Hello and welcome to the March 27th edition of the Maritime Beer Report.
Upstreet Craft Brewing is looking for your help. They say they want to show the world how wise, quirky, insightful and hilarious Islanders are by printing “Islandism’s” under the cap of every beer they bottle and sell. They are calling it #UnderTheCap and they need you to help make it happen. Here’s how it’s going to work:
1) Dig deep in your brain to come up with the best Island phrases, advice, jokes, quirks or quotes you know. Try and keep it short.
2) Share your “Islandism” by commenting on Facebook or Instagram, or Tweet us using #UnderTheCap.
3) They will filter through the submissions and pick the best 250 to be featured #UnderTheCap.
Les Brasseurs du Petit-Sault are commemorating, in their special way, the old Lancaster Bomber that's been an icon at the Québec-New Brunswick border for over 50 years. The Lanc will be moved to a museum in Alberta this summer. The "special edition" beer is a marvelous märzen, an amber lager brewed with a different type of yeast usually used by the brewers. The "Lancaster KB882" will be available in limited quantity at the Brewtique as of March 30th. It will also be available in select NB Liquor growler filling stations over coming weeks.
Hammond River Brewing was brewing the first summer seasonal, Hawaiian Pale Ale, brewed with fresh Pineapples. They also brewed season's last batch of Breakfast Stout. Lots of Coffee goodness from Java Moose, Oats, and Cacao Nibs. Even threw in a few eggs to make it complete. The home smoked bacon will be added once fermentation is complete. Finally 16 kegs of Switchback Brown Ale was delivered to the KV ANBL store for Growler fill ups starting yesterday.
Picaroons Traditional Ales' newest beer experiment has landed, Kelp on the Way.This dark and smokey ale has been brewed with a generous helping of real organic sugar kelp harvested off of the shores near St. George, New Brunswick, by way of Dr. Thierry Chopin of UNB Saint John. The Kelp is heavily blanketed by a strong malt backbone of roasted and smoked malts, and balanced out by a gentle hopping of Fuggles and Goldings hops. At 22 IBUs, and 5.8% ABV, it's like drinking a dark, malty, smokey beer, right after a cool brisk swim in the Bay of Fundy. It is available exclusively The Brewtique for Growler fills in Downtown Fredericton while supplies last.
Railcar Brewing Company is a little ahead of schedule and tell me they will be open tomorrow, Saturday, from noon to 10 pm for growler fills. Right now they will only have their Artisan Brown Ale on tap with more beers coming next week. Tasting room should be open in a couple weeks pending inspections.
Big Spruce Brewing was busy zesting 80 lemons and making the first ever lager in Big Spruce history. They're brewing a lemon zest infused Maibock today. It will be boiled and dry hopped on fresh lemon zest. Bavarian 2206 lager yeast is at the ready. Look for it during NS Craft Beer Week in May.
Another beer they are working on is a kettle soured, raspberry wheat coming this summer. It is described as tarty, fruity, complex and every bit what they are intending to brew for a very select and limited summer release. Big Spruce worked with Parks Canada, the Bell Museum, and the upcoming summer production of The Bells of Baddeck: The Alexander Graham and Mabel Bell Story to develop this beer based on a recipe right out of Alexander Graham Bell's notes. Lastly the collaboration between Big Spruce Brewing and Barnone Brewing, Island Conspiracy DIPA has been released and is now available in limited release.
Boxing Rock Brewing Company has released its La Rive Du Sud again, available in 650ml bottles and 1L growlers at their retail store in Shelburne and available in 1L growlers at the Halifax Seaport Market on Saturday. The Next Chapter Rye IPA is available at select ANBL stores, you lucky NBers get it while it lasts.
Garrison Brewing Company says get ready to pucker up. Their newest one off, a Cranberry Hibiscus Wit, coming in at 4% ABV with a wonderfully tart flavour. Available on tap at the brewery.
Granite Brewery released their India Pale Ale last week end in growlers from their brewery on Stairs Street. It is a British style IPA, hopped with Cascade and East Kent Goldings that is a 5.4% ABV and 45 IBUs beer.
Meander River Farm says that back by popular demand, their Smokey Chipotle Porter will be on tap this weekend alongside our new release Cider. Cider you say. Yes they are releasing Nova Scotia’s newest craft cider this weekend at their retail shop in Ashdale. From Meander River “Craft cider, like craft beer, is very popular right now. At the farm, we’ve always used the resources that are available to us seasonally; our pigs to till the land, our hops for the beer, and our lavender for our home and bath products. We live in an area of Nova Scotia where apples are everywhere, so why not make something delicious out of them?” said Alan Bailey, brewer and proprietor of Meander River Farm & Brewery.
The cider is made from a blend of valley apples and has clear Nova Scotia apple and citrus notes. It is dry with a crisp finish. 6.5% ABV. There are 200 litres of cider available for growlers fills from this small batch, the first of many.
A recent expansion in brewery tanks has allowed Bailey to not only brew more beer, but also add this
new cider to the product line. By bringing in two additional conditioning tanks, Meander River Farm & Brewery’s capacity has increased from 15,000 litres per year to 45,000 litres per year, approximately 330 litres per batch. Bailey will double production this coming summer season and triple production by summer 2017."
Propeller Brewing Company says another 4000 HL per year of capacity added to their Dartmouth brewery. Two new fermenters, both are 135 hectoliters (close to 40,000 bottles worth of beer each for perspective). The custom designed tanks were purchased from ABT (Allied Beverage Tanks Inc.) The new tanks will give them much needed additional capacity as they move into "beer drinking season". Growth in the craft beer segment has been exceptional in Nova Scotia over the past few years and it doesn't look like it's going to slow in the near future. Brands like their IPA and Organic Ale are leading the pack for growth. This addition was planned for when they moved into their new facility in 2013 and is the second tank addition, they added a 68 HL tank in 2014 since moving to their new home on Windmill Rd.
The Townhouse Brewpub & Eatery says every Friday they add a second house-brewed beer to the tap list, Terry's English IPA is on the second hand-pump tonight.
Thanks for joining me again this week, have a fantastic week and until next time, enjoy responsibly.
Hello and welcome to the March 20th edition of the Maritime Beer Report. It is the first day of Spring and a lot of brewers and fans are sorely in need of some nicer weather.
Celtic Knot Brewing announced that the Tide and Boar has taken delivery of their latest one off. It's called Terminus and it's an IPA made exclusively with El Dorado hops. They will make an announcement when it hits the taps via their social media.
Hammond River Brewing is currently designing a new beer that will be debuting at the Saint John Beerfest next month. It's going to be a Rye IPA using El Dorado hops exclusively. More details as I get them.
Railcar Brewing Company says they we are behind schedule on construction and some new gear has been delayed. They are now looking at reopening April 1st with the need to ensure everything is installed and working correctly.
Trail Way Brewing Company says their Hugh-John Hops IPA has been delivered to the King Street Ale House and to 540 Kitchen & Bar. Look for this on tap in the coming days at both locations. They say they are very happy with the recipe and excited to add this IPA to the Trail Way Brewing rotation.
The Nook and Cranny in Truro is a hidden gem for craft brew fans had an exciting announcement this week, they are becoming a brew pub. From Nook and Cranny "We are bringing our love of craft beer to the next level by installing a brewing system on site. Our customers will soon be able to enjoy one of our three N&C Brew Co beers...and take a growler to go!". They are buying a system and that allows them to buy wort rather than starting with grains. The promise three taps, a light crisp one, a dark beer and a rotating seasonal with fresh products like blueberries, strawberries etc will be added.
Sea Level Brewing says the second batch of El Rojo Diablo DIPA is ready. They sold the first tank in record time so they whipped up a second batch. There is a difference though, they used different yeast and an Australian hop called Ella this time. Check it out in the usual spots.
Wrought Iron Brewing got the last of their tanks this week which I think was on schedule. This means if all goes well we may see beer from them in a month or so.
Boxing Rock Brewing was busy on Sunday brewing up the Ladies Beer League's next brew, Cinnamon Challenge Robust Porter . Although the LBL, didn't make it down due to weather they had some special help from Upstreet Craft Brewing to make the brew. More details coming soon.
Fredericton Craft Beer Festival announced the winners from from the voting. The prestigious Brewers Choice Award " Best of the Fest" goes to Hammond River Brewing. The Peoples choice awards, " Best of the Fest" award first place goes to Trail Way Brewing Company, second place to Hammond River Brewing and third place to Boxing Rock Brewing. Congrats to everyone and Lloyd says it was a very close race. That has to be without a doubt with all that great beer there.
Thanks for joining me again this week. I hope to see some of you at the NB craft dinner tomorrow in Moncton and until next time enjoy responsibly.
Hello and welcome to the March 13th edition of the Maritime Beer Report.
First I would like to thank everyone one who said hi at the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival. Your support means a lot to me.
Upstreet Craft Brewing did a small reveal this week. They are a PEI start-up coming on stream this summer. They are owned by Mitch Cobb, Mike Hogan (Hogie) and Joey Seaman and will be at 41 Allen St. You can expect to find them on tap and in bottles in many of your favourite restaurants and bars across the Island. You'll also be able to pop into their tasting room on evenings and weekends. More details will be coming soon.
Picaroons Traditional Ales have you released five different versions of their Timber Hog Stout. Regular Timber Hog, COFFEE infused Timber Hog (12 Beers Of Xmas style), A chocolate and vanilla infused Timber Hog, ginger Timber Hog, and a dry-hopped Timber Hog with Willamette hops. They hope it will last until March 17th. Picaroon’s Yipee IPA was the Category Champion for IPAs at the Northern Lands Festival Craft Beer Competition Awards.
Pump House Brewery released it Red Leaf Lager and is available at the brewery and ANBL growler stations. It is deep red in color, dry hopped with leave hops, medium in bitterness, with all the nut-like malt of their Fire Chief Red but fermented with lager style yeast. Pump House Pilsner was the runner-up at Northern Lands Festival Craft Beer Competition Awards for Pale Lagers & Hybrids.
Bad Apple Brewhouse says its award-winning Mosaic DIPA will be available in bottles, and all forms of fills while it lasts at the brewhouse. They will be delivering it to Toms Little Havana, Stubborn Goat, Lion & Bright, and Stillwell on Monday. It will be brewed a few more times this year, and all the sales will be to send kids to Down syndrome camp for free this year. Camp is in June at Camp Brigadoon.
Garrison Brewing Company released its new In Session ISA. It is hop-driven and big on flavour, but eased back on alcohol at 4.4% ABV. It will be available in six packs throughout Nova Scotia.
Spindrift Brewing released they are opening this summer in Dartmouth Nova Scotia and have Kellye Robertson at the helm as brewer. More details coming out soon.
Fredericton Craft Beer Festival was a great success and with the exciting growth in New Brunswick it will be back next year bigger and better.
NB Beer Tours are going for a road trip to Microbrasserie le Naufrageur - bar & spectacles, with a stop at Shiretown Beer along the way. It is on May 16th and will be an overnight trip. Tickets are available now.
You have a couple of more days to get in NB Craft Beer Dinner presented by Moncton area Beer League. A four course meal paired with New Brunswick craft beer on March 21st.
That is all for this week, thanks for supporting the blog and until next week, enjoy responsibly.
Hello and welcome to the Maritime Beer Report for March 6th.
Big Axe Brewery introduced three new beers this week. First up is Blonde Ale Version 2. Light golden ale, weighs in at 4.6% ABV. Hopped to 26 IBUs with Perle and El Dorado, that gives this beer fruity and citrus aroma and a clean, refreshing taste. Next up is Partridgeberry Belgian Wheat. Belgian Witbier-style brewed with a mixture of pale malts, Saaz and other aroma hops, oranges and spices like coriander and cloves. Five pounds of partridgeberries were added at the secondary fermentation step, which gives this beer a mild but complex tartness and a wild berry aroma. Lastly is a Chaga Porter. Dark brown in colour this beer offers mild roastiness and pleasant caramel character. Brewed with traditional English aroma hops and a heaping pile of Chaga mushroom to create a unique tasting profile. It weighs in at 5.4% ABV. Chaga is harvested in birch forests and has been used in Europe for its health benefits for centuries. We use New Brunswick chaga that is responsibly harvested by our friend and wild foods enthusiast Dwight at Fiddlehead Heaven Forest Products. These will be available at the brewery and will premiere at Fredericton Craft Beer Festival tomorrow.
Les Brasseurs du Petit-Sault says it's finally here! Their Maple Brown Ale, brewed by women, on tap at the Brewtique as of noon yesterday and Saturday at the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival. Out also this week is Lt. Ingall Session Pale Ale. This is the collaboration with our friends at MaltBroue to use 100% local malts. Both these ales come in at 4.6% ABV.
Celtic Knot Brewing says come on over and say hello at Fredericton Craft Beer Festival. he will be bringing Dubh Loki black IPA and Éire Irish red ale. Their next one off will be an all El Dorado hop IPA. It will be called Terminus. This will be the first of many one hop IPAs they plan to brew this spring/summer.
Hammond River Brewing will also be at Fredericton Craft Beer Festival plans on bringing the following beers for patrons to sample.
- Too Hop To Handle Double IPA - His flagship Double IPA brewed with a copious amount of Columbus, Chinook, Cascade, and Centennial hops. 8.4% ABV and 162 IBUs
- Imperial Bourbon Vanilla Porter - An Imperial Porter brewed with fresh Madagascar Vanilla beans and with Maker's Mark Bourbon added. 9.2% ABV and 32 IBUs
- Breakfast Stout - An Imperial Stout brewed with local Java Moose Coffee, Oats, Cacao Nibs, and my homemade Applewood Smoked Bacon. 8% ABV and 60 IBUs.
It's UNB's 50th Anniversary and they've asked HRB to brew a special beer to help celebrate the occasion. So since it's their "Golden" Anniversary the brewer decided to brew up a Golden Ale for them. This beer will be available on tap at the Beaverbrook House in Saint John on March 19th.
Boxing Rock Brewing Company are launching a Rye India Pale Ale called The Next Chapter. It's a perfectly balanced IPA made with New Brunswick grown malt, with a healthy helping of premium rye malt and some dark roasted malt for a fantastic colour. Sorry Nova Scotia the whole batch is heading to New Brunswick. Not only will we launch it at the Fredericton Craft Beer Festival, we've sent some to The King Street Ale House, The Laundromat in Moncton, The Tide and Boar in Moncton, and Pepper's Pub in Saint John. It is available at select ANBL stores in 650 ml bottles and weighs in at 6.3% ABV.
Granite Brewery put out a quick note that they are reviving their India Pale Ale. It will be available next week.
Last night Garrison Brewing held their 7th Annual Home Brew-Off Gala. With a record breaking 84 entries narrowing it down to one winner was challenging. The winner of this year’s competition was Dave Martin
This year’s style was Robust Porter – a dark, rich, malty, beer. Over 100 attendees packed the newly renovated brewery where they watched the award presentation and sampled beer from the finalists along with being the first to try and buy the 2014 winner’s brew Professor McDougall’s Weisse ~ Guy Hefeweizen, brewed by Jason McDougall under the watchful eye of Brewmaster Daniel Girard.
Launched at last night’s gala Professor McDougall’s Weisse ~ Guy Hefeweizen glows hazy deep gold with notes of banana and clove with a hint of bubble-gum. This beer goes great with gouda cheese and cured meats. It is a 5.4% ABV and 8 IBUs beer.
Professor McDougall’s Weisse ~ Guy Hefeweizen is hitting the shelves at NSLC, all private’s stores for brewery fresh at Garrison in the Halifax Seaport
Rock Bottom Brewpub says they changed up one of their "Standard" Beer on tap. For the next while they will not be carrying the Bigwater Brown but instead we will switch over to the Loyalist ESB. The Loyalist E.S.B.is a classic English pub ale. Burnished copper coloured with an aroma of toast, honey, and pear. A crisp malt body featuring bitter chocolate and toffee. Earthy, balanced bitter finish. Perfectly pairs with crispy appetizers and of course Fish'n Chips. It is a 5.6% ABV and 35 IBU beer.
Thanks for joining me again this week and I hope to see some of you tomorrow in Fredericton and as always enjoy responsibly.
