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What’s with the lager trend?
Plus this weekend's lineup of new beers and events
Joseph Lavoie
August 26, 2022
Happy Friday!
And no, that subject line wasn’t a mistake. Read on to find out.
With the Liquor Distribution Branch still on strike, this weekend is as good as any to pay a visit to your favourite brewery.
I’ve got a friend in town this weekend and we’re going to hit up a bunch of breweries in North Van. If you see a guy in a red Canadian National Soccer jersey with Davies and #19 on the back, that’s me. Don’t be shy, say hi! 🇨🇦 ⚽
Today we showcase a limited release bourbon-barrel beer and have our first-ever Beer Loop Wordle. Plus we explore the growing craft lager trend. Enjoy!
– Joseph Lavoie
FEATURED NEW BEER RELEASE
Bourbon Barrel Goodness
Dageraad’s Bourbtwerpen (there’s no way I spell that correctly in a spelling test) is a strong, gold, barrel-aged beer that returns this weekend for a very limited release.
The beer spent months aging in bourbon barrels and features Belgian-style tripel notes, underpinned by deep oak and warm vanilla flavours.
Available: In bottles, at the brewery. Only 30 cases available.
Location: 3191 Thunderbird Cres. #114, Burnaby | Map
ADDITIONAL BEER RELEASES
Red Arrow Brewing Company has a blackberry lager available in the tasting room.
Off the Rail Brewing takes a nostalgic turn with this new Fun Fip Berry Sour.
Bayview Brewing is pouring a toasted coconut raspberry sour.
Dead Frog Brewing has released a vanilla coffee porter.
Lighthouse has a fresh batch of Kaptan Czech Pilsner, which is going to join the brewery’s core lineup.
Field House Brewing is putting out a juicy, resinous hazy IPA this weekend.
Monkey9 Brewing is dropping a limited edition crowler run today.
Howe Sound is two weeks away from releasing its PumpkinEater Imperial Pumpkin Ale.
Howl Brewing has a Viking-era ale made with juniper berries and filtered through juniper branches.
Plus 12 additional beers that came out this week for you to explore.
UPCOMING EVENTS
Guided Beer Tasting
Have you ever done a blind beer tasting? It’s both a lot of fun, and a very humbling experience. And this event can be done from the comfort of your home, especially if you’re on the Island. And now, this event has options for those of us outside the delivery zone.
Details: This session will focus on wheat beers, and you’ll taste four different versions.
Date: Saturday Sept. 22, 6:30pm
Tickets: $57.75+, depending on your location, due to shipping costs. Register at Eventbrite.
Location: Online
Whistler Village Beer Festival
The Whistler Village Beer Festival is back this year with seven days of beer programming between Sept. 13 and 18. This ninth anniversary edition of the festival will build up to the main event on Sept. 17 and 18 at Whistler Olympic Plaza and will feature 60+ brewers and 120+ beers and ciders.
Main Event Tickets: $67.35-$144.75
Location: Whistler Olympic Plaza, Whistler | Map
White Rock Craft Beer Festival
The White Rock BIA is putting on its second annual beer festival on Sept. 24, featuring local and regional brewers like 3 Dogs Brewing, Five Roads, Barnside, Farm Country, Old Yale, and many others.
Punk in Drublic
This international craft beer and music festival is making its way to Abbotsford on Sept. 4. The festival, which is the brainchild of NOFX’s frontman Fat Mike and festival promoter Cameron Collins, will feature three hours of craft beer tastings and the best punk rock music,
HAPPENING THIS WEEKEND
Strange Fellows is putting on a party for the release of its Mister Hip West Coast IPA, tonight. You’re encouraged to show up in your best workout outfit. Prizes will be awarded for the best dressed, so do make an effort.
Yeast Van Summer Patio Party is happening Saturday from 2 to 8 pm. While pre-sale tickets have sold out, 50 tickets will be available at the door, first come first served.
House of Funk is putting on an End of Summer House Party Saturday from 12 to 11 pm.
Locality Brewing is teaming up with CAMRA for a guided property tour on Sunday, coupled with a pint of honey lager and some swag to bring home.
Deep Cove Craft Beer and Distillers is celebrating its ninth anniversary with a patio party featuring DJs and games.
Mariner Beer is turning five this Sunday and is putting on a weekend bash with $24 pitchers and big discounts on goods and merch.
CONTEST
Beer-tember, Beer-tober… It’s beer-year with a giveaway of six months of free beer
We've teamed up with Craft Co. Home Delivery to giveaway their surprise dozen pack. For six months you'll receive 12 random BC beers delivered directly to your door. It's a great way to discover new BC beer.
If you've never heard of Craft Co., don't worry, it's because they're pretty new! Created by, and for, local manufacturers, they offer same business day delivery of locally produced beer, wine, cider, spirits, RTD and non-alcoholic beverages to the Lower Mainland plus courier shipping province-wide!
Click here to check them out.
WHAT'S BREWING AT BC BREWERIES
Deals, announcements, re-releases, and other news from your favourite breweries
Old Yale Brewing is giving away a package that includes a two-hour rental of a topracer lounge for six people.
The Alibi Room has a new chicken sandwich that looks as tall as a skyscraper and features grilled jerk chicken with curry mayo. It might go well with their new crispy blueberry meringue with earl grey Bavarian cream.
Container Brewing is having fun with its 99th-place rank in Justin McElroy’s 2022 brewery rankings. Noting that the great Wayne Gretzky didn’t fully hit his stride until his third season, as the brewery itself enters its third year, they have a limited run of these #99 tees.
North Point Brewing has announced a new menu featuring sandwiches, salads and ceviche.
Strange Fellows is expanding their delivery zones for online shoppers. If you live in Metro Vancouver, Quesnel, Kamloops, Vancouver Island, Kelowna or anywhere else within the province, they’ll deliver to you.
NEWS
Is Craft Lager the Next Best Thing?
Paste Magazine ran a thoughtful opinion piece this week on the future of craft beer and the evolution of prevailing styles from crazy-bitter IPAs in the mid-2000s to the dominance of juicy IPAs and ultra-sweet styles today.
What’s going on: The author wonders if in a world where the majority of beers on tap hews to a limited handful of styles that rarely appeal to him, whether the craft beer movement passed him by? The short answer is no, thanks to a new trend.
Background: Within the last three to five years, as brewers were innovating with new hop varieties and exploring hazy and smoothie IPAs, many would, when asked which beer they love to drink most, often answer with lager. I used to scratch my head at this, wondering why we weren’t seeing more lager on offer? Turns out, I just needed a little patience.
As brewers began brewing more of what they like to drink, we began to see a lot more lager on tap lists across the country.
What we think: We’re big fans of this trend, and hope it becomes permanent. Lagers showcase a brewery's skill while also reminding us about the beauty of beer that tastes like, well, beer. It’s probably fitting that I wrote this while enjoying Brookswood Brewing Co.’s Czech Pilsner. Sometimes, beer that tastes like beer is just a beautiful thing.
Who’s doing good local lagers: Field House has a simple lager that is beautifully crisp and wonderfully malty. Another Beer Company has an Italian pilsner with subtle light cereal nose, soft mouthfeel and an assertive pilsner hoppiness. And Phillips makes a go-to pilsner that is perfect after a hard day's work.
GAME TIME
The answer to last week’s Brewery Logo Guesser was Hoyne! Congrats to Kim Steckler, Dan, Jim Peach, and Matthew Stewart who all guessed correctly.
This week, we’ve got a hoppy (😉) wordle. Let us know how many attempts it took you to solve this puzzle.
BEER LOOP PICKS
News, fun reads, deep dives and other distractions.
The true story behind the origins of IPA Day, one of craft beer’s biggest social media occasions. Hint: the idea came from the wine industry. [All About Beer]
This all-female, Nipo-Brazilian brewery is taking its Sao Paulo concept and exporting it to the U.S. Fun fact: Brazil is home to the largest Japanese population outside of Japan. [Beer Connoisseur]
Not particularly news to us here in BC, but with mounting evidence that time spent in nature is good for us, this profile of fly-fishing on the Maine Coast with Tim Adams of Oxbow Brewing feels almost as good as being outdoors. The photography is beautiful. [Good Beer Hunting]
You have until Aug. 31 to vote for the 2022 BC Ale Trail Best Brewery Experience Award. [BC Ale Trail and Victoria News]