This week, I put the focus back on our local breweries by highlighting one brew from each, and the story behind it from the perspective of the brewmaster.
Source: https://www.pinterest.pt/goldensaintbeer/ with a little Zeke design on top.
While I do love to sample many great craft beers from across our vast province and country, we are blessed locally with 3 or more solid craft breweries. Being the local Beerologist, I cherish the special access I get to these brewmasters and love to share the stories behind the wonders they dedicate themselves to producing.
Here are 3 local brews, what is behind them, and a hint at the brewer's thoughts I will explore in future posts as we spotlight each.
Community Collaboration
It was a rainy day in Blackswan Town when I wandered over to the brewery https://blackswanbrewing.ca/for one of their Wednesday special $5 pints.
While I am an eternal fan of Black Swan IPA https://black-swan-brewing.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/india-pale-ale-ipa , I was here to discover more about the recently-released local collaboration beer.
Cascade Effect https://black-swan-brewing.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/cascade-effect is, as it is explained on the label, a wet hopped Pale Ale with a Light body, citrus forward with floral notes and a crisp finish. While I prefer a little more branding with less noise and the description on the front panel of the label, I can forgive it this time as the side panel boasts the collaboration between Black Swan and their local brother in brewing, Jobsite Brewing https://www.jobsitebrewing.ca/
Cascade Effect https://black-swan-brewing.myshopify.com/collections/frontpage/products/cascade-effect is, as it is explained on the label, a wet hopped Pale Ale with a Light body, citrus forward with floral notes and a crisp finish. While I prefer a little more branding with less noise and the description on the front panel of the label, I can forgive it this time as the side panel boasts the collaboration between Black Swan and their local brother in brewing, Jobsite Brewing https://www.jobsitebrewing.ca/
The description on the ordering site is a touch wordier "A wet hopped pale brewed in collaboration with Jobsite Brewing Company. This beer was brewed with cascade hops from Tavistock Hops. Light bodied, citrus forward with floral notes" but Black Swan has kindly left it to the local Beerologist to tell the more involved tale!
I had the chance to share a beer with the brewer Phil and discuss the magic behind Cascade Effect. It turns out that there was a third collaborating partner in Tavistock Hops https://www.tavihops.ca/ Local hops are fantastic enough and the Phils really leveraged proximity by brewing this beer on the same day that the hops were being harvested. There were not done there though, as they wet hopped with the freshly-delivered hops, then did a round of dry-hopping with this same harvest of hops a week later when they were ready.
I am fairly sure I will never taste another beer that can boast such a magical mixture of local cooperation, and consistent hop strain. While I am more of a fan of IPAs with Galaxy and Mosaic, this beer was sweet and special tasting to the point that I was seemingly reminded of it with each new gulp.
Solid beer I will be buying again until it is no longer available...which I do not expect to be long.
From Good to Great
I pass by Jobsite Brewing https://www.jobsitebrewing.ca/ once a day but had to drop in on the other brewing Phil to see what is new and neat. Business is slowly and safely returning to normal in the tap room with pizza back on the menu, way fewer tables to maintain spacing, and some special new treats on the taps!
When I asked Phil to tell me a story about one of his latest creations, he immediately started to tell the story of Wiped Out WIPA (Wheat India Pale Ale.) I usually like to try wheat beers as a nice change and to see how well they are done when compared to other provincial wheat beers. When you throw IPA in the mix, you know I have to taste it but I am prepared not to like it as much as I would a straight wheat beer or IPA as those paths don't generally cross well on the palette in my opinion.
As you can see, Phil poured me a perfectly bubbly, hazy and golden draught I was really looking to tear into. Before doing so, he explained that this beer started as an IPA that turned out to have a nice hop character but not the taste and body he was ultimately going for. Being an experienced and progressive brewer, Phil decided this might be a nice candidate for a crossover into wheat territory. I would have never thought of that!
My initial impression was that it was more wheat beer than IPA as it was smooth and had that prototypical clove-like bouquet and slid down really nice. Once my palette and expectations acclimated to this interesting brew, I could detect the hop-driven bitterness and body. It turned out to be subtle enough not to overpower or distract, but worked surprisingly well with the wheat beer stage and taste.
I find that I enjoy a beer better when knowing the back story and did so with this tasty treat.
What's Old is New
As I highlighted in a recent blog, Herald Haus Brewery has transformed ownership and identity and is now Heritage Hops Brew Co https://heritagehopsbrew.com/ As it opened after the lockdown under the new name, the community and I were curious as to what had changed with the transition.
Personally, I was curious as to whether 21 Haze one-off Vermont Style Pale Ale would make the cut as it was my favourite. I was pleased to find that it had not only been carried on, but has become available year-round! Many of the previously popular brands had been carried over because the fantastic brewer came with the package, but what had changed?
This is how the American Pale Ale appeared before the transition. I wasn't crazy about the branding though it is based upon a really cool part of our local heritage and history and the beer was solid enough though not enough of anything for my taste.
Here it is after its rebirth in a new skin, rethought logo, and redefined vessel. Clean and clear, airy and approachable, though not purpose made for a hop-head like me, it is a nice midpoint between standard craft ales and aggressive IPAs. But what has changed?
Jon the brewer has the answers! He explained that he decided to alter the grain from caramelized malts intended for sweetness and body but lead to a little inconsistency early on. He pulled out an unfermentable malt and substituted with one that caused a little less residual sweetness and made it for a more controllable ABV. Hops made for less bitterness but more citrus taste and an alteration of the hop dosing technique were intended to yield efficiency and consistency...two things you want with a staple brand.
It is only because I love the East Coast IPA so much that I won't enjoy too many of these but I will definitely recommend Perth County Conspiracy for the local history buffs https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Perth_County_Conspiracy as well as those looking for an unshy, consistent and well-rounded brew.
More to come...
Having reconnected with the brewers and joining the https://www.towncriermarketing.ca crusade to help local businesses adapt, survive and thrive, I will take future blogging opportunities to introduce you to our world-class brewers. We generally get to taste the end product but it is the tip of the iceberg when you consider all that goes into each brew.
Stay tuned for more insight and history from our local brewmasters and how each came to be the scientists behind the scenes of their respective breweries.
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