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Fairweather Brewing

Discuss anything and everything about craft brewers from Ontario here.

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Provost Drunk
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Fairweather Brewing

Post by Provost Drunk »

So apparently another new brewery opened up is the far west end of Hamilton last weekend. Did anyone check them out?

http://www.momandhops.ca/fairweather-br ... -hamilton/

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jeremyg
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Post by jeremyg »

Forgot to mention that i tried some of their stuff

and it was ALL very good. i was kind of blown away. typically when a new brewery pops up you can kind of tell what their potential might be, even if the initial offerings aren't very good. but i got a bottle of everything and came away VERY impressed. my only quibble is the grisette tastes more like a weisse. other than that, fantastic new brewery!

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boney
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Post by boney »

Agree, definitely better than average, especially in comparison to many brand new breweries who pump out beers without dialing in recipes or quality control. Nothing that knocked my socks off, but all better than average for style and absolutely no off flavors. Put them in the "very promising" category of new start ups, for me and many return trips.

With Grain & Grit opening in the fall (a literal stones throw away from Fairweather) and Merit (who have been doing some REALLY good stuff lately, too), the Hammer will finally be worth a jog off of the 403.

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northyorksammy
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Post by northyorksammy »

boney wrote:Agree, definitely better than average, especially in comparison to many brand new breweries who pump out beers without dialing in recipes or quality control. Nothing that knocked my socks off, but all better than average for style and absolutely no off flavors. Put them in the "very promising" category of new start ups, for me and many return trips.

With Grain & Grit opening in the fall (a literal stones throw away from Fairweather) and Merit (who have been doing some REALLY good stuff lately, too), the Hammer will finally be worth a jog off of the 403.
totally in synch with your Fairweather assessment
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Belgian
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Post by Belgian »

I'd like to check them out when I'm out that way!

I bet the large brewers are starting to feel a chill that is from handfuls of new breweries everywhere are actually good & attracting local support.
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Peter Collins
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Post by Peter Collins »

Dropped in last week for a visit. Great beer! My favourite was the dry hopped saison and came away with a couple of bottles of that. Everything they did was top notch if not all to my particular taste. HUGE brewery space out back that has so much growth potential. Looking forward to many future visits.

sofakingdrunk
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Post by sofakingdrunk »

Where abouts in Hamilton is this? I'm at Mcmaster quite often, hopefully can swing bu

kfbass
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Post by kfbass »

It'd be like a 1km walk from Mcmaster. Maybe 15 mins. Grain and Grit is going to open pretty much next door as well.

mgmoney
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Post by mgmoney »

Was there last week and they had standard pales, a few IPAs, Saisons and a porter I believe. The Sundrop Ipa was pretty good ...as was the other ipa I tried and can’t remember; they had an apricot Berliner weisse that was delicious but not in bottles; one called Swoon with montmercy cherries but very little cherry came through. The session ipa was very grainy and tasted like it until it warmed a bit... overall nice tap room and promising beers near McMaster
Everytime I learn something new I forget something old...like that time I learned to make wine and then forgot how to drive...

Provost Drunk
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Post by Provost Drunk »

I think there was a thread Fairweather going already; perhaps a moderator could consolidate?

I am hoping to drop by this weekend and check them out as well as Grain & Grit. Unfortunately, I'll be driving so I won't really have a chance to delve deep but can hopefully sample a few offerings and walk away with some bottles if anything stands out.

Provost Drunk
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Post by Provost Drunk »

I did have the chance to pop by Fairweather last weekend near my old stomping grounds at McMaster. It's a nice bright space, very inviting.

I would agree that the Swoon farmhouse with Montmorency cherries had very little cherry presence. There was a fair amount of oak though which I found a bit off putting. I didn't love this one, but that could also be a function of personal preference.

I also tried the Saison aMERICA, which was predictably hoppy but fortunately not to the point of being overdone.

Their Silky oat porter was pretty textbook.

Separately, I tried their Madrugador session coffee stout at Bar Hop a couple of weeks ago and feel that this one could use some work. It certainly had a strong coffee presence, but lacked balance and the underlying beer was thin and watered down.

Overall, not a bad start for a young brewery. I wouldn't go out of my way to seek them out, but well worth a stop if you're in the area (particularly with Grain & Grit literally a 3 minute walk away).

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boney
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Post by boney »

FYI.....Fairweather is killing it right now, especially with their hoppy beers. They’ve really gone big on the NE haze. Foreva Eva is supeb hazy session ale at 4.5 % and Fortune and Glory is indeed a really glorious hazy DIPA that is as good as anythig being made in Ontario right now. High Grade IPA has also been tweaked and is more juicy and hazy. Morning glory is still a really nice west coast APA, with recent batches really dialing in the style. Although kettle sours are kind of overdone, all of them at Fairwearher are really, really well done for the style. Everything they do is at least super solid for the style.

Fairweather have jumped over Collective Arts and Merit as my go to local.

sofakingdrunk
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Post by sofakingdrunk »

^^^agreed to all of this. I don’t get there as often as I’d like, but I’ve been a half dozen times over the past couple months. Everything I’ve grabbed has been good-great. There’s usually a good selection of styles in take home format as well as at the bar.
I always seem to get a touch of real dankness in all their ipa’s that’s really distinct and i love.
Head and shoulders above Grain and Grit, as far as I’m concerned.

sofakingdrunk
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Post by sofakingdrunk »

Drinking Fairweather’s Donna. Their first kick at a pilsner(and lager in general i think). It’s absolutely fantastic. Lots of apple and pear,crisp cracker malt and a really clean dry finish. It’s honestly tough to put down for more than a minute between sips. Damn near perfect in every way. Fairweather continues to impress me, with pretty much any style they do. I think this may be the best Ontario Pilsner I’ve had....just ahead of Barncats first version of their German Pilsner.
Get out to Fairweather if your haven’t made it out their yet.
As a side note.....when I was in there picking these beers up, 2 weeks ago, they were carving up a massive pumpkin out front. Perhaps they’ll turn it into a pumpkin beer that I will actually like ;)

hopdevil
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Post by hopdevil »

Agree wholeheartedly with these recent assessments.
These guys are nailing it, with hoppy beers and sours.

Nice space for drinking and sampling
You can go for a hike on The Rail Trail, very close by.

As a Mississauga beer lover, I can make the drive to Bellwoods Hafis location or come here for top end beers.
Traffic is a big thorn in my side.
I think I am leaning towards here.

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