Reflect//Project: Local Love & Beer

The Reflect//Project part 4 of 4: The reflect project is about thinking back to look ahead. 

1. Black Beer Community

2. Women & Beer 

3. Queer Beer Community 

4. Local Love & Beer 

Preface:  

This article is part 4 of 4 of a miniseries that I’ve wanted to create for a while. The purpose is to share my own perspective and thoughts and to shed light on minorities of the beer world. This article focuses on Local Love & Beer. 

 Reflect: 

With the massive beer scene spanning Canada, and Ontario, I’m taking this opportunity to look specifically at the city I live in - Toronto, and trust me, there’s a lot to learn! I want to quickly set the stage here; in Ontario, beer-making in the 1700s was huge! Why? Well, our intelligent European settlers were drinking beer, not water - due to the wretched water conditions of the 1700s. As such, breweries were common simply because beer was an essential staple in diets (same!). This was great news for maintaining nutrition, but it also led to jobs. “When British soldiers began arriving in the late 1700s governments created their own breweries to supply beer to the soldiers who received beer or beer money as part of their daily rations. At its peak, there were over 300 breweries in Ontario.” (Toronto Public Library)

Now, let’s take a look at Toronto! The first brewery in Toronto sat on what is now Sherbourne St. and Richmond St.; it was created by Robert Henderson, in 1800. “Robert Henderson came to Toronto from Kingston. He saw an opportunity because the Garrison soldiers were allowed six pints of beer each day. The beer was shipped from Kingston, so he saw a chance to make it locally. Unfortunately, Robert didn’t have any heirs, so the brewery died with him.” That quote comes from Steve Himel, co-founder and general manager of Henderson Brewing’s - the name is no coincidence. In naming one of today’s most popular breweries in Toronto, Steve and Mark Benzaquen (Henderson’s brewmaster) “thought there was an opportunity to kind of get back to [Toronto’s] roots.” (Savvy Company)

The popularity of beer grew, and by the mid-1800s there were numerous breweries across the city; if you live here you probably walk by old breweries daily. For example, ever been to Trinity Bellwoods Park? Well on the south side of Queen St., at Walnut St. is where the John Farr Brewery once stood! This brewery was built in 1820. “Farr’s Brewery served the community from the earliest years and also played a role in the 1837 Rebellion as a meeting place.” (Lost Rivers) The location of the brewery, though, was very strategic, as the Garrison river ran right through Trinity Bellwoods Park! The only real remainder of this river today is the dog bowl (aka a popular off-leash dog park in the middle of Trinity Bellwoods). 

Fast forward a few years, and alcohol seemed to be getting a little out of control, according to certain individuals of the time. 

Temperance, or Ontario’s Prohibition took place from 1916 - 1927; some areas in Toronto took the banning of alcohol more seriously than others. For example, The Junction - didn’t have legal booze from 1904 to 2000! Yes, it's true, just 21 years ago, the first legal beer was poured after the "Junction’s alcohol ban was finally lifted after a referendum vote was carried out." (Indie88)

Now, because alcohol was still an “issue” when the Temperance Act was lifted, what was created in 1927? Ah yes, the LCBO (Liquor Control Board of Ontario) as well as, Brewers Retail Inc. aka The Beer Store! 

A few years later, in the 1950s we saw large beer companies move to Toronto like Molson and Labatt. As such, these large businesses really took over much of the industry for a few decades, until about the 1980s. This is when we saw the rise of localized breweries like Amsterdam (1986), Great Lakes Brewing (1987), Steam Whistle (2000), Mill Street (2002), Bellwoods (2012) and the list goes on.

Supporting local businesses has always been an initiative in the craft beer world. In the early 2010s, we saw the social movement #DrinkLocal emerge, to raise awareness and promote local breweries across Toronto and Ontario.

Project:

While Toronto's brewing history is rich and unique, the future has so much more in store! As the pandemic has opened up the minds of many people to support local businesses and breweries alike (now more than ever), we are seeing a shift from consumer shopping at the LCBO and Beer Store towards bottle shops and ordering locally/online. It’s like a resurgence of fresh energy coursing through the city, and it’s beautiful. Of course, if the LCBO or the Beer Store is easier for consumers, that’s great, but with the desire to have more direct-to-consumer business models, breweries are really thriving. This shift is something that I predict will last well into the future of consumers' daily lives, in lockdown or not. Amid the COVID-19 scare, breweries weren’t super focused on their taprooms, so they put more time and effort into pivoting their businesses. Similarly, with consumers, a lot more time was spent online (more than usual I suppose) getting to know local businesses and trying to figure out the best way to support their communities. There was an increase in social media use and community building/bonding from virtual events and online interactions that will surely increase our appreciation and desire for in-person community events when possible (ASAP, please!!!) 

In addition to the connectivity and local love that breweries are getting, they are giving this same love back! I’ve never learned more about breweries partnering with one another, with other local food services, delivery services, giving back (to charities and local causes), and implementing new initiatives like using local ingredients only, than I have over the past year. 

I’ve also never seen more beer brands with lockdown puns on their labels, but hey, we love a good pun like 'Isolation Nation' from Granite Brewing! Or not a pun, but just straight-up branding like cOVid Lager, a beer created by Carl Milroy of the Red Thread Brewing Co., in collaboration Al Cockburn of the Olde Village Freehouse.

Looking to the future of craft beer in Toronto (the GTA, and beyond!) I know we’re all itching to get back to patios and taprooms, and this will happen (regardless of where you live in the world)!

On my personal beer Instagram, you’ll find a smattering of new beer releases and amazing branding that I love to showcase, but beyond that, I wanted to shout out a few local initiatives. Breweries are doing so much more than creating tasty brews with stunning packaging, behind the scenes, the breweries that we love are truly taking steps towards sustainability, inclusivity, localization, and more:

• Steam Whistle’s Green Initiatives include using natural ingredients, packaging their beer in a green bottle that is actually ~green~ and their support of Bullfrog Power – Canada’s leading green energy provider. The brewery uses clean, renewable power with Bullfrog for 100% of their electricity requirements, a choice that helps save our planet - just to name a few!
• Karbon Brewing Company – this brewery is on a mission to become Canada’s first carbon-negative brewery!
• Black Lab, “Instead of a set menu, the brewery offers snacks and pop-up food stands meaning your experience at the brewery will be different with every visit!” This also means that along with supporting local craft beer, guests can extend their local love to various culinary businesses, too. 
• Similarly, Burdock Brewery partnered with Blackbird Baking Co. to be able to offer delicious local baked bread and more, as part of their delivery program.
• Town Brewery creates truly unique community partnerships within various industries from arts and music, like working with Dizzy and The Dirty Nil, to eco-initiatives with partnerships with The Nature Conservancy of Canada as well as The Great Canadian Shoreline Cleanup.
• Left Field chooses to showcase the local terroir and the unique tastes of Ontario, ensuring their ingredients travel shorter distances. For example, they’ve partnered with Barn Owl Malt in Belleville, Ontario.
• Mill Street Brewery uses North American organic malt, explores local and seasonal raw ingredients (ongoing) and uses barley that’s grown in Saskatchewan and Alberta and malted in Thunder Bay, Ontario.

Okay, so I could sit here and gush all day, but the bottom line is that Toronto has an amazing craft beer scene and there’s so much more to it than the beer itself! 

Support local.  

Closing:

There’s always more work to do, so let’s lift up our fellow beer lovers, beer experts, beer makers, educators and everyone who shares our admiration for beer! To reflect is to learn, to project is to create the future we want. 

Read: The Lost Breweries of Toronto, by Jordan St. John aka my beer professor at George Brown (omg! I know him!!)

Listen: The Ontario Craft Beer Guide The Podcast, “Join beer experts and authors Robin LeBlanc and Jordan St. John as they talk about beer, the world, and whatever else they feel like, damn it.”

Watch: The Beer Sisters on Youtube, they have a series of fun videos like ‘How to Taste Beer’ & ‘How to Pair Beer & Cheese'

Four Elements Craft Beer Podcast on YouTube – any episode! They talk with, interview and learn from breweries and other folks in the craft beer space in Toronto, the GTA, Ontario, etc.

For this article I’ve paired it with Avling brewing’s Vivid Aromatic IPA (6%)!! A relatively new kid on the brewery block in Leslieville, Toronto. “We aim to create exceptional and experimental beer, food, and experiences that showcase Canadian flavours and locally farmed ingredients.” Avling also supports local causes, charities and other small businesses – definitely worth checking out!!

Cheers,

Just Beer Banter