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Friday Wrap-Up – News from Big Axe, Picaroons, Big Tide, Garrison Brewing, Beau’s, Schoolhouse, and much more!

Posted by acbbshawn on 2014-09-26
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Atlantic Canadian Brewing Awards, BarNone Brewing, Beau's Brewing Co, Beerthief, Big Axe Brewery, Big Tide Brewing, Burgers n' Beer, Garrison Brewing, New Brunswick Beer Tours, North Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Premier Wines, Schoolhouse Brewery, Stillwell Beer Bar, Stubborn Goat, Uncorked Tours. Leave a Comment

Happy Friday, folks! We are now officially into fall, and as such, we have plenty more autumn and harvest-themed beer news this week.

• Big Axe Brewery has released their Seasonal Harvest Ale, Rusty Axe Amber Ale. Continuing Big Axe’s theme of using local ingredients in every beer, the Amber Ale was brewed with brown sugar glazed carrots, roasted squash and their own homemade brittle right in the boil. With these unique ingredients, the flavour and aroma is reminiscent of fall, with hints of vanilla, cinnamon, nutmeg and clove, built on top of a soft caramel base. It weighs in at 5.6% ABV and 28 IBUs, and is available at the brewery.

• Picaroons Brewery has brewed up a new beer recently, Page Turner Session Ale. The Amber Session beer weighs in at 3.7% ABV, and the recipe features Gooseberries. It was brewed to celebrate the upcoming 60th Anniversary of Goose Lane Edition, a local publishing house. Proceeds from the sale of the beer will be donated to Laubach Literacy New Brunswick. They will be holding a launch event at the James Joyce Pub on October 3rd to celebrate its release.

• Picaroons has yet another new beer that they are just releasing today. The Tabulator is described by the brewery as “a conservative Extra Special Bitter, that has been dry-hopped quite liberally with an uncountable amount of green hops”. It comes in at 5.5% ABV, and will be served almost-exclusively at the Brewtique for growler fills, with the possibility of being available on tap at a couple of bars/restaurants in Fredericton.

• Indian Beach Harvest Ale from Big Tide Brewpub is on tap now! This is one of their Fresh Hop beers, using hops they picked themselves (with help from friends and family) from local winery Dunhams Run, on the Kingston Peninsula. The malt base is 2 row and caramunich malts, and the hops used were Nugget and Cascade. This 4.8% ABV caramel-coloured beer has a fairly light body, with delicate fresh hopped flavors coming through nicely.

• We have some more details on the new beer, Sub_Stanchel Amber, brewed by BarNone a couple of weeks ago. This is a wet-hopped beer, with two varieties of fresh hops added to the boil: an unknown noble variety picked in Stanchel, PEI, and an equal amount of freshly-harvested Cascade from the BarNone farm. With more hops added as a dry-hop addition, this should be a fairly aromatic brew! It comes in at 5.5% ABV (exact calculated IBUs are unknown).  Look for it soon at bars/restaurants in Charlottetown, and at the weekly growler night (Thursdays) at the brewery.

• We mentioned the details behind the new collaboration beer between Garrison Brewing and Beau’s – Sweet Rye’d Harvest Wheat Ale – a couple of weeks ago. Well, that beer – brewed with three different hops and the Bog Myrtle herb – has been released today at the Garrison Brewery. Clocking in at 6% ABV and 40 IBUs, the beer is copper-colored and “ripe with aromas of herb and black pepper, melon and citrus fruit” according to Garrison. It should follow for a limited time only at select NSLC stores, all four private liquor stores in Halifax, and at some of the bars/restaurants in the area.

• Garrison will be taking part in City Harvest v3 on October 4th, and will be turning it into a Harvest Launch, as they will be pouring the Sweet Rye’d, as well as their new Double Jack Imperial Pumpkin Ale, and their 3 Fields Harvest. The Double Jack is on the darker side of the spectrum, and weighs in at 8% ABV, and we’ll have more details on both beers next week.

• Speaking of City Harvest, North Brewing will be getting in on the fun by offering discounts on growler fills and merchandise, Stubborn Goat will be selling Back Door Takeout Mac & Cheese and Cask Beer samples (no word yet on which beers), and Premier Wines will be doing beer tastings.

• Piez Bistro in Dartmouth is hosting Sociable for Prostates tomorrow, Sept 27th. During the event, you can purchase a tasting paddle of three different local craft beer, along with three paired pizza or other bites, for $10, with $5 of that donated to Prostate Cancer Canada. They are highlighting local craft beer, and should have a few special beers available. Check out their flyer.

• One of the new beers pouring at the event will be from Schoolhouse Brewery, with a harvest beer, the first in their Hants County Hop Series. Brewed with Maritime Malt, and local hops, this series will highlight the diverse hop varieties available here. Unfortunately, hop and farmer details were not available before publishing time. We can tell you that they’ve been using a hopback at the brewery to get the most aromatics from the hops. This piece sits between the kettle and the wort chiller, and is filled with hops, so the hot wort will extract lots of aromatic compounds, but then be chilled, dissolving them into the liquid before they can volatilize. As the whole leaf hops used are not as concentrated as pellet hops, they may not have very high bitterness, but the beers will be quite aromatic. They also will look to launch growler sales at the Wolfville Farmers Market soon, stay tuned for details.

• Uncorked Tours will be holding their last beer-tasting cruise for the year on Saturday, October 4th on the Saint John River, from 2:00 – 5:00 pm. Taking place once again on the Mississippi river boat Voyageur II, the cruise will be Oktoberfest-themed, featuring seasonal and Harvest ales from Picaroons, Big Tide, Hammond River Brewing, and Pump House (brewery list is subject to change), as well as Oktoberfest fare such as pretzels and sausages. Guests will be entitled to a 9-oz pour of each beer (after a short description), along with a refill of their favorite beer after all have been sampled. In between tastings, guests can socialize, enjoy the scenery, and sample the different foods available. Most breweries will have representatives present to answer questions about their beers. Tickets are $75 + HST, and can be purchased online.

• Tickets for the inaugural trip of New Brunswick Beer Tours are now available! We initially reported on the tour last week and it looks like the schedule has been finalized. The all-day bus tour, River Valley Beer Tour, will be held Saturday, November 1st, and will include stops at Brasseurs du Petit-Sault, Railcar, and Big Axe (subject to change), as well as in-trip sampling of ciders from Red Rover; the tour will wrap up at 6:30 pm with more beer sampling at the King Street Ale House. Ticket prices have been confirmed at $75 + fee, and are available online. Fredericton Tourism is currently holding an online contest for two tickets; if you’re over nineteen, make sure you enter to win!

• A final reminder that the next Burgers n’ Beer event in Fredericton will be held soon, and your chance to buy tickets is almost gone! Originally scheduled for September 30th, the event has been bumped a week to Tuesday, October 7th. Pairing six different sliders with six different beers/ciders, it’s held at reLiSH’s uptown location. Tickets are almost sold-out; they’re $45 each and can be purchased online. For more info on the event, check out last month’s post.

• Since publishing our story on the Atlantic Canadian Beer Awards this week, another event related to the weekend has been announced: a Local Cheese & Beer Pairing Seminar run by Master Cicerone® Mirella Amato, and Mark DeWolf of By The Glass Tours. Being held Oct 4th from 2-3pm at Westin Halifax, attendees will have the chance to sample pairings of five beers with five cheeses, all from our region. Tickets are $15+fee, and are available online.

• In other ACBA news, keep an eye on Stillwell’s Twitter and Facebook pages today as they open the People’s Choice voting. This is your chance to vote for your favourite Atlantic Canadian Beer (from those submitted to the ACBA).

• Big news from our friends in Newfoundland! The Beerthief Special Order Beer Club are having a custom batch of beer brewed for them by Garrison Brewing. The beer will not be released until January 2015, but it will be available uniquely to the Beerthief members through their normal ordering process. In celebration of this upcoming brew, they are holding a naming and label contest, open to all members, until October 10th. Details, and a template for the label, are available here. This is just another in a series of great offerings and events that the Beerthief Mike Buhler and Tom Beckett are bringing to Newfoundland and Labrador. At almost 3000 members, the club is going (and growing) strong! Check out the latest newsletter for more exciting news. Joining the Beerthief Club is free to anyone over 19 in Newfoundland and Labrador, and will allow access to beers not otherwise available in the province.

Another busy week! Be sure to drink local this weekend. Grab a pint of the newly-released Tatamagouche Lagerhosen at Lion & Bright and Stubborn Goat in Halifax, and some of the many other craft beers available in your area!

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Hell Bay, Hammond River, Pump House, Picaroons, PEI Brewing, and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2014-05-16
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: 2014 Atlantic Beer Festival, Big Spruce Brewing, Brewer's Bash, Hammond River Brewing, Hell Bay Brewing, NLC, PEI Brewing, Picaroons Traditional Ales, Propeller Brewing, Pump House Brewery, Stubborn Goat. 1 comment

Happy Friday everyone! Now that spring is in full swing, be sure to grab a local beer, and enjoy it outside! Here are some new beers, new events, new jobs, and more!

• Hell Bay has released their R.I.P.(A.) version 3.0. Brewed with a different malt and hops recipe than the two previous versions, this beer has a maltier body, and a citrus hop presence. Despite these changes, the beer once again weighs in at 7.2%ABV and 70IBUs. Drop by the brewery in Liverpool for a growler, and look for it on tap around the province shortly.

• Hammond River Brewing has announced that they’re currently brewing up two new summer seasonals, and we have some info on both of them. The first beer is described as a Hawaiian-style Pale Ale; it’s brewed with fresh pineapples, along with Chinook and Cascade hops, and then dry-hopped with more Cascade. It clocks in at 5.8% ABV and 55 IBUs. The other seasonal is a Fruit Beer… more specifically, a Blueberry Ale that is brewed with real blueberries, not extract, which will give the beer a purplish color. This one will come in at 5.4% ABV and 38 IBUs. Both seasonals will rotate in production with one another, so look for them both to be making appearances over the next few months in the Saint John area, starting with the Hawaiian APA in the next couple of weeks.

• To coincide with the Atlantic Beer Festival on May 31st in Moncton, the Pump House is releasing two beers for sale in six-packs for the first time. First, the Premium Pilsner that had a limited release around last Christmas (in 750 mL swing top bottles) will now be available as the newest seasonal beer. A German-style Pilsner weighing in at about 5.7% ABV and 30 IBUs, it arrives just in time for the warmer weather (more info on the beer here). Second, they’ll be releasing a brand new IPA! No, not their regular IPA (that has always been popular with hop lovers, and only available on tap at select locations)… a new beer entirely, also in the American IPA style. No specifics on this one yet, but we’ll let you know as soon as we can! Both six-packs will be available at the brewery and ANBL locations at the end of the month/first of June, after an original launch at the Atlantic Beer Festival.

• Picaroons has announced the date of sale for tickets to their Brewer’s Bash this summer, July 12th – they go on sale next Tuesday, May 20th. Starting at 10:00 am, you can pick them up at the Cedar Tree Cafe in downtown Fredericton, or find them online here; the price is $25. Tickets sold out fairly quickly last year; even with 500 more tickets available for this year’s festival, expect it to sell out at least as fast as last year. Check out last week’s post for a bit more info on the Bash.

• Looking to work in the brewery business, but not necessarily as a brewer? Well, the PEI Brewing Co. is looking to fill a position for Retail and Sales Manager at their retail store in the brewery. You’ll need a university degree or diploma in Business, Marketing, or a related field, with a minimum of 2 years sales and marketing experience in a retail environment. Contact Cara Squires by email for more information, and/or to submit a resume. More details here.

• A reminder that the 2014 Canadian Brewing Awards are being held in Fredericton at the end of the month, May 29-31. The three day event is being held at the Fredericton Conference Centre in the city’s downtown, with satellite events across the city. Featuring some excellent panels, talks and presentations from brewers, distributors and ingredient and equipment manufacturers, this is a must-visit for anyone involved in the beer industry. The Awards Gala, being held Saturday night, and live-broadcast from the CBA website, will be the highlight of the weekend. This is when the winning beers and breweries will be announced, after the impressive job Tracy Phillippi and the panel of judges did, making their way through more than 900 submissions in Toronto last month. For those brewers who have not yet signed up, it’s not too late! Visit the CBA website for further information on the schedule and email Katrina to sign up.

• Propeller Brewing’s new Windmill Rd location is celebrating its first “Food Truck Friday” today. Cheese Gypsy Mobile Cuisine will be  set up 11:30-4 today, and every Friday this spring and summer, for folks to have some food to wash down their beer. From Andrew Cooper, “We’re quite excited about the local food truck scene and really want to be involved with it.” They join North Brewing on Agricola St, who host The Food Wolf every Sunday 12-4 and Seaport Farmers’ Market / Garrison Brewing, where Nomad Gourmet hangs out Saturday 7-3 and Sunday 9-3. To keep an eye on where these and the other food trucks are in the HRM, be sure to check out the Street Food App website.

• Speaking of Propeller, hot on the heels of their very popular Black IPA, they’ve brewed up two more One Hit Wonders at the Gottingen St brewery. While too early to release the details, Andrew Cooper assure us that they will be available soon, and released back to back, to reduce lag time between them. In previous years, these one-offs have included Zwickelbier, Imperial Red, SPA (Special Pale Ale), so we’re sure these upcoming ones will be just as special!

• Today’s Cask at the Stubborn Goat is a Double Dry-Hopped Kitchen Party Pale Ale from Big Spruce Brewing. Brewmaster Jeremy White let us know that the KP was dry hopped with Centennial in the conditioning tank, then blasted with a dose of Amarillo in the cask. After grabbing a grilled cheese sandwich and growler in Dartmouth, this sounds like a great start to the long weekend!

• Tickets for the 2014 NLC Beer Expo are now on sale. Being held June 6th and 7th, the Expo will showcase beer from across the country, and around the world. The list of beers is available here, and features over 100 different products, about 20% of which are not normally available in the province. Tickets are still available for the Friday night session, which can also include an exclusive Tasting Panel before the Fest, lead by folks from the Mill Street, Muskoka, and Unibroue.

• A quick reminder that Meander River Farm and Brewery is opening tomorrow! From 10-5, drop by their Ashdale, NS location to tour the brewery and grounds, check out some of the lavender and hops products, and other merchandise, and of course, grab some beer! We’ll see you there!

In closing, we mentioned in our post on the upcoming Atlantic Beer Festival yesterday that we’d be holding a contest for a giveaway of two tickets for the afternoon session (2:30 – 5:00 pm). Starting now, hop on Twitter and send us a note like: Hey @ACBeerBlogger! I want to win tickets to #ABF2014! http://wp.me/p23UN6-1gZ. One entry per person; we’ll randomly pick the winner and announce their name in next Friday’s post. The contest will run from now until next Thursday at 11:59 pm. Good luck!