Brews News: Toronto beer pass includes 32 breweries

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Have a thirst for knowledge as summer travel season arrives? For beer fans, here’s a six pack of things to know heading into high season for trips and tipples.

Score a pass. There’s a new craft beer pass guiding craft beer fans to some of the best-known and lesser-known craft breweries in Toronto. Steam Whistle and Great Lakes are sell-known, but how about Goldenfield and its Persian flavours or Red Tape, an Indigenous-owned brewery? Or Junction, operating in a 1930s incinerator? There are 32 breweries involved. Passes get you either a flight or single pour and are sold in single-day, three-day or seven-day formats delivered digitally to your phone. Get it at destinationtoronto.com.

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Eco reach. A new beer festival celebrating sustainability, terroir and artisanal brews happens July 14 at Evergreen Brick Works just off the Don Valley Parkway in Toronto. Among the breweries are Blood Brothers, GoodLot Farmstead Brewing of Alton, gluten-free brewer Miski of Barrie, Willibald Farm Distillery and Brewery of Ayr and non-alcoholic beer brewer Libra of Prince Edward Island.

Formosa Springs to life. Never mind its checkered history of ownership changes, closures and relaunches, it’s a new chapter of rural Bruce County optimism as Formosa Springs brews again, this time under local ownership. Its first batch was kegged in June and is a reintroduction of Red Baron Light. It’s being sold at the brewery in Formosa.

Shacking up. Shake Shack, the fast-casual restaurant chain from America, has arrived in Canada with its first location in Toronto on Dundas Street near Yonge and the beer they’re serving with its burgers and chicken is from Bellwoods Brewery. ShackMeister Ale, brewed to pair with the fare, is 4.8 per cent alcohol and lightly hazy.

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Be a sport. In homage to the thrills provided this season by the Edmonton Oilers, Molson has repackaged its Molson Dry as Molson Drai for fans of the Oilers and their second-best player, Leon Draisaitl. South of the border, NFL bros Travis and Leon Kelce are investors in Garage Beer of Columbus, Ohio, Garage brews a lager and light lager with a mantra of “zero per cent IPA.” Meanwhile, we’re still missing Gretzky beer from Niagara.

Beer’s big summer. Craft beer cans are wacky sizes in Canada – 355 ml, 473 and now 568. Not a logical 500 ml among them because the can sizes are conversions from ounces. Beau’s new Double Juiced AF, a nine per cent alcohol IPA, is the latest to embrace a 568 ml can, which is an imperial pint – not the smaller American pour. Others using the big can size now include Amsterdam’s lager, 3 Speed. If that’s not enough beer for buds in the backyard on a holiday weekend, there’s an increasing number of five-litre mini kegs including Lug Tread by Beau’s and Steam Whistle pilsner.

NEW AND NOTED

Looking to beat the heat and toast the weekend? London Brewing has a Margarita Gose. A gose is a tart beer style that originated in Germany.

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They’ve added lime to Anderson Gold in time for Canada Day. It’s a new twist on the popular Ontario lager from London’s Old East Village.

High five to Caps Off, the popular off-Talbot Street brewery in St. Thomas. Caps Off marks its fifth anniversary with a party on July 6 where, in a twist and in addition to enjoying great beer, you can learn to dance salsa and bachata style.

Is there a better name than Toad Truck, the four per cent alcohol red ale from Natterjack Brewing in Eagle?

The logo for the soon-to-open Port Stanley Brewing features a seagull. How perfect is that? Not sure what its colour scheme will be, but I’ve seen a black and tan mockup that seems right for a brewery that might offer both a pale ale and stout.

Wayne Newton is a freelance journalist based in London.

BrewsNewsTravels@gmail.com

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