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Friday Wrap-Up for March 15, 2024 – News from CBANS, Big Spruce, Breton, Hardisty, Truro, Burnside, Village Green, Banished, Trailway, and more!

Posted by acbbaaron on 2024-03-16
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, Banished Brewing, Bar Brewdock, Battery Park, Big Spruce Brewing, Black is Beautiful, Breton Brewing, Brew Culture, Burnside Brewing Company, Craft Brewers Association of Nova Scotia, Escarpment Laboratories, Hardisty Brewing, Lone Oak Brewing, Modern Brewer's Village Green, O'Creek Brewing, Off Track Brewing, Quidi Vidi Brewery, Shoreline Malting, Stillwell Brewing, Tatamagouche Brewing, The Harbour Brewing Company, TrailWay Brewing, Truro Brewing Company. Leave a Comment

[ed. Once again we’re posting our Friday wrap-up on Saturday. Real Life™ is a thing; whatchagonnado?]

Happy St. Patrick’s Day weekend! There are a lot of events going on at your local bars, pubs, and breweries, so make sure you show them some love instead of just going to the provincial liquor store and grabbing some Guinness! We won’t be listing all of the events and parties for Paddy’s Day (then we would never get out of here!) but be sure to check your local spots on social media to see if they have anything on the go. Let’s dive in!

We’ll start this week in Nova Scotia where the Craft Brewers Association of Nova Scotia has released their annual fundraising collaboration beer, Together We Brew. This year representatives from member breweries gathered at Stillwell Brewing on Kempt Road in Halifax to brew a Dortmunder-style export lager. Using all-Canadian ingredients from Brew Culture, Shoreline Malting, and Escarpment Labs, it was brewed back in January before being given eight solid weeks of lagering time. Coming in at a comfortable 5.8% ABV, it’s got plenty of malt character, floral hop aroma, and a soft balancing bitterness, and it’s an excellent everyday beer and a great one to share with friends and show off the quality of NS craft beer. It’s available now in 473ml cans at NSLC locations and select breweries around NS.

If you’re the sort who keeps track of these things, or just a long time craft beer drinker in NS, you no doubt know what’s coming next. The release of the Together We Brew beer always heralds the coming of CBANS’ signature event, also called Together We Brew. This year taking place at Pavillion 22 at the Halifax Seaport you’ll find some 40 Nova Scotia craft breweries pouring their wares. Even better, they’re doing away with the tyranny of sample tickets, so maybe you won’t have to pick and choose quite as much (although you’ll still be expected to drink responsibly). Two sessions will be held on April 6th, one in the afternoon from 2 – 4:30pm, and one in the evening from 7 – 9:00pm. As always, VIP tickets are available that allow an extra hour of early tasting and a special souvenir tasting glass, and Designated Driver tickets are also available. All the relevant information and links to ticket purchase can be found on the event page at the CBANS website. Hope to see you there!

In 2022, an open-ended collaboration called Black Is Beautiful was created to support the efforts of the National Black Brewers Association in growing Black brewers across the US (and hopefully beyond). A recipe for an imperial stout was provided to breweries who wished to participate along with additional assets (label design, collateral). Each brewery pledged $1 (or more) from every can sold to the cause. This year it’s happening again, with Weathered Souls Brewing providing the recipe for a hazy IPA, Stout Collective providing the label design, and Blue Label Packaging Co even fronting the labels (breweries need only pay shipping). Nyanza’s Big Spruce Brewing is the first Atlantic Canadian brewery (that we’re aware of) to sign up and take part. Their version of Black Is Beautiful Volume 2 was released this week, following the published recipe pretty closely on the malt side, with 2-row malted barley, white wheat, Vienna malt, oats, and barley flakes (all organic, natch) building a solid base. Veering a little bit from the spec, the Spruce team went 50/50 with modern classics Galaxy and Mosaic for the hops, all of them added in a post-temperature reduction whirlpool and dry hop. The result is described as, “courage, bravery, and allyship wrapped in an unbelievably badass beer.” True to the spirit of the collaboration, Big Spruce will be spreading the proceeds between NBBA and longtime Big Spruce partner the African Nova Scotian Decade for People of African Descent Coalition (ANSDPAD). Grab it in cans at the brewery and, we’d imagine, other places you’ve historically found Big Spruce beer.

Missed in last week’s round-up of beers brewed for International Women’s Day was an entry from Breton Brewing in Sydney, NS. Bearing the same name as previous IWD beers brewed at Breton, Waves Rise, it is in the champagne IPA (a.k.a. brut IPA) style, which generally describes a hoppy beer with a rather light body. Leveraging the Pink Boots hop blend from Yakima Chief, it boasts aromas of peach and stone fruit and aims to please both hop lovers and lighter beer lovers alike. Find this 5.8% gem on tap and in cans at the taproom, as well as other fine drinking establishments around the province (we spotted it at The Narrows in Halifax ourselves earlier this week!).

Another IWD beer we missed last weekend is a collab between Truro Brewing and Cole Harbour’s Hardisty Brewing. Wicked Roots is a dark ale that features root beer-inspired herbs and spices, including sarsaparilla, licorice root, star anise, and wintergreen. Hardisty even went so far as to serve it with vanilla ice cream as a float last weekend for their IWD celebration! We’re not sure if that’s still available, but this 5% beer was pouring at both breweries’ taprooms and a  portion was also canned (although we’re not sure if cans went to Hardisty).

In the Burnside Industrial Park area of Dartmouth we find the pseudonymous Burnside Brewing has a new one pouring this week, the latest in their Brew Lab series of smaller batch experimental beers. This time around the Burnside team experimented with a traditional Czech brewing process, namely single decoction, to produce a traditional Czech Pilsner. Also boasting malt from Czechia, Czech Pilsner #1 comes in at 4.6% ABV and is hopped with traditional Saaz, retro Sládek, and new school Bohemie, yielding a spicy, herbaceous, and citrus-tinged hop aroma to pair with its rich maltiness and balancing bitterness. Find this unfiltered and golden beer on tap and in cans at all three Burnside properties.

Village Green in Cornwall, PEI, released a new IPA this week, one that harkens back to the IPAs of yesteryear, with a chewy malt body, plenty of bitterness, and of course, big hop flavour and aroma courtesy of large additions of Citra in the kettle and for dry hop. Dubbed Undead IPA, you shouldn’t find it scary, but you might find it has notes of marmalade, candied citrus, and ripe stone fruit in this 6.8% beer. Find it at the brewery now on tap, and hopefully in cans to go.

Up in Newfoundland, two of the Rock’s best beer spots have teamed up for a collaboration. Bar Brewdock of East Duckworth Street in downtown St. John’s grabbed themselves some tickets to Paradise and visited Banished Brewing. On their mind was brewing up a big ol’ juice bomb to remind themselves of the summer days they hope aren’t too far away. If you’re familiar with the Banished oeuvre, this one started with a similar base to Makes Sense, but amped up to reach double IPA proportions. To that was added Citra, Nelson Sauvin, and Cascade hops, including all three in a double dry hop. Finishing at 8.5% ABV, it’s truly hazy, with bitterness on the low end, a deep orange color, and plenty of citrus character that’s maybe even a little reminiscent of Five Alive™. Find it on tap at the brewery and at Brewdock, of course, and it’s going out to retailers in cans as well.

Staying in Newfoundland, but out to Quidi Vidi, where Quidi Vidi Brewery has a light new hoppy brew available. Glad Hands is the product of the sixth annual collaboration between the QV and Newfermenters Homebrew Club. Starting with a beer competition, it turns into a bottle share where all comers can sample eachother’s wares. Jamie Osborne provided the recipe for this one and it’s an easy drinking session IPA. Smooth and refreshing, it’s got plenty of citrusy aromas from the hops in a, “it’s quite alright to have another,” 3.9% package. It’s a limited edition, so grab it on tap at the QV taproom or pick up some cans to go while you can.

Over to New Brunswick where, in Fredericton, Trailway Brewing has a beer returning that hasn’t been seen in well nigh two whole years. You may remember the moment in the sun of the milkshake IPA, which generally marries the hazy IPA style with fruit and lactose to produce something not quite beer-like, but also definitely beer-like. Not the kind of style you’d find yourself banging four of in an evening, but certainly something that can scratch a (possibly weird) itch. This iteration of Velvet Fog is 6% and features cherry and mango flavors along with the sweetness of lactose and plenty of hops; it’s soft and round, and almost smoothie-like on the finish. Available in cans at the taproom in Fredericton and Union House in Saint John, you’ll also be able to pick this up at ANBL locations in coming weeks as well.

Only one event this weekend, but it’s a doozy and it’s already started!

If you’re in Halifax, you may have seen the news of the triple tap takeover between Tatamagouche Brewing, 2 Crows Brewing, and Lone Oak Brewing a few weeks ago and have been jealous of all that great beer in one place. Well today you get your chance. Starting today at open and running all the way to close, those three breweries will be doing it all again at Battery Park in Dartmouth. Will you find green beer? Probably not. Will you find a selection of fresh and delicious beer from some of the region’s best breweries? You sure will. Maybe we’ll see you there!

And a couple more things afore we go:

You down with P-O-G? Yeah, you know me! [ed. Alrighty there, Milhouse] 2 Crows Brewing has a new version of the Jamboree Sour Series, but this one features passionfruit, orange, and guava additions. Using a puree of passion fruit, pureed mango, orange puree along with the orange zest and juice, this is really just for summer.  It’s 4.8% and canned now, available at both 2 Crows locations and with certain NSLCs will be carrying this as well. 

Moncton’s O’Creek Brewing isn’t taking their foot off the pedal any time soon: they’ve got three new beers pouring this week. Czech Affair is a returning favorite, a Czech pale lager, Kozak Lager, brewed in partnership with the Ukrainian Club of Moncton (some proceeds contributed to the Ukrainian cause), and Sunny Brae Coffee Stout, which was brewed with coffee from local roastery Sunny Brae Coffee. All three are pouring at their taproom, but if you’re in Halifax with no plans to be in Moncton this weekend, you may still be able to sample some O’Creek, as Stillwell HQ has been pouring some of their wares of late.

Unfortunately this week we again need to finish with some sadder news. Off Track Brewing in Bedford announced this week that they will be closing on April 28th (or when they run out of beer). Bedford’s only brewery, they built themselves a taproom on Rocky Lake Drive that fostered a vibrant community spirit. Additionally, The Harbour Brewing Company in Musquodoboit Harbour has announced that they are for sale and will be ceasing current operations once they run out of beer. We raise a glass to the teams at both locations wish them all the best, whatever their futures may bring.

Friday Wrap-Up for February 23, 2024 – News from Village Green, Gahan, Trailway, Rough Waters, Stillwell, North, Lunn’s Mill, Baccalieu Trail and More!

Posted by acbbchris on 2024-02-23
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Baccalieu Trail Brewing, Flying Boats Brewing, Gahan House, JALT Beverage Co, Libra Non-Alcoholic Beer, Lunn's Mill Beer Company, Modern Brewer's Village Green, New Maritime Beer Company, North Brewing, Quidi Vidi Brewery, Rough Waters Brewing, Stillwell Brewing, TrailWay Brewing. Leave a Comment

Hello! This is an introduction to a weekly post about the craft beer industry in the Atlantic provinces. Below you’ll read about new beers, events, news and anything your loyal beer bloggers get their hands on through the week. Read below, share with a friend and we hope you get to partake in some of the new happenings in your area. 

We kick off the week on PEI, as Village Green has a brand new release. NZ Haze is a azy IPA from the Cornwall crafter. At 6% it’s soft and pillowy, backed by Nelson Sauvin hops from New Zealand. Adding Citra and Mosaic hops to the mix brings in fruity, tropical, and citrus flavours. This is available in cans and on tap now. 

Staying on the Island, Gahan has a new Vienna Lager out now. Ripple Effect Brew is brewed in the traditional style of the malty, sweet, caramel lager. This beer is brewed in support of the PEI Watershed Alliance with contributions from every sale going directly to the environmental group. The 5.2% beer is available in cans and on tap from Gahan Beer Stores and PEI Brewing Company’s taproom.

Over to Fredericton where Trailway has two new smoking hot releases. First up is Smoke and Mirrors, an 11.1% Barrel Aged Imperial Stout that is on tap only at the brewery. The barrel itself housed a peated Whiskey, whichl brings a rich and smoky flavour to this robust stout.

New to cans is Lagerfeuer, a 5.6% rauchbier (which is a smoked märzen). This lager is brewed with beechwood smoked malt, which adds to the caramel and biscuity flavour of a märzen, bringing a gentle bit of smoke to the palate. This is canned and available at both Trailway locations. 

Over to the West Coast of Newfoundland Deer Lake’s Rough Waters has two brand new releases to keep you warm in the winter months. First up is Grounded, a Coffee Stout that is 5% and canned and ready to roll out across NLCs next week. Second up is their belgian Tripel. This is a big release for the brewery as they’ve been wanting to brew and bottle this style of beer for a long time. Brewed in collaboration with Escarpment Labs, using their West Abbey yeast strain for an authentic flavour that is true to the style. Using a blend of malts and European hops, it was bottle conditioned before release. This one will also ship out over the weekend and should be around NLCs and Marie’s over the next week. 

A few bits of news out of Stillwell Brewing, the Halifax brewery who have had a busy start to the year. First up, Saturday February 24th, they’re hosting Big Speaker Freakout 8, a daytime dance for the Palestine Children’s Relief Fund. Tickets are available here.

On the beer side, Czech-heads will be happy to hear that 10° Czech-Style Pale Lager is back in cans and on tap at the brewery. It will be back at Barrington HQ and the Freehouse soon, if not already by the time you’re reading this!

The team at North Brewing is adding to their back of house with a line and prep cook to work primarily out of Timberlea, but who will need to work shifts in Cole Harbour as well. As we can speak first hand to the culture and inclusion at the brewery, we encourage any and everyone to apply if possible. Check this link for more details, including pay, benefits and how to apply. 

A few more things before we let you go this week…

The Libra brand keeps pumping out the volume as they have a new entry coming out to their low alc lineup. Lemongrass Ginger Saison is their newest release, with the characteristics of a dry-finishing saison but with lemongrass and ginger to bring some more flavour. This will be available on March 1st for general distribution and is 0.4% ABV and packaged in the same 355ml format as their other offerings. 

Lawrencetown’s Lunn’s Mill Beer has a full-bodied and smooth beer out this week, Repaired Wee Heavy. At 7.2%, this is sure to warm you up as you enjoy it, and features just a hint of smoke for a lovely complement to the caramel and raisin notes. Available on tap and in cans at their taproom, and check out their stall at this weekend’s Wolfville Farmers’ Market if you are in the area.

New Maritime Beer in Miramichi is going dark for their latest release this week, with Golden Ticket Chocolate Brown. Dark malt is enhanced with the use of chocolate in the beer, and at 6.0% ABV, is good for one entry to good times! Available now at their spot at 55 Newcastle Boulevard, and coming to select ANBL and BAS locations across the province.

In Bay Roberts, Baccalieu Trail Brewing is welcoming back their Wintermen’s ESB. Harkening back to their opening in 2018, this “Extra Special Bitter” is light, has a touch of caramel on the palate, and despite the name, uses hops judiciously and is not very bitter at all. It is extra special, though! This 5.3% quaffer is available now at their taproom and in St. John’s, with cans (yay! after some delays with a breakdown in the canning machine) heading across the island before too long.

In the Gut, Quidi Vidi has a returning favourite of their own this week, their Imperial Coconut Porter. This 9.0% beaut is full of nutty, toasty, and dark caramel flavours, with the added benefit of toasted coconut to complete the package. Look for it at their taproom and Hops Shop location, as well as convenience stores and NLCs.

Finally this week, we wanted to share the news of the sale and ownership change of Dieppe’s Flying Boats Brewing. First started by Marc Melanson in his Shediac Bay garage in 2015 (learn more about the history in our Profile with Melanson), he expanded into a much larger space in Dieppe three years later, operating on a 1,500 litre system, serving an on-site taproom and retailers across the province (and Alberta). JALT Beverage Co was founded in 2023, with three of its four principals being the group that acquired Pump House in December 2020 (more on that sale here, here, and here). With JALT’s acquisition of Flying Boats, CEO Alex Noel says that they will continue the brand as previously, including retaining staff, with an eye to expand into the non-alcoholic market. We are excited to follow along and see what Flying Boats and JALT continue to do in the local craft beer and beverage scene. The full press release is here.

Friday Wrap-Up for February 2, 2024 – News from Tatamagouche, Propeller, Trailway, Timber Ship, Tanner, Burnside and More!

Posted by acbbchris on 2024-02-02
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2 Crows Brewing, 2 Crows Oxford, Banished Brewing, Burnside Brewing Company, Canadian Beer News, Canadian Brewing Awards Conference, Propeller Brewing, Stillwell Brewing, Tanner & Co Brewing, Tatamagouche Brewing, Timber Ship Brewing, TrailWay Brewing. 2 comments

Here we are, starting February with a hum, as we couldn’t get a post out last week due to real life. This week, we’re at least trying to get something out there in honour of Shubenacadie Sam, so this will be mostly a quick hitting summary post, with little to no commentary. Let’s hammer down and get right into it!

Starting with a trio of tidbits from Tatamagouche Brewing, they have one brand new beer and two returning favourites. New to the fold is Fröhlick, a German Pilsner. Made with local hops from Island Hop Company on PEI, this is 5.0% and available in small puppy 355ml cans. Returning after a few years away is Dreadnot, an India Black Ale. It uses debittered black malt, while the hop bill of El Dorado, Chinook, and Centennial bring fruit, citrus, and a bit of pine to the flavour party. It’s 7% and available in cans from the brewery. Also returning is Flanerie, a Belgian Blonde. This one is locally-focused using Horton Ridge malt and whole-leaf hops grown in Oxford, Nova Scotia. It’s 5% and available in cans from the brewery. 

A new one from Propeller enters the crushable category of Session IPAs as Anytime IPA is out now. It’s just 4.5% and 26 IBU but packed with juicy tropical citrus flavour and aroma. It’s canned and available now directly from Prop Shops or private stores.

There are a pair of new lagers out of Trailway to tell you about. Fire On The Mountain is an Imperial Pilsner named after the Grateful Dead song. It’s a 6.8% Pilsner with a great balance of sweetness, crispiness and bitterness. Last week saw the release of Eclipse, a Dark Lager that is in collaboration with Banished Brewing of Paradise, NL. Malt forward and toasted, it’s 5.2%, canned and available at both locations (plus in Paradise!), just like Fire On The Mountain. 

Staying on the lager train, Timber Ship Brewing has a brand new one with Miramichi Classic Pilsner. Named after a locally designed salmon fly using the city’s colours, the beer is a celebration of craftsmanship, drinkability and flavour. It’s 5.1% and 15 IBU. This will be canned soon but available on tap at a few places around Miramichi. 

A couple of new cans out of Tanner & Co Brewing comprise a Best Bitter and a returning Belgian Blonde. First up, the bitter uses a new malt they’re working on with Horton Ridge, trying to locally replicate the English Maris Otter malt. This one is perfectly balanced and 4.5%. The Belgian Blonde is also classically made to the true Belgian style and returns after a few months away. This one is 7% and available in cans. 

Rounding out our double release news is Burnside Brewing, who had a pair of new canned goodies come out last week. First up is Werewolfe, an American Porter (in Burnside). It’s 5.5% and roasty toasty, with just the right balancing sweetness. Second is a release from their Brew Lab series, a Hazy Pale Ale #1.2, which changes up the yeast and ups the dry-hopping from the previous version. The Brew Lab releases focus on small batch brews (that are still canned) that they want your feedback on. This one is 4.5% and both of these beers are available at all Burnside locations. 

Creamy friends in foam, Stillwell Brewing sees their Cream Ale return to cans and taps at the brewery. They think it is probably their best batch yet. If you need a reminder, it’s true to the classic North American style and very crisp and tasty at 4.8%

In other beer news, we wrote about Canadian Beer News closing their taps at the end of 2023, but it appears those taps were taken over by Canadian Brewing Awards & Conference. Stay tuned to their Instagram page and website to see what will be going on with the blog. 

As a note to brewers who may not have seen it, the CBAC is within their window for shipping entries now for the 2024 Awards and Conference that will take place in Hamilton. Check out the details here. It’s too late to enter, but if you are entering best be getting on with that packaging and shipping!

The big miss we had last week was not being able to mention 2 Crows Brewing and their seven new releases for their 7th anniversary. While you may have seen on our Instagram that we were there, we thought we should at least run down all the new beers that are available, just for the record. The seven new cans are as follows and you can check the taprooms and website to pick them up. 

Alright Alright Alright, 4.1% –  Farmhouse-style beer with Raspberry, Lime, and Sea Salt. This beer was sneakily launched on draught in November, while the canned product conditioned away. For fans of their 2023 collaboration with OK Sea Salt, OK OK OK, this one’s for you! 

SAL, 5.1% . This Italian Pilsner is the beer for 2 Crows Oxford and a collaboration with Yeah Yeahs Pizza. This is only available online and at 2 Crows Oxford, where they share a space with YY. 

Feral Fox, 9.1%. A Tart Wild Ale with Apricot, it is delicious and dangerous. 

Squeezie II, 5.1%. This smoothie sour goes more to the berry side for its second release. Make it a slushie and enjoy this one, especially on tap at Brunswick street.

Red Piquette: Pino Noir + Kekfrankos, 4.4%. This is not beer! It’s a piquette. 

Space Words, 10.1%. This Triple IPA is back, baby! 

7, 9.2%. Yes, the beer is named 7 and no, they won’t tell you what style it is. So, you have to buy it to try it!


Editor’s Note: If you think there’s a chance we skipped posting last week solely to avoid doing full write-ups on seven new 2 Crows beers, we suggest you zip your yap and keep walking, slappy.