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Amid the closures of small craft breweries and mergers of others, there’s a Christmas miracle in a Hallmark town.
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Say hello to Port Stanley Brewing, the first new brewery I’ve written about in quite some time.
The owners took some time to work through the tricky task of renovating a harbourside building to make it functional for an Italian restaurant, an homage to the Stork Club and, much to my interest, a craft brewery.
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The first two beers — a pale ale and helles lager — have just been canned and kegged. The third is an Italian pilsner that’ll soon be ready. In the weeks ahead, brewer Ian McClure will have a hazy IPA and a dark beer.
McClure studied first to be a veterinarian, but he found himself instead with a small hopyard on his parents’ farm near Lucan and selling cones to London Brewing and Powerhouse in London, which led to homebrewing and tutelage at Niagara College. Brewing jobs at Equals in London and Paris Brewing followed graduation from the Niagara College Teaching Brewery.
Port Stanley Brewing hopes to be a must-stop along the harbour between the downtown shops, Hofhuis Park and the pier.
McClure said the beer menu will focus on approachable styles served either from kegs or in 355 ml cans with gold-coloured tops and retro-style nostalgic labels. An on-site shop will sell beer to go.
It’s a good start and while it might be slow going through winter, just wait until the sun shines in May.
NEW AND NOTED
In time for Christmas, there are two new gift-worthy beers at London Brewing – Chocolate Orange (6.5 per cent alcohol) and Chai Latte (8.3 per cent). “I like that it still drinks like a solid stout with complementary flavours,” brewer Aaron Lawrence said of Chocolate Orange. “(Chai Latte is) an after dinner beer, smooth, warming and festive.” These two, along with Irish Cream and Chili Chocolate oatmeal stouts are packaged as the Holiday Stout Series with early and late fifth bottles. Initially, the fifth bottle is a whiskey barrel-aged Baltic porter.
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While those holiday beers are sold at the brewery, a new London Brewing Organic Black Lager will soon be on LCBO shelves.
Upper Thames in Woodstock introduced its Christmas Ale. It has a gingerbread flavour.
The Holiday Lager from Sons of Kent in Chatham is a collaboration with the Chatham Goodfellows and radio station CKSY. The lager uses cranberry and orange to deliver a seasonal taste. Chatham Goodfellows provide holiday hampers of toys and food to local families in need.
In Stratford, Black Swan has a new lager. Brewski is a dry lager brewed with Bramling Cross and Czech Saaz hops.
Wayne Newton is a freelance journalist based in London.
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