A Note from the Chris’
World Domination
OK well not quite, but we have begun to expand outside of the province which is pretty cool.
In February I flew to British Columbia with our Sales Manager, Blake Mahoney and over the course of the next 2 weeks were joined by our whole management team. The occasion was to launch Legion Lager in BC.
We’ve always had aspirations to take our brand across the country and when we signed our agreement with The Royal Canadian Legion, we decided to use that as the catalyst. Over the coming months we’ll be gradually adding other brands into our distributions channels in BC also.
We had a very successful event at the Legion branch in Burnaby (Vancouver) where the beer was well received and the support from patrons was encouraging. I’d like to extend my sincere thanks once again too all individuals from The Royal Canadian Legion, the Burnaby Legion branch and of course our own team that made this event happen.
When deciding how to expand to BC, we wanted to make sure we were able to keep our philosophy of supporting local businesses, the local economy and to use local ingredients. In order to do this we partnered with a brewery in BC and worked with them to brew our beer to the exact specifications in BC. This way, the beer we sell in BC is brewed there, using BC ingredients and using BC employees.
We now have a team of 5 sales staff working in BC, reporting to Blake and making Legion Lager available in bars and restaurants as well as private liquor stores.
It’s certainly a big undertaking with some risk involved but it’s a challenge that we’re happy to take on and feel that we’ll make it a success.
Here’s to finding Whitewater flowing in British Columbia!
Cheers,
Chris Thompson
Brewery News
We’re Going Canning Crazy
We are proud to say we are now the owners of a brand new shiny canning line. This will allow us to bring all of our canning in house and in turn, get more cans to you. For those of you wondering (because I was), it cans 32 x 473ml per minute. That’s 1920 cans or 908.16 litres per hour which means we can empty a fermenter in roughly 7.5 hours. That’s a lot of cans.
Beer of the Month
For the month of April, our KLR93 is going to be featured as Sobey’s Beer of the Month in all licenced stores. Keep your eyes peeled for one of our free samplings in your local store. In addition, 5% of the sales of KLR93 from Sobey’s stores will go to the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. Cheers to that!
Beer 101
What You Eat is What You Drink
By Head Brewer Sean
A lot of people don’t realize how much what you eat can change the way that beer tastes. Depending on the style of beer this can be very drastic. You wouldn’t want to eat spicy Asian dishes with a light American Lager as you wouldn’t even taste it. It may as well be like drinking water. Now maybe that’s what you want, but its important to remember the taste of the beer can also affect the flavour of your food. With our Brewer’s Dinner coming up on April 18th, lets talk about some beer and food pairing that will get the most out of the flavour on each side.
To give you an idea of what food will lend to what style of beer, we have paired the four original WBC brands with our recommended complimentary flavours.
Farmer’s Daughter Blonde Ale
The best pairing for this style of beer would be Shellfish. This could be clams, scallops, lobster etc. With a light ale like this you will bring out the salt and natural sweetness of the shellfish while cleansing your palate with each drink. This can lend a lot to being able to taste the subtle flavours that shellfish can have.
Whistling Paddler English Style Ale
Fruits and cheeses would pair well with this beer. The English bitter naturally compliments the flavours and texture of the cheese while lending your palate to enhance the sweetness of the fruit cutting down on the tart of some berries. It will also cut through the fat of the cheese and cleanse the palate while you eat.
Class V India Pale Ale
Pork would be the best pairing for this highly hopped bitter beer. Pork chops, sausages, and tenderloin are just some options. The strong pork fat can stand up to the strong flavours in this beer. It also pairs well with an apple slaw or relish.
Midnight Stout Oatmeal Milk Stout
Vegetarian dishes would lend well with this beer. I know that people tend to go to the dessert side for this pairing but let us think outside the box. Beans and legumes can add a richness to the beer while balancing the acidity and salt. Other veggies like carrots, peppers, and mushrooms can bring balance to the sweetness and richness of the beer. So, on one side you can enhance the beer flavour or you can blend it, leaving a more rounded flavour.
These are just some of the pairing you can use. And as you can see the food really helps and/or changes the beer profile greatly. Next time you have beer and it doesn’t taste great, let’s consider the food you’ve been eating with it. In addition, consider what you were eating that last time you had that beer. You may be surprised how much that played into what you liked and disliked about that style of beer.
Cooking with Beer
Beer Braised Ribs
By Head Chef Ben
Best Paired with KLR93
Ingredients
2 full racks of beef ribs
2 cups Whistling Paddler
4 cups water
1 tbsp. smoked paprika
1 tbsp. fresh garlic, minced
1 tbsp. onion powder
4 bay leaves
2 tbsp. kosher salt
2 tbsp. brown sugar
1/4 cup Worcestershire sauce
1/2 tsp cracked black pepper
2 cups ketchup
Method
Cut full racks into segments of 2-3 bone pieces. Boil ribs with bay leaves and pinch of salt in 4 cups water on medium heat for 25-30 minutes. Remove from water and allow to drain well.
In mixing bowl, add remaining ingredients excluding beer. Lightly brush ribs and cook on grill 5-10 minutes for each side until grill marks show.
Transfer remaining sauce, beer, and rib segments to slow cooker and simmer for an additional 2-3 hours checking periodically and adding more liquid if needed. Ribs are done when the meat is falling off the bone.
Events
Brewer’s Dinner – Spring Feast
April 18
The snow is melting, the sun is shining, the birds are chirping and we are cooking up a Spring Feast to celebrate the warmer temperatures. Toss aside those Winter boots and come on in to the Lakeside Brew Pub for some great food and beer pairings from our very own scratch kitchen. Hurry though. There are limited seats and tickets will sell fast. Get yours here.
Unleashed
April 27 – Opening Ceremonies
We at WBC are stoked to be the primary sponsor for this fantastic event. The Lakeside Brew Pub will be hosting the opening ceremonies.
April 27 – May 9 – Competition
“We at SEND are beyond fired up to be bringing UNLEASHED back to where it started, and where it belongs, Eastern Canada. The whitewater in Ontario and Quebec in the springtime is unmatched in its size, abundance of rivers and world class features, and is always just pure joy for kayakers every spring. Which is why we are hosting the multi stage, invitation only kayak event known as ‘Unleashed’ on this legendary whitewater. Unleashed brings together the worlds best paddlers, puts them in some of the biggest whitewater in the world, and tests their overall skills as not only freestyle paddlers, but racers as well. When all four stages are done, the athlete with the best results from each stage takes the win. This year we already have the most stacked men’s category we have had, as well as the biggest roster of female kayakers an event of this magnitude has seen. On top of all this we are super stoked to be working with the Whitewater Brewing Co., and just can’t wait to get this thing started!”
Photo: Seth Ashworth
Questions from Friends
Melissa asked:
What do you do with all the waste from the brewing process?
We answered:
Hi Melissa,
What waste?
We are very happy with how we use what could be considered waste from the brewing process. To start, 100% of our barley and hops get recycled into feed for our community’s local cattle. Local farmers pick it up from the brewery and bring it back to their farms on a regular basis. The cold water we use to chill the wort gets recirculated into the hot liquor tank to be used as hot water in the next brew. And finally, we reuse our yeast as many times as possible and add it to the barley bin once its done. In turn, we buy the local barley fed beef to make our delicious burgers. Mmhmm.
We want to answer your questions about anything from the beer, the brewery, the boys or whatever else is on your mind. Due to the high volume of questions though, we won’t be able to post every one, but keep your eyes peeled in case yours makes it to the front page.
If your question does get picked you will become the proud owner of a swag bag full of WBC goodies. So ask away!
*Questions from Friends is for general questions in the areas listed above. For personal inquiries please use thebreweryboys@whitewaterbeer.ca