It's been a while since I've done one of these. I explained myself earlier this year but then I didn't follow up. I apologize to the people who enjoy these posts. As crazy as it may sound; in the shit-show that has been 2020 a new brewery opened in Milton, Ontario. There is no tap room, there is no bottle shop, just pickup and delivery because, well, 2020 is just been a difficult year. In May Steven Pilotto and Chris Steininger opened Third Moon Brewing. When I first heard they were opening I was hooked in by their honesty saying that they would brew beers that they like to drink. Simple as that. I think that really hit home with the craft beer fans on social media because everyone is posting pictures with their beers. I get why. The beer is amazing and the customer service is better. I've had email communication and it was nothing but polite and friendly. A small touch that they do (and I really like) is including stickers in your order. Sometimes it's the small things. To date, I've tried 5 of their beers and they are all great To be honest, I wish it was all of them and I will be going back for more. Seeing as I've only tried 5 of their beers and I really liked them all, I'm not going to pick a favorite. To be honest, t's because I can't. I'll just highlight their entry to the All Together. Jer's Pick All Together: All Together is a worldwide collaboration beer that was created by Other Half Brewing Co in Brooklyn, NY. The recipe has been shared, for free, by Other Half for breweries around the world to brew. Everyone is free to add their own spin to it. The intent is that the profits will go to support people in the hospitality industry who have been finding it hard to make ends meet since the COVID19 outbreak. Third Moon's version will see the proceeds donated to the Milton Food Bank. This version includes Mosaic, Citra, Simcoe, Cascade and, Columbus hops. Let's be honest, it feels good to have a delicious beer that plays a small part in doing some good.
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2020 has been one hell of a ride, hasn't it?
One thing that has come out of this crazy year for me is a change. You see, prior to COVID I had a rule; no online orders from a Brewery until you visit it. That's clearly all changed. There's a ton of breweries who have taken the leap and set up online ordering. I've been enjoying it and I'm so happy to get to try new breweries that I may not have checked out before. There's a great tool out there to find beer and I just thought I'd mention it: https://www.beerfinder.ca/ I have no affiliation what so ever with it, this is just a little mention because I think it's great. You can search by your delivery location and styles of beer you like and it will give you a direct link to order said beer. Check it out. Anyways, I just wanted to throw that out there for anyone reading and say "be safe out there everyone". Hello craft beer friends.
I made reference to this in my 2019 "new to me" beers post but I wanted to create a separate post about this. When I started Ontario Craft Brew in 2018 it was at the encouragement of a friend, as a way to share my experiences. What I came to find was that I fell into a pattern of trying to almost write a little history on each brewery I visited. While there are some great history stories and I'm proud to have captured some of it with my post on Collective Arts and Great Lakes Brewery; I had a harder time finding information on the history of Nickelbrook. I found, in the end, that there's so many new breweries under 5 years old that just don't have that long history. Doesn't make them any worse. It's just a fact. So there was quickly a little less meat on the bones in terms of a history post. That aside, this was always supposed to be a way of sharing my experiences. I strayed from that. When you take that into account and you add in a very crazy turn of events at my job that has been keeping me very busy, I suddenly went quiet on this site. So, 2020 is here now. Work is still busy but you know what? I still like sharing beer. So my goal for 2020 is to do so. Maybe I didn't find a beer at a brewery. Maybe it was a random find at a LCBO. Does that mean I can't share it here? No. I don't know why I felt I needed to keep my posts to just sharing breweries. I will continue to do so of course (and man, do I have a back log to tell you guys about!) but I'm going to try and come at this as more of "conversation between friends" than some kind of beer tourist guide. As always, the Instagram will be full of pictures of beers I find/buy. Starting today, I also won't be limiting that account to brewery purchases either. I'm not really a "resolutions" kind of person so let's just say this is my "re-dedication to the website". Cheers! Hello! It's been a little while. I'll be honest, my work life changed drastically this year and when I wasn't working, I needed the down time to relax, enjoy beer and, recover. I'm not gone I just needed a break. I do intend on making this site a little different in 2020 but that's for another post. For now; it's time to reflect on the best that 2019 offered, at least, in my experience. As the title of this post suggests; these are new to me. Maybe I was slow to find them, maybe they were new releases but regardless they were something that I had not tried prior to 2019. Citraddiction XPA by Great Lakes Brewery It likely wouldn't be me if GLB didn't appear on this list. July saw GLB bring Citraddiction back with a new yeast to change up the beer a little. This is a New England style Pale Ale which is one of my favorite styles of beer. It was super juicy and hoppy and basically everything I want from a beer. As a bonus - the artwork on the can is funny and cool. If only beer could actually make me a super hero. To round off the list:
Animal Magnetism by Collective Arts and Finback Brewery - Something Collective Arts did really well this year is collaborations. This New England Style IPA was brewed with Strata, Amarillo and, Comet hops for another juicy, hoppy delight. Surround Sound DDH DIPA V2 by Collective Arts - Started in late 2018, Surround Sound is a dry hopped double IPA series of beers. Each version features different hops. V2 featured Simcoe and Amarillo hops. It was fruity and piney. Integral IPA by Port City Brewing - Early in 2019 I visited Washington DC and had this beer while enjoying dinner one night. While this was almost a year ago I do recall the pineapple taste in this American IPA and hope to have it again one day. Cats in Space by Barncat Artisan Ales - 2019 also saw my first visit to Barncat Artisan Ales in Cambridge. A brewery that had been on my bucket list for some time. This double IPA is made with one of my favorite hops; the Galaxy hop. It's super hazy and has the texture and flavor of orange juice. I look forward to more visits to Barncat in the future. Black Raspberry Thunder by Muskoka Brewery - Muskoka Brewery and Kawartha Dairy are 2 staples of cottage country in Ontario and they got together to create this Milkshake IPA. As you would likely expect from the name it is tart from the raspberry and has a sweetness thanks to vanilla. It poured a purple colour too and was a beer I kept going back to while it lasted. Roman Candle by Bellwoods Brewery - This beer is a prime example of why this is a new to me list. I was late to the party on this American IPA. Hazy, bitter, melon, tangerine.....all words to describe the taste of this offering from a Brewery that has become a "must visit" when I am downtown Toronto. Double Impact by Detroit Beer Company - Back in March a couple buddies and I went down to Detroit to see the Raptors play the Pistons on route to what would be a Championship season for the Raptors. Of course, that meant I could also squeeze in a little brewery visit as well. This beer stood out to me as a combo of an imperial IPA and New England IPA. It was kind of weird but it was bitter with a hint of sweet and citrusy taste to it but it also was malty. I admit, when I set out to write this post I had ambitions to write something similar to my post about Great Lakes Brewery. What I found was that it was much harder to find a clear timeline on the brewery but I was able to find some interesting details and I hope you enjoy this post. Nickel Brook has it's roots as a "U brew" store. Wine Experts/Better Bitters was the name and it was started in the 90s. By 2005 Nickel Brook brewery was open by John and Peter Romano. My earliest memory of the brewery was around 2008. I was introduced to Green Apple Beer at Beer Fest in Toronto. I recall that it was being poured over ice cream and being served as a float. I didn't need the ice cream, I had found a new beer that I really liked. I recall it being hard to find at the time but I was able to buy it in bottles at my local LCBO. I still credit that beer and Waterloo Dark as my 2 first craft beers that I bought on a regular basis. I recall the Gluten Free became the first beer from Nickle Brook that I saw in cans on a regular basis. Fast forward to 2014. By this time Nickle Brook's core beers were pretty easy to find in your local LCBO and beer store and the need for more space came about. They teamed up with Collective Arts in Hamilton and created "Arts and Science" in the old Lakeport Brewery building. This collaboration gave Nickel Brook a space to brew enough of their core line to meet demands while turning the original brewery into the Funk Lab. Both Breweries have grown and Nickel Brook is no longer in that facility. In fact, the location they are brewing their core beers out of currently remains one of the better-kept Ontario Craft Beer secrets. he Funk Lab is the name given to the original brewery space that is now dedicated to brewing small batch funk and sour beers. This facility also hosts their barreling program where there are 400ish whisky, wine, gin and, tequilla barrels being used to age beer. Up until 2018 the Wine Experts/Better Bitters store remained in the same space as Nickel Brook. I recall my first visit in 2016 when you walked in the front door there was a open area with wine making materials and to the left was the Nickel Brook Bottle shop/tap room. It was always a smaller area but it still had a couple tables and you were able to have a pint or a flight. In 2018 that changed. The Wine Experts were bumped out and the tap room was renovated and expanded. The new space include a much larger seating area, more merch, some food to snack on and, gives the brewery plenty of space to hold events. If you aren't a beer drinker Nickel Brook also offers a couple of craft sodas as well. A root beer (which is delicious!) and a ginger beer. Nickle Brook continues to grow and there has been a lot of talk of a new brewery being opened in the Niagara region so Nickel Brook can resume brewing their own core line. From what I've heard, that doesn't mean the end of the of the Burlington location, that will continue to be the Funk Lab. Stay tuned, exciting things are yet to come for this brewery as they continue to be one of the pioneers in the Ontario Craft Beer scene. Jer's Picks To date, I have tried 45 unique beers from Nickel Brook so there will be 3 picks today. Green Apple Beer: It's sentimental value, as I explained above, is clearly a huge factor. This is basically a pilsner and apple juice mixed together but it is so delicious! It came in at 4% ABV and was an easy drinker, a great beer to introduce people to craft beer. Raspberry Uber: The Uber series is a base Berlinerweisse that is aged on fruit. The Raspberry version is my favorite as it uses Canadian raspberries, my favorite fruit. It's sour but not so sour that it's undrinkable and in the summer it is refreshing. I like to put a few frozen raspberries in it to act as an ice cube. Wicked Awesome IPA: In 2017 Nickel Brook released a mystery pack of beer. It had 4 mystery beers that you could try and vote as to which one you liked best. The winner of this contest was this beer. It's a juicy, hazy IPA with citrus and tropical hops and a creamy mouth feel. It's 6.5% so it's not a light beer but it also isn't super strong. Continuing on the Cambridge/Kitchener/Waterloo region breweries is a brewery that opened it's doors almost a year ago but offers something a little different. Rhythm & Brews was officially launched in January 2016 by brewer and BJCP National Beer Judge, Andrew Byer as a contract brewer, brewing out of Toronto's Junction Craft Brewing. In May of 2018 they opened their own brewery with a bit of a twist; there is a permanent live band stage nestled in with all the brewing tanks. Live music is the primary focus on the stage and we aren't just talking weekends, all week long there are different acts for your listening pleasure. The musical theme continues with their flight served on a record-looking board and there is music related artwork hanging inside as well. R&B also is known to host a fair amount of food and beer pairing events, the calendar is always full of events at Rhythm and Brews. I was able to stop in once so far and something else that caught my eye is the lighting in the facility. It feels like a jazz or blues bar, darker lighting but there are purple lights all round. A really cool vibe in the taproom. My visit that day only lead me to getting 2 types of beer; Bandwagon and Monistry and I'll need to go back to sample more of their offerings for sure but from those 2 samples I was able to make; Jer's Pick Bandwagon: Bandwagon is an American Style IPA. It's what you would expect from that style of beer; hazy, piney and, citrusy. I think it's a really solid offering of this style of beer. tCanada Day weekend in 2016 was an interesting weekend for me. Unlike most Canada Day weekends, I recall it being pretty low key. No going away, no big birthday celebrations (my birthday is July 3rd) just a relaxing weekend. So, I jumped in the car with a few friends and we went for a drive. Randomly, we ended up in Elora, Ontario and decided to have lunch at the Elora Brewing company. I decided to order a flight, we had a nice lunch and, I bought my first growler. I left thinking "that was cool" and we went on with our day. I didn't realize it at that time but that was the day I found a passion and I'm sure will go down as one of my favorite birthdays. Elora Brewing Company is located in an old hardware store and is a brewery and a restaurant. The company is a collaboration between 5 partners who home brewed and wanted to turn their passion into a business. The kitchen has relationships with local farmers and producers. Their spent grain feeds pigs at a local farm as well. This site focuses on the beer but it should be noted that Elora has some really great food so even if you aren't into beer (or someone with you isn't) this trip is worth the drive! Of course, every beer brewed is brewed with the idea of making it match food choices on the menu. When I share my story of how I got into the craft beer world, Elora is always the brewery I give credit to as the one that "set off the lightbulb" and today, 1 day after the 3 year anniversary of that day, I wanted to highlight Elora on the blog. I hope everyone had a great long weekend and got to enjoy a lot of craft beer! Jer's Picks Lodestar Dry Hopped Sour Ale: Lodestar is a sour that has citrusy notes but doesn't over-power with the sour flavour. The original version has a pear taste to it but Elora has since made different versions featuring different fruits. Elora Borealis: Clever name. This award winning beer is lightly malted malted, it's crisp and it's citrusy. I find this to be a really nice summer beer. Wandering Monk: Another award winner for Elora. This one has that Belgian "flair" to it. You get that tropical/citrus taste you'd expect with an IPA but I find you also get a white wine taste to it as well. It's an interesting combo that is very enjoyable. The Cambridge/Kitchener/Waterloo region has become a hotspot for beer lovers. Sleeman and Wellington have been brewing there for a long time but in recent years there has been an explosion of craft breweries popping up. Jackass Brewery opened on February 23, 2018 and has become one of my favorite spots in the region. This brewery was started by brothers Keith and Wayne Saunders who started home brewing (stop me if you've heard this one before) and decided to go out on their own. At first, they kept their day jobs but, as far as I can tell (due to their hours of operation) they have moved on from those jobs. Funny story about the name; The brothers simply call each other "Jackass" so that's where they got the name for their brewery. The brewery is located in a industrial plaza. My visit was on a Saturday, in Feb 2019, and the place was packed, 1 open seat was available when I sat down for a pint. I've yet to go back but, due to their location being close to my sister and brother in law's house, I have had a few more of their brews. Today's post will include 1 pick for "Jer's pick" but i'd like to give a quick "nod of the cap" to; Living the Dream Raspberry Sour. It was brewed in celebration of their first anniversary and is a very good sour. Considering I've tried 5 of their beers since I first discovered them in Feb, I'm only going to make the 1 pick but I have a feeling that number will continue to grow (check out my Instagram and Untappd). Jer's Pick Sun Kiss IPA: Juicy, citrusy, hazy, hoppy and overall, delicious. It's a New England style IPA, one of my faves, and was the first beer I tried by Jackass. It left quiet an impression on me. I picked up 4 beers from the fridge with intention to buy and head out but I realized that I had some time so I decided to have a pint of Sun Kiss, I enjoyed it so much after the first sip that I immediately changed my mind and grabbed 3 more bottles. Just east of high park in Toronto between Keele St/Parkside drive and Ossington Ave is a number of breweries. Today's post is on one of those breweries; Bandit Brewery. Bandit is located in an old auto shop and it actually has an auto shop, a gas station and, a beer store as neighbors. In fact, the beer store is a direct neighbor. If that wasn't unique enough, the patio sure is. It's a very nice outside space in an area where most of the "outside" is the sidewalk and road. The patio has a very German beer garden feel to it and they'll tell you that is on purpose. Bandit was started by Shezad Hamza (who worked for a manufacturing company) and Stephane Dubois (formally a mechanical engineer). The 2 met in 2012 and Stephane, who had been home brewing for 10 years, introduced Shezad to making beer. As many of these stories go; they bonded over their love of beer and decided one day to quit their jobs and start a brewery and, in 2016 that became a reality. One of the things I really like about Bandit is that they straight up say (on their website) "we make beer that we like". Why the heck not, right? While this is not unique to Bandit, one of the things they do that I like is changing their recipe. For example; the YY* milkshake series see a change in hops or fruits used to give you a different experience. I like getting to try something new but still get the comfort of knowing there is some familiarity thus knowing it will likely be very good. Bandit also offers a full food menu. They have brunch, a large selection of snacks, salads and, sandwiches. Something I rarely talk about when mentioning a brewery is social media engagement. Truth is, social media is a great tool for breweries. We've seen a debate on a certain "chunky" beer (I don't want to get into that) all over social media. I need to being social media up with Bandit, as someone who's created dedicated accounts that are associated with this site (and have kept my personal social media separate) I've seen what it's like to jump into a world that is already alive and well and how easy it is to get lost in the shuffle as someone who is new to the scene. While I'm not "hunting for likes", it still can be intimidating to just jump in. Bandit have always been great at engaging with me and I've noticed they do so with others too. While I wouldn't think less of them if they didn't, it's one of those small extra things I appreciate about this brewery. Just wanted to give them props. Speaking of giving them props, how can you not love that logo? To date, I've tried 7 of their beers in my 3 trips. There has not been one that I thought was a "pass" for me, all were very good. That made Jer's picks really hard to do but I narrowed it down to 3. Jer's Picks: YY*-->WLG: This is one beer from the milkshake IPA series that Bandit does. If you've read my previous entries, you know I love milkshake IPAs. This one features blackberry puree and galaxy and citra hops. The Bandit milkshake series are a little creamy, which I love. They also include vanilla. This one has a little hint of sour and the sweetness from the vanilla balances it out. YY*-->GRU: Another entry from the milkshake series. You'll notice they are named in the format of YY*--> then another airport code. The reason for the YYZ (Toronto airport code) being depicted as YY* is a bit of controversy with naming issues but the idea is that each beer in the series is inspired by different parts of the world. This one is Brazil. The fruit used was guava and strawberry, vanilla and pectin are used in this one as well. This was the first Bandit beer I tried and my love affair for Bandit started with this tasty treat. Cloud: This beer is a New England Style IPA. Yeah, I know, I'm being really predictable here. Juicy, hazy, stonefruit, a bitter back. Features galaxy, gitra, summer and, el dorado hops. This is a well crafted NEIPA that I could easily keep going back to. Just over 2 weeks ago I went down to Detroit with 3 friends to go see the Toronto Raptors play the Detroit Pistons. The trip was a day full of beer as we took a bus down and had a few drinks on the bus, before the game and, during the game. In all, I was able to try 11 new beers during the course of the day the majority of those were from Detroit Beer Company. The Detroit Beer Company and it's 10 hectoliter custom brewhouse was established in 2003. They offer up to 9 house brews and have an eclectic American cuisine food menu. The Detroit Beer Company is located in a historic building known as the Hartz Building. Much like Collective Arts and Shawn and Ed's the building itself has an interesting history. The six-story Hartz building was built in 1902; it was named after J. Frederick Hartz, who was Chairman of the Board of the J.F. Hartz Company, a medical and surgical supply company. In 1902, it was estimated that the building would cost $15,000 to build. The Hartz Building was originally built as a three-story brick building articulated as a single bay. A fourth floor was added in 1926/27 for $25,000. The first floor was remodeled in the early 1990s. In the early 2000s the Hartz building underwent a complete renovation with the Detroit Beer Company in mind as a tenant all the while preserving the historic character of the building which is now being considered for the National Register of Historic places. The building is located close to Ford Field and Comerica Park making it a fan favorite on game days. The Raptors lost their game that day, but we had already won the day before the game after enjoying these beers and fresh pretzel sticks (the perfect beer drinking snack). Of the 8 samples I had, all of which I enjoyed, one stood out to me. Jer's Pick Double Impact IPA: It probably comes as no surprise that my beer of choice was an IPA. Honestly, this was well balanced. Slightly malty, a bit sweet with the citrus flavors you'd expect. It's at 75 IBUs and 9% but it's a sneaky 9%. |
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