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Friday Wrap-Up – News from Tatamagouche, Gahan House Halifax, Hammond River, Picaroons, Shiretown, Pump House, and so much more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2014-09-19
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Acadie-Broue, BarNone Brewing, Big Axe Brewery, Big Spruce Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, Gahan House Harbourfront (Halifax), Garrison Brewing, Grimross Brewing, Halifax Oktoberfest, Hammond River Brewing, King Street Ale House, NB HopSpiel, North Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Propeller Brewing, Railcar Brewing, Red Rover Brewing, Sea Level Brewing, Shiretown Beer, Tatamagouche Brewing. 2 comments

Happy Friday beer fans! Another busy week in our region, just when we thought things were winding down for the summer!

• Tatamagouche Brewing Co has brewed up an Oktoberfest beer for the 35th Annual North Shore Bavarian Society Oktoberfest, being held next Friday and Saturday, Sept 26&27, in Tatamagouche. Dubbed Lagerhosen, this amber lager weighs in at 5% ABV, and uses Hallertau Mittelfruh hops to keep that traditional Noble hop character. The best way to enjoy this brew is during one of the three sessions in the beer tent with one thousand of your closest friends. If you can’t attend (or want more after the weekend), it will be available Wednesday in bottles and growlers at the brewery and on tap shortly. Prosit! Also keep your eyes open for a beer brewed using their home-grown hops. Unlike some breweries in our region, they have dried theirs, thus extending their lifetime. It will be hitting the taps in the fall, and we’ll be sure to share the details when available.

• Gahan House Halifax is releasing a pair of new beers this weekend. Today, their Belgian Pale Ale hits the taps. From head brewer Karen Allen, “It is very light and very easy drinking, with subtle Belgian yeast characters of clove, spice and fruity esters, with just a little Mt. Hood dry-hop for added character. 4.8% ABV and 35 IBUs”. Tomorrow is the launch of a very special beer, Maple Whiskey Porter. This beer is a scaled-up version of the beer Allen brewed at Niagara College, and brought to her interview at PEI Brewing Company (there’s a note to all you want-to-be brewers!). The base of the beer is a medium-bodied porter, with NS Maple Syrup and Wiser’s Whiskey added during conditioning. This beer will come in at 5.7% ABV and 50 IBUs. Next up is another batch of the Hippy Cousin IPA (brewed once again with the NZ hop Waimea), and shortly thereafter, a batch of Peach Wit, made with two bushels of Annapolis Valley peaches.

• In other Gahan news, this Tuesday will be the first “Brewster on the Bar”, with Allen tapping a special cask every Tuesday at 6pm. This week’s cask will be Coffee Porter, starting from the same base beer as the Maple Whiskey Porter, but with more coffee aroma and taste. This makes three days/spots in Halifax with weekly Cask Nights: Tuesdays at Gahan House, Wednesdays at Rockbottom Brewpub (tapped at 4pm), and Friday at The Stubborn Goat (4pm). And these spots join Henry House and Bar Stillwell where one can enjoy cask beers all week long.

• Coinciding with Gahan’s Cask tapping is their Brewing Industry Night, where every Tuesday from 5-9pm, folks in the local brewery/brewpub community can enjoy staff-priced pints. Show them your paystub, business card, tattoo, “bottle line hands”, etc to take advantage of this offer. And if you don’t have a job in the brewing community, but want one, Gahan is hiring! They are looking for a General Manager for the bar, hopefully someone with a couple years experience. If you’re the right candidate, send off an email with your resume.

• Also note that the pumpkin beer brewed last month by the PEI Brewing Co. is now available; you can find it at liquor stores across PEI, New Brunswick and Nova Scotia under the name Gahan Pumpkin Ale. For more info on this beer, check out our previous post.

• And in other pumpkin beer news, Propeller‘s Pumpkin Ale is currently on tap at the Prop Shop, and also hits stores today in 6-packs. Go get some!

• Things are staying busy over at Hammond River, as more new beers continue to be brewed. First up is a Pumpkin Ale, La Maitresse, brewed with fresh pumpkin and lightly spiced with cinnamon, nutmeg, ginger, and allspice; it clocks in at 5.3% ABV and 23 IBUs. Look for it on tap in the area in about 2 weeks. And this weekend, owner/brewer Shane Steeves will be brewing an “Imperial Vanilla Porter”, a strong beer targeted at 8.1% ABV and 35 IBUs. Shane also plans on adding Maker’s Mark Bourbon to several kegs of this beer, for a Bourbon version that will be available exclusively at the Saint John Ale House. Stay tuned for updates to its availability.

• In other Hammond River news, after demand from beer-drinkers in the province, they’re going to be participating in the ANBL Growler Program. Their California Common, Gammie, will be available for growler fills at the Kennebecasis Valley ANBL, starting on October 2nd, with other Hammond River beers likely following thereafter.

• To celebrate the recent annual release of their Harvest Ale, Picaroons is holding a Harvest Ale Launch Party later today at the Train Station on York. From 4:00 pm – 7:00 pm, there will be several batches of Harvest Ale available for sampling (there were a total of 7 different batches brewed), wood-fired pizza from Milda’s, and some live bluegrass music, courtesy of local musician Alan Jeffries. No charge to attend, just show up and enjoy some beer and atmosphere! For more info on this year’s Harvest Ale, check out last week’s post.

• Shiretown has once again rebrewed their Black Currant Wheat, a fuchsia-colored wheat ale brewed with Brewers Gold hops and local black currants. Coming in at a lower ABV this time (4%) and about 20 IBUs, the beer is available now for growler fills at the brewery, and should be on tap this weekend at Isaac’s Way in Fredericton.

• Along with lots of Harvest ales being released lately, keep your eyes open for Oktoberfest beers… one that has recently found shelves again is Pump House Oktoberfest. Coming in at 5.5% ABV and about 12 IBUs, this malty Lager-style beer can be found at ANBL stores across New Brunswick, at the brewery in Moncton, and on tap at select locations.

• We only told you about it last week, but the epic collaboration between Boxing Rock and North Brewing will be hitting the taps tomorrow! Many Hands Pale Ale will be available at both breweries in Shelburne and Halifax, their Market stalls at Seaport, Alderney Landing and Shelburne, and on tap around the province. Featuring over one hundred pounds of buttercup squash, and bags and bags of wet hops throughout the brew, this is a special brew! It weighs in at 6.5% ABV and approximately 37 IBUs (wet hops haven’t had their AA measured, so brewers have to use their best guess).

• Sea Level Brewing in Port Williams has released their latest much-anticipated seasonal, New Scotland Heather Ale. This hybrid brew features fresh and wet Cascade, Fuggles and Hallertau hops from brewmaster Randy Lawrence’s farm, and 6 kg of locally-grown heather in the boil. It weighs in at 5% ABV, and approximately 20 IBUs. Find it on tap across the Valley, including at the Port Pub, Spitfire Arms, and Luckett Vineyards, and in Halifax at Bar Stillwell, Obladee Wine Bar, Agricola Street Brasserie, and Auction House. Cans are available at the brewery and the Halifax private stores.

• If you’re living in New Brunswick and feeling a bit jealous of the recent launch of East Coast Beer Tours in Nova Scotia, cheer up, and get ready for the River Valley Beer Tour! Organized by the people behind the King Street Ale House, Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, and Eat New Brunswick, the inaugural bus tour is scheduled to be held on Saturday, November 1st. The all-day tour will include visits to several breweries in the region; the tentative list includes Railcar, Big Axe, Grimross, Hammond River, and Picaroons, with sampling of beer at the breweries… and even on the bus! A boxed lunch from the KSAH will also be included. Details are still being ironed out, but expect tickets to go on sale this Monday, with 40 spots available (check for the link that day through the KSAH, FCBF and ENB links above). Organizers are hoping for the tour to happen several times a year, with different breweries being included. We’ll keep you updated on the tour as the date approaches!

• Speaking of Railcar Brewing, they have just received their Brewer’s License from the province yesterday, completing another hurdle towards opening in the coming weeks. And how did brewer Mitch Biggar celebrate? By brewing, of course! He will be brewing up a Harvest Ale and Pumpkin Ale, and working on his Shogomoc Stout, featuring potatoes (Railcar is in Florenceville-Bristol, after all!). Look for those beers and more in October.

• And in other New Brunswick beer-fun news, yet another event is being planned for Fredericton in the future – NB HopSpiel will be feature outdoor curling and a beer garden, and will be held in February of 2015 as part of FROSTival (Atlantic Canada’s largest winter celebration). More details will be available next month; in the meantime, you can reserve your spot now via the link above. Sounds like another great time from the people behind the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival!

• Red Rover has a new cider in the works, a “Weiss Cider” designed to create a craft cider with a profile similar to a German Weiss beer/Belgian Wit, according to co-owner/brewer Adam Clawson. A 7% ABV, semi-dry cider was aged and blended with fresh cilantro (picked from Wellwood Farm in Saint John) and orange zest… sounds tasty! Look for it to be available by mid-October.

• Our friends at Bar Stillwell have been busy, cooking up some exciting events for us all to take in. Firstly, in conjunction with the Atlantic Canadian Beer Awards taking place Oct 4-5 in Halifax, they will be holding a People’s Choice vote. The public will have a chance to choose their favourite brew from those registered in the Awards.
In early October, Stillwell will be introducing Brasserie Dunham from Dunham, Quebec (about an hour outside Montreal). Their innovative brews have won awards across the country, and this will be the first time they are available on tap in the Atlantic Provinces.
On October 18th, they will be hosting a New Brunswick Nano Brewery Tap Takeover. Featuring at least six small breweries that have opened in the last few years, the taps and casks will be full of New Brunswick goodness. Acadie-Broue, Big Axe, Grimross, Hammond River, Petit-Sault, Railcar, and Red Rover are all taking part. Ticket details will be available soon.
On the weekend of October 24th, the entire Stillwell crew will be heading to Toronto to Cask Days. They’ll be bringing with them more than a dozen casks from our favourite Atlantic Canadian breweries, and will be showing folks in the Big Smoke the high quality brews we are making in our region. We’ll be sharing those beer details closer to the event.
November 16th marks the One-Year Anniversary of Bar Stillwell, and they will be pulling out all of the stops to celebrate (and we’re all invited!). They’ve got several special kegs they’ve saved specifically for this event, will be holding a special beer release (yup!), and special by-the-glass beers they’ll be cracking open. As if we needed another reason to visit, amiright?

• If you are looking for more beers and suggestions on what to do this weekend, the Halifax Oktoberfest is taking place Saturday at the Halifax Seaport, in front of Garrison Brewing. Organized by Garrison and the German Canadian Association of Nova Scotia (GCA), the event starts at 9am with the opening of the “Kinderfest” open to kids of all ages to enjoy fun, games, music, and great food. The beer tent opens at 11am, with the ceremonial tapping of Garrison’s casks of Unfiltered Wheat Ale happening at noon. At 7pm, the tent transforms in to a 19+ establishment, with more music and food and fun until midnight. All proceeds from the entry to the festival and tents go to the Halifax & Region Military Family Resource Centre and the GCA.

• And after all that, there’s still several new beers coming from Atlantic Canadian breweries, and more events! We weren’t able to find out details for today’s post, but look for more soon on a new wet-hopped Amber ale – Sub_Stanchel Amber – from BarNone Brewing, a Harvest Ale from Big Axe, a pumpkin beer from Big Spruce, and Port Hawkesbury’s Celtic Oktoberfest. Stay tuned next week for more details!

Friday Wrap-Up – Beer News from Hammond River, Petit-Sault, Garrison, Picaroons, Boxing Rock, North, Propeller, and much more!

Posted by acbbshawn on 2014-09-12
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Beau's Brewing Co, Big Axe Brewery, Big Spruce Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, Brasseurs du Petit Sault, Celtic Oktoberfest, FiddleHop Farms, Fredericton Poutine Festival, Garrison Brewing, Hammond River Brewing, Meander River Farm and Brewery, North Brewing, PEI Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Propeller Brewing, Pump House Brewery, Red Rover Brewing, Shiretown Beer, YellowBelly Brewery. 2 comments

Hello, beer fans! Another Friday = another helping of beer news from Atlantic Canada. Let’s get started with more hop harvest beers, picking up from last week…

• We have more details on the recently-brewed Harvest Ale from Hammond River Brewing. The beer was wet-hopped (i.e. the hops used are used just after harvesting, instead of being dried in an oast house, or “fresh”) with Cascade hops grown on owner/brewer Shane Steeves’ property. With a grist consisting of 2-row, Carapils, and Crystal 40 L malt, the beer is expected to come in at 6.8% ABV, with about 70 IBUs. Look for it on tap at bars/restaurants in the Saint John area sometime in the next 2-3 weeks.

• The brewers at Brasseurs du Petit-Sault have a new beer on the go; they’ve managed to get their hands on some fresh Cascade and Chinook hops from a local farm in the Grand Falls area (owned by Yan and France Desjardins), which they will incorporate into a “Harvest” Bob LeBoeuf. The beer will be hopped more-heavily than normal, with more hop aroma, flavor, and bitterness (30-40 IBUs vs. the usual 22 for the beer). This new beer should be available for growler fills at the brewery, and at local bars/restaurants, by around September 25th.

• Speaking of Petit-Sault, their two flagship beers (Tante Blanche and Bob LeBoeuf) continue to move across the province – they’re now available at ANBL stores in Dalhousie, Saint-Quentin, Campbellton, Moncton, Dieppe, and Kennebecasis Valley. Check the ANBL Product Page for a location near you! Petit-Sault has also announced that in addition to the 1.89 L Growlers available for fills at the brewery, they are now offering 950 mL “Grunters” for fill ($6.50 for a one-time purchase of the Grunter, plus $5.50 and $5.75 for fills of Bob and Tante, respectively).

• Garrison Brewing has teamed up with Ontario’s Beau’s All Natural Brewing for a collaboration brew: Sweet Rye’d Harvest Wheat Ale. Brewed with Munich, Wheat, Rye, and Pale Malt, this copper-coloured beer weighs in at 6.0% ABV, and 40 IBUs, thanks to Citra, Cascade, and Columbus hops. However, Beau’s brought a special ingredient to the collaboration: bog myrtle (Beau’s uses this in a couple of beers in their lineup). Thanks to this plant, which is a very common ingredient in the bittering of gruits, a more herbaceous and spiced character comes through. Catch this Sweet Rye’d at the brewery, private stores, and NSLC very soon.

• Garrison is also brewing up a couple more Harvest-themed beers in the next little while: their popular 3 Fields Harvest Wet-Hopped Ale will be brewed this weekend. Hop picking will take place Saturday, and the beer will be brewed Sunday. Hops will be coming in from Ross Farm Museum, Meander River Farm and Brewery, and Fiddle Hop Farms. If you would like to take part in the fun, volunteers are needed at Meander River in Ashdale to help with the hop picking, starting at 9am. Or, you can help de-bine the hops right at the brewery, from 2-5pm. Come on out for good times and refreshments!

• We don’t have many details on their other harvest beer, but we do know that it features some gourds from the Howard Dill Farm! Also, for our homebrewing readers, they have announced the style for the 2015 Home Brew-Off Challenge, 12B Robust Porter. With the competition judging not taking place until Spring, that gives you plenty of time to do some test batches.

• More Harvest beer news! Not to be outdone, Picaroons is once again releasing their Harvest Ale next Monday, September 15th. This year’s release will feature seven different beers, all hopped with a variety harvested from various local farms. There will be three different Cascade beers, one each of Centennial, Galena, and Goldings, and one “Kitchen Sink” beer that will have a little bit of everything! Check out the special Harvest Ale webpage, and click on the link matching the code on your bottle to find out more about where the hops for that were harvested. Look for it to pop up at bars/restaurants in the area, as well.

• Shiretown is taking a slightly-different approach to Harvest beers – they’ve gathered hops from several local sources (including some grown on their own property) to brew up a series of “Harvest Fruit Beers”. Two of these beers will be Strawberry Delight, brewed with local strawberries and two different hop varieties grown on Nature’s Estate Farm, and Wild Blueberry Wheat, brewed with local wild blueberries and another undetermined hop variety. Look for these (and their other Harvest beers) to be released in the near future.

• Finally in Harvest beer news (for this week, at least!), Boxing Rock and North Brewing have brewed up their second annual Many Hands Pale Ale conspiracy. However, this beer is a twist on the traditional Pale Ale, with one hundred pounds of locally-grown buttercup squash added to the mash. Two-row and amber malts make up the grain bill, while the hops are a combination of over ten pounds of Chinook from Boxing Rock’s own fields (in the mash), with Cascade (first-wort), Mount Hood, and Centennial from LaHave Natural Farms. The beer weighs in at 6.5% ABV and 37 IBUs, and will debut later this month.

• Propeller Brewing is adding a new beer to their core line up, Organic Ale. This Blonde Ale weighs in at 4.5% and 20 IBUs and is brewed with Certified Organic Pale and Pilsner malt, and Certified Organic Centennial hops. The light-bodied and refreshing beer features a clean finish, and a hint of citrus hop character. The Organic certification comes by way of Atlantic Certified Organic, a nationally-recognized certification cooperative. The Organic Ale is available starting today at both the Halifax and Dartmouth brewery locations in bottles and growlers, and will be in six-packs at the NSLC shortly.

• After recent voting by the public on two different Coffee Stouts released by PEI Brewing Co., they’ve decided on a winner! Transmitter Stout is their Sydney Street Stout blended with 10% locally roasted and brewed coffee from Receiver Coffee Co. in Charlottetown. The 5.6% ABV beer made its debut at last weekend’s PEI Beer Fest, and is currently available on tap at the brewery, and in limited-release, wax-dipped 750 mL bottles at the brewery now, and shortly at the PEILCC. And bumping up their Sydney Street Stout even further, they have filled two Jack Daniels barrels with the beer, for a special release around Christmas.

• The 2nd annual Fredericton Poutine Festival is fast approaching! Held on Saturday, November 8th, it will once again take place at the Delta Fredericton. Featuring all-you-can-eat poutine from several restaurants, there will also be at least 15 different beers from local breweries, tentatively including Big Axe, Grimross, Hammond River, Petit-Sault, Pump House, Railcar, Red Rover, and Shiretown, as well as Unibroue, Le Naufrageur, and McClelland Premium Imports. Tickets will go on sale this Tuesday, September 16th at 2:00 pm; you’ll be able to purchase them online when the official website goes live that day. We’ll have a standalone post with more info on the festival that day; in the meantime, check out our write-up on last year’s festival here.

• Red Rover has some big news for cider fans in Saint John this week – starting this Sunday, Sept. 14th, they will be present at the weekly (until mid-October) Queen Square Farmers Market for 1 L flagon exchanges. From 9:00 am – 2:00 pm, you will be able to exchange empty flagons for full ones ($12), or purchase prefilled flagons for $18.50; the first offerings will be Spring Brew and Summer Brew. And if you’d like to try some Red Rover cider on tap, they’re now available at the Saint John Ale House!

• There’s a new blended beer pouring at the Pump House brewpub in Moncton; Black & Blue is a combination of their Blueberry Ale and Muddy River Stout. It’s on for a limited time, and only at this location, so stop on by for a pint before it’s gone.

• Big Spruce Brewing has released Tim’s Dirty IPA this week. Brewed with Chinook, Nugget and Simcoe hops, this beer weighs in at 84 IBU and 6.8% ABV, and we here reports that it’s even better than last time! It is available at the brewery for growler and Yapper fills, and will be on tap at your favourite establishments province-wide. This beer was first brewed in January, as the winner of Inaugural Home Brew Competition, to coincide with the Local Connections Craft Beer and Food Celebration. Good news, as both the Competition and Celebration are returning! The Celebration is taking place January 15th, 2015 and early-bird tickets are now on sale. The competition will be taking place at the beginning of December, and we will be sharing details on how to enter when available.

• If you live in Newfoundland and have been enjoying the recent YellowBelly cider, Yellow Mellow, on tap at the brewpub, good news! It is now available in bottles – 1 L fliptops – at the brewery only. Stop by and pick some up, so you can enjoy some cider goodness in the comfort of your own home.

• Big Axe Brewery is now offering 950 mL Grunters (in addition to Growlers) for fills at the brewery in Nackawic. Prices are $5.50 for the purchase of an empty Grunter, and $7.50 for fills. Grab a Chanterelle Cream Ale, Shakesbeer Chocolate Oatmeal Stout or the Simon Saaz Summer Ale before it’s done for the season. Look out for their next seasonal, coming soon!

• Meander River Farm and Brewery held their first Shareholder-only cask tapping at the brewery this week. Their Wheat Beer had been dry-hopped with Glacier hops, and the cask infused with peaches and ginger, and primed with local honey. For those who don’t want to miss out on the fun next time, be sure to check out their Community Supported Brewery Program. They are looking for volunteers to help with the hop harvest tomorrow, beginning at 9, so why not drop by for some fun. Refreshments will be provided!

• Celtic Oktoberfest is being held, Saturday, 25 October 2014 from 6:30 PM to 10:30 PM, at the Port Hawkesbury Civic Centre. Featuring beer from ten NS craft breweries, and food from some of the best Cape Breton and NS restaurants, this all-inclusive evening will be a great time. A Kitchen Party is nothing without music, so there will be several bands playing that evening as well. We cannot give away too many details just yet, but we are able to announce that a Pumpkin Launch competition will be held that weekend, and is open to groups wishing to take part. We’ll have more information on the Oktoberfest, and surrounding events, next week.

• And in a further update on the progress of the ANBL Growler Program, they now have a webpage where you can check to see what is currently pouring at the three pilot stores. Keep in mind that days and hours when you can get your growler filled are limited to Thursdays and Fridays from 4:00 pm – 8:30 pm, and Saturdays from noon – 8:30 pm, though these may change due to customer demand.

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Meander River, Pump House, Celtic Knot, Rare Bird, PEI Brewing Co and much more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2014-08-22
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Acadie-Broue, Antigonish Townhouse, Authentic Seacoast Brewing, Beerthief, Big Spruce Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, Brasseurs du Petit Sault, Celtic Knot Brewing, King Street Ale House, Lion & Bright, Meander River Farm and Brewery, North Brewing, PEI BeerFest, PEI Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Propeller Brewing, Pump House Brewery, Railcar Brewing, Schoolhouse Brewery, Stillwell Beer Bar, Stubborn Goat, Tatamagouche Brewing, Uncle Leo's Brewery. 2 comments

Happy Friday, everyone! Yet another busy week of beer news for our region, so let’s get to it!

• Meander River Farm and Brewery is back with another one-off beer. After the great success with their first special brew, Honey Brown, they have quickly followed it up with their Wheat Ale. An American-style wheat beer weighing in at 3.8%, the beer features the newer Belma hop, giving citrus and strawberry characteristics. Much like their Honey Brown, it won’t be around for very much longer. Take a drive out to the brewery today (4-7pm) and this weekend (11-5 both Saturday and Sunday) for a taste of it and their Lunchbox Pale Ale, and keep an eye out at your favourite watering holes in Halifax (Stillwell and Lion & Bright). Once it’s gone, it won’t be back until next summer!

• September 3rd will mark the 15th Anniversary of the Pump House Brewery, and they’re celebrating it with a new endeavour! On Sept. 3rd, they will be brewing a Stein Beer at the brewery in true fashion. During the Middle Ages, there were very few options for heating wort (the malty, sugary liquid that will become beer) to a boil, due to the lack of modern-day brewing equipment and direct-heating techniques. Luckily, German brewers discovered the method of heating granite rocks (“stein” is German for “rock”) to superhigh temperatures, then dropping them in the wort in wooden kettles to produce a vigorous boil over several minutes. This is the exact method that the Pump House will use to brew their new ale, Stonefire Ale, on their Anniversary. The beer will eventually be bottled as a limited release of approximately four thousand 750 mL bottles sometime in October. Keep an eye on their Facebook page, as they’re holding contests for chances to win an invite to their “Rock Drop” Launch Party on Sept. 3rd.

• Celtic Knot Brewing is re-releasing one of their inaugural brews, Not Joe Average Pale Ale. This American Pale Ale has had some revisions, according to owner/brewer Bruce Barton. While still coming in at 5% ABV, the bitterness has gone up slightly, with the IBUs increased from 19 to 30. Also, the aroma and flavor hops are now made up of Cascade and Centennial (well known for their fruity and citrusy characteristics). The beer finishes slightly drier than the original version, according to Barton. Look for it soon at bars/restaurants that carry Celtic Knot beers, including new account Plan b Lounge (with one rotating tap) in Moncton.

• Barton is also brewing up the new Ring of Fire beer today, featuring 40% Smoked Malt (along with 2-Row, Munich, Cara Aroma and Roasted malts to an Amber colour, 16 SRM), and hopped to 18 IBUs with Tettnang and Fuggle hops. Where there’s smoke, there’s fire! For the heat, Barton will be using Habanero and Jalapeno peppers in the boil, and might add some in secondary as well, depending on the results. Look for this one on tap mid- to late-September.

• Rare Bird Craft Beer has released their latest seasonal, Spruce Beer. It is their modern take on this style of beer with some history in our region, both on shore, and on the ships that visited Guysborough harbour. Building on a medium-bodied Pale Ale base of 5.5% and 47 IBUs (from Cascade and Galena hops), Black Spruce buds were added to the boil for a bright spruce nose. Currently on tap at the Rare Bird Pub, look for it in bottles at the private stores soon.

• In the brewing world, the approach of fall means one thing… the brewing of pumpkin beers, and the PEI Brewing Co. just brewed theirs! The grist contains Canadian 2-row malt, Munich, Victory, Extra Special Roast, Caramunich 60 L, and some malted rye, and the beer is hopped exclusively with Comet hops to 25 IBUs. As for the most important part, the pumpkin, 30 lbs of yellow summer squash were sourced from MacKenzie Produce in Stratford, PEI, with the balance made up of unspiced, canned pumpkin and squash due to limited availability of pie pumpkins this time of year. Luckily, brewmaster Chris Long was able to find many high quality spices from Kate the Spice Lady for the brew, including “150 cinnamon sticks, about 80 cloves, almost 100 allspice pods, 10 whole nutmeg, and 10 lbs of fresh ginger” for each batch. The beer clocks in at 5.8% ABV; look for it in bottles and kegs in the near future across Atlantic Canada.

• Next Friday, August 29th, Edmundston’s Resto-Bar Le Deck will be holding a Picaroons tap takeover that will also feature guest taps from Brasseurs du Petit-Sault and live entertainment from The Carson Downey Band. No word yet on exactly which Picaroons beers will be pouring (they will have 5 taps dedicated to their brews), but we can confirm that both flagship beers – Tante Blanche and Bob LeBoeuf – from Petit-Sault will be present, as well as the recently-released limited edition of their collaboration brew with Acadie-Broue, L’effrayab’ Tintamarre. There’s no cover at the door; it all starts at 10:00 pm.

• And great news for those of you who live in Fredericton and would like to try L’effrayab’ Tintamarre… a keg or two has been delivered to the King Street Ale House, and should be pouring now! It won’t last long, however, so best head there for lunch today. 🙂

• And back to Picaroons, their annual release of UPSTREAM Ale will be hitting shelves at the beginning of September. This 4.5% Pale Ale is crisp and clean, like the wild waters of the famous NB Salmon Rivers. A portion of the proceeds from the sale of this beer will go to the Atlantic Salmon Conservation Foundation to help preserve those rivers. And available shortly thereafter will be Picaroons’ series of Harvest Ales, featuring wet hops grown on local farms.

• This week, brewer Josh Herbin at North Brewing Company started experimenting with cask conditioning and adding flavour infusions to their very popular Saison. He prepared infusions using black peppercorn and candied ginger, and has dosed two of the casks with different concentrations. To a third cask, he added both of the infusions and some of the ginger and pepper to further “dry spice” the beer to measure its effects on the final product. No word yet where they will be available, but when they hit the taps/bar tops mid-September, we’ll be sure to share the details.

• Uncle Leo’s Brewery is launching a new growler format today, a 750ml Flip Top Growler. These new growlers are $5 for the glass, and $5 for a fill of any of their IPA, Smoked Porter, Red Ale and Vohs Weizenbier. Until Sunday, August 24th (or while supplies last), when purchasing two or four 750ml growlers, you will receive a free two- or four-growler tote. Please note that they ask folks to not return their 1.89l growlers until after the weekend, when they re-open on Wednesday, August the 27th.

• The Beerthief Newfoundland Special Order Beer Group is holding a tasting next Thursday August 28th. ShakesBEER in the GUT is a fundraiser for the Shakespeare by the Sea Festival in St. John’s, and will give attendees the chance to try four exclusive international offerings available only at the tasting: after starting with a choice of a Quidi Vidi beer, Certified Cicerone Mike Buhler will guide participants through Sorachi Ace and Local 2 Ale by Brooklyn Brewery, and Hiver and Dorée from Meduz Brewery. Tickets are available online for $50, and include snacks, door prizes and live entertainment.

• Tatamagouche Brewing Co is holding a contest! Their Brew Crew is putting together an Oktoberfest Lager to be released in the coming weeks, and they want you to name it. We don’t have the recipe details just yet, but you can enter by replying to this tweet or instagram with your best shot. The contest is closing soon, so be sure to enter today. The winner will win a free party keg rental from the brewery. Only those 19 years or older may enter.

• New Beer Alert! Big Spruce Brewing has released their International Coffee Conspiracy, the Hoppuccino. As mentioned previously, this beer was brewed with help from Phillips Brewing from Victoria, BC and  Cafe Milagro from Costa Rica. Coming in a bit bigger than originally reported, the beer weighs in at 7.3 % ABV and 80 IBUs from Simcoe and Chinook, and features lots of whole bean coffee in the boil, and then a second cold extraction infusion, added post-fermentation. Grab a sample and growler at the brewery today, and ask for it at your favourite local bar.

• After some delays due to ANBL regulation changes that were mostly dropped late last week, Mitch Biggar of Railcar Brewing is back on track! This week he brewed a test batch of the first in his “Derailed” series, a Maple Bacon Porter. Using Chocolate and Cherrywood Smoked Malts in the grain bill for characteristic aroma and taste, he also added New Brunswick Maple Syrup and Smoked Bacon in the boil. Wow!

• And finally, in case you missed yesterday’s post, we’re currently holding a contest to win two tickets to any of the three sessions at this year’s PEI Beer Festival on Sept. 5th and 6th. All you have to do is take a picture of one of the beers that will be pouring at the festival (a list of breweries and beers is available on their website), and Tweet it/share it to our Facebook page, with the hashtag #PEIBeerFest. The contest will continue until next Thursday at 11:59 pm; we’ll announce the winner in next week’s Friday Wrap-Up on August 29th. Only one entry per person, please!

Drink locally this weekend! Head on out to Antigonish Townhouse tonight at 5pm to enjoy another of their one-off casks of British Bitter, to the Stubborn Goat for a Friday Firkin of Boxing Rock‘s The Vicar’s Cross Double IPA, or King’s Arm Pub in Kentville who now have Schoolhouse Brewery on tap. And we hope to see lots of you tomorrow at noon at Stillwell for the launch of Propeller Brewing’s Raspberry Lambic. Folks from Propeller will also be there from 1-3pm taking pre-orders to be picked up at the Gottingen St location Sunday (1 bottle max), before it goes on sale to the general public at both locations on Monday (limit two bottles per person).