• In Lawrencetown, NS, Lunn’s Mill has more or less completed their taproom expansion, with only a few tweaks here and there expected as they grow into their new space. Both the new space and their patio are now open with beer pouring and food being served. They’ve also got a new beer they’re hoping to release this week that was brewed in collaboration with their bartender, Chris Williams. In a Pinch started with a base of 100% Horton Ridge malt, including their apple malt, hopped with local Galena and Fuggle hops and then dosed heavily with apple blossoms in the post-boil whirlpool. The yeast chosen for fermentation was the Nova Scotia Sauvage strain from Big Spruce, resulting in a very NS-centric beer. Coming in at a crushable 4% ABV and 16 IBU, it’s described as light, floral and refreshing.

• Looks like our friends at Tidehouse have another bottle release for us all! Yesterday saw the release of Houndstooth, a bottle-conditioned 8% ABV “India Saison” (read: hoppy Saison). Brewed with Vienna, Wheat, and Acid malts, they bittered the beer with Warrior, and added Hallertau Blanc and Mosaic for flavour and aroma after the boil was complete. Fermented with a blend of Saison yeasts, more Hallertau Blanc was added for the dry-hop, ultimately resulting in a beer with a dominance of white wine-like flavours, “backed by some tropical fruit and berry notes”. The Saison strains dried this one out right some good, and also contribute some “peppery spice and a hint of banana” to the brew. Drop by the brewery today 2 – 9PM (they’re closed this weekend to enjoy the celebrations) to pick up some 750 mL bottles… they suggest trying one now, and letting another one (or more!) age for six months. And while you’re there, why not try Wharf Speed, a light and easy-drinking 4% ABV summer beer hopped with Cascade, Mandarina Bavaria, and Ahtanum? Available on tap as we speak.

• Over at Garrison, they’re releasing their latest kettle-sour, Sour Castro. A new take on the La Menta, a beer they brewed with mint last November. This time they’ve got for a bit more of a Mojito feel with the mint being joined by lime juice and the apple juice being left out. Wholly bereft of any IBUs at all, expect a refreshing beer with a cooling sensation from the mint and coming in at a very sessionable 4.8% ABV, perfect for the scorcher of a weekend that’s expected in Halifax. It could be an excellent beer to server at an event like a pig roast; and lo and behold, that’s what they’re going to do! Asado Grill will be at Garrison on Sunday for a Canada Day celebration starting at 11 AM. They’ll be cooking up a whole hog which you can get in on for $20 per person (including baked potato w/ fixins, market salad and roll).

• If you’re in a cider kinda-mood, Annapolis Cider Company has a new entry in their one-off Something Different series coming out today. Honey Blossom is a sparkling cider that started with the cidery’s cool-fermented dry apple cider, but with the addition of locally-picked elderflowers and purple lilac blossoms. A “touch” of local wildflower honey was also added at the end, along with some fresh-pressed apple juice, resulting in a 7% ABV cider that is “aromatic and full-bodied, with lush floral notes”. The usual $0.50/refill donation for this one will be going to the Terranaut Club, “a group of passionate and dedicated women in science, unified by the mission to create and provide opportunities for girls to recognize their own interests and seek their own futures in STEM fields and environmental advocacy”.

• Quidi Vidi Brewery has a new beer out this weekend, and are hosting an all-day event at their taproom Sunday to celebrate. Day Boil is a 4.5% ABV Session IPA, featuring a light malt base and plenty of hops, starting with a bittering charge of Magnum before plenty of late-boil and dry-hopping of Mosaic. Cans of Day Boil will also be available Sunday in their Hop Shop, the first off of their brand new canning line. Their Day Boil Party kicks off at noon on Canada Day, with $5 pints until 5PM, with live music all day and night. No cover charge. And if you’re looking for a way to get there and avoid the parking woes around the Gut, The Link from Metrobus is running Wednesday to Sunday every week until October, connecting Quidi Vidi Village with downtown St John’s and Signal Hill, and could be the perfect way to get to/from the brewery, Mallard Cottage (and Beer Garden), or before/after the East Coast Trail to Logy Bay.

• Have you been sitting at home, wishing that someone out there would just brew an IPA with doughnuts already? Well, Roof Hound has some good news for you! They’ve teamed up with Halifax’s Vandal Doughnuts to create Vandal Hound Lemon Meringue Doughnut IPA. The grist includes Victory malt, oats, and wheat… along with a few dozen lemon meringue doughnuts from the good people at Vandal. But they didn’t stop there, and went on to add some hand-toasted sugar, along with a “large pot” of house-made lemon pie filling, and vanilla, throughout the brewing process. Looking to add more lemon character to the beer, they dry-hopped it with Lemondrop, resulting in a “sweet and sour quality, with a good dry-hop burst”. The beer is scheduled to be released on July 5th, with special events occurring at Westside and the Stubborn Goat Beer Garden, followed by an event at Roof Hound on July 6th. Be sure to follow Roof Hound’s social media pages for more info on those events.

In addition to the events above, don’t miss out on these other things on the go this weekend. You know, in addition to the fun Canada Day things on the go!

• It’s a special weekend for in Fredericton as the folks at Grimross, fresh off their 4-medal performance at the Canadian Brewing Awards in May, are celebrating 5 years since they opened their doors on Canada Day in 2013. The party at the brewery will be going pretty much all weekend long, with $5 pints today, tomorrow and Sunday. If you buy one, you’ll be eligible to enter a draw for a special prize at the end of the weekend. Festivities kick off tonight with live music and continue into tomorrow’s comedy night and culminating with their Canada Day party on Sunday with a special cask beer, birthday cake, and GastroGnomes food truck on the scene.

• A couple of weeks ago we mentioned the Under the Breton Sky music and beer event being put on by Breton Brewing in Sydney tomorrow. VIP tickets have sold out, but general admission tickets are still available at $55 a pop. That goes up to $65 if you purchase on the day of, so if you’re interested you might want to grab your tickets today!

• And don’t forget about Good Robot’s Hair of the Dog event at the Garrison Ground this weekend. From 11-11 Saturday and Sunday, come chill out with your mutt (or meet a new one!), drink some beer, and check out the dog- and beer-friendly vendors. We’ve got more details in last week’s post.

Just a few more things to tell you about this week, with returning favourite beers in New Brunswick and Nova Scotia.

– Tatamagouche Brewing’s Guava Heist Berliner Weisse is back on the taps and shelves at the brewery this weekend, with cans destined to the Private Stores next week. The 3.6% ABV sour features Organic guava puree added after fermentation for a lovely fruit complement to the base beer’s acidity.
– TrailWay’s Hop Stains (8% ABV), one of the brewery’s first DIPAs, is returning today for the first time in awhile. Using the highest amount of hop additions of any beer from TW, the hop schedule was tweaked this time around, featuring a mixture of American and Australian varieties. On tap and in growlers, with cans being available exclusively at the brewery.
– Unfiltered brings back Sour Motherfucker, their kettle-sour aged on tart cherries, today at noon. At 6.4% ABV, it’s lightly tart, with plenty of tasty cherry character; available for pints and growlers starting at noon.
– And finally, not to end the post on a sad note, but we wanted to let you know that Motion Bay Brewing, planning to open in the Fisherman’s Co-op in Petty Harbour, Newfoundland, will not be proceeding. Having met the people involved with the brewery several times, it was obvious their passion for beer was authentic, and bringing jobs and visitors to a small town was an important part of their brewery. We wish them the best in whatever endeavours they get up to in the future.