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Friday Wrap-Up – News from Petit-Sault, Acadie-Broue, Breton, Upstreet, Maybee, and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2016-04-15
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Acadie-Broue, Annapolis Cider Company, Big Tide Brewing, Brasseurs du Petit Sault, Breton Brewing, Flying Boats Brewing, Gahan House Harbourfront (Halifax), Good Robot Brewing, James Joyce Irish Pub, Lazy Bear Brewing, Liquid Assets, Maybee Brewing, North Brewing, Propeller Brewing, Pump House Brewery, Saint John Beer Fest, Spindrift Brewing, Sunset Heights Meadery, Tatamagouche Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing. Leave a Comment

Happy Friday! Plenty going on in the local beer world this week, so let’s dive right in…

• Petit-Sault has released their collaboration with Acadie-Broue‘s Patrice Godin, a Doppelbock named La Renous. Brewed in the traditional German style, using German hops and a base of Munich and 2-Row malts and a touch of chocolate malt for colouring. Lagered for a full four months since the brew on a chilly January weekend, it is supremely drinkable, with a full mouthfeel and balancing bitterness to its 7.5% ABV content. In addition to Petit-Sault’s shop, it is available on tap at Le Coude, Université de Moncton’s student bar, where Acadie-Broue’s brewhouse is now set up. The beer can also be found at ANBL locations across the province, in bottles, and at the five ANBL growler stations this weekend.

• Just in time for this week’s East Coast Music Week, Sydney’s Breton Brewing and Charlottetown’s Upstreet have released a collaboration brew, Island Jams: Vol. 1. This music-themed 5.3% Blonde ale debuted at Breton’s tasting room last night, and will see wider release this weekend. Also tying in with the music theme, there is a downloadable EP of CB- and PE- Island tunes to accompany your drinking. As well, a live showcase of PEI bands will be playing (and beer will be flowing) at Daniel’s in Sydney tonight; more information here. And for visitors to the East Coast Music Week, all four Breton beers will be available at Flavor on the Water’s after parties all weekend.

• Upstreet has brewed up another collab, Top Stamp Honey Brown Lager, with the crew from the PEI comedy series Just Passing Through. An easy-drinking beer at 5% ABV and 15 IBUs, it was brewed with Maritime Malt and New Brunswick-grown Golding hops. A beer that has a sweet beginning and dry finish, it’s like “drizzling honey over lightly-browned toast”, according to the brewery. Scheduled for a release party on Thursday, April 21st at the Upstreet taproom beginning at 6:30, the beer will be bottled and sold at PEILCC locations across the Island by next weekend. Check out the Facebook page for more details on next week’s launch events.

• There’s a new beer fermenting over at Maybee Brewing, Birdseye Pale Ale. A 5.5% ABV American Pale Ale, it was hopped with Cluster and Columbus. Brewed with the intention of being crisp and refreshing for the upcoming summer months, it features floral and spicy notes from the Cluster, which “brightens up the dank, juicy flavours from the Columbus”, according to owner/brewer Paul Maybee. Look for this one to be available in a couple of weeks; it’s going to be canned right out of the gate, and will also be available for growler fills at the brewery. Also, Maybee’s Elevensies Espresso Stout should be available in cans shortly.

• North Brewing has just released their newest beer, Golden Stout. Golden-coloured as advertised, it was brewed with 2-row, flaked oats, and Pale Chocolate malt. Despite the lack of dark, roasted malts, it features plenty of chocolate and roasted character thanks to the addition of Sumatran Dark from local Java Blend Coffee Roasters, and cocoa nibs from Rousseau Chocolatier. It weighs in at 6.7% ABV and is available now at the brewery for growler fills, and should be on tap at North accounts as we speak.

• Gahan Halifax released a new beer yesterday at the brewpub; Session IPA is a low-alcohol (3.7% ABV), 65 IBUs hop bomb that showcases a “big floral, fruity aroma” from plenty of late-addition Saphir hops. It joins the Kellerbier which was tapped late last week; weighing in at 5% ABV and 36 IBUs, featuring an “oaky, vanilla aroma and flavour”, balanced with a large addition of Hersbrucker hops, a floral and spicy German variety. And though there is just a little bit of their Cranberry Sour left, fear not, this sour-mashed tart beer will return during NS Craft Beer Week with wider distribution under the name Over the Top, a collaboration between Gahan’s Karen Allen and Boxing Rock’s Emily Tipton.

• In other new beer news, Tatamagouche released their newest ale yesterday, Tweed Wolf Brown IPA. This is their second “employee beer”, brewed by cellarman Alex Martin. Featuring a malty backbone and “chocolate-covered strawberries” in the flavour, it was hopped mainly with Simcoe, along with a bit of Cascade and Huell Melon. Available now at the brewery for growlers, kegs have already been delivered to several accounts in Halifax, including Bishop’s Cellar and Harvest Wines for growler fills, so be sure to give it a try when it pops up! And while on the topic of Tatabrew cellar hands, they’re currently looking for someone to fill the role in a part-time capacity, with the possibility of a full-time position in the future. For more details, send an email here.

• Wolfville’s Annapolis Cider Company officially opens today! Their storefront at 388 Main Street will be open seven days a week from 10 am-7 pm. There are several ciders available now in refillable 750 mL bottles at the cidery: Crisp & Dry (7.7% ABV), Juicy & Sweet (5.6% ABV), and Something Different, an unfiltered cider that is described as “very hazy and yeasty”; it comes in at 6% ABV. There is a tasting bar onsite, where customers can order a small flight of all three ciders, 3 oz each, for $5. Tours will be offered in the near future, and their products should be popping up on tap at various accounts within the next couple of months. For more information on this new cidery, check out our post from last month.

• Liquid Assets, the Nova Scotian beer, wine, and spirits store located at the Halifax Stanfield International Airport, will be opening this Monday, April 18th. Located at the departures level of the HIAA, they will be selling products from eight craft breweries to start: Bad Apple, Boxing Rock, Garrison, Nine Locks, North, Propeller, Spindrift, and Tatamagouche. They will be selling cans in 4- and 6-packs, and single 500 mL and 650 mL bottles. As they are located past the security checkpoint, you can carry your purchases with you on your flight (provided you do not have to go through security again); they will have boxes for multiple purchases. The store will be open 7am-9pm, daily, and will be launching an online store in the near future, so that customers may pre-order beers for a quick pick-up, and plans for shipping of products within Canada are in the works.

• This weekend’s Saint John Beerfest may be sold out, but several breweries are releasing special brews in celebration of the event, and will be making them available to a wider audience. Among them, Big Tide Brewpub has released a Hard Root Beer, Tool Shed Root Porter. Brewed with 2-row, CaraMunich, and Chocolate Wheat malt, it was bittered lightly with Southan Farms hop hash. Freshly-cut white birch bark was added to the boil, along with sassafras, sarsaparilla, vanilla beans and sweet gale. It should come in at ~6.3% ABV, and will be released tomorrow at the Beer Fest (joining their Karnival Kolsch and Valley View Farmhouse Ale), and on tap at the brewpub.

Lots of events coming up, as usual…

• Other events accompanying this weekend’s Saint John Beerfest are several pop-ups and events around the area today:
– Drop by Lemongrass for leftover pours from Garrison’s 14 line tap takeover held last night.
– Saint John Ale House is hosting a “Spindrift Social” 4-6pm, with Kellye and Matt from Spindrift pouring their Coastal Lager, Riptide IPL and the new Knotty Buoy Pils.
– PEI Brewing Co is taking over the taps at McGill’s Restaurant this afternoon at 5pm, featuring $5 pints.

• On April 20th, Good Robot will be releasing another of their “Beta Brew” pilot batch beers at the Taproom. The Pusha Man is a Belgian saison brewed with hemp. To celebrate, there will be dank tunes and special munchies.

• Halifax’s Stillwell Beer Bar has announced a series of Rare Beer events, occurring in subsequent weekends in May. Each weekend will feature bottles (and some will also feature kegs) of beers from outstanding American breweries, not available in the Atlantic provinces. Individual pours will be available for bottled beers, with any bottles not selling out during that weekend available for purchase going forward (by the full bottle).
– April 30 & May 1: Anchorage Brewing, Anchorage, Alaska
– May 7: Mystic Brewing, Chelsea, Massachusetts
– May 14 & 15: Pretty Things, Somerville, Massachusetts
– May 21 & 22: Saint Somewhere, Tarpon Springs, Florida
– May 27 & 28: Upright Brewing, Portland, Oregon

• Fredericton’s James Joyce Irish Pub is pairing up with Sunset Heights Meadery for their next event, Wenches and Mead, on Saturday, April 23rd. Details are still being ironed out, but we can confirm that they will be offering flights of the three medal-winning meads from the recent Mazer Cup, as well as the 2015 edition of Crowne Jewel, made with honey raised on the roof of the Crowne Plaza hotel. And stay tuned for more details on the Joyce’s next Meet Your Maker event, featuring Big Tide, scheduled for Friday, May 13th.

• Lazy Bear Brewing in Smith’s Cove, NS, has announced that they will be attending the Annapolis Royal Farmers’ Market, when they launch for the year on May 21st. Concentrating on the market at first, they will expand their beers to local bars and restaurants, and open their storefront. Speaking of beers, they have announced one of their launch beers, Gut View Amber Ale. A 4.9% English Amber, it features Canadian-grown English varietal hops for a balancing bitterness, and subtle aromas.

Have a great weekend! Just a few closing notes…

– Boxing Rock has brought back their popular Sessionista “Bold Session Ale”, a beer with the big hop character of an IPA, in a small 4.0% ABV package. It is available province-wide in the NSLC now, and on tap at various beer bars as well.
– Flying Boats is once again pouring at ANBL growler stations this weekend, with all five locations offering their Empress Irish Red Ale, while supplies last. Joining them at all 5 locations is PEI Brewing’s Setting Day, a 3.5% ABV Saison.
– In other ANBL growler news, Pump House will be participating in a tap takeover in Saint John this weekend, at the KV location today from 4-7 pm, and the new East Point location tomorrow from 11 am-2 pm. The brewery’s 4 Alarm IPA and various seasonals will be featured.
– Spindrift is releasing their Riptide IPL in cans early next week; as a result, there will be no 7th Wave Series release today. However, look for the Riptide cans to be available at the brewery by no later than next Friday.
– Propeller Brewing has released their wildly popular Hefeweizen this week, and it is available in bottles for the first time in a while. And be sure to grab tickets for their next Prop’r Cask Event, April 29th, with Krave Burger taking care of the food at their Gottingen space.
– There have been no major updates in last week’s story concerning policy changes for breweries in New Brunswick by ANBL; they are still communicating with NBCAPA. We will be sure to provide an update once one is announced.

Friday Wrap-Up – FCBF summary & News from York County Cider, Red Rover, Annapolis Cider Company, and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2016-03-18
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Annapolis Cider Company, Bad Apple Brewhouse, Boxing Rock Brewing, Breton Brewing, Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, Gahan House Harbourfront (Halifax), Good Robot Brewing, Grimross Brewing, Newfoundland Labrador Artisanal and Craft Beer Club, Nine Locks Brewery, Paddys Irish Brewpub, PEI Brewing Co., Picaroons, Pump House Brewery, Red Rover Craft Cider, Spindrift Brewing, The Nook and Cranny, Upstreet Craft Brewing, YellowBelly Brewery, York County Cider. Leave a Comment

Good morning! We hope everyone is recovering from a busy past week – with the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival last Saturday and yesterday being St. Patrick’s Day, there’s probably some recuperating to be done! Well, sit back and have a read…

• This year’s fourth annual FCBF was a huge success, as usual! Here’s a few stats to sum it all up for those of you who unfortunately were not able to attend:
– 1500+ attendees over two sessions (afternoon and evening), 50 volunteers.
– 52+ breweries, 200+ beers, ciders and mead, and 200 brewers and suppliers on-hand to pour and chat.
– $2000 raised for Mosaic Down Syndrome, and $20,000 to Team Diabetes.
– A new FCBF app was launched and very-well received.
Next year’s Fest Week has already been set, and will run March 5-12, 2017. Aims for next year are to build up the afternoon session even more, and offer more events throughout the week leading up to the festival, with several tap takeovers tentatively planned for across the city (think: NB, NS, and PEI pavilions of beer). And if you’re an FCBF Alumni (i.e. have attended all four FCBFs), look out for something special coming your way in 2017!

• Fredericton’s second cidery, York County Cider, officially opens for business today! After debuting their ciders at last Saturday’s FCBF, the storefront to their cidery – located at 418 York St. – will open to the public today from 4-7 pm. They will be selling 1.89 L growlers of their ciders, and will also be filling 1.89 L, 1 L, and 750 mL clean growlers from other breweries (prices for fills are $15, $7.50, and $6, respectively). Five different products will be available:
– In The Beginning, an original dry
– Sweet William, a semi-dry
– An Apple a Day, cider hopped with Falconer’s Flight
– Ginger Snap, made with real, fresh ginger
– Like an Academic, featuring 100% New Brunswick-grown blueberries
All of the ciders are made with locally-grown apples, and come in at 6.5% ABV. Glassware and t-shirts will also be available for purchase, and the storefront will be open all weekend (Friday 4-11pm, Sat noon-11 pm, and Sun noon-6pm). Be sure to drop by to fill a growler or two!

• And while on the subject of Fredericton cider, Red Rover opened their new storefront location last weekend. The Abbey Cafe is located downtown at 546 Queen St., and will have multiple RR ciders on tap for 5 oz samples, 12 oz pours, and flagon fills, along with a tap dedicated to guest cider in the future, and one tap dedicated to craft beer. Open 12-9 pm Monday through Saturday, the location also has equipment dedicated to 1500 L fermentation capacity, acting as the cidery’s pilot system, allowing RR to experiment with new styles. Note that the original Ciderhouse (880 Hanwell Rd) will still be the home of the majority of the cider-making and equipment, but will no longer be a location for flagon fills. If you’re downtown this weekend, head on in and check out the new spot!

• Even more cider news! Annapolis Cider Company has announced that they will be opening this April in Wolfville, NS. Co-founded by Gina Haverstock, winemaker at Gaspereau Vineyards, and Sean Myles, Dalhousie University apple researcher, the cidery and accompanying tasting room will be found on Main St. in Wolfville, where their ciders will be available for samples and in refillable bottles. Also on the team is manager Katie Barbour and cidermaker Melanie Eelman, who also has a PhD in Chemistry. Their first two releases will be Juicy & Sweet, a 5.6% ABV cider that combines dry-fermented cider with freshly-pressed apple juice, and Crisp & Dry, a 7.7% ABV cider that leans more heavily on cider, but still includes a “touch” of apple juice. Visitors will be invited to enjoy tours and tastings, and will be able to view the cider making process directly from the tasting bar. We’ll keep you updated on their progress; in the meantime, be sure to follow along with their Twitter account for more news.

• Grimross has a new beer out, Brett Saison. Fermented and conditioned for over a month with a blend of a Belgian Saccharomyces strain and a Brettanomyces strain, it’s a light golden, dry beer that exhibits “rustic” Saison characteristics, along with some light funk and fruity character from the Brett. If you’re able to purchase a growler to hold on to, you’ll most likely notice the Brett character increasing over time, as the yeast will continue to eat some leftover sugars. Weighing in at 6% ABV and 21 IBUs, this light and refreshing beer is available for growlers fills and pints at the brewery, and is on tap at select locations.

• There’s some new-beer news coming from Pump House this week. First off, they’re releasing two more beers in bottles at ANBL stores next week, one of which is Muddy River Stout: a long-time tap-only beer, it’s an Oatmeal Stout featuring lots of roast, Espresso, and chocolate in the aroma and flavours, and still manages to weigh in at a sessionable 4.5% ABV. The other is Best Friend Märzen Lager; not to be confused with their Oktoberfest seasonal, this is a different beer altogether that uses Hallertau hops for bittering (18 IBUs) and aroma to complement the “strong nose of sweet malt aromas” and a “pleasant sweetness from Vienna and aroma-friendly malts”, according to the brewery; it clocks in at 5.5% ABV. Finally, PH released a Black Irish IPA yesterday for St. Patrick’s Day. A big beer at 8% ABV and 65 IBUs, this dark IPA was dry-hopped with Warrior. On tap at the brewpub while supplies last, it can also be found at the new SJ East ANBL growler station this weekend.

• Halifax’s Good Robot has released their latest CommuniBrew beer in the SMaSH Bros series: Rakauchu IPA. SMaSH beers feature a Single Malt and Single Hop, and for his beer, local homebrewer Miles Bishop chose Munich malt for a light body with a touch of toast/bread/caramel flavours, and New Zealand Rakau hops. The hops were added throughout the brew, including first wort, and several additions late in the boil, for a pleasing bitterness and big nose of berry, citrus, and pear. As with all of the CommuniBrew beers, they are brewed on GR’s Sabco Brew Magic system, so there will only be one keg of the beer available, at the Taproom. And at a very sessionable 5.5% ABV, we suspect it won’t last long!

• In fact, look for GR’s next CommuniBrew beer to be tapped this weekend, The Cookie Jar. Developed and brewed by homebrewer Keith Forbes, this 8.2% White Stout is a hybrid of styles: the beer features big portions of Wheat malt and Oats to add mouthfeel and complexity to the Pale base, with a light bittering charge of Warrior to balance. The addition of Brown Sugar, Cinnamon sticks, Cocoa nibs, Lactose, Toasted Coconut, and Vanilla Beans take it to the next level, however! The resultant aroma and flavour is reminiscent of a Specialty Stout, with the appearance of a Pale Ale. Taproom only, folks!

• Paddy’s Irish Pub has a pair of new beers on tap, at both their Kentville and Wolfville locations. Their Black IPA is a 5.7% ABV dark beer, with a nod to American IPAs, featuring plenty of Falconer’s Flight hops for a robust 67 IBUs, and berry, citrus, and stonefruit characters in both aroma and flavour.  Their very popular Oatmeal Stout has returned: rolled oats give this 5.0% ABV beer a smooth mouthfeel, with the dark kilned malts lending notes of choclate and coffee. Both of these new brews are on tap at both locations, for both pints and in growlers to take away. And keep an eye out for a brand new beer, coming soon: Rye Saison. This 5.0% ABV pale saison was fermented with a Belgian yeast strain for big fruit and spicy characters, with a pepper note enhanced by the addition of malted rye.

• In more Paddy’s news, they will be hosting their second Brewer’s Dinner, Tuesday April 5th, 7-9pm. It will feature four courses of food, each carefully paired with one of Brewer Kirsten MacDonald’s creations from the brewery:
1st course: Spring salad with Blueberry Ale dressing
2nd course: Acorn squash stuffed with quinoa
3rd course: Beef Wellington (veg option: Veggie Wellington)
4th course: Sticky toffee pudding
The event will be taking place in the Brewer’s Hall, upstairs at their Wolfville location. Tickets are available at Paddy’s Wolfville now.

• Shelburne’s Boxing Rock has brought back two previous favourites this week. The first is La Rive Du Sud, a 7.5% ABV Bière de Garde. Based on the style originally (and still) brewed in Northern France, it is a malt-forward beer, with light toasted and caramel malt aromas meeting a slightly sweet finish with a touch of Noble hops. It is available at the brewery now in bottles and growler fills, this weekend at the Farmers Market in growlers, and on tap at better beer bars and restaurants. Also re-launching this week is Wild Axe Bohemian Pilsner. This 5.7% ABV is keeping it traditional, brewed with 100% Bohemian Pilsener malt and Czech Saaz hops. The extended lagering process leaves a crisp and refreshing beer that is supremely drinkable. The beer with be launched at Timber Lounge, a new Axe Throwing space on Agricola St, and will also be on tap around HRM, and in bottles at the private beer stores.

• Truro’s Nook and Cranny has released a new brew pouring this week. Their Amber Ale was produced on their DME Smart Brew system, which allows them to ferment beer right on the premises, adding in their own take on base recipes and styles. For the Amber, they dry-hopped the beer with Cascade, Centennial, and Galaxy hops, for a solid hop punch with stone fruit character. This 5.5% ABV and 55 IBUs beer is only available on tap at their pub on Prince Street.

• Attention St John’s (and the rest of the Rock) Good Beer Fans! The Inaugural St John’s Brew Fest is coming your way! Presented by some of the same people behind the Newfoundland Labrador Artisanal and Craft Beer Club (NLACBC, formerly Beerthief Beer Club), they’ve been sharing their passion for great beers to the public for several years, so a Festival is the next logical step. Featuring more than 60 beers from 20+ breweries (and the number is growing weekly), many of which are not otherwise available in the province, the three sessions will feature low entrance fees, and a pay-per-sample pricing scheme. This will encourage thoughtful enjoyment, rather than “trying to get one’s money worth” by drinking as much as possible. The event is being held June 17 & 18, with three sessions (one Friday evening, two Saturday), and tickets will be on sale Monday March 21st.

• From one Island to another, Upstreet Brewmaster Mike Hogan (from Prince Edward Island) is visiting Cape Breton Island’s Breton Brewing today for a collaboration brew. Inspired by the upcoming East Coast Music Awards, being held in Sydney April 13-17, they are having a jam session of their own today. An Extra Special Bitter, it features Maritime Malt, and New Brunswick-grown Golding hops. The beer will be launched at Breton at the start of ECMA weekend, and the Upstreet team, along with several of their beers on Breton’s guest taps, will be onsite to celebrate.

That’s it for this week! As usual, a few final notes:
– Picaroons had several variants of their Timberhog stout (such as Ginger, Coffee, and Chocolate Vanilla) available for growler fills at the Brewtique yesterday for St. Paddy’s Day; there may still be some available, so be sure to stop by if you missed out.
– Speaking of St. Patrick’s Day beer releases, there will be no 7th Wave series release at Spindrift today, as they did a special release of Dry Irish Stout yesterday for the holiday.
– Gahan House Halifax is on the lookout for a Brewer at their Historic Properties location. There are a few details on their Facebook page, and interested folks should contact them ASAP, in order to work with Karen Allen before she leaves.
– YellowBelly Patrick’s Pale Ale was released this week, featuring Cascade hops throughout the process. It is available on tap, as well as in bottles at the bar, and the NLC.
– PEI Brewing Co. has brought back their 8.1% ABV Doppelbock, Reanimator, which is available now in cans at the brewery; it will follow soon at PEILCC stores, with the ANBL not far behind.
– Nine Locks is starting to release some of their beers in cans: ESB is available now at the brewery, with IPA following shortly on Monday evening, and their Porter and Blonde Wednesday evening.
– Due to a trademark dispute, Somerset’s Bad Apple Brewhouse will now be selling their beer outside of Nova Scotia under the name Mosaic Brewing Co.; but if you’re in NS, don’t worry, the BAB name still stands! Check out their link for more details.

Friday Wrap-Up – News from Big Spruce, Bishop’s Cellar, Maybee Brewing, Hammond River, Railcar, Good Robot, and more!

Posted by acbbchris on 2016-02-05
Posted in: Friday Wrap-Up. Tagged: Bad Apple Brewhouse, Battery Park, Beerocracy, Big Spruce Brewing, Bishop's Cellar, Boxing Rock Brewing, FirkinStein Brewing, Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, Good Robot Brewing, Grimross Brewing, Hammond River Brewing, Horton Ridge Malt & Grain, Maybee Brewing, Picaroons, Propeller Brewing, Railcar Brewing, Spindrift Brewing, Upstreet Craft Brewing. Leave a Comment

Another weekend, another snow storm! Let’s celebrate the lovely season that is winter with some local news on our favourite beverage…

• Big Spruce recently announced that they have received a bottling machine, and will begin releasing some special beers this way. Their first bottled offering will be a barrel-aged Russian Imperial Stout, Ra Ra Rasputin. This beer started out as an 8.5% Imperial Stout, brewed with loads of black and dark malts, and kicked up with Just Us! organic coffee in the boil to lend some bitterness and roast aroma to the beer. After fermentation, the beer spent two months in 14-year Single Malt Glenora barrels. The finished brew is 10.5% ABV, with some lovely caramel and vanilla notes. Due to the low volume available, it is in very short supply; there are only four kegs of the beer available (one of which will be heading to Battery Park shortly), so be sure to grab a glass if you spot it. For those interested in buying bottles, they will only be available for purchase at the Nyanza brewery, beginning late next week, so keep an eye on social media for the official announcement.

• In other Big Spruce news, Bishop’s Cellar in Halifax will be dedicating all five of their growler taps to them this weekend. Beers pouring will include Kitchen Party Pale Ale, Cereal Killer Oatmeal Stout, Read Between the Pines, and two surprise beers rotating through (sorry, we can’t tell you what they are!). There will be two free tasting sessions (Saturday 11 am-4 pm, Sunday 12-5 pm) with Big Spruce owner/brewmaster Jeremy White; remember to bring your empty growlers! Bishop’s is also holding a separate tasting event tonight from 5-7 pm; the $20 ticket price (available for purchase online) includes samples of a variety of beers on their shelves, along with several appetizers. And be sure to sign up for BC’s Behind the Tap beer-centric monthly mailing, for the scoop on sales and events.

• After having their beer on sale at the ANBL and on tap around town for a few weeks, Fredericton’s Maybee Brewing location will be officially opening their doors today at noon. Growler fills and cans of their Roseway Red and Work Horse IPA will be available, as well as a limited amount of their newest release, Belgian Tripel, an 8.5% ABV Belgian Golden Strong. Drop by their 559 Wilsey Road location for a sample (they are not yet licensed for pint sales) and fill up on their offerings; they’ll be open 12-8 pm both today and tomorrow. Congratulations to the entire Maybee family!

• The “Nut Red Ale” brewed by Hammond River last month is now at select accounts in New Brunswick. Nut Your Everyday Red Ale was brewed with a good portion of specialty malts, to give the beer lots of “toasty, biscuity, and nuttiness both in the flavour and on the nose”, according to the brewery. It was bittered with the Nugget variety, and further hopped throughout the boil with Hallertau. Think of it as an easy-drinking (5.1% ABV, 33 IBUs) English-style Red Ale; sounds like this one may become a regular brew for HR!

• In more HRBrew news, their Imperial Breakfast Stout is currently in the wild in the River Valley: Barrel’s Head, Bourbon Quarter, and the James Joyce in Fredericton. It’s an 8.0% ABV Imperial Stout, with additions of oats, local coffee from Java Moose, cacao nibs, and home-smoked (Applewood) bacon. Look for a special oaked version of the IBS to be pouring at the evening session of the Fredericton Craft Beer Fest. And the winners from last month’s Wee Heavy Homebrew Competition will be brewing up their winning recipe, Tilted Kilt, on the weekend, which should be making its debut at the FCBF.

• Railcar brewed a new beer this week, their first Red IPA. The grist is made up of several specialty malts (including Crystal 40 and 60 L, Munich, and Chocolate) to go along with the Pale base malt, to provide notes of toffee sweetness and caramel. Hopped in the boil with Northern Brewer and Columbus, the beer will be dry-hopped with Amarillo after fermentation is complete. This amber-coloured ale should come on the higher end of the spectrum for this style, at ~8.5% ABV, and with 62 IBUs. Look for it to show up on tap at the brewery within a few weeks. Also, Fredericton’s Prospect St. ANBL will be launching Railcar’s Artisan Brown Ale in bottles tomorrow, where it will join their previously released Cafe Buzz Porter. The brewery has also announced another expansion, as they will be receiving two additional 50-gallon fermentors within the next two weeks.

• Good Robot has just released a new beer, a Smoked Ale named Samsquamptch!. At 5.2% ABV and 27 IBUs, the beer features a healthy dose of Cherrywood-Smoked Malt (about 15% of the grain bill), Rye, Caramel and Vienna on a 2-Row base, for a smokey and spicy brew; it was bittered with German Magnum and Tettnang hops. As with most of their beers, it has been gluten reduced to less than 20 ppm. Never ones to hold back from a good idea gone bad, they attempted to reproduce the same effect by smoking hops. As in, pipe smoking hops… Exploiting the quasi-relationship between hops and Cannabis, which are both members of the Cannabinaceae family. Rumoured to share the relaxing properties of Cannabis when smoked, hops do lack the “psychoactive properties” of the drug. You’ll have to watch the video for yourself! As for the beer, it is on tap at the brewery for growler fills, and their adjacent taproom.

• On February 12th, the Good Robot taproom is hosting a New York City food and beer day. Starting at noon, they are hosting Rinaldo’s Italian American Specialties for some NY-style sandwiches. In addition to their own taps, they will be pouring bottles of several Brooklyn Brewery beers, including the perennial favourite Lager, as well as Black Chocolate Stout, Local 1, and Sorachi Ace. Grab a lean at the bar, lower (or increase, depending) your expectations for politeness, and bend an elbow or two. More details here.

• Next Monday, Feb. 8th, Picaroons will be re-releasing their Afterglow Aphrodisiac Ale. A dark, full-bodied beer featuring the addition of chocolate, cayenne pepper, ginseng root and liquorice root, it’s released every year just in time for Valentine’s Day. It will be on tap at the Brewtique, and at better beer bars across New Brunswick.  They’re also holding a Winter Warmer Party tomorrow at Crabbe Mountain, where all of their taps will be pouring Picaroons beers, with live music from The Backyard Devils. Finally, the brewery has announced that they’re now hiring for their Picaroons General Store, to open in Saint John. If you’re interested, fire them an email.

• With the explosion in the number of craft breweries in New Brunswick over the last couple of years, it’s no surprise that there’s a documentary currently being filmed on the subject. Produced by Shauna Chase and Alex Vietinghoff, Beerocracy will examine the current craft beer surge in the province through interviews with both brewers and beer event organizers alike. Filming is currently underway (Chase and Vietinghoff have been in Fredericton for interviews with the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival‘s Lloyd Chambers and Grimross‘ Stephen Dixon), with a projected completion sometime this Spring. You can follow their progress through their Facebook link above; more news to come!

• Upstreet Brewing will be holding a special event Feb 14th, For the Love of Beer. This Valentine’s Day event will feature a brand new beer release, a Scottish 80/ (aka Scottish Export) named Eighty Bob. An amber-coloured beer that is definitely on the malty side of the spectrum, Upstreet’s take involves a grist made up of Pale Ale malt as the base, with a mixture of Crystal malts and Chocolate malt. Phoenix and EKG hops were used in small amounts to keep the bittering low (20 IBUs) and add just a touch of flavour to the malt character. According to the brewery, the beer has “toffee, caramel, raisins, and a little bit of nuts”, just as a complexly malty brew should! It weighs in at an easy-drinking 4.5% ABV. The launch event, held from 12-4 pm at the brewery, will feature a special brunch menu, live music from Salt Licks, and a special open mic with brewer Mike Hogan, who will be on hand to successfully (?) answer all of your relationship questions! Disclaimer: BYO Divorce Attorney.

• Dartmouth’s Battery Park will also be holding their own Valentine’s Day event. A four course prix-fixe menu (with optional beer pairings) will be on that evening, featuring ceviche, pork loin or lobster bisque, oxtail roulade or seared local halibut, plus gingerbread with spent grain ice cream. Seating is by reservation only (either by phone or email). Full details here. And on the Friday before (Feb 12), they are one of the stops on a Downtown Dartmouth Food Crawl, featuring 15 stops. Running 5-7 pm, people can visit as many of the cafes, restaurants, and bars as they wish, enjoying some locally-sourced and -prepared food and drink. Details are available on their Facebook page.

• Attention readers in the GTA: Thanks to a recent visit from Brewmaster Greg Nash, Bar Volo’s taps will soon be pouring Unfiltered beer! During a recent visit to Toronto, Nash joined together with House Ales brewer Dan Beaudoin, and the rest of the Bar Volo team, to brew a small batch of Twelve Years to Zion DIPA. The beer will be released today at 4pm, so leave work early to get on the good stuff! (We had incorrectly indicated Exile on North Street was being released, apologies for the error)

• The boys at FirkinStein in Mount Pleasant, NS will be releasing their newest beer in the next week. Anchors Aweigh is a big American Pale Ale, very light in colour, and with a nice crisp flavour. Though it weighs in at 8.5% ABV, the hopping is relatively light, with a pleasant Cascade-based citrus aroma shining through. Look for it to be available at their Lunenburg Farmers’ Market stall next week (Thursday the 11th), and for their weekly deliveries, and on tap shortly as well.

• Things are coming along nicely at the Horton Ridge Malt & Grain in the Annapolis Valley. While not quite malting yet, they are getting ever closer to that point, with production launch expected next month. Ahead of that, they have opened up a second round of CEDIF offering, after a very successful first round of almost $400,000 raised in 2015. The goal of round two is $200,000, with the funds planned to be used to pay down the mortgage on the building. Potential investors are welcome to visit the Malt House Feb 13 for an Open House to learn more about the CEDIF offering, and check out the great progress made so far. By investing in a Community Economic Development Investment Fund (CEDIF), residents may be entitled to an initial 35% Provincial tax credit, in addition to other benefits going forward.

• Another CEDIF offering currently open is from FarmWorks Investment Co-op. They have enabled at least three local microbreweries (Big Spruce, Boxing Rock, and Meander River) and the list of farmers, food producers, restaurants and others keeps growing. In loaning startup funds since its creation in 2011, it currently has over $1 million at work around the province, investing in food production and distribution to increase access to sustainable food.  Deadline for investments with this offering is March 15, 2016 and this can be used for RRSP tax deferral.

• Propeller Brewing is releasing their newest One Hit Wonder today. Black Heart is a 6.3% ABV Black IPA, heartily hopped to 90 IBUs. It is on tap now at their Windmill location, Gottingen later today. As always, their OHW releases are growlers and draft only, due to the smaller batch sizes. They have also announced details on their next Cask Night: it will be held on Friday, Feb 26th at 6 pm at the brewery on Gottingen St., and will feature a food “mash-up” from The Other Bean and Rinaldo’s to pair with the multiple beer samples. Tickets are $30, and available now at the link above.

Have a great weekend! Before you move on, here’s a few last blurbs/reminders…
– Bad Apple Brewhouse has released Alternate Ending, a 4.8% ABV Altbier. Brewed with Mike Orr and Keith Forbes, two members of the Brewnosers Homebrew club, it is currently available at the Somerset brewery, as well as on tap at Good Robot’s taproom, Primal Kitchen, and Stillwell (including a special cask). This is a small batch, so be sure to grab it when you spot it on tap!
– Boxing Rock has re-released Unobtainium, a beer best-described as a 5% ABV Red IPA featuring Simcoe, Centennial, Amarillo, and Nelson Sauvin (for more info on the beer, click here).
– The Maritime Black IPA, Grimross’s newest beer that we just mentioned last week, is now available. Drop by the brewery for growler fills, and check out their regular accounts to try it by the pint.
– Look out for a new beer from Schoolhouse in Falmouth, their first Lager. An experiment of sorts, they wanted to do a small test batch to test the recipe and technique, before brewing it on their expanded brewhouse later in the year. Look for it on tap at the Spitfire Arms, as well as their Wolfville Farmers’ Market stall Saturday.
– This week’s limited 7th Wave release from Spindrift will feature a cask of The Fix, which is their Schwarzbier (The Abyss) cold-conditioned on Espresso and vanilla beans (4.2% ABV, 25 IBUs); as always, this is a small batch, growler only beer, available today at the brewery at noon.
 – Tatamagouche’s Oyster Cloister Stout has returned. A 5.3% stout, brewed with local hops and oysters for a bit of a subtle character. It is on tap at the store right now for growler fills, and will be returning in cans very shortly.