Shrug it out: craft producer celebrates milestones

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This article was published 25/01/2025 (618 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Winnipeg drinks producer Shrugging Doctor Beverage Co. is throwing a two-pronged party on Sunday, Feb. 9, and everyone’s invited.

The company is celebrating eight years in operation, in which time it has gone from a modest start-up to producing dozens of different drinks in a range of styles — including grape and fruit wines, mead, sangria, cider, canned vodka-sodas, hard iced tea drinks and the recent addition of a couple of fizzy wines to the lineup.

Shrugging Doctor is also celebrating the first anniversary of its production facility and tasting room at 483 Berry St., where the party will take place from 4 to 10 p.m. with live music, giveaways and more. See shrugdoc.com to reserve a spot.

 

Patent 5 Distillery has added some more hardware to the proverbial trophy case, nabbing a silver medal for the 100 per cent rye whisky at the 2025 Canadian Whisky Awards, presented on Jan. 16 in Victoria.

The whisky, aged just short of five years before release and made using Manitoba rye, is available from Patent 5 in its tasting room (108 Alexander Ave.) or through their website (patent5.ca). For a complete list of Canadian Whisky Award winners, see wfp.to/AQh.

And local whisky lovers out there, don’t forget — the Winnipeg Whisky Festival takes place just over one month from now on Feb. 28 and March 1 at the RBC Convention Centre.

For tickets and a complete list of whiskies being poured (including some other Canadian Whisky Award winners), see winnipegwhiskyfestival.com.

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Barn Hammer Brewing Co. (595 Wall St.) has announced the West End brewery is undertaking some updates and renovations to its tap room and patio, as well as some tweaks to new and existing brews. (The first of the existing beers to be tinkered with is the Le Sneak Belgique witbier; brewers are trialing different yeast strains.)

The changes were announced on the brewery’s social media pages, and include “some top-secret surprises that we can’t wait to unveil.” Expect the tap room to remain open during renos.

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On Saturday, Feb. 1, from 2 to 4 p.m., Dauphin’s Obsolete Brewing Co. (24 2 Ave. NW) launches a new beer for a good cause of the furry, four-legged variety.

The Ruby Rocket Irish red ale will be released amid a tap room teeming with puppies, with proceeds from the brew going towards A Tail to Tell Frontline Rescue, a local animal-rescue organization with a focus on helping animals in First Nations communities. There’s no charge to attend if you’re in the area.

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Winnipeg’s Brat Cat Mead Co. has partnered with Intergalactic Sauces for a spicy new condiment that will also help some cute critters.

The Meowter Limits hot sauce features Brat Cat’s La Una De Gato prickly pear mead, as well as dragon fruit, lychee, lavender, Carolina Reaper and chili peppers, and will be available Feb. 14 at intergalacticsauces.com (and presumably at Devil May Care Brewing Co., where Brat Cat is made) while supplies last. Two dollars from each bottle of this one-run sauce will be donated to the Darcy’s ARC animal-rescue shelter (730 Century St.).

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Kilter Brewing Co. has been announced as the official beer partner of Raw:Almond, the annual outdoor pop-up restaurant located on (or near) the juncture of the Red and Assiniboine rivers.

This year’s Raw:Almond runs from Jan. 23 to Feb. 16 and will be located in the green space adjacent to Blue Cross Park — temperature fluctuations this winter meant the river wasn’t stably frozen enough in time to proceed on ice.

For Raw:Almond, Kilter has brewed up a beer called, fittingly enough, Raw, a Vienna-style amber lager featuring local malt from Scythe Malting Company in Springstein. In addition to being available at Raw:Almond, the beer’s already landing at some local beer vendors, and can be picked up at Kilter’s tap room (450 Rue Deschambault) or via its website (kilterbrewing.co) for $4.09/473ml can.

uncorked@mts.net

@bensigurdson

 

Wines of the week

Thana NV Rosado Cava (Penedes, Spain — $22, Ellement Wine + Spirits)

Pale pink in colour, this organic Spanish sparkling wine is a blend of red Monastrell, Garnacha and Pinot Noir grapes. There’s a slightly earthy, funky component aromatically that comes with cherry, raspberry, bread dough and straw notes. It’s dry and light-plus bodied, with bright effervescence and vibrant acidity lifting the fresh red berry flavours, while secondary bread dough and funky notes add depth and character well beyond what most cavas offer. 4/5

Quails’ Gate 2022 Chardonnay (Okanagan Valley, B.C. — $26.99, Liquor Marts and beyond)

This stylish B.C. Chardonnay is bright gold in colour, offering ripe peach and red apple, tropical fruit and subtle spice notes (thanks to a portion of the wine being aged in oak barrels). It’s dry and medium-bodied, bringing ripe tropical, peach and red apple flavours with a subtle creamy texture (thanks again to partial barrel aging as well as malolactic fermentation), hints of lemon curd and chalk and, despite the 13.5 per cent alcohol, a modest finish. Another elegant and well-balanced Chardonnay from Quails’ Gate. 4.5/5

Passion de Los Andes 2020 Corte (Mendoza, Argentina — $22.03, Liquor Marts and beyond)

A Malbec-Petit Verdot blend, this Argentine red is inky garnet in colour, with ripe plum and blackberry aromas as well as violet, dark chocolate and chalky notes. It’s full-bodied and dry, with the ripe dark berry and plum flavours front and centre thanks to aging in concrete tanks (versus oak barrels), some secondary licorice and spice flavours, light but grippy tannins and, at 14.5 per cent alcohol, a long, warm finish. Drink now on its own or with grilled meats, or set aside for 18-24 months to see how the fruit evolves. 4/5