Follow beer writer, Troy Burtch, as he explores the wonderful world of craft beer and the pubs that serve it. Great Canadian Beer is a place to come to catch up on beer news, read tasting notes, check out event listings, and for pub previews and reviews.

PLANNING AN EVENT? GOT A NEWS TIP? INTERESTED IN ADVERTISING? SEND A MESSAGE TO troy (at)greatcanadianbeerblog(dot)com

Tuesday, May 29, 2012

Upper Canada Brewing Co. - Paddle

Breweriana - Paddle

Item: Upper Canada Brewing Co. Paddle

Date: 1996

How obtained: Donated to collection by former Upper Canada employee 

Details: Full sized paddle. One side reads "The Upper Canada Brewing Company" with the Upper Canada logo prominently displayed. On the opposite side it reads "Better Beer" with the logo again. 

Interesting notes: Upper Canada Brewing Co. was founded by Frank Heaps (father to Cam Heaps who is one of the three founders of Steam Whistle) and opened for business in Toronto in 1985. They were located on Atlantic Ave. and operated there until 1998 when they were purchased by Sleeman Breweries Ltd. and production moved to the Sleeman brewery in Guelph. Many of today's craft brewers can say that Upper Canada was where they got their start in the biz; whether working on the bottling line, doing deliveries, kegging, brewing, etc. 


The paddle was given to employees as a gift in 1996. This particular paddle is a terrific condition. 



2012 Ontario Brewing Awards - Winners


The winners of the 2012 Ontario Brewing Awards (OBAs) were announced on May 17th at the Beer Academy (Six Pints) in Toronto. It was the 9th annual edition of the OBAs and the largest to date with over 165 beers submitted by over 30 breweries.

North American Light Lager
Gold: Cool Beer Brewing – Stonewall Light
Silver: Labatt Breweries of Canada – Rolling Rock Extra Pale
People’s Choice: Labatt Breweries of Canada – Rolling Rock Extra Pale

North American Lager
Gold: Hogsback Brewing – Hogsback Vintage Lager
Silver: Labatt Breweries of Canada – Labatt Blue
People’s Choice: Hogsback Brewing – Hogsback Vintage Lager

European Style Lager
Gold: King Brewery – King Pilsner
Silver: Kichesippi Beer Co. – Kichesippi Natural Blonde
People’s Choice: Kichesippi Beer Co. – Kichesippi Natural Blonde

Amber Lager
Gold: Cool Beer Brewing Company – Millennium Buzz
Silver: Great Lakes Brewery – Red Leaf Smooth Red Lager
People’s Choice: Nickel Brook Brewery – Nickel Brook Märzenbier Bavarian Style Red

Dark Lager
Gold: Cameron’s Brewing – Cameron’s Dark 266
Silver: King Brewery – King Dark Lager
People’s Choice: Mill Street Brewery – Mill Street Rauchbier

Bock
Gold: Amsterdam Brewery – Amsterdam Spring Bock
Silver: Cameron’s Brewing – Cameron’s Deviator Doppelbock
People’s Choice: Amsterdam Brewery – Amsterdam Spring Bock

Honey/Maple Beer
Gold: F&M Brewery – Stone Hammer Maple Red Ale
Silver: Railway City Brewing Company – Railway City Honey Elixir
People’s Choice: F&M Brewery – Stone Hammer Maple Red Ale

German Style Wheat Beer
Gold: Denison’s Brewery – Denison’s Hefeweizen
Silver: Magnotta Brewery – True North Wonder Weisse
People’s Choice: Denison’s Brewery – Denison’s Hefeweizen

Belgian Style Wheat Beer
Gold: Amsterdam Brewery – Amsterdam Orange Weisse
Silver: Mill Street Brewery – Mill Street Belgian Wit
People’s Choice: Amsterdam Brewery – Amsterdam Orange Weisse

Cream Ale
Gold: Muskoka Brewery – Muskoka Cream Ale
Silver: Grand River Brewing – 1913 Traditional
People’s Choice: Muskoka Brewery – Muskoka Cream Ale

British Pale Ale
Gold: Black Oak Brewery – Black Oak Pale Ale
Silver: Grand River Brewing – Plowman’s Ale
People’s Choice: Grand River Brewing – Plowman’s Ale

North American Pale Ale
Gold: Nickel Brook Brewery – Naughty Neighbour Pale Ale
Silver: Great Lakes Brewery – Crazy Canuck Pale Ale
People’s Choice: Black Creek Historic Brewery – Black Creek Pale Ale

British India Pale Ale
Gold: Grand River Brewing – Curmudgeon IPA
Silver: Mill Street Brewery – Mill Street IPA
People’s Choice: Mill Street Brewery – Mill Street IPA

North American India Pale Ale
Gold: Cameron’s Brewing – Cameron’s Rye Pale Ale
Silver: Muskoka Brewery – Mad Tom IPA
People’s Choice: Cameron’s Brewing – Cameron’s Rye Pale Ale

Amber Ale
Gold: Amsterdam Brewery – Big Wheel Deluxe Amber
Silver: Clocktower Brew Pub – Clocktower Red
People’s Choice: Amsterdam Brewery – Big Wheel Deluxe Amber

Dark Ale
Gold: Muskoka Brewery – Muskoka Dark Ale
Silver: Black Oak Brewery – Nut Brown Ale
People’s Choice: Black Oak Brewery – Nut Brown Ale

Porter
Gold: Mill Street Brewery – Coffee Porter
Silver: Black Oak Brewery – Nutcracker Porter
People’s Choice: Mill Street Brewery – Coffee Porter

Stout
Gold: F & M Brewery – Stone Hammer Oatmeal Coffee Stout
Silver: Railway City Brewing Company – Black Coal Stout
People’s Choice: F & M Brewery – Stone Hammer Oatmeal Coffee Stout

Imperial Stout
Gold: Wellington Brewery – Wellington Imperial Russian Stout
Silver: Nickel Brook Brewery – Bolshevik Bastard Imperial Stout
People’s Choice: Wellington Brewery – Wellington Imperial Russian Stout

Fruit Beer
Gold: Amsterdam Brewery – Amsterdam Framboise
Silver: Clocktower Brew Pub – Clocktower Raspberry Wheat
People’s Choice: Amsterdam Brewery – Amsterdam Framboise

Flavoured Beer
Gold: Grand River Brewing – Highballer Pumpkin Ale
Silver: Sawdust City Brewing – Skinny Dipping Stout
People’s Choice: Cameron’s Brewing – Cameron’s American Whiskey Barrel

Strong Beer
Gold: Niagara College Teaching Brewery – Rudolph’s Red Nose Ale
Silver: Mill Street Brewery – Mill Street Ambre de la Chaudière
People’s Choice: Niagara College Teaching Brewery – Rudolph’s Red Nose Ale

Beer of the Year (highest overall score)
Mill Street Brewery – Mill Street Coffee Porter

Newcomer of the Year (new brewery with highest score)
Hogsback Brewing

Wednesday, May 23, 2012

Toronto Beer Week 2012!!


From the folks who put on Toronto Beer Week:

Toronto Beer Week is back, and aims to be bigger and better. We’ve stretched the conventional concept of a week (don’t try this at home) and made it a full nine days for the second year in a row! When it’s a beer week, you want all the days you can get.

Mark your calendars now: Toronto Beer Week 2012 will take place across the city from September 14th to 22nd.

A TBW event may be a five-course meal paired with different beers, it may be a selection of special “get it here or its gone brews”, or it might be a pub crawl across some of our city’s finest watering holes. The diversity of events at Toronto Beer Week reflects the diversity of our craft beer culture, and our aim is to provide great and memorable experiences.

Sign up to our Facebook and Twitter pages and stay informed about events taking place between now and September. We aim to help you train for our celebration of all things beer. How do you get to Toronto Beer Week? Practice, practice, practice. Are you drinking a local craft brew? Found a new watering hole that might be ideal for Toronto Beer Week? Enjoying a fun beer event? Let us know on Twitter, using #TBW2012.

About Toronto Beer Week:
Toronto Beer Week is a collectively owned organization involving some of Toronto’s most seasoned and passionate beer industry members. Our team includes publicans, brewers, media, marketers, and authors, all bringing their valuable experience and vision to create a significant event that reflects the best interests of all participants. TBW is a celebration of beer: the people who make it, the people who offer it in fine pubs and restaurants, and the people who drink it.
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