The Dark Side of Craft Beer

The Dark Side of Craft Beer

Last Friday I undertook an exploration to Waterloo to check out the Patio at the always fantastic Beertown, The Patio looks out on to a square along the main street and looks to be one of the better ones in the twin Cities of KW. Sadly the weather decided it wasn't going to cooperate and we had to locate indoors to avoid the ghastly showers, I'll get on that Patio one day soon. Beertown usually have four seasonal beers on tap, a great feature I like to check out as there's usually at least one I've never had the privilege to try. Luckily for me this time there were two on offer I had never sampled before the first one I opted for, also the inspiration for this blog, was Granville Island Robson Island Hefeweizan.

This guy knows about the Dark Side

Using my always unreliable Blackberry I tried to check into this Hefeweizan on Untappd and for what ever reason it kept crashing out, or so I thought. I ended up with this beer checked in about 5 times on my feed quite by accident. Then something happened that got me thinking, a comment was left on one of my unfortunate check ins that was along the lines of 'Molson own's Granville and Molson-Coors make Rikard's White so they are just Craft Washing'. Now I appreciate the comment was obviously tongue in cheek but it got me to thinking about Craft Brewers who are backed by a major Brewery. 

Probably the most well known Craft Brewer that is backed in Ontario is Creemore Springs. They were bought out in 2005 by the Molson Coors Brewing Company. In turn Creemore bought out Granville Island in 2009. So that's two Craft Brewers now owned by a major corporation and it has left me somewhat conflicted. On the one hand I love to support the Ontario Craft Brewers because I think it's a great idea to keep the money generated in Ontario so the breweries can survive and are encouraged to come up with new and exciting brews for us to try. Another benefit is as craft beer becomes more popular it creates more jobs for people that want to break into craft beer as a living,

Another Dark Side

Now on the other hand I can't help but feel for people that own their own brewery. Creemore happens to make some of my favorite beers, so should I just stop drinking them now they are owned by Molson? If I owned a brewery and believed I made the best beer in the world I would want as many people as possible drinking it. Sadly for the small guys the only way to do this is to get the big players involved. They can provide the financial security and resources most craft brewers can only dream of and if I owned a business financial security would be a hard deal to turn down. Granville Island is located in Vancouver and I'm 100% positive I would not have discovered their beers without me having to travel out west to sample them. Then this made me think again, is that not part of the beauty of craft beer? Finding yourself somewhere new and trying all the new local beers you've never tried, are we going to be spoiled by the major players buying up the small guys and making them accessible?

This could turn into quite a big issue if Craft Beer carries on exploding the way it is. I can understand why a brewer would accept an offer to be bought out by a major brewery but would it be taking away from the soul of craft brewing? It's a thorny subject and one I'm going to keep an eye on, hopefully on the Patio at Beertown.

Prost!

EyeBeerHolder

KW Craft Beer Bars - Part 1

KW Craft Beer Bars - Part 1

Craft beer is on the rise here in Ontario. In 2002 craft beer represented less than 2% of the LCBO's sales, it now stands at around 5% with a forecasted growth of 10% each year. With this has come a demand for establishments to provide craft beer on tap or at least have a wide selection of bottles.

Kitchener - Waterloo is no different, people are craving variety. There seems to be a change of mindset for the next generation of beer drinkers where locally brewed beer, specially by one of the Ontario Craft Brewers, is preferable to main stays such as Alexander Keith's or Coors. However a lot great bars are going unnoticed due to the abundance of Sports Bars in the area, below is a list of some great bars to visit for Craft Beer in Kitchener - Waterloo.

The Bent Elbow

The newest bar in Kitchener, The Bent Elbow offers nothing but craft beer (if you want a Budweiser you better go to the washroom). A constantly changing selection of beer is offered in this hidden away bar on Weber Street East. Draft and bottled beer is in great supply as well as one hand drawn Cask tap. Each patron is presented with a little black book to help you make up your mind on which beer to choose which is immensely helpful. Mondays offer is $5 on all pints of Ontario Craft Beers, which I regularly take up. 

Imbibe

This sleek and trendy bar isn't the biggest in Kitchener but provides a stylish selection of beer and live music. Located below the museum on King & Queen in the heart of Downtown Kitchener it can be easily missed but its an excellent bar for the location. My first visit consisted of discovering Silver Smith Black Lager and listening to a local blues musician, both excellent 

Beertown

By far the biggest player in the area and probably the best located. Beertown is owned and operated by the Charcoal group, owners of a variety of bars and restaurants in the area. Located in the prime location of Uptown Waterloo Square this bar is seldom quiet. Beertown boasts over 20 beers on tap as well as 4 seasonal in addition to a very well stocked bottle fridge. A tad more expensive then the other bars in the area but it's worth paying the premium for the stylish decor and range of beers. 

Thanks for reading so far Part 2 to follow later.

PROST!!

@EyeBeerHolder