Last week I was in Hamilton for a few days, where I lived for a year while doing my Masters degree 15 years or so ago (God, I am old!). On this trip I was doing family stuff, so there wasn’t much time for beer, but I did find an opportunity to hit a few of the new breweries that are popping up in that town.

You see, when I lived in Hamilton, there wasn’t a whole lot going on in terms of beer. The only local brewery was discount brewer Lakeport, who had an industrial plant on the north end (they were eventually bought out by ABInbev and the plant shuttered).

There were a couple of decent beer places, however. Chester’s Beers of the World (which closed a couple years back) offered overpriced bottles of imports and rare offerings but the beer list was impressive. It is where I procured my much-cherished bottle of 1993 Thomas Hardy’s Ale (I sweet-talked the server into not opening it).

Then there was/is Augusta’s Winking Judge, which continues to be one of my favourite pubs in Canada. A converted old house on a downtown side street, I quickly grew to love its cozy, friendly atmosphere and it zealous commitment to Ontario and regional craft beer. I have written about it before on this site (here). I made a pilgrimage on this trip and wasn’t disappointed. It hasn’t changed an iota, and I love it.

But for beer, that was about it.

What a difference 15 years makes!

Hamilton now sports seven breweries and a couple of contract brewers. I couldn’t hit them all, but did find my way to four in the days I was there.

The flagship brewery is Collective Arts Brewing. They opened in 2013 and were originally a small, local brewery committed to merging beer and art, sponsoring concerts and creating unique labelling created by local artists. The beer was good from the beginning but I mostly paid attention to them because of their devotion to partnering and supporting artists, including eschewing permanent branding design.

In 2014 Collective Arts took a gigantic leap by purchasing the former Lakeport Brewery. I don’t have the specific capacity of the brewery, but let’s say it is closer to Labatt Edmonton than Alley Kat.

That requires a significant shift in business model.

I hear some local Hamilton people are now down on Collective Arts, mostly due to their size, but I think that is unfair. The beer is still good. The night I went there were a range of tap-room only sours and other creative offerings on tap. And their commitment to local artists remains steadfast. I was glad I spent a couple hours there.

My second offering was the polar opposite. Local residents are raving these days about Fairweather Brewing, opened in 2017 in the upscale Westdale neighbourhood. I heard from multiple sources that it was their favourite new place to drink beer. I was excited to try it out.

The location is a bit disappointing – on the outer edge of a light industrial area. But the patio was lovely and I was a big fan of its dog-friendly policy. They had eight beer available the night I was there – a mix of sours, various PAs and IPAs and a adjunct-infused dark ales.

My overall impression was that the beer was decent but uneven. I quite appreciated the Altura Pale Ale and the Fairy Floss sour IPA (with raspberry, blackberry and vanilla). Others were decent and one, the Natural Mystic, just made me grumpy for how out of style it was (ostensibly a White IPA, a style I get grumpy about).

My third brewery was something completely different. Out in Dundas, a suburb west of Hamilton is Shawn & Ed Brewing Company (usually shortened to SHED Brewing). The two former homebrewers opened the brewery in 2016 in a fabulous historic building that housed a curling rink, indoor skating rink and bus barn at various points in its history.

I can summarize the beer very quickly. It is amazingly clean and well brewed and completely aimed at being open and accessible. Three of their beer are lagers of various shades and the fourth is a barrel aged amber ale. None are particularly noteworthy in and of themselves but all were clean, interesting and quite enjoyable to drink. I have no complaints and the building simply added to my enjoyment of the space.

My final spot was the brewpub Merit Brewing in downtown Hamilton (on the quickly and surprisingly revitalizing James Street). A hip, modern spot in a newly trendy area, Merit offers up a decidedly urban experience. A short food menu heavy on handmade sausages and a beer list (on the day I was there) of 10 beer. It was a list of classic urban brewery styles – Hazy IPAs, sours, fruit added to unusual styles, farmhouse ales, and then a pale lager just to mess with your brain.

There was big flavour here. Lots of things to entice my palate. The beer was well made but by the end of my tasters, my palate was getting a bit tired. To be honest I saved the Wrong Tree Extra Lager to the end just to give my mouth a refreshing brewak.

Highlights included Young Rival IPA, Chanon, and Real Real Sour Saison. Lots of creativity going on here.

I come away from my short Hamilton foray impressed by how quickly the beer scene has grown in the city. I measure this in three ways. First, just the number of breweries that now exist there surprised me given how much of a desert it was at the time I lived there.

Second, I am impressed at the range of approaches I experienced in the four breweries I saw. I drank accessible lagers, creative sours, boundary-pushing creations, classic styles and fruit monsters. This is the state of the craft beer world these days and Hamilton seems to have quickly immersed itself in that world.

Third, I noted how locals have quickly drawn their battle lines regarding which local breweries are worthy of support. This is not a surprising development, as I have seen it almost everywhere a beer scene breaks out. I personally refuse to buy into such divisions around local breweries – in Hamilton’s case I see Collective Arts as just as local as the new guys. But I understand that locals may see things differently, and I get that.

I was pleasantly surprised at how much my former town has developed a vibrant beer scene. Hamilton is very working class, which could have slowed down its beer development (not unlike Edmonton), but it hasn’t. There is a lively scene happening in Hammer Town. And I love it!