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Friday Wrap-Up – News from Red Rover, Brasseurs du Petit-Sault, Picaroons, Uncle Leo’s, Boxing Rock, Rare Bird and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2014-02-07
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Brasseurs du Petit Sault, Bridge Brewing, Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, Garrison Brewing, Hammond River Brewing, PEI Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Propeller Brewing, Red Rover Brewing. 3 comments

Happy Friday, everyone! Yet another chock-full of beer news in our region. Pour your favourite pint and check out the latest info.

• Fredericton, your wait for locally-brewed hard cider is over – Red Rover Brewing has announced that they will be opening their Ciderhouse next Thursday, Feb 13th! Located at 880 Hanwell Rd, Suite 305, the Ciderhouse will have up to four varieties of cider on tap (the “Spring” and “Summer” to start, soon followed by “Fall” and a currently unrevealed style), and lots of merchandise for sale. Refillable, 1-L flagons can be purchased for $6.50; fills of each flagon will cost $12 (prices include tax). The Ciderhouse will be open every Thursday, Friday and Saturday from 4-11 pm. For those of you who are supporters of the brewery, or “Red Roverlutionaries”, there is a special event tonight at the Ciderhouse from 6-10 pm, where you will be able to purchase flagons and fills of the Summer cider.

• And throughout next week, Red Rover is having an online contest for supporters to win a free flagon. Take a picture of yourself “in an interesting location”, wearing your Red Rover t-shirt, and post it on Twitter (#redsciderhouse and #redroverbrew) or Facebook (share to their page).

• For those of you in the Saint John area, don’t forget that Hammond River Brewing will be holding their launch party at the Saint John Ale House on Thursday, Feb. 13th as well! All four of their flagship beers will be on tap – Hop Flash IPA (6.6% ABV), Red Coat India Red Ale (6.5% ABV), Covered Bridge ESB (5.5% ABV), and Back in Black Oatmeal Stout (5.2% ABV). Tickets are $10, and include four samples of the beers; appetizers will also be served. Get down to the SJAH for your ticket, and be one of the first to try some great, new beers!

• Edmundston’s new up-and-coming brewery, Les Brasseurs du Petit-Sault, has been looking for two brewers over the last few months. They recently put out a press release saying that they’ve chosen two gentlemen for the positions. Jason Dionne, a Madawaska, Maine native, comes from a brewing position at Kichesippi Beer, a microbrewery in Ottawa. Gavin Anderson is a former scientist with a doctorate in plant pathology. Both Jason and Gavin have a history of homebrewing and – naturally – a passion for beer! With the first beers scheduled to arrive on the market this June, we’re happy to see that the brewery is one step closer to their goal! For more info on Brasseurs du Petit-Sault, check out our Q&A with Marketing Director Mychèle Poitras that we posted in November (French version here).

• With Valentine’s Day fast approaching (that’s right, you only have one week), Picaroons is bringing back their Afterglow Aphrodisiac Ale. A dark beer that is brewed with chocolate, ginseng, liquorice root, and a hint of cayenne, it clocks in at 5% ABV. It should be available by February 11th/12th for growler fills at the Brewtique; look for it on tap at certain beer bars/restaurants in the region shortly after.

• On another note, the Afterglow Aphrodisiac Ale will also be featured as a “welcome beer” at the two Beer & Chocolate Dinners being put on by Picaroons. Both dinners are four courses, “chocolate-infused”; each course will be paired with a different Picaroons beer. The first dinner will be at 6:30 pm on Thursday, Feb. 13th at the ANBL Train Station on York St., and will feature Real Food Connections. The second will be two days later, Feb 15th, at The Schnitzel Parlour, also at 6:30 (hosted by local Sommelier Craig Pinhey). Tickets are $50 and can be purchased at the Brewtique.

• Good news for folks looking for more Uncle Leo’s in their life: earlier this week, they sent out 360 six-packs of their IPA to the NSLC! The shipment is part of a trial at 35 NSLC locations, and should reach larger stores all over the province (except Pictou, you’ll have to keep visiting the store in Lyons Brook). Plans are also in the works for their Red to be available through the NSLC in April, in 650mL bottles. Be sure to show your Leo’s Love, and grab the beers from your local NSLC. We had a wonderful visit at Uncle Leo’s last week while they were filling the palette-plus order, 2 bottles at a time!! What dedication from the folks at the brewery! And we loved the sausages from The Pork Shop available at the brewery, made with Uncle Leo’s IPA and Smoke Porter (our favourite).

• Speaking of new beers hitting the NSLC, Rare Bird Full Steam Stout will be available beginning today at NSLC locations across the province, from Yarmouth to Sydney, Amherst to Halifax. It joins the Pale Ale already available at the NSLC. We’ve been enjoying the Stout on tap at Stillwell, which has a healthy dose of Full Steam coffee added to the beer in secondary.

• And in related Rare Bird news, they have released a new seasonal, a Pumpkin Ale! While a bit out of season, they’ve been brewing batches of this beer since November, and are looking to spice things up in their lineup for winter/spring (sorry, that bad pun was all Chris). Doug Anweiler gave us some insight into the beer: The base beer is a 5.5%ABV Pale Ale style (with a bit of CaraMunich malt and molasses) with three different hop varieties. The brewery team picked pumpkins and squash from local fields, which were then spiced and roasted at the Harbour Belle Bakery using traditional pumpkin spices. The pumpkin was added twice during the brewing process, starting in the mash. The beer is cold-conditioned before bottling, and is currently available at the private stores in Halifax, as well as a couple of kegs at Stillwell.

• Great news for fans of Boxing Rock Brewing in Shelburne, NS: they recently received a 34 hL (hectolitre, 100L) fermenter from DME to add to their brewhouse. This will effectively double the possible output of their popular beers. Since their launch in July, they have been going all out to keep up with the demand from their fans. With this double-sized fermenter, they can do a double-brew-day of their Hunky Dory Pale Ale or Temptation Red Ale to fill it up, giving them a bit of breathing room in the brewery. Breathing time they’ll use to come up with more excellent seasonals like the Crafty Jack Brown Ale and U-889 Russian Imperial Stout.

• The very popular beer-rating website, conveniently named RateBeer, has released its annual “Best Of” lists, including the Top Beers, Brewers, and New Brewers by Subregion. Winners are chosen by tallying the results from ratings/reviews by RateBeer users, with particular emphasis placed on those over the last year. The Atlantic Canadian provinces results are the following:

– New Brunswick: Top Beer – Picaroons Yippee IPA; Top Brewer – Pump House

– Nova Scotia: Top Beer – Garrison Imperial IPA; Top Brewer – Propeller; Best New Brewer – Bridge Brewing

– Prince Edward Island: Top Beer – PEI Brewing Co./Gahan House 1772 IPA

Unfortunately, Newfoundland is not listed. This, along with certain awards not given for certain categories, is likely due to a particular number of ratings being required… which means we beer-drinkers have to rate beer more often! Congrats to all the winners!

• Our detailed post on the 2014 Fredericton Craft Beer Festival will be coming early next week. This is just one more friendly reminder that tickets are now over 90% sold out… last chance to buy yours! There are also a couple of contests going on right now to win VIP tickets (and more); follow the FCBF Twitter feed for details and updates.

• For those of you looking to step up your brewing game from amateur enthusiast to professional brewer, check out this job listing from Yellowbelly Brewery in St. John’s, Newfoundland. Brewmaster Liam McKenna is looking for a brewer to help him keep the Brewpub, and NLC fully stocked with their beer. Yellowbelly also has a new seasonal on tap (and soon in bottles), a darker “hodgepodge” beer, with several different malts and hops. We hope to have more info for you next week (after a quick visit to the Brewpub ourselves!).

Friday Wrap-Up – News and new beers from Hammond River Brewing, Big Tide, Bridge Brewing, Hell Bay, and more

Posted by acbbshawn on 2014-01-17
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Big Spruce Brewing, Big Tide Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, Bridge Brewing, Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, Garrison Brewing, Hammond River Brewing, Hell Bay Brewing, Lunar Rogue, Noble Grape, PEI Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Stillwell Beer Bar. 2 comments

Happy Friday everyone! Here’s what’s going on in our region these days:

• Back in October we posted about a new brewery, Hammond River Brewing, opening in Quispamsis, NB later in the fall. The official launch of the brewery was unfortunately delayed; however, owner/brewer Shane Steeves has indicated that his first beers should be available sometime in February. We’ll keep you updated when we know exactly when Hammond River’s first beers will be pouring at the official launch at the Saint John Ale House!

• Speaking of Saint John, Big Tide Brewing has a couple of new beers; brewer Wendy Papadopoulos has given us some info on both. Currently on tap is the Crasberry Cream Ale, a still-hanging-on-to-the-holidays Cream Ale brewed with cranberry juice and raspberry extract; it clocks in at 5% ABV. They should also be releasing a Winter Warmer this weekend – this currently unnamed beer is brewed with smoked malt and Caramunich, with some bourbon added for extra flavor, and comes in at 7% ABV.

• Halifax’s Bridge Brewing is releasing a new beer today, a collaboration with Java Blend Coffee Roasters. It is a Belgian Coffee Brown Ale, made with 2 kg of Guatemalan El Injerto Pandora del Carmen beans. The folks at Java Blend did a special roast of the beans, and a 24-hour cold brew, before being added to the beer. Look for it at the brewery and Alderney Market this weekend.

• Hell Bay Brewing, from Liverpool, NS, has released a new beer, the R.I.P.(A) IPA. Over the next few months, they will be releasing several IPAs, and asking for feedback on the beers. At the end of the series, they’ll be having a taste-off to determine the winning style. The first version weighs in at 7.2%, is pale and finishes dry, and is moderately hopped (for an IPA). Look for the beer at the brewery, only available in growlers. The next version will feature even more hops, so watch out for that!

• In other Hell Bay news, consumers in more locations around the province will soon be able to purchase their English Ale at the NSLC. We don’t have all of the details yet (which stores will be participating), but will be sure to pass them along when available. It should be on shelves before the end of the month.

• And finally, Hell Bay has been nominated for a Lunenburg-Queens Business Excellence Award. They are up for the 2013 Small Business Award. The winning announcement will take place February 17th. Best of luck!

• Have you purchased your tickets for the 2014 Fredericton Craft Beer Festival on March 8th? Well, they’re currently having a contest on their Facebook page; like and share the link indicated, and you’ll have a chance to win two tickets to the festival AND the 2014 Fredericton Poutine Festival… that’s a $190 value! The winner will be drawn today at approximately 4:00 pm. Just a reminder… last year’s event sold out weeks before it was held. With about 70% of this year’s tickets already gone, and the event promising to be even better than last year, don’t hesitate much longer! And there are still rooms available at the Crowne Plaza just across the street, at the special Beer Fest rate. Check them out here.

• The PEI Brewing Co. sent an interesting cask to Bar Stillwell yesterday; the “Dry-Hopped, Barrel-Aged, Farmhouse Saison”! This very tart beer (the wort – what beer is before yeast does its thing – was originally destined to be Sir John A’s Honey Wheat) was initially fermented with a Saison yeast and aged in an oak red wine barrel since last summer. After it finally made its way into the cask, fresh yeast was added, and the beer was dry-hopped with Santiam, a European-type aroma hop that has spicy, herbal and floral qualities. With an ABV of ~5%, this sounds like a very interesting beer!

• Speaking of Stillwell Beer Bar, they are holding the Big Spruce X Boxing Rock Tap Takeover tomorrow. Tickets are sold out, however they will be tweeting during the event if seats become available. You might not be able to score one of the slick glasses created especially for the event, but you will be able to try some of the great beers being poured. Look for Boxing Rock’s U-889 RIS with vanilla beans and Crafty Jack Brown Ale, as well as Big Spruce’s Tim’s Dirty IPA and Cereal Killer Sideways (Oatmeal Stout infused with Bowmore).

• A reminder that the “Name The Beer!” competition, Picaroons‘ new beer to honour The Lunar Rogue Pub‘s 25th anniversary, closes today. Post up your favourite name on their Facebook page, and you might just win a tasty prize package, a Draught and Dinner party for you and five of your worthy friends.

• We’ve got a reminder, and some great news for homebrewers who are thinking of entering the Garrison Home Brew-Off competition this year. Noble Grape will be doing an all-grain brewing demo of a Weizen at Garrison Brewery tomorrow from 10-2pm. This is a great opportunity to ask questions and watch the techniques used by more advanced home brewers (and you’ll see it isn’t so tough to do after all!). The great news is that all of the beers entered into the competition will be tasted and judged by BJCP-certified judges. The judging has always been impartial and blind (the identity of the beer or brewer were never revealed to the judges), but having the BJCP judges whittle down all entries to the finale means that the notes and scoresheets back from the competition should offer some insight not otherwise available. If you were on the fence as to whether to enter or not, hopefully this steers you towards YES!

That’s it for this week… have a great weekend!

Friday Wrap-Up – News on Beer Festivals, Red Rover Brewing, Bad Apple Brewhouse, Picaroons, Lunar Rogue Pub and more

Posted by acbbchris on 2014-01-10
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Bad Apple Brewhouse, Big Spruce Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, Garrison 2014 Home Brew-Off Challenge, Garrison Brewing, Great Canadian Beer Expo, Lunar Rogue, PEI Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Pump House Brewery, Red Rover Brewing, RockBottom Brewpub, Rogues Roost Brewpub, Stillwell Beer Bar, Stubborn Goat Gastropub. 2 comments

Happy Friday everyone! After a couple of slow weeks due to the holidays, we are back and bigger than ever! Lots of news this week, so let’s get right to it.

• Last month, we mentioned the Great Canadian Beer Expo, a travelling beer festival, would be coming to six different cities in the Maritimes, starting in late January. While we had never been able to get solid details or a beer list from them (which we had contacted them for several times, in hopes of doing a full write-up), we thought it was worthy of a quick mention on the blog. In the past week, thanks to some detective work begun by members of the Brewnosers Homebrew Club, it has been determined that the event might have been nothing more than a work of fiction dreamed up by a single man, Jonathan Brett. He had previously organized “Mud Immortal“, a fall event in St. John’s, Newfoundland, that came under fire for poor management, dangerous conditions, and not following through on promises of charitable donations. In the last couple of days, the events have “officially” been canceled, and people who have purchased tickets should have received information on how to get refunds.

• On a happier note beer-festival-wise, we are looking forward to two legitimate and ANBL-approved events taking place this spring: the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival being held at the Fredericton Convention Centre March 8th, and the Saint John Beer Fest at Market Square April 5th. Tickets for both are still available, we hope to see you there!

• As the initial launch of Red Rover Brewing Company gets closer, co-owner/brewmaster Adam Clawson has confirmed that the plan is to have up to four varieties of cider available when the Ciderhouse opens towards the end of the month. With a spring, summer, and fall cider pouring, along with a “surprise” variety, there should be plenty to satisfy the palates of cider fans in New Brunswick! Look for their ciders to be available for growler fills at their Ciderhouse location, as well as on tap at various bars/restaurants in the area. Check back here for more details, and keep an eye on the Ciderhouse Twitter page for the latest availability.

• It’s been a busy first two weeks at the Bad Apple Brewhouse in Somerset, NS. The first customers arrived mid-morning December 31st, eager to pick up the American Pale Ale from Atlantic Canada’s newest brewery, and the visitors haven’t slowed down since (even during the nasty weather last week). As promised, the Black and Tackle Russian Imperial Stout is being released Saturday, on sale in bottles and growlers at the brewery. This robust beer features a boatload of roast coffee and chocolate flavour and aroma, with a nice hop bitterness to balance it out. It weighs in at 9%ABV and 110 IBUs (calc). Look for it on sale in HRM soon. BAB-branded glasses join t-shirts and decals in the shop. At 20oz, they are a proper glass for a proper beer! Drop by today, the brewery hours are 3-8pm Mon-Thurs and 1-10pm Fri-Sun.

• The Lunar Rogue Pub in Fredericton will be celebrating their 25th anniversary this year. For this special event, Picaroons is brewing up a series of seasonal beers that will be available exclusively on tap at the Rogue; the first beer should be pouring sometime during the week of January 27th. The style of beer has not yet been announced; however, they ARE looking for some help in naming it. If you think you’ve got a catchy title for this new beer, post it to the Facebook page of either Picaroons or the Lunar Rogue – if your entry is selected, you’ll win a Picaroons Draught & Dinner Party for six, valued at $300. Enter as many names as you like; deadline for submissions is next Friday, January 17th. We’ll keep you updated on details of the new beers as they become available!

• The Pump House Brewery just tapped another new beer at their brewpub location in Moncton. Pompier à Vos Garde is in the style of Biere de Garde (meaning “beer which has been kept or lagered”), a farmhouse ale originating in Northern France. The style ranges from blond to brown; Pump House’s take is of the brown variety, and is brewed with 2-row, Crystal, and Carafa dark malts. Described by the brewery as being lightly hopped with “three distinctive hops”, the beer should have some fruity esters noticeable in the taste, and be quite smooth despite the 7% ABV. Get down to the brewpub before it’s gone!

• Tomorrow, Jan. 11th, is Sir John A. MacDonald’s birthday, and the PEI Brewing Co. is celebrating with two separate events. First, there will be free live entertainment and birthday treats available at the brewery from 1 pm – 5 pm, along with brick-oven pizza and beer. At 8 pm that evening, the doors will open for more music, food and beer, with live bands starting to play at 9 pm. Cover for the evening session will be $10 per person. While there are no one-off beers planned for the event, all of the regular PEI Brewing Co./Gahan beers will be pouring, with special emphasis, of course, on their Sir John A’s Honey Wheat Ale.

• Speaking of the PEI Brewing Co., they’re partnering with PEI 2014 to help celebrate the province’s 150th anniversary, or sesquicentennial (and yes, I did have to re-check the spelling on that word). The brewery is releasing a Fathers Commemorative Beer Pack, a 4-pack of some of their regular-release beers that have been re-branded and re-labelled for this packaging. Included will be Blueberry Ale (re-named 1864), Coles Cream Ale (Premier George Coles; note that this beer was previously only available on tap), Iron Bridge Brown Ale (Colonel John Hamilton Gray), and, of course, Sir John A’s Honey Wheat Ale. Four-packs should be available at PEILCC stores and at the brewery today; look for them in New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Ontario in the coming weeks.

• Today, the Stubborn Goat Gastropub is starting up a new series, Cask Fridays. They want to showcase this special way of  serving beer that is especially friendly to one-off or unique twists on regular beer (sometimes with added fruit, whisky, oak, or other interesting ingredients). Today’s first event will feature Garrison Brewing, with cask-conditioned versions of their Winter Warmer and Spruce Beer, tapped at 4pm. The Goat has also put out the call for other breweries interested in taking part in the first of many events; contact Geir to be a part of it!

• Speaking of Garrison, were you considering entering the 2014 Garrison Home Brew Off? If you need a little push, Steven Haynes from Noble Grape will be at Garrison from 10am-2pm on Saturday the 18th doing an all-grain brewing demonstration of a Weizen (this year’s competition style). It’s the perfect opportunity for home brewers of all experience levels to drop by and learn about brewing this style of beer. Entries are due Feb 20th, plenty of time to brew, but don’t wait much longer! Entries can be dropped off at Garrison or your local Noble Grape.

• Also in Garrison news, they are partnering with a University of King’s College professor to bring the students of his Brewing Science course some special experiences this term. They will be hosting lectures (at the brewery) and leading some short seminars (Cask Ale and sensory workshops), ensuring a new generation of good beer lovers. Where were these courses when we were in school!? I wonder if I could audit it?

• Next Saturday, January 18, Halifax’s Stillwell Beer Bar is hosting a tap/cask takeover featuring Nyanza’s Big Spruce Brewing and Shelburne’s Boxing Rock Brewing. It is a closed event, from 12-5pm, requiring a ticket (available at the bar or by email), after which the bar is open to all. Your $10 will get you first crack at some great beer and food, a special glass to take home, and a drink ticket. From Boxing Rock: Many Hands Pale Ale (their collaboration with Halifax’s Bridge Brewing, and the last keg around!), Hunky Dory Pale Ale, Temptation Red Ale, Crafty Jack English Brown, U-889 RIS with Vanilla beans, Vicar’s Cross IIPA. From Big Spruce: Tim’s Dirty (recent homebrew competition-winning IPA), Blackout Conundrum (brewed over two days when the power went out at the brewery), Organic Conspiracy IIPA (collaboration with Crannóg), Regatta Red (first time on tap at Stillwell), Bitter Get’r India Black IPA, Kitchen Party Pale Ale and Cereal Killer Oatmeal Stout. And the brewers from both breweries will be there to talk shop and answer all of your questions.

• Monday, January 13th, Halifax brewpub Rogues Roost is hosting their second Brewmaster Monday event. For $15, attendees will receive a sample of all six beers currently on tap (including their Blueberry Wheat, just released this week), and have a chance to chat with brewer Jake Saunders about the process of brewing, from recipe development to brewday to serving. These events serve as a great way to introduce folks to the art and great taste of craft beer. Contact Husky Communications on Twitter or Facebook to grab tickets. This edition of the event is almost sold out, but have no fear, they will be doing it again on January 27th!

• And if you’re looking for even MORE beer events in Halifax, the Rockbottom Brewpub is planning a series of monthly beer dinners, with the first being held on January 27th. Starting at 6 pm, the meal will consists of three courses, paired with three separate Nash beers. Tickets are $30; the menu and beer list will be posted on Rockbottom’s Facebook and Twitter pages soon.