Highlights for Ontario Craft Beer Week 2014
Toronto, ON – Ontario’s fifth annual Ontario Craft Beer Week launches Father’s Day weekend running June 13-21, 2014 with already 100+ events and unique craft beer tasting opportunities.
“We’re gearing up for another big one,” says Darren Smith, chair, Ontario Craft Beer Week 2014 and president of Lake of Bays Brewing. “There are tasting events, free brewery tours, music, art and educational talks by the folks who make the beer. We invite Ontario to join in and enjoy the wonderful world of Ontario craft beer.”
The goal of Ontario Craft Brewers’ week-long, province-wide festival is to celebrate the local craft beer scene and expose consumers to the premium quality and culture of Ontario craft beer.
“Ontario Craft Beer Week keeps picking up steam every year,” says Cam Heaps, chair, of Ontario Craft Brewers and founder, Steam Whistle Brewing. “It’s a perfect time of year to get a taste of Ontario’s homegrown craft brewing industry.”
OCB Week will officially launch with a media/VIP tasting event and photo op on Friday, June 13 2014 at 11am at Session Toronto’s Craft Beer Festival at Yonge-Dundas Square.
OCB Week Highlights
Beer Festivals
Session Craft Beer Festival, Yonge & Dundas Square (June 13, 14) will kick off Ontario Craft Beer Week with four sessions over two days:
- Industry/Media Launch Party – Friday from 11 – noon;
- Friday evening – ticketed ‘Collaboration Nation’ event;
- Saturday afternoon – open to the public for craft beer tasting;
- Saturday evening – ticketed ‘Collaboration Nation’ event. Tickets go on sale MONDAY FEBRUARY 3rd; www.sessiontoronto.ca
Beach, Brews & BBQ (June 13, 14, 15) – kick off OCB Week down by the water at Toronto’s Woodbine Park with tasty food and Ontario Craft Beer offerings from Beau’s, Flying Monkeys Craft Brewery, Left Field Brewery and Mill Street Brewery.
FORT HENRY Beer festival (June 15, 11am-11pm, Kingston) Sampling will be provided by Steam Whistle, Barley Days Brewery, Muskoka’s Lake of Bays Brewery and others. The fun kicks off at noon and will feature a wide range of musical entertainment and BBQ. Free admission!
Kingston Brew Pub Mini Beer Fest with Steam Whistle Unfiltered! (June 15, 2:30-7:30, Kingston)
Toronto Wine & Spirits: Toronto’s first outdoor wine and spirit festival back for its 6th year – this time at Sugar Beach (June 19, 20, 21, Toronto).
Brewery Open Doors
Many Ontario Craft Breweries will offer FREE brewery tours during OCB Week. Contact the breweries directly to book tastings and meet the real people behind the brands; brewmasters, owners, sales and production people.
Niagara College Teaching Brewery: All week long join the Niagara College Teaching Brewery team for a complimentary tour of our Brewery! Learn about how the Niagara College Teaching Brewery was started, the art of beer making, the beer program and our brands (2 p.m. daily).
Father’s Day celebrations
Many OCB members will host Father’s Day events at the breweries and pubs, such as:
Amsterdam Brewery: Bring Dad to the brewery for a free tour & tasting for a “Father’s Day Celebration”. A special release of Amsterdam’s new Adventure Brews and a BBQ provided by Fletchers Fine Foods.
(June 15, 1pm-5pm, Toronto)
Beau’s All Natural Brewing will celebrate Father’s Day with a special brew and will feature guest chef Bruce Wood who will create an exceptional Beau’s Beer-inspired menu. (June 15th, 12pm-6pm, Vankleek Hill)
Cameron’s Brewery will host their annual Father’s Day BBQ at their Brewery. Cheers to Dad! (June 15, 12pm-4pm, Oakville)
Mill Street Brew Pub (Toronto & Ottawa) Join the folks from the Mill Street Brew Pubs for brunch with Dad. All Fathers can enter to win a one of a kind Mill St. Hockey jersey! (June 15th, 11pm-4pm)
Muskoka Brewery will once again board the Wenonah ll for their Annual Father’s Day boat cruise. Great beer paired with a 3 course meal. (June 15th, 5pm-9pm, Gravenhurst)
Father’s Day Beer Brunch with Muskoka at Brother’s Beer Bistro:Treat Dad to a beery brunch at Brothers Beer Bistro! Ticket price includes a “Beermosa” to get you started, a pint of Muskoka, and a special menu created by the fine folks in the Brothers Beer Bistro kitchen. (June 15, 11:30am-3:00pm, Ottawa – reservations only)
David’s Craft Beer Launch & Father’s Day: featuring Beau’s, F&M, Steam Whistle & Wellington (June 15, 12 – 4 p.m., Port Dover).
Celebrate Craft Beer and Dad at Niagara College Teaching Brewery:Toast to Dad! All week long NCTB will be offering featured complimentary samples of their beer to celebrate Dad and OCB Week! (June 13-June 21, 11am-6pm, Niagara-On-The-Lake)
Railway City Brewing will be at The Masonry in Perth to celebrate Dad. Enjoy some of their tasty brews paired with a summer BBQ! (June 15th, 11am-4pm, Perth)
Ontario Craft Brewery Tours & Road Trips
Crystal Luxmore’s Small Batch Beer & Spirits Tour of Niagara-on-the-Lake. Experience a day long bus tour with Crystal Luxmore, Certified Cicerone and beer writer for the Grid, The Globe and Mail. Visit, tour and meet the makers at Niagara Oast House; lunch at Niagara College’s Teaching Brewery and finish at a Dillon’s distillery. (Tickets $130 each; $250/pair).(June 21, 9 a.m.)
Barley Days Brewery’s COUNTY ROAD TRIP:A limo-bus tour of fabulous Prince Edward County, starting with a tour/tasting at Barley Days, food pairings/tastings at local bars/restaurants and wineries, a local hop yard, surprise pit stops, a summer solstice pig roast and an overnight at a local inn (pricing, locations TBA). (June 21)
Or, book a specially-priced, personalized regional beer tour, such as: the Old Toronto Beer Tour™ by Toronto Beer Lovers Tour Co.,http://www.beerloverstour.com/
LCBO Brewmasters’ Tasting Series
Featured at three LCBO locations in Ontario, Brewmasters from select OCB breweries will walk you through a sampling of some of their exceptional summer ales while pairing them with fine cheeses or Summer BBQ fare.
Railway City Brewing: Brewmasters Muthu Sakthivel & Zach Trynda will sample The Witty Traveller, Canada Southern Draught and Dead Elephant paired with Summer BBQ fare. (June 17, 7 p.m,, The Roundhouse Windsor LCBO #367 – Tickets $35 in store).
Beau’s & Big Rig Brewery: Brewmasters Matthew O’Hara (Beau’s) will sample Lug Tread, Festivale, and Kissmeyer Nordic Pale Ale. Teaming up with Brewmaster Lon Ladell (Big Rig) where they will sample their flagship Golden Brew – Big Rig Gold. Each brew will be paired with fine cheeses. (June 18, 7p.m., Ottawa #38 – Tickets $35 in store).
Lake of Bays: Brewmaster Dan Unkerskov will sample River Walker, Rock Cut Baysville Lager, Spark House Red Ale, Crosswind Pale Ale, Top Shelf Classic Lager, Old North Mocha Porter. Brews will be paired with cheese. (June 19, 6:30 p.m., Toronto #10 (Summerhill) – Tickets $35 in store).
Meet the Makers/Real People, Real Beer
Beau’s Presents..Meet the Designers in Support of Sketch Toronto
Muskoka Brewery’s Brewer’s Weekend at JW Marriott:Savour the tastes of summer with a special weekend hosted by JW Marriott and Muskoka Brewery. This luxury experience includes accommodation in a luxurious studio, buffet breakfast for two, an exclusive brewery tour and a beer-pairing dinner curated by the brewmaster. (June 21, 5pm-9pm, Minett,Ont).
Schnapps101 with Distiller Kaitlin at the Mill Street Brew Pub:Spend an informative and educational evening with Mill Street Distiller extraordinaire Kaitlin where she will introduce you to Bier Schnapps (June 16, 6pm-8pm, Toronto).
The Beer Lovers Brewmasters Dinner – the Beer Hall at Mill Street Brew Pub: Hosted by Mill Street Brewmaster Joel Manning, enjoy a five course dinner paired with five delicious Mill Street beers. (June 19th, 6pm-9pm Toronto – tickets required)
Brew Like We Do! Mill Street Brew Pub Ottawa Join the brewer in the beermaking process (June 17, 2 – 4 p.m.)
Brewducation at Mill Street Brew Pubs: Chat & learn about beer with Cicerone Jordan Mills from Mill St. Brewery. (June 17, 6pm-8pm Toronto, June 18th, 6pm-8pm Ottawa).
Tap Takeovers
Beau’s Tap Takeover at The Hogtown Pub and Oysters:Beau’s takes over 14 taps at The Hogtown Pub and Oyster in Toronto. The folks from Beau’s will be on hand with prizes and will be ready to talk all things beer. (June 16, 5pm-2am, Toronto)
Beau’s Tap Takeover at TwoSix{Ate}:TwoSix{Ate} hosts a Beau’s tap takeover in celebration of Ontario Craft Beer Week and in support of One Square Foot (www.1squarefoot.ca). (June 18, 8pm-2am, Ottawa)
Beau’s “The Big Lebowski” Bowling Night & Tap Feature: Enjoy three Beau’s beers on tap and have fun bowling to the theme of “The Big Lebowski.” (June 14, 7pm-11pm @ West Bowling Lanes in Ottawa).
Food Pairings with Steam Whistle at Catch 22 in Wasaga Beach (Daily).
Flights, Collabs, Crawls & Keg Swaps
Multi-Brewery Pub Crawl: Join Steam Whistle, Great Lakes, Wellington, Cameron’s, King, and Sawdust City for a multi-brewery pub crawl along the Danforth. Stops include: Relish, Local 1794; Sarah’s; Morgans; The Wren; Sauce; and The Only Café. (June 16th, 5:30-10pm, Toronto)
Barley Days & Caplansky’s Collab launch: CelebrateZane Caplansky’s Birthday and the official launch of Barley Days’ Deli King Dark Rye Lager at Caplansky’s Deli on College. This is a collaboration beer brewed with Caplansky’s very own brisket rub! Come try it as Session Toronto! (June 17)
C’est What – Summer Nights in the City: The great breweries of northern Ontario will all bring a bit of the summer to the City. Guests will enjoy a taste of the season from five Ontario Craft Brewers including Muskoka, Sawdust City, Side Launch and Northwinds. Each brewery will bring their ‘choice’ for: Best Beer for a hot summer night in the city (June 19, 6-10 p.m.)
Railway City Beer at Steam Whistle Brewing: Steam Whistle Brewery will host a Keg swap with Railway City Brewing this Ontario Craft Beer. A feature keg from Railway City will be available at Steam Whistle Brewing during their regular hours. More details to follow. (June 13, 11am-6pm, Toronto).
Fanny’s Flights & Bites: Join the gang at Fanny Chadwicks where you can taste their flights of 8 Ontario Craft Beers paired with bite sized appetizers made with beer! (June 13th – June 22nd, 11am-11pm, Toronto)
Railway City Beer Pairing at The Bar Q: Enjoy some beer inspired dishes prepared by Chef Christian Barque paired with Railway City beer. (June 18th, 5pm-12am, Cornwall)
Beau’s & Paradiso (Burlington) June Patio Sampling: Celebrate patio season with Beau’s and Paradiso (Oakville & Burlington). They will feature an outdoor sampling session featuring; Lug Tread (Lagered Ale), Festivale (Altbier), and B-Side Brewing Label’s Kissmeyer Nordic Pale Ale. Session includes Beau’s swag giveaways and more! (June 18th, 5pm-9pm, Burlington & June 19th, 5pm-9pm, Oakville).
Sessions with Muskoka Brewery: Stop by the Hintonburg Public House and sample Muskoka Brewery’s line up for just $25. Tickets available in advance. (June 14th, 3pm-5pm, Ottawa)
Free Stone Hammer Pilsner Tasting / Craft Addict Thursdays: Fionn MacCool will hold “craft addict Thursdays” where F&M Brewery will be providing a free tasting to the first 50+ customers of their Stone Hammer Pilsner. Free brewery tour tickets will be handed out along with some Stone Hammer door prizes. (June 19, 6pm-11pm, Kitchener)
Music, Art, Games & Other Entertainment
Beau’s Turntable Takeover – The Wellington Gastropub:Beau’s is taking over The Wellington Gastropub’s taps and turntables! Beau’s co-founder Steve Beauchesne and friends will be turning it up to 11 with some of their favourite tracks. Six+ taps of Beau’s offerings will be available, including a selection of barrel aged beers from the brewery’s Greener Futures Project! (June 17, 6:30pm-10:00pm, Ottawa)
Acoustic Saturdays at Mill Street Brew Pubs: Enjoy live acoustic music & great beer! (June 14 & June 21, 7pm-11pm, Toronto & Ottawa)
Beau’s & O’Reilly’s Live Music Night:Visit this historical venue for complimentary samples of three Beau’s beers, and then pair them with live music. (June 20, 8pm-10pm, Perth)
EinSTEIN Trivia Night at the Beer Hall at Mill Street Brew Pub:Come out and have some Mill Street brews all while enjoying a game of triviaon the patio! (June 18, 6pm-8pm, Toronto)
Steam Whistle Open Mic Night: The Brownstone cafe will be hosting a Steam Whistle open mic night. (June 17, 9pm-1am, Orillia)
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