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Friday Wrap-Up – News from Red Rover, Big Spruce, Schoolhouse, Petit-Sault, Unfiltered, Good Robot, and more!

Posted by acbbaaron on 2017-07-14
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, 902 BrewCast, Battery Park, Beau's Brewing Co, Big Axe Craft Beer Festival, Big Spruce Brewing, Boxing Rock Black Box Challenge, Boxing Rock Brewing, Brasseurs du Petit Sault, Chain Yard Cider, Good Robot Brewing, Lazy Bear Brewing, Loyalist City Brewing Co, Maybee Brewing, Nine Locks Brewery, North Brewing, Propeller Brewing, Pump House Brewery, Red Rover Craft Cider, Roof Hound Brewing, Schoolhouse Brewery, Stillwell Beer Bar, TrailWay Brewing, Trider's Craft Beer, Unfiltered Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing. 2 comments

Another Friday is upon us in Atlantic Canada and as usual, we’ve got as much news as we could dig up about beer releases, brewery news and beer-related events throughout the region. So grab yourself an appropriate beverage (perhaps you’d consider a beer?) and we’ll get right to it.

• Today, Red Rover will be releasing the second cider in their new Summer Series, which focuses on different seasonals and Reserve blends from the past, but in 750 mL bottle form. Barrel Reserve #1 is a dry, still cider (7.2% ABV) that has been oak-aged and conditioned in Bourbon barrels for over 6 months. A very limited supply of 250 bottles (which have been corked and wax-capped for aging) will be available at the Cider House and Farmers Markets. Look for Barrel Reserve #2 to follow in the near future.

• Over in Cape Breton, Nyanza’s Big Spruce just brewed up a new seasonal in their “Conspired” (Conspiratorial?) series. Brewed in collaboration with the Ocean Tracking Network, out of Dalhousie University in Halifax, Tag! You’re It! is a “light-bodied, super juicy” American IPA featuring large post knockout additions of the wonderful, tropical Citra and Mosaic hop varieties; look for this one to come in at about 6.5% ABV. This beer will be canned, with 50 cents from every sale going towards research at the OTN, which will help protect endangered ocean species. We’ll let you know when this beer becomes available to the thirsty public.

• Summer officially started a few weeks ago, and the weather has finally improved, so Windsor’s Schoolhouse Brewery will be releasing a Witbier, Summer Break, today or over the weekend. One of the tastiest of the warm-weather beer styles, it was brewed with Maritime Malt and Wheat malt, and also features the traditional additions of coriander and orange peel. Fermented with a Belgian Ale yeast to add spicy phenolics and fruity esters to the contributions from the coriander and orange peel, this 4.9% ABV, pale and hazy brew will be available in kegs only, at the brewery’s taproom and select accounts. And if you’re lucky enough to live near the brewery, stop by this Friday for a visit… not just to try Summer Break, but to watch the brewers brew up some test batches of their Pumpkin beer on the brewery patio (yes, Pumpkin beers are approaching already…sorry).

• Petit-Sault has brewed up a brand new beer that will be released to lucky participants in next month’s 12th Annual Roch-Voisine/Knights of Columbus celebrity golf tournament, held for the La Fondation Bob Fife, on August 7th and 8th at the Fraser Edmundston Golf Club. Named, appropriately, Bob Fife, this Pale Ale base beer had 100% locally-sourced and produced Haskap berry juice added, providing a pleasant, refreshing tanginess. At just 4.25% ABV, it should be the perfect golfing beer! If there’s any left after the tournament (only a very small batch was made), look for growlers to be available at the brewery only.

• Ontario’s Beau’s continues to brew beers with other breweries in the country to celebrate Canada’s 150th birthday… and next up is a collaboration with Unfiltered! Appropriately named, EPH Bomb is a “Northeast DIPA” brewed with Pilsner and acid malt, oats, and wheat, and hopped (intensely, no doubt) with Wai-iti and Azacca. The result is lots of grapefruit, pine, and papaya in the aroma, followed by a “fruity sweetness” in the flavour, “balanced by a medium bitterness and mild alcohol warmth” in the finish. Weighing in at 9% ABV and 75 IBUs, this is a limited release, and will be available at the NSLC in early-mid August. As well, look for it on tap at the Beau’s Tap Takeover at the Stillwell Beer Garden on August 10th, and at the Beau’s booth at the Seaport Beerfest (August 11th and 12th).

• Lots going on at Good Robot over the next little bit… first off, they’ve released their third SMaSH beer, adorably named SMaSH Meowth. Brewed with 100% Maris Otter, hopped with Rakau, a New Zealand variety, and fermented with East Coast Pale Ale yeast, expect notes of plum, citrus, melon, and pear in this 5.5% ABV, 45 IBU brew. And today is Friday, meaning there’s a new entry in their Cask in the Sun series – Goseface Killah with organic peach and nectarine. Finally, we have some info on their next Beta Brewsday release this coming Tuesday. Sour Mumma Bloomfield was brewed by loyal employee Erica Fraser (who is responsible for sending us beer info every week… thanks for that!). This “hopless, malt-forward herbal beer” was soured from the addition of locally-harvested herbs, including  rose, yarrow, thyme, lavender, sage, rosemary, and marigold. But that’s not all! Some roasted dandelion root, nettle, and a tea blend prepared from herbs harvested from the Mother Oak Permaculture Co-op were also added. Tart, with an apple pie-like character in the taste, drop by the brewery next Tuesday to give this 4.8% ABV brew a try.

• A couple of blocks over, at Agricola and North, Chain Yard Urban Cidery has a new cider available that incorporates gin for a riff on one of the most classic cocktails of summer. Ginx is, at its heart, a dry cider made from a blend of Northern Spy and Jonogold apples. It was then conditioned with gin from Lunenburg’s Ironworks Distillery along with the juice of organic limes. The result is a dry cider with plenty of juniper on the nose, a balance between the cider and spirit components, and a clean and refreshing finish. Chain Yard’s cider maker, Jay Hildybrant, developed Ginx both to prove his belief that a dry cider and gin would play nicely together, but also as a way to incorporate another local product into a fun summer drink. It’s available for 12 oz pours and growler fills at the cidery (although we’ve heard a rumour that some may make it into stubbies in the future), but tread carefully: at 9.5% ABV it’s going to pack a bit of a boozy punch as well!

• And to complete our little tour of North End Halifax this week, we head up to Gottingen Street, where Propeller has some new and renewed things on the go. First is a beer that was released last week in the California Common style, a medium-bodied ale, traditionally fermented with a lager yeast strain that can withstand the higher temperatures favored by ale yeasts. Propeller’s version of this classic is called Sacramento Common and it’s 5.5% ABV, with a rich amber color and 39 IBUs provided by Northern Brewer hops, which are also traditionally the only hops used in this style. Toasty and caramel notes from the malts mingle with light fruits and lingering bitterness from the hops to yield a slightly malty and sweet but not-too-heavy beer.

• Next, released this past Wednesday, is a beer in a very modern style that sees the clove and banana characteristics of German-style wheat beers meet heavy late hopping with modern hop varieties a la a West Coast IPA. The term for the style is also the name of this new beer from Propeller: Hopfenweisse. Generously late-hopped with dank Simcoe and wine-y Nelson Sauvin, you’re apt to taste passion fruit and gooseberry with some tropical fruit and banana. Medium bodied and carbed up nice and high, it’s a hazy golden yellow color. Although pushing 48 IBUs, you should find the mouthfeel and fruity tropical flavors mitigate the bitterness of this refreshing, 5.8% ABV beer. Both of these beers are available at the taproom for pints and, we presume, growler fills as well.

• Moving on, as part of the rollout of their updated brand, Propeller has revisited the recipe for their stalwart Double IPA. Now in 650 mL bottles for 30% more beer, we’re also told they’re adding dry hops at 300% of the old rate! It’s already available in Propeller’s bottle shop and we expect you’ll see it in the same places you saw the original version, including select NSLC locations and the private stores in Halifax.

• Finally (!), during last weekend’s 20th Anniversary celebrations, Propeller held the Brew Patriot Love competition, and they are happy to announce that Brew-Deau Canadian Cream Ale from Trider’s was voted the most Canadian beer. A fun contest, where the beers were judged not solely on taste, but on the story, packaging, and “Canadian” qualities, Brew-deau beat out a dozen other beers to take the title. Congratulations to Trider’s, and learn a bit more about the event here, and if you dispute the results, get ready to brew your own for next year’s event, to coincide with next May’s Canadian Brewing Awards and Conference in Halifax.

• Along with the return of crowd favourites Hu John Hops and Luster earlier this week, Fredericton’s TrailWay also released another new entry in the ever-growing hoppy lineup. Apeel is a supremely sessionable (4% ABV) brew marketed as a contrast to Luster. With more malt character than most of their highly-hopped beers (and a dark tan colour in the body as a result, which definitely is a change from the pale yellow colour we expect from many TW beers!), there’s still plenty of hops popping, thanks to large additions of Ekuanot and Ella, giving “an amazing depth of fruit, berries, and orange peel”. Available on tap everywhere, and in cans at the brewery only (depending on stock, some may pop up at a few ANBL stores).

• Shelburne’s Boxing Rock has two new beers on the go as well as the results of their contest to name the beer they’re dedicating to the Tall Ships visit in mid-August. That winning submission was the appropriately nautical Three Sheets Cream Ale and, quite coincidentally, it was suggested by one Harry MacDonald, who also happened to be Boxing Rock’s very first paying customer four years ago! Look for that beer to make its appearance very shortly before the ships sail into port.

• Meanwhile, the two other beers on the BR docket this week are brand new releases that arose out of this year’s Black Box Challenge. The winning beer, Brian Harvey’s Grafted has already come and gone, but as we mentioned in our report on the event, Henry and Emily told us several of the finalist beers were impressive enough to be considered for production batches. First is Grand Mariner, a Belgian IPA by Kelly Costello. You may recognize Kelly’s name as she currently reigns over Good Robot’s BetaBrew system and is cranking out small batches of unique and tasty treats for their taproom on the regular. The original version of this beer actually had the highest tasting score in the Black Box Challenge event. It’s lower than most IPAs on the ABV side, at a sessionable 5.0%, and it features Bravo and Wild Turkey hops, the latter being a wild cultivar sourced from a hop farm in Ontario. The beer has also been “dry-hopped” with an addition of sweet orange peel after primary fermentation for a perfume of citrus. The second new beer comes in a style we’re not sure has been seen in Nova Scotia, or even Atlantic Canada, at least not any time recently. Tropic Thunder, brewed in collaboration with Jason Currie, is a Tropical Stout, a style that grew up in hot climates where darker beers are found to be quite refreshing. The style is known for marrying roasty dark malt flavours with sweetness and fruitiness while keeping the bitterness well in check. Tropic Thunder delivers all that in a 6.0% ABV package, along with a citrus note from sweet orange peel to finish it all off. Both of these winning beers have been bottled in 650 mL bombers and will be available at the brewery and the private stores in Halifax.

• And rounding out the Boxing Rock news for this week, be sure to listen to the 902 BrewCast which dropped on #902sday this week, when Kyle, Phil, and Tony visited the Shelburne brewery to learn about their beginnings, struggles and successes, and even tease a new brand beer coming in the next couple of weeks.

• Lazy Bear, located in Smiths Cove, NS, has released a brand new beer this week named Punch. Featuring plenty of tropical hops, namely El Dorado, Idaho 7, and Olicana, the beer is big on taste, but small in alcohol, weighing in at 4.6% ABV. Yeast from Imperial Yeast was chosen for this beer, resulting in a hazy juice-bomb. Punch is available at the brewery for their Thursday night events, and will be at their stall at the Annapolis Royal Farmers’ Market this weekend. Look for it on tap shortly at Battery Park too!

• Saint John’s Loyalist City Brewing Co has a new beer pouring in the city this weekend, Stonehammer Saison. Brewed in the traditional French style, using a simple Pilsner and Wheat malt bill, fermented with an iconic yeast, the spritzy and naturally spicy and fruity beer was complemented with a double round of Mandarina Bavaria dry hopping for extra citrus character. Drop by one of LCBC’s Uptown licensees for a pour, or visit the ANBL growler fill locations to grab it to go, possibly for enjoyment at the Stonehammer Geopark just outside of Saint John.

• Moncton’s Pump House Brewery has announced that they will soon begin filling growlers. From noon to midnight each day, a variety of their year-round and seasonal beers will be available to take away in the popular format. We’ll have more details when available.

• In a late addition to the blog, we are thrilled to announce that the first beer to age in the foedres installed at 2 Crows Brewing in Halifax will be available tomorrow. Crosswired, the 5.3% hazy and pale beer, fermented with both wine and beer yeasts, has been hanging out in the Calvados barrel for a couple of months, and is now ready for prime-time. Cans of the beer will be available exclusively at the brewery beginning tomorrow at noon, and are in short supply, so you are well-advised to get to the brewery this weekend to avoid disappointment. To learn more about Crosswired, check out our post on it from its release in April, and about the foedres from a post in May.

As always, we’ve also got some upcoming events you might want to consider checking out!

• For those of you lucky enough to have tickets to the sold-out Big Axe Craft Beer Festival tomorrow, have fun! Registration starts at 3 pm, so be sure to get there ahead of the 4 pm start time so that you’re ready to start enjoying the multiple varieties of beer, cider, and mead that will be pouring. If you’re in the area and missed out on tickets, fear not… next week we should have details on another beer festival happening in the near future, in the town of Woodstock!

• Dartmouth’s Battery Park is hosting yet another beer event, with their Nine Locks Tap Takeover on Thursday, July 20th. Looks like the official tap list has not been released yet, but rest assured you’ll be seeing plenty of goodies from Nine Locks, and the event will run all day. As usual, no charge to attend, just pay by the pint!

• A reminder that Upstreet with be releasing Year 2 of De Novo next Thursday, July 20th. Their Anniversary beer, De Novo is a light mixed-fermentation (read: blend of several yeasts, including Brett) Saison that has spent the last month bottle-conditioning and is now ready for sale. Drop by the brewery that evening for a fun event and to try both Year 1 and 2 of De Novo, and some other special beers.

• On Saturday, July 22nd, drop by Digby’s Roof Hound Brewery for the latest screening of Sociable!, the Nova Scotia craft beer film. Filmmakers Helen and Chris will be on hand to chat about the film, and the growth in the NS beer landscape since filming. And in the spirit of community, Roof Hound has invited several other breweries to bring a keg of beer to showcase their wares, including nearby Lazy Bear, Yarmouth’s Heritage, Lawrencetown’s Lunn’s Mill, and Windsor’s Schoolhouse. And while there, be sure to try their Full Circle Pizza, which features sausages made from locally-raised pork, which was raised on RH’s spent grain.

• Tatamagouche is a beautiful town and home to a fantastic brewery, so it’s only fair that they’re getting their own beer festival! On Saturday, July 29th, the first North Shore Craft Brew Expo will be held at the North Shore Rec Centre from 6-11:30 pm. There will be at least 12 local breweries and one cidery attending; your ticket price of $42.55 (+ fee) will get you entry and five 4 oz drink tickets; additional drink tickets can be purchased for $2 each. Local food vendors will be onsite, and live music will be playing throughout the night, starting at 8 pm. Tickets are available here.

Hope you all have a great weekend! A few final things before we let you go…

– Maybee now has their Orion, a 11.5% ABV Belgian Strong Dark Ale with maple syrup, available at the brewery for purchase in 750 mL corked-and-caged bottles.
– North has re-released Little Beast, their 4% ABV “light lagered ale”, as well as a new batch of Malternate Reality (with this version being dry-hopped with Mosaic cryohops, and El Dorado).
– If you’re a fan of the citrus bomb that is DOA from Unfiltered you’ll be happy to know it’ll be back on tap at the brewery for fills and Charm School Pub for pints and fills as of this Friday at noon.

Friday Wrap-Up – New beers from Lunn’s Mill, Heritage, Loyalist City, TrailWay, Grimross and much more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2017-07-07
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 902 BrewCast, Authentic Seacoast Brewing, Battery Park, Big Tide Brewing, Boxing Rock Brewing, CCNB, Celtic Knot Brewing, Chain Yard Cider, Finest Kind Food, FirkinStein Brewing, Fredericton Beer Run, Fredericton Ladies Beer Connection, Gahan House Port City, Good Robot Brewing, Grimross Brewing, Hammond River Brewing, Heritage Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Ironworks Distillery, Java Blend Coffee Roasters, Johnny Jacks Brewery, Liquid Riot, Low Point Coffee Co, Loyalist City Brewing Co, Lunn's Mill Beer Company, Mill Street Brewpub, Moncton Craft Brewers Collective, North Brewing, Picaroons, Propeller Brewing, Saltbox Brewing, Savoie's Brewhouse, Stillwell Beer Bar, Tide & Boar Gastropub, TrailWay Brewing, Trou du Diable, Upstreet Craft Brewing, WestSide Beer Wine Spirits, Whycocomagh Craft Beer Festival. Leave a Comment

Hey, it’s Friday again! Just when we were getting back into the groove after a three-day break, they decided to send another weekend our way, how about that! We’ve got brand new beers, and plenty of events to tell you about across our region, so grab your sandwich in one hand, your beer in the other, and scroll along with us today…

• Down in Lawrencetown in the Annapolis Valley of Nova Scotia, the gang at Lunn’s Mill decided to do something special for their 50th batch. Reaching into their trove of favourite recipes, they came up with a double dry-hopped SMaSH beer featuring current darling of North American brewing Mosaic hops. Called Canada Day SMaSH for the simple fact that it was released just in time for the big day last weekend, it leverages a new school technique for dry hopping, namely the addition of the first charge before the completion of primary fermentation, which helps to provide a “juicy” character. The result is a showcase of the hop, with tropical fruit followed by citrus and then a dank finish. There wasn’t a huge batch of it to begin with and it’s going fast, so if you want to get your hands on it you’ll have to get down there for a sample or a growler fill. That said, we’ve been advised that it might very well make another appearance in the future. Meanwhile, in other Lunn’s Mill news, they’re getting the paperwork together to allow for pouring full pints in their hospitality room, which should hopefully happen in the next few weeks. And their 5 BBL Brew-in-a-Conical is ramping up to full production, with a couple of batches already done, including Charming Molly. More beer brewed should mean more availability in other parts of the province.

• Southwestern Nova Scotia’s newest brewery, Heritage Brewing Co in Yarmouth also released a single hop beer for Canada Day, their Citra Session IPA. Cited as one of their own favourites in our profile back in mid-June, it’s now available. Featuring the extremely citrusy Citra hop variety, this beer has just enough base and specialty malt to bring it up to 5% ABV and balance the flavour brought by hops. At 42 IBU it should have a firm, but not distracting bitterness, and dry-hopping should ensure that it’s got a healthy aroma. Grapefruit, melon, gooseberry, passionfruit and lychee are all represented in this easy-drinking summer quaffer. It’s definitely available at the brewery for growler fills and 4oz tasters; hopefully it will appear at tap accounts as well.

• Hopping across the Bay of Fundy finds us in Saint John, NB, where Loyalist City Brewing has released Pink Dwarf, the first of their “Summer Sour” series of beers. Brewed in the Berliner Weisse style with a German Wheat and Pilsner malt grist, it was soured with their own blend of four Lactobacillus strains. Pink Dwarf gets its name from the Dwarf Cherries used in the beer, giving it a lovely pink hue. The tartness of the cherries only serve to enhance the acidity of the Lacto, and provide the unfiltered beer with a sour cherry flavour and aroma. It is currently available at a couple of LCBC’s accounts in Saint John, and on tap at the ANBL growler* stations in Saint John/KV and Fredericton this weekend, along with their Wurttemberg Weissbier. *The growler document is slow to update this week, double-check the date in case it’s not been updated when you read this…

• Also in Saint John, Big Tide Brewing has a very special ale on tap for the second time. Originally designed with Gilliane Nadeau of Uncorked Tours and her husband-to-be for their engagement party, a new batch has been brewed to celebrate the actual nuptials this weekend. ALEtar MatrimoniALE was brewed in the Altbier style, with traditional Pilsner, Munich and Vienna malts, top-fermenting ale yeast, and hopped lightly with Hallertau Magnum and Saazer hops before being aged for 5 weeks. Light copper in colour, it comes in at 5.2% ABV and a light 20 IBU, smooth as the style goes and easy-drinking enough to be sessionable. Also on the board as of Canada Day is another summery fruit beer that they’re calling Long Reach Strawberry Rhubarb Blonde. Starting with a blonde ale recipe using 2-row and pale malts along with Libery hops to the tune of 20 IBU, they added over 60 lbs. of local rhubarb and strawberries. The result is a 5.4% ABV refreshing beer that walks a fine line between tart and sweet. As long as they last, you’ll find both of these beers available for pints in the taproom and growler fills to go.

• Heading up Highway 7 will get you to Fredericton, where TrailWay Brewing calls home. They have released a pair of new beers in the past seven days, so let’s get you up to speed: Last Friday saw the release of Adore Double IPA, a hazy, juicy, aromatic beer featuring plenty of late- and dry-hopping from Amarillo, Citra, El Dorado, and Ella. Smooth and supremely drinkable, despite its 8.0% ABV. Joining Adore is the latest in Trailway’s “Seeing” series, this time featuring Ekuanot (formerly known as Equinox). Seeing Ekuanot is a 6.0% IPA, and for the first time, TW used lupulin powder for half of the dry-hop. On hop cones, the resiny yellow powder are lupulin glands, containing the essential oils and Alpha and Beta acids that are the primary ingredients for which hops are so highly prized. Extraction of the lupulin powder brings out these positives, but without any of the plant material to get in the way. We couldn’t say it any better than TrailWay, “The result is massive flavour and aroma without the vegetative and astringency that can be introduced when dryhopping at these rates with pellets or whole cone.” Both of these beers are available now at their North Side taproom on tap for samples, pints, and growlers, and in cans (but in more limited fashion).

• Still in Fredericton, Grimross Brewing has hopped (see what we did there) on the Summer Dad Beer trend with their new Braunschweig German Pils. Crystal clear and brilliant yellow, it weighs in at a lovely and light 4.5% ABV and features the complex flavour you’d expect from the style. Kegged yesterday, it is already available in the Grimross Taproom and should be making an appearance at the Picaroons Brewtique. And don’t worry if you don’t think you can pronounce Braunschweig, it’s just the German form of Brunswick!

• Heading back down to Saint John and environs, there are two breweries looking to complete their teams for their imminent opening/expansion. Hammond River Brewery is hiring folks for their taproom in Rothesay at 141 Old Hampton Road (adjacent to the Barrel’s Head), which is slated to open next week (all signs point to July 10th later in the week). Contact them via social media for more details.

• The second brewery is Gahan House Port City, which will soon be calling 87 Prince William St home. They are hiring Assistant General Managers, a Head Chef and Sous Chefs. Check out their Careers page and email for more information, and you can expect their location to open this fall.

• The three-bearded beer-banging beast known as 902 BrewCast dropped episode #17 last week, this time with Chad Steeves of Moncton’s Tide & Boar Gastropub talking about craft beer, food, and operating their own brewery. Meanwhile, the boys hit the road this week to the South Shore to visit and record episodes with Bridgewater’s Firkinstein and Shelburne’s Boxing Rock. So if you haven’t already, grab the T&B episode and give it a listen while you anticipate what’s coming down the pike this coming Nine-Oh-Tuesday.

• And speaking of Boxing Rock, word came out this week that the latest beers in their Barrel Aged series have arrived: Barrel Aged Battery Rock and Barrel Aged U-889 made their debut this week after both spent some six months in barrels formerly used at Ironworks Distillery for their gold medal-winning Bluenose Rum. If you’ll recall, Battery Rock was an India Brown Ale specially brewed in collaboration with North Brewing for Boxing Rock’s takeover of Battery Park back in November. What was already a big beer at 9% ABV is now a certified heavy-hitter at 11%. And if you’re worried you’ll miss the hops half a year later, fear not, as a new round of dry-hopping with Citra and Huell Melon took place between the barrel and the bottle. That said don’t expect the hops to express themselves as they would in a young beer. As for the U-889, it also saw a jump from 9% ABV (well, 8.89%, allegedly) to the 11% range after its time in the barrel. A bigger-bodied beer to begin with, expect the vanilla and coffee to have mellowed somewhat and melded with the wood and spirit character. And if you missed the first of BR’s Barrel series, the Barrel Aged Triskaidekaphobia Brown Ale last April, it turns out there are a few of those left as well, now with a year of bottle aging to boot. If you’re interested in any of these beers, the only place we’re sure you can get them is at the brewery, but if we hear tell of them appearing at the private stores in Halifax or one or more of the province’s farmers markets we’ll be sure to let you know!

• Further up the South Shore, Mahone Bay’s Saltbox Brewing Company has a couple of beers in the works. The first is the return of their Loyalist ESB, a 5.9% ABV and 38 IBU beer that inhabits the upper end of the scale for English Bitters. It’s hopped with the classic English Fuggle hops and Nottingham yeast for a very traditional experience. They’re hoping to keg it tomorrow, so you should find it available in the coming week at the brewery for fills and pints, and later at tap accounts. Meanwhile they’re also putting the finishing touches on their Rhubarb Berliner Weiss, a 4.8% ABV beer that was soured with some 10 – 15 pounds of rhubarb along with Lactobacillus in the fermenter. They’re hoping to have that one available early next week, also by the pint in the taproom and growler fills to go, but this one is also expected to see some distribution for growler stations in the private stores in Halifax. And if you’re looking for something delicious to go with that beer, Saltbox will also be welcoming Backoos Korean Togo for a pop-up tomorrow and Sunday.

• Things are swinging at Horton Ridge Malt and Grain Co. with the advent of their new on-site brewery and tap room. This week they had a new beer of their own pouring, the Island Wheat. Lightly hopped with Mosaic and Azacca for hints of tropical fruit and citrus, the wheat should make it a refreshing sipper for summer weather. And a reminder to check in regularly on Horton’s social media accounts for their tap list. Their own beers are small batch and can rotate fairly frequently as can their guest taps, which have seen some killer brews already in the short time they’ve been open!

• The Good Robot gang on Robie Street in Halifax is keeping up with their Friday Cask in the Sun pledge this week with another variant on their Goseface Killah, this week again featuring arctic kiwis but replacing last week’s watermelon with pineapple. Should make for a super-refreshing and tropical afternoon and evening of sipping on the Gastroturf. And we’d love to tell you about the beer for this coming Tuesday’s Beta Brewsday, but it turns out we already did last week, so go read it there. Due to a last minute change of plan, the Re:Drella brewed by Kelly Costello with Dan Hendricken was bumped to coincide with Dan’s involvement in GR’s next Just Vorlaufs! event also slated for this coming Tuesday. Meanwhile, last week’s beer ended up being the Calypso White IPA brewed by Kelly with new Robot Giovanni Johnson. It was 4.6% ABV, with Cascade, Centennial and Nelson Sauvin hops and a misleading 91 IBUs because it was “definitely still crushable”. So crushable, in fact, that it was gone by 8:30pm.

• For those interested in learning a little more about what it’s like on the business side of taking the plunge and opening a brewery, look no further than the Startup Canada Podcast with Rivers Corbett. Their latest episode, #93, is a chat with Mitch Cobb, co-founder and CEO of Upstreet Brewing in Charlottetown, PEI. Upstreet represents Mitch’s third foray into start-up businesses, so he’s got lots of experiences to share along with, we expect, some hints as to what’s coming down the pipe for Upstreet. Check Mitch’s episode out on iTunes and Soundcloud, preferably with an Upstreet brew in hand.

• We have more detail to add to the previous call for analytical beer testing by the CCNB: ‘‘Free chemical and microbiological testing! The CCNB-BTSC is collecting finished craft beer samples for a study on beer biochemical quality and local ingredients. This is for licensed craft breweries only. The testing includes: %ABV, SRM, IBU, sugars, organic acids, pH, anaerobic/aerobic Lactobacillus strains, etc. Selection will be done on a first-come, first-served basis, so contact them as quickly as possible, as they are collecting a limited amount of samples. If you are interested in participating in the study and getting some free beer analysis and data interpretations that could help optimize your product and/or your brewing process, please contact Jared Christensen (jared.christensen@ccnb.ca 506-475-4029) to get filled in on the specifics of the project.’’ We are also able to share this one-page primer on the project.

Another busy beery weekend is upon us. Shine up your drinking shoes, it’ll be a large few days! As usual, check out our Calendar for everything on the go in AtlCanBeer events, and be sure to let us know if we’ve missed anything!

• Halifax’s Stillwell Beer Bar is welcoming back Portland’s Liquid Riot Bottling Co this weekend, after their eye-opening visit last summer. With a full range of beers from light wheat beers to hazy IPAs and big stouts, they are taking over the taps at the Barrington Mothership today from 6pm, and tomorrow at the Spring Garden Beer Garden from noon. The LRBC crew will be on hand to chat about their brewery, and have special insight into the Maine brewing scene, through their must-visit sister bar Novare Res. Keep an eye out for the other events Stillwell’ll be hosting over the next couple of months, including a tap takeover by Vankleek Hill, Ontario’s, Beau’s All Natural on August 10th; Le Trou du Diable from Shawinagan and an two-day epic Belgianfest, dates of those are still TBD. Rest assured we’ll be keeping you informed of all of the details as soon as we know!

• Shelburne’s Boxing Rock is celebrating their Fourth Birthday Party all day tomorrow. Open from 11AM, they’ll be featuring brewery tours (2 for 1 discount), live music, washer toss and beer pong all day, plus hosting Axe Throwing from 1:00-3:00 ($15), Finest Kind Food will have a BBQ and corn boil from 1:30-3:30, and at 3:00, there will be cake and the name of their new beer celebrating Shelburne’s Tall Ship Event be will announced (you’ll have to wait until the event mid-August for the beer itself!). More details are available here, be sure to drop by 78 Ohio Road in Shelburne for a great day food, beer, and fun.

• Also happening all day tomorrow, July 8th, is Propeller’s Gottingen Street Block Party in celebration of their Twentieth Anniversary! It’s gotten even more epic and fun and outrageous since we first mentioned it last month, with several more artists signed on, and an expansion of the venues. The fun kicks off at 1:00PM at The Local, just down the block from Propeller, and then at 5:00PM in the parking lot of Seven Bays Bouldering adjacent to Propeller. Both of those shows will run into the afternoon and early evening, with the main event starting at 10:00 PM at the Marquee, where Skratch Bastid & Friends take the stage to keep the street bumping until late. The afternoon events are free and family-friendly, with the tickets for the evening show just $20. All proceeds are going to the  North End Community Health Centre, and donations will be collected at the events (and you can donate online here). Check the full lineup details here. This weekend is also the perfect time to check out the latest Gottingen Small Batch releases, two versions of a California Common, either Sacramento Common (5.5% ABV, 39 IBUs) or San Diego Common (4.0% ABV, 35 IBU). Try them both, and let them know if you’re a NorCal or SoCal kinda drinker.

• In Fredericton, the Ladies Beer Connection is holding their Six Month anniversary celebration next Wednesday, July 12th. The King Street Ale House will be hosting the crew from 6:30 to 8:00, and for just $22.50 (+tax), you’ll receive ten 4 ounce samples of whatever they have on tap. And if you’d like to keep sampling, addition purs are just $2.00 each. It’s a great way to come out and spend time with fellow beer fans from the area, taste your way through KSAH’s offerings, and have a fun evening. Please RSVP today to reserve your spot, and check out more details here.

• On July 13th, as part of the Whycocomagh Summer Festival, the Whycocomagh Waterfront Centre is hosting the Inaugural Whycocomagh Craft Beer Festival. From 8:00 to 10:00 PM, your $20 entry (pay at the door) gets you ten 4oz samples and a souvenir glass. More 4oz samples can be purchased for $1 each. Enjoy live music while sampling beer from Big Spruce, Boxing Rock, Gahan House Halifax, Garrison, and Tatamagouche. There will be food to purchase from Crusin’ Cuisine, Laura’s Pretzels, Little Asia, and Sam’s Point Oysters. The WWC is located at 9650 NS-105 in Whycocomagh, NS.

• Next weekend, Picaroons is hosting a Craft Beer Village on Downing Street in Moncton, as part of Festival Inspire. From 4:00-12:00 Friday July 14th, and 2:00-12:00 Saturday July 15th, enjoy plenty of Pics’ offerings, mead from fellow Fredericton business Sunset Heights/Pollen Angels Meadery, plus local members of the Moncton Craft Brewers Collective: Acadie-Broue, Bore City Brewing, Celtic Knot Brewing, Flying Boats Brewing, The Pump House Brewery and Restaurant, Scow Cider du Verger Belliveau, and Tide and Boar. The event is pay-as-you-enjoy, and 19+.

• Stretch your New Brunswick Day (Monday August 7th) into three fun days by running around Fredericton! Hosted by the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, three runs are being held that long weekend: the Sprited Dash on Saturday, Wine Run on Sunday, and Beer Run on Monday.
Fredericton Spirited Dash, Aug 5th 2017: 1 mile dash followed by Cocktail sampling.
Fredericton Wine Run, August 6th 2017: 5 km or 5 Miler followed by Wine sampling.
Fredericton Beer Run, August 7th 2017: 4, 6, & 12 Km run followed by a Beer, Cider and Mead sampling.
Sign up for all three and receive a special gift plus a free carb-loading pasta meal after the Fredericton Spirited Dash Saturday night.
Sign up at RaceRoster today to secure your spots! For those not willing to run for their beer, tickets are available for the post-run Beer, Cider, and Mead sampling on Monday the 7th.

Before you head out today…

– Congratulations to Riverview’s Celtic Knot who brewed up the first batch of beer on their new 4.5 hl (3.75 BBL) brewhouse this week. Look for that beer, and plenty more, in growlers when they open their retail location later this summer, and on tap at more spots in the region thanks to the expanded capacity.

– Oromocto’s Johnny Jacks Brewery have released a new beer, Farmhouse Ale. A Belgian-inspired 5.4% ABV light summer beer, it is available at a couple of ANBL locations, and on tap in their neighbourhood.

– Mill Street St John’s has released a new beer this week, Best Kind IPA. Hopped solely with Mosaic throughout the brewday as well as dry-hopping, the finished beer features plenty of citrus and pineapple flavours and aroma, on top of an unfiltered light body. At 6.5% ABV and 58 IBUs, this juicy beer is on tap for samples, pints, and growlers now.

– Halifax’s new cidery on the block Chain Yard had a new offering hit the taps on Wednesday. Lime-Stone Sessional is a lower-ABV offering at 4.8% that features lots of citrus and stone fruit presence, perfect for a hot day on their Agricola Street patio.

– Nothing says summer quite like maple syrup! At least that’s what the folks at Authentic Seacoast (aka Rare Bird) are thinking, as they have released their Maple Ale at the NSLC’s The Port location. The beer is brewed using locally-collected sap in place of all of the water, and the beer finishes at 6.5% ABV. You can also grab a taste of the beer at their brewery at 75 Ferry Road in Guysborough all summer.

– Charlo’s Savoie’s Brewhouse is switching their packaging from bottling to canning, thanks to a new acquisition in the brewery. The first beers to be packaged in cans in the coming months will be Island Lake Blonde and Chaleaur Phantom Amber Ale, followed by Charlo Falls Rye IPA, and Heron’s Nest Porter. Also available at the brewery, and at the adjacent Heron’s Nest Pub, are Sugarloaf Mountain Maple Amber, Herons Island Orange Wheat, Bullers Blueberry Wheat, Bon Ami Strawberry Wheat, and Restigouche River Raspberry Wheat. Look for their version of the Acadian Nut Brown to debut in the fall, along with their Fall Fair Harvest Ale.

– The Calvados barrel-aged coffee we told you about last week from Low Point Coffee Co has now been roasted by Halifax’s Java Blend and packaged for sale. We’ve heard there’s only 50 or so bags of this available (and we’ve spoken for two of ’em!) so if you’re keen to try it out we suggest you not wait too long! Contact them on social media, or go see them at their stall at the Alderney Landing Farmers Market.

– We can now report that WestSide Beer Wine Spirits (aka Cristall Wine Merchants’ new name and location) will be opening at 287 Lacewood (in the former Brewdebakers location) early next week, probably Monday, July 10th. Featuring 8 taps for growler fills, several large coolers, and an expanded floor space for other, lesser beverages, it will be growing several times its current size.

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Four Rivers Brewing Co, Tatamagouche, Annapolis Cider, Garrison, Spindrift & more!

Posted by acbbshawn on 2017-06-30
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Annapolis Cider Company, Antigonish Townhouse, Battery Park, Boxing Rock Brewing, Fathers of Fermentation, Four Rivers Brewing Co., Gahan House (Charlottetown), Garrison Brewing, Good Robot Brewing, Granite Brewery, Hammond River Brewing, Heritage Brewing, Long Bay Brewery, Low Point Coffee Co, Moncton Craft Brewers Collective, North Brewing, Picaroons, Red Rover Craft Cider, Roof Hound Brewing, Sociable!, Spindrift Brewing, Stillwell Beer Bar, Tatamagouche Brewing, Tidehouse Brewing, Uncle Leo's Brewery, Unfiltered Brewing. 1 comment

Happy Friday, and the beginning of a long weekend (maybe… depending on your job I guess?)! Unfortunately, the weather isn’t looking too hot for celebrating Canada’s big 150, but don’t let that stop you from getting out and (responsibly) enjoying some of the fine local beer in your area. And speaking of fine, local beer, we’ve got some news to report on just that very subject…

• Bathurst, New Brunswick will soon be the home to its first craft brewery, as Four Rivers Brewing Co. is planning to open their doors this December. Family-owned and operated, the four owners are currently renovating an entire building to house the 15 bbl (1750 L) DME brewhouse, which will also be home to a taproom. Likely launching with a Pale Ale and Amber Ale, with plenty of seasonals and one-offs to follow, beers will available in growlers, cans, and on tap at licensees across the province. We’ll keep you up to date with Four Rivers’ progress, and will be posting a Q&A with the owners in the future!

• The kind folks at Tatamagouche Brewing don’t want us beer lovers going thirsty, so they’re releasing plenty of brews this week! Let’s get right to it by starting with the brand new ones. First up is Main St. Mayhem, a 6.3% ABV, 65 IBU American IPA brewed with Pale and Pilsner malt, and a bit of Wheat and Rye malt for some extra character. Hopped with Citra, El Dorado, Huell Melon and Mosaic, it was fermented with Vermont Ale yeast to boost that juicy character that we all love even more. Growlers are now available at the brewery, and kegs are in the wild… a limited number of cans will be released next week.

• Moving right along, Tata Brew’s latest kettle-soured Berliner Weisse is next, and they’re calling it Guava Heist. With a base of Pilsner and Wheat malt, and a touch of rolled oats, this beer was aged on organic guava purée. At a super-sessionable 3.6% ABV and 4 IBUs, look for this one to be released next week in kegs, growlers and cans. Curious what the base beer itself tastes like? Well, luckily the brewery racked off some of the “lemony, bright citrus” base beer so visitors to the tasting room could do a side-by-side with the fruited version; a few kegs have also been released to select accounts. Be sure to seek out both!

• Finally, a couple of Tata favourites are returning as well. Their RR#2, a 4.9% ABV, 18 IBU light Lager brewed with Malagash-grown hops, is out now in kegs, growlers, and cans. This time around, the beer was hopped entirely with Mt. Hood – small amounts in the kettle, but with very large hopback additions, giving “very earthy, grassy, and floral” aromas. And Sunrise Trail ISA, one of the brewery’s Session IPAs, is also back for summer, with a slightly-tweaked recipe. The grist still features 2-row and Pilsner malt, but the Wheat has been replaced with Spelt. Hopped with lots of Azacca, as well as some Falconer’s Flight, Hallertau Blanc, and Simcoe (to 30 IBUs),  this one will be around all summer at the brewery, bars, and private stores, with cans even hitting the NSLC by August!

• The latest cider in the Something Different series from Annapolis Cider is now available, for a limited time only. Strawberry Rhubarb is a delicious-sounding blend of the cidery’s cool-fermented dry apple cider with the juice of local, hand-picked ruby red rhubarb and garden strawberries, along with a bit of fresh-pressed apple juice to finish it all off. The final 6.3% ABV, pale-red, cider exhibits “bright notes of juicy strawberries paired with the bold zing of tart rhubarb”, with a crisp and refreshing finish that’s perfect for summer. The Blue Route will be the recipient of the 50 cents-from-every-fill donation for this release. Drop by the cidery today to get your fill!

• Garrison Brewing released another sour beer yesterday at the brewery. Sour to the People is a “Strong Sour Ale”, brewed with a simple grist of Pilsner and Wheat malt. Kettle-soured with a Lactobacillus pitch, no hops were added at any point in the brewing process. While the majority of kettle-soured beers tend to be in the sub-5% ABV range, this new brew comes in at 6.5% ABV, and has aromas of green apple, peach, and sweet malt, and more green apple and lemon on the palate. Drop by the brewery for a sample and growler fill, and look for this one to pop up on tap around the HRM.

• Spindrift has a new beer they just launched yesterday at the brewery, Blood Orange India Pale Lager. With a grist of Heidelburg (a very-light coloured malt), Light Munich, and Vienna, the beer was hopped to 35 IBUs with El Dorado, Chinook, Citra, and Simcoe. Aged on 900 lbs of pure blood oranges, it was then dry-hopped with more Citra, and Mandarina Bavaria… needless to say, we can expect lots of tropical and stone fruit notes to complement the citrus and red berry characteristics of the blood orange. This 5.5% ABV Lager is available now in cans and growlers at the brewery, with the cans likely trickling into private stores over the weekend.

• It’s Friday, which (usually) means that 2 Crows is releasing another small batch brew at the brewery! Crystal Rhythm is a “Brett Session Ale”, a 3.9% ABV, 35 IBUs beer fermented with Amalgamation, an increasingly-popular pitch made up of six different strains of Brettanomyces. With late boil additions of Azacca, Citra and Galaxy, the beer was dry-hopped with Simcoe and a touch of Calypso, and conditioned on lime zest. Described as “dry, crushable, citrusy, and a bit funky”, if all that isn’t enough to make you non-Haligonians want to move to Halifax, here’s something else – like the other small batch releases, it’s only available for pours at the taproom. Dang.

• Though we might be accused of stretching the credulity of “beer-related” on this one, hear us out. If you’ll recall a few months ago, we told you about the magnificent Calvados Foeders brought in by 2 Crows for some barrel-aging projects. As it turns out, beer isn’t the only thing that can benefit from some time in the barrel: a recent trend in coffee is to age green beans in a spirit barrel before roasting them. Dartmouth coffee and cold brew purveyors Low Point Coffee Co. (formerly Bottleneck Coffee) jumped on that train and hit up 2 Crows’ brewmaster Jeremy Taylor for some foeder time for a bean lot from Burundi. Already sporting notes of caramel, candy apple, lemongrass and a faintly floral aroma, it’s now been kissed by decades worth of Calvados which impart toffee and black cherry undertones and some noticeable boozy notes, especially on the nose. The gang at Low Point has brewed a small amount that you can look for to pop up around the city via keg accounts and the remaining roasted beans will be available by the bag. They recommend a one-cup method, be it pour over, siphon, aeropress, cold brew or espresso and would be happy to provide advice to you if you’re lucky enough to lay hands on some of these beans. And here’s where we come back around to beer: one of the popular uses for barrel-aged coffee beans is for flavouring big dark beers known for coffee flavours, such as Russian Imperial Stouts. So if you’re a home brewer with a RIS in the works, maybe consider some barrel-aged beans and making it an extra special batch. Meanwhile everyone else can look forward to the inevitability of a production brewery taking advantage of this new resource in town.

• Newly-opened Heritage Brewing in Yarmouth has already released a new beer, Rusty Truck Red Ale. With lots of malt flavour thanks to a grist of five different types of grain, the 5% ABV beer was generously hopped with Cascade to give a firm bitterness in the finish, as well as some citrus. Available at the brewery for growler fills on Thursdays from 4-8 pm and Saturdays from 10 am-4 pm, it’s also on tap at Yarmouth’s Sip Cafe. And if you’d like to win a Heritage gift card, share your experience with Heritage beer on their Facebook site and tag it with #HeritageMoment; the contest closes at 11:59 pm on July 1st.

• For those of you who miss having access to certain Red Rover one-offs, we have some good news to share: the cidery has announced a new Summer Series, where they’ll be releasing a different seasonal or Reserve blend every second Friday over the summer. First up this week is VeRRy PeRRy, a bottle-conditioned 7% ABV pear blend, which was packaged last year. All of the Summer Series releases will be exclusive to the Cider House in downtown Fredericton, and the Friday Farmers Markets.

• The menagerie on Halifax’s Robie Street known as Good Robot Brewing has a few things on the go this week, starting with yesterday’s return of their summer favourite Leave Me Blue, an easy-drinker in the pre-prohibition Kentucky Common style that’s much like a cream ale, but with a darker colour and more prominent sweetness. Meanwhile their Friday Cask in the Sun (possibly in-aptly named for today) will be their Goseface Killah with Watermelon and Arctic Kiwis. “But arctic kiwis haven’t come into season yet!” you say, to which the wise folks from GR respond, “yes, but we froze some last year so you could have some tasty beer in June!” Look for it to be tapped at 4 PM this afternoon. The Red IPA originally brewed for International Women’s Day back in March, Red Moon Landing, is returning next week with a minor recipe tweak to the grist (Pilsner replaces Vienna alongside Red X and flaked barley) but the same combo of GR’s proprietary bittering blend, Ekuanot and Perle. And finally, this week’s Beta Brewsday falls on a Wednesday due to GR being closed for a “Staff Appreciation Day” (read: digging another trench) on Tuesday. This week’s offering is called Re:Drella and it’s a 6.5% ABV and 28 IBU SMaSH of Red X malt and the super-versatile Australian hop variety Ella. As always, this Beta Batch was brewed by Kelly Costello, this time joined by Dan Hendricken.

• Deep in the downtown core of Halifax, Salter Street’s Tidehouse Brewing is welcoming back a beer that helped them make a splash when they launched in December of 2016. Enigmatic, an ‘India Saison’ marries the yeast character of a classic Saison to the hop-forward flavour and aroma of a modern IPA. This super hoppy batch was hopped with an alliterative assault of Ahtanum, Azacca, and Amarillo for a heavy grapefruit presence with lime zest and a light floral character. Get it at the brewery while it lasts! Meanwhile, the 3 principals behind the Tidehouse brand are going to be taking a well-deserved vacation from the 7th to the 11th of July. Does that mean you’ll be without tasty beer? Hell no! Once again, local home brewers Ian Wheatley and Nick Snell have stepped up to production batches of some of their beers on the Tidehouse system and will be hosting a tap takeover while Peter, Shean and Shannon get to remember what it’s like to breathe for a few days. Lil’Wheatey is bringing a Northeastern/New England IPA featuring big late additions and a double dry hop of Citra and Amarillo  as well as a kettle sour flavoured with raspberries he’s calling The Platinum Tart. We trust that he came up with that name all on his own ಠ_ಠ just like the Lactobacillus culture he grew to do the souring. Nick, on the other hand, will be bringing Smooth Criminal, a crisp Kölsch based on Pilsner and wheat malt that features Tettnanger hops, along with a Saison he’s dubbed Lanky Bastard that was fermented on a Saison yeast blend and hit hard with Mosaic hops. The alternative experience starts next Friday; and fear not, if your hankering is for Tidehouse standbys they’ll be available alongside the guest taps.

Get your butt out the door this long weekend:

• Rothesay’s Long Bay Brewery is officially launching with a soft opening today! Starting at noon, their first two beers will be pouring and available in growlers at the brewery’s location on 82 Marr Rd. The first beer is Chalice, a tribute to the strong blonde ales brewed by Trappist monks in Belgium. Pale, dry and refreshing, it’s a 6.5% ABV, 25 IBU ale that has a “classic spicy character” thanks to fermentation with a Belgian yeast strain and a small addition of Grains of Paradise. Secondly, they’ll be pouring Bantam, a 5.5% ABV and 40 IBU American Pale Ale named for the small but mighty chickens known for their attitude. This one is dry-hopped with classic American hops Cascade and Centennial as well as relative newcomer Citra for an unmistakable citrus hop presence to balance the specialty malts in the grist. So if you’re in Rothesay this afternoon, give a thought to stopping by and welcoming the latest addition to New Brunswick’s family of independent breweries and trying some beer! And if you happen by around 6 PM, you’ll find Josh from PEI hop supplier Darlings Island Farm holding forth on the subject of hops.

• With Canada Day this Saturday, a note about the provincial stores: the NSLC is closed, as is the NLC, ANBL stores are open 10-6, and the PEILC is open. In Nova Scotia the private stores are all open, but be sure to check that your local brewery is open. Breton Brewing is holding a Canada Day Party from 1-11pm complete with live music and beer specials, Quidi Vidi is open from noon for Pints in the Gut and selling the last few cases of the Central City Across the Nation Collaboration packs.

• Tomorrow, July 1st, Battery Park is holding a Gold Medal Patio Takeover to celebrate the four Nova Scotia gold-medal winners at this year’s Canadian Brewing Awards. Pouring will be Gus’ 65m and Midnight (Glenora Barrel-Aged BSDA) from North Brewing, Stayin’ Alive from Boxing Rock, and Vohs Weizenbier from Uncle Leo’s. The taps open (figuratively and literally) at 11:30 am and will keep pouring (not literally, hopefully) through the weekend, while supplies last).

• The Moncton Craft Brewers Collective is hosting the Canada Day Craft Beer Garden tomorrow, July 1st. Located at Waterfront Park with the other Canada Day celebrations, the tent will be set up in front of the courthouse. Over a dozen beers from the area’s finest craft breweries will be pouring, so pop on down to have a few (or more) and enjoy the fireworks in the evening, along with plenty of games and food.

• Stillwell is showing their love for Canada Day at both HQ on Barrington, and the Beer Garden on Spring Garden with summer-themed taps and bottles from around the Maritimes, plus some goodies from Toronto heavy hitters Bellwoods and Burdock (pretty much the only spot outside of the brewery to feature Motley Cru, for instance). Check out the at-opening taplist here.

• Join the crew from The Townhouse Pub in Antigonish in celebrating their Fifth Anniversary on July 4th. Kick it off 4-6pm with Happy Hour and oysters ($2/shuck), two (2!!) cakes being cut and served at 5:30 and 9:00, with food and beer pairings until 10:00, and live music from OQO. It’s sure to be a heck of a time, with plenty of SUDS Club members and neighbours dropping by to wish them well.

• Drop by Roof Hound Brewing just outside of Digby on Saturday July 8th 22nd, for a screening of “Sociable!“, the ode to Nova Scotia beer and those who make it. Filmmakers Helen and Chris will be there to introduce the film and answer any questions about their wild trip around the province filming, and the NS Craft Beer scene.

• Hammond River‘s major expansion from a 1 bbl, in-house brewery to a 15 bbl (1750 L) brewery with attached taproom is almost complete. The brewery will finally open its doors on Monday, July 10th., with the beer bar and attached patio accessible for your HR fix! All four of the first beers brewed on the new system (Gammie, Hopflash IPA, Blood Orange Hefeweizen, Blueberry Ale… and maybe even Paisley Park and the Galaxy version of The Vegas SMaSH IPA) will be pouring for pints and growler fills. In fact, you can drop by The Barrel’s Head now for a preview, as they are featuring the Gammie California Steam Ale on tap now.

Just a few more things this morning…

– Halifax’s Unfiltered has brought back another one of their classic DIPA SMaSH beer, this time the Mosaic-laden RSMA. Don’t remember what RSMA stands for? Don’t worry, a growler of this 7.5% ABV tropical fruit bomb will help you forget that you couldn’t remember. Available for growler fills at the brewery and pints and fills next door at the pub starting at noon today.
– The two local breweries taking part in the “Fathers of Fermentation” project, in celebration of the Peter Austin Brew Systems across the country. Sir John Eh-le is being released at both Halifax’s Granite Brewery and Fredericton’s Picaroons Brewery tomorrow. Check out our previous Wrap-Up for more information on the beer and project.
– Charlottetown’s Gahan House Pub has released a new concoction lately, Daily Dose Hard Root Beer. Weighing in at 6.5% ABV, it is available exclusively at the pub for samples, pints, and growler fills.