Manitobans can finally wet their whistles at local brewery, more on the way

Opinion

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 16/07/2016 (3344 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

It’s finally happening — Manitoba’s new wave of breweries are opening their doors — or they’re close — and/or are actually making their own beer.

Last week marked the first time Manitobans have been able to buy beer made in the province from a new local craft brewery in a decade (Farmery is locally owned, but its beer is currently made in Ontario). While most of the new/forthcoming breweries were offering samples of their beer at the Flatlander’s Beer Festival in June, many used Half Pints’ or Fort Garry Brewing Co.’s existing local facilities in a temporary capacity.

So where are we at when it comes to Manitoba’s new breweries? Here’s the first of a two-part look at what’s brewing on the local scene…

 

Barn Hammer Brewing Company, 595 Wall St.

First past the proverbial post was Barn Hammer Brewing Company. Its beers became available over the past week or so at a couple of select beer vendors via growler bars; it also has 30-litre kegs for sale.

Then on Wednesday, Barn Hammer opened its tap room — the first since the provincial government relaxed rules allowing breweries to serve their beer on-site.

The company had hinted initially at opening in November 2015 but, like most burgeoning Manitoba breweries/brew pubs, encountered some snags along the way.

“There were delays with everything, as expected, but this summer was my very latest date for opening,” says Tyler Birch, one of the team behind Barn Hammer.

“When we originally started I looked at a brewpub format and I was originally going to partner with someone who does restaurant stuff,” says Birch. But after sitting down with a local restaurateur, Birch was encouraged to just do the brewing side of things and avoid the complications of owning/running a restaurant.

In addition to pouring pints in their tap room, Birch and company will likely stick to the growler and keg formats rather than adding smaller bottles or cans to their lineup. “It’s so much extra work; it’s so much more expensive,” Birch explains. “We have a lot more control over (our beer) if we just keep it small and self-distribute.”

Look for select Manitoba Liquor Marts growler bars to offer a Barn Hammer tap takeover near the end of July. In the meantime, for a list of what the brewery is pouring, as well as where else it’s available in the city (it’s rapidly evolving), visit barnhammerbrewing.ca.

 

Torque Brewing, 830 King Edward St.

Not too far from Barn Hammer location-wise, but still some ways behind getting its doors open is Torque Brewing. Over the past week, folks there have been busy getting their brewing equipment installed; check out their Twitter account, @torquebrewing, for plenty of images of the work in progress, including installing the variety of fermentation tanks they’ll use in producing their range of brews.

Torque has a much larger capacity than Barn Hammer, and will feature its own canning facility for 355-millilitre and 473-ml cans, depending on the beer. Torque’s tap room will feature beautiful tables made locally at Wood Anchor out of Manitoba elm.

“We want to be brewing in two weeks,” says brewmaster Matt Wolff, although he anticipates the tap room won’t be open for at least another month; look for Torque brews at growler bars and on tap across the city soon.

Beyond growlers and kegs, Torque president John Heim sees another inroad to getting Manitobans drinking his product. “We have an advantage because, other than Fort Garry, I think we’ll be the only other brewery doing canning,” he notes.

“The craft-brewing community is very collegial, fraternal,” says Heim. “We’ve been leaning on Barn Hammer, because they’ve been first, and now others are leaning on us.”

“We’re all of the same mindset,” adds Wolff.

“It’s up to the brewers to educate people on what they’ve been missing,” Heim says. “It’s the people who don’t know what’s in store for them… we need to transfer some enthusiasm to them. You can come here, you can meet the brewer, you can see what the philosophy is and buy local.”

“We don’t look at each other as competitors,” he says. “We look at each other as allies.”

 

Trans Canada Brewing Co., 1-1290 Kenaston Blvd.

Contacted by email, Matt Tallman of Trans Canada Brewing Co. noted there was “nothing big to announce” as of yet, but that the brewery — located near Fort Garry Brewing Co. — will feature three components: a “brewery, on-site tap room and retail store.”

 

Oxus Brewing Company, location TBA

Not much to report on this front; contacted by email, Sean Shoyoqubov simply said he is “working with lawyers to get the lease done.”

Check back for news on the rest of Manitoba’s budding breweries next week.

uncorked@mts.net

Twitter: @bensigurdson