After a couple of years of good intentions and failed attempts, I finally was able to pay a visit to Norsemen Brewing recently. As I reported when it opened (see post here), Norsemen might be the unlikeliest of brewpubs in Alberta. Tucked at the back of the similarly named Norsemen Inn in what was/is their nightclub, you could almost miss the fact it has a small 6-hectolitre system hidden in the corner. Began as a venture by the hotel owner Sean Willms to energize his longstanding business, Norsemen has quietly been building a loyal client base. I sat down with Willms and brewmaster Ryan Stang for a chat.

I popped in on a quiet afternoon. The space was big and cavernous (the large dance floor in the middle gives it a much larger feel than it might actually be). It has a hybrid atmosphere – part quiet pub, part night club (which is basically the reality – on weekends it is a popular dance spot). Beer sales have been steadily increasing since they opened three years ago. Stang reports they are nearing capacity and will soon need to look at additional fermenters and conditioning tanks (currently they have two 6 hl fermenters, four 6hl and two 12 hl conditioning tanks). They brew approximately 2500 litres a month at the moment, double when they first started. Most of the beer is sold in the lounge in the main part of the hotel, with weekend spikes in the bar.

They currently have to regular beer in their line-up, Longship Lager and Erik the Red (a pale lager and amber lager, respectively), as well as a third constantly rotating beer. When I was there is was Epic Cherry Oatmeal Stout. Previous seasaonals have included Oktoberfest, IPA, West Coast Pale Ale, a summer citrus beer and brown ale. “The intention,” Stang says “is to play a bit more with the rotational. We don’t have to worry as much how quickly it sells so we can use it to offer flavours to Camrose”.

From the beginning the challenge for the brewery has been the traditional tastes of Camrose beer drinkers. This is the heart of pale lager country. Three years in, it appears Norsemen is quietly nudging beer palates in town. “We find lager drinkers are comfortable with our Longship Lager. We then encourage them to try the Red and then to take a stab at the rotational,” says Willms. They are pleased how their gentle, gradual approach is working. Stang says people who wouldn’t touch anything not light yellow in colour find themselves enjoying the stout.

The tiny Norsemen brewhouse

Norsemen also does growler off-sales, which they say has become an outlet for local craft beer fans. “There is a buzz whenever a new rotational comes out, and growler sales spike,” says Stang. “After a couple of weeks we start getting questions about what the next one will be and when it will be out”. They find both the lounge and the growler off-sales have a growing number of regulars, which they consider a good sign.

As for the beer, it is clean and well-brewed. It would be accurate to say they are designed to be “safe”, as the IBUs are kept very low and the flavour profiles modest. I liked the malt flavour in the lager, a crisp gentle graininess, and the red has a soft sweetness to it, although it might be served better if it was produced as an ale, which would draw out a bit of fruitiness to the body.

The stout had a lovely mocha coffee aroma and flavour, but I did not detect any sour cherries, which I am told were harvested from a tree a few blocks from the brewery. “I would have liked to add more cherries,” Stang acknowledges, “but that was all the tree gave us.”

As for the future, they are contemplating expanding to retail sales in the area. “We would love to have our beer served in the local curling clubs and hockey rinks” says Willm. They would like to make their beer known as “Camrose’s beer”. Although first is the capacity challenge. “We basically sell all the beer we can make” says Stang. One of their challenges is their direct tank to tap set up. Beer is served straight from the conditioning tanks, meaning a mostly empty tank can be a bottleneck for production. “It can be a scheduling challenge”, sighs Stang whose position is still part-time for the moment.

Norsemen may be small and trying to make a name in a challenging market, but clearly the are not lacking in determination and spunk. And, at least from my eyes, all seems to be going fairly well so far. One Camrose beer drinker at a time.