“You know, Andy, when I was your age…” was the way that I’d started the sentence, and I immediately wished that I hadn’t. There’s nothing to make you feel old like having to explain your context to your younger brother. Before Andy was born, I was given my first cellphone […]

Review: Local Leaside

The Background Grand River started brewing in Ontario in 2007, but the site that they’re on in Galt has actually been producing alcohol for something like 200 years. Absalom Shade had mills there and eventually managed to vertically integrate the whole community. He sold seed and milled grain and made […]

Review: Grand River Olde Defiant

The Background When I came back to Ontario from university out east, there were basically two Ontario beers at the LCBO that I could be sure were going to be quality. This was before “Craft Beer,” a term which emerged around 2007, so it was just beer. Those beers were […]

Barn Door Brewing Company Winter Porter

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Let me tell you about how things change in Ontario. In 1837, the rebels in Upper Canada met at breweries. They met at John Farr’s brewery and they met at John Doel’s brewery. John Doel was a Methodist. He wanted exactly the same thing that the rebels wanted: responsible government, […]

How You Win in Ontario

Sawdust City’s situation provides a revealing look at the current beer retailing situation in Ontario. Here we have a brewery riding the crest of the current wave of craft beer’s expansion and they’re handicapped somewhat by the market. I’ll explain what I mean. At the moment, there is one product […]

Sawdust City’s Spring Seasonals

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“You’re number two” says the greying Asian man to the bartender as he’s walking in the door of Habits Gastropub. I’m confused temporarily and take it as either a set up for a punchline or a low normal motivational chant. It’s quickly explained to me by co-owner Michelle Genttner that […]

Habits Gastropub House Saison

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The first thing that I noticed walking into Left Field’s brewery on Monday was how much calmer and happier everyone seemed to be now that the place is finally opened. There has been rejoicing on social media about the fact that it is now possible to buy their beer in […]

Root For the Home Team

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Background For reasons that I don’t completely understand, the people at Molson keep sending me things to review. I think this is due to the fact that I try to be fairly objective when I review a product. This always strikes me as somewhat odd because an objective review of […]

Review: Rickard’s Radler

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The question, as always, is “do you believe they’ll do it?” The idea of beer in grocery stores is presently transitory. It exists only in an article in Martin Regg Cohn’s column in the Toronto Star. His word, although convincing and no doubt backed by leaks from the provincial government, […]

A Word of Advice To The People Of Ontario…

The Background Smuttynose is represented in Canada by Claude Lefebvre and the boys over at North American Craft. Now, for the most part, North American Craft is focused on their own core listings in the Double Trouble lineup featuring cans covered in the kind of stripe wearing burglars you might […]

Smuttynose Imperial Stout