The Bar Towel

Any recommendations on what breweries are worth a visit, based on your own experiences?

I've only been to a few (Mill Street, Nickel Brook, Church Key, Bellwood & Grand River).

I am not referring as much to what tours are the best (never took one at any of the breweries I went to visit), but rather what breweries can offer good beers (preferably single bottles) that are not available at the LCBO.

Any input appreciated.
Cheers.

Winged wrote:Any recommendations on what breweries are worth a visit, based on your own experiences?

I've only been to a few (Mill Street, Nickel Brook, Church Key, Bellwood & Grand River).

I am not referring as much to what tours are the best (never took one at any of the breweries I went to visit), but rather what breweries can offer good beers (preferably single bottles) that are not available at the LCBO.

Any input appreciated.
Cheers.

That depends on which brewery has what on the go at the moment. Bellwoods is pretty much always a good bet. Probably the only one that will consistently have good things not in the LCBO.

Other places like Indie, Great Lakes and Amsterdam you'd need to know what's available before heading out.

Thanks for replying.

Yeah, I kinda figured considering most breweries are doing seasonals etc

Was looking at Sawdust (because I've liked what I have tried from them) and Flying Monkeys - OK so Barrie isn't within the GTA, but not that far anyways.

Will have a further look, and contact a few to see what's in stock.

Great Lakes regularly tweets what's in their retail fridge.

Black Oak has (I think) a new series of beers out that are at their retail store only.

Others go more often than me, but Amsterdam brewpub (not the Laird location) has a retail store that often has harder to find stuff, I believe.

I'm really liking Block 3 in Waterloo and they always have 3-4 beers available for purchase in bottles or growlers, none of which are LCBO of course.

Awesome, thanks for the heads up.

I should clarify Block 3 is in St. Jacob's, just a bit north of Waterloo.

No problem, I googled it

Junction Craft Brewing makes some of the best crafted beers in Ontario IMO. Pretty much everything is perfectly balanced and has high drinkability. Station Master Stout, Local Option Lager, Black Lager, and ESB are some examples. Even their flagships Conductors Pale, and Brakeman's Session Ale are worth drinking. They generally get overlooked because they don't make high alcohol or hoppy beers but the ones they do make are very good interpretations of german, english, and american pub style ales. Their somewhat remote location in Toronto does make it tough to get there regularly though.

Bellwoods is always worth a visit, especially if you have never been. Lots of hoppy beers, session beers, and roasty beers. They also have the occasional sour/funky beer.

Indie Alehouse has the occasional bottle for sale. Lots of hoppy beers here, also a nice variety of other ales. Usually they go for more intense, high flavour interpretations of styles.

There guys all do bottle sales.

Thanks ercousin. Much appreciated.

I'll make a list, and then narrow it down to a few depending on what is available.

Cheers.

Granite.

lister wrote:Granite.

Granite only do Growlers. I'm assuming (possibly incorrectly) that Winged is coming in from out of town, so paying the 5$ deposit on a 2L beer that will only keep a week wouldn't be a good option for him.

Sort of. I am visiting just outside of Toronto for another 2 weeks or so. I will see what Granite have to offer, but I tend to go for diversity rather than large quantities of one beer, so growlers is not my best bet. I appreciate the hint regardless

Winged wrote:Sort of. I am visiting just outside of Toronto for another 2 weeks or so. I will see what Granite have to offer, but I tend to go for diversity rather than large quantities of one beer, so growlers is not my best bet. I appreciate the hint regardless

Granite does the best English style ales in Toronto FWIW, so check 'em out for a few pints if you have time.

Also, didn't I see a tweet recently that Hopping Mad is back in 473 ml cans at the retail store? Don't know if it has subsequently sold out or not.

Yeah, a few pints and a bite to eat at the Granite pub will probably suit me better than a growler. It has been added to the list