It is a rare sad news day here at Onbeer. I have received confirmation that Calmar’s Roughneck Brewing is closing its doors. Rumours have been swirling for months that flagging sales and owner Terry Cameron’s need to earn income were… Continue Reading →
The March issue of Alberta Venture magazine features an article from me about the proliferation of discount beer in Alberta. Most of you will remember the small kerfuffle last fall around revelations that Minhas Brewing was receiving Alberta’s “transitional” mark… Continue Reading →
Late on Friday, Molson announced that it was de-listing Carling Black Label Big Ten from Alberta. For those of you unfamiliar with this beer (and I expect that is most of you) this is a cheap, high alcohol (10.1%) beer… Continue Reading →
For a number of years now, Alberta liquor stores have had a a good selection of craft beer from B.C. (Howe Sound, Central City, Cannery, Nelson and, recently, Phillips) and Quebec (Dieu Du Ciel, Charlevoix, Trois Mousquetaires). Of course there… Continue Reading →
A year or so ago, I was feeling rather hopeful about the state of craft beer in western Canada’s pub chains (as evidenced by this post). I was particularly bullish on Hudson’s Canadian Tap House, who had just initiated “Beer… Continue Reading →
My column in the current issue of Planet S Magazine revisits a longstanding beef of mine – date codes. I have never understood why breweries feel the need to mask the production/best before date in a jumble of letters and… Continue Reading →
The current issue of Vue Weekly is running my review of Bruton Bianca (sorry, no link yet – you will have to go analog and pick up a paper copy). As I have mentioned earlier, it is a nice interpretation… Continue Reading →
This will come as no surprise to any of you, but it is a real pet peeve of mine to see ads that over-hype a beer, or, worse, come up with complete pretend concepts just to sell beer (microcarbonation, anyone?)…. Continue Reading →
For the past couple of months, my CBC columns have not been posted on their website. This is due mostly to RadioActive being a bit shorthanded. It is a bit of a shame, as the rest of my beer personality… Continue Reading →
In addition to ensuring I have a few special holiday beer (like a barley wine or a nice tripel) for sipping at pristine moments, in the lead up to Xmas I also try to pick up some general drinking beer… Continue Reading →