Cass & Troy's Outside IN Pub Crawl - Thanks For Joining Us

Happy east-enders

Last Thursday night, Cass Enright and I led two separate pub crawls through Toronto for the 2nd annual Ontario Craft Brewers Week.

The Outside IN Pub Crawl, as we coined it, had Enright leading a bunch of individuals in the west end of the city, stopping for pints at Bryden's, Whelan's Gate and Ciro's. I led a group through three east end pubs - Taps & Tales, The Only Cafe and Dora Keogh's.

Our two groups then met in the middle at Victory Cafe, where we all came together to drinks pints of Hawaiian Style Pale Ale by Spearhead Brewing Co. and various Mill Street offerings. We packed the upstairs section of the Victory and many of us stayed late into the night.

Muskoka Mad Tom IPAs at The Only Cafe

Many of the locations offered our groups discounts on pints and appetizers and provided us with exceptional service. Both Cass and myself would like to thank all the participating licensees for everything, and we encourage you all to visit them!

However, we'd both really like to thank all the people that attended both crawls. It's you guys and girls that make the crawls so much fun to organize!

If you missed this pub crawl, stay tuned for something we're planning for Toronto Beer Week. It will be one to remember!!

*unfortunately I didn't pull out my camera for pictures (just phone), so if anyone from the crawl has any to share, please post on my Facebook page (facebook.com/greatcanadianbeerblog)

Tomorrow's Pub Crawl Update

What are you doing tomorrow night for Ontario Craft Beer Week? If you haven't decided as of yet, join Cass Enright and myself on our 2nd annual Toronto Pub Crawl - "Outside In" (check into our last minute FB event page)

As mentioned on here the other day, Enright will be leading a group in the west end of the city, starting at 6pm at Bryden's (Bloor and Jane) before heading off to Whelan's Gate (Bloor and Keele) and Ciro's (Bloor and Lansdowne). 

I will be leading the east end leg of the pub crawl, stopping at Taps & Tales (Danforth and Greenwood), The Only Cafe (Danforth and Donlands) and Dora Keogh Irish Pub (Danforth and Broadview). 

Shortly after 9pm, both my group and Enright's group will meet in the middle at the Victory Cafe (Bloor and Bathurst) to come together to debate which end of the city is for beer drinkers. 

Some things to look out for:

Bryden's - Best of the West: The one-offs that Great Lakes Brewery have produced are moving fast, but I've been told that a keg of Etobichoker will be tapped on Thursday in time for the crawl. The Etobichoker is a Double Belgian IPA that was produced as a Great Lakes/Black Oak collaboration.

Taps and Tales - The east end pub will be offering pub crawl participants with $5 pints of King Vienna Lager and Flying Monkeys Hoptical Illusion. There will also be $5 appetizers just for the crawl.

The Only Cafe - Muskoka Cottage Brewery will be on site pouring pints of their Mad Tom IPA and Summer Weiss. There is also a bbq taking place and Muskoka will be donating a number of prizes for pub crawl participates. 

Dora Keogh Irish Pub - cask conditioned ale

Victory Cafe - There may be some surprises during our last stop! Also, the new Spearhead Brewing Co. will be at the Victory with their new Hawaiian Style Pale Ale.

Prizes - there will be some brewery t-shirts, OCB bottle openers and tasting glassware, Brewery Market glassware, TAPS The Beer Magazine subscriptions and a free pint or two....

Cass & Troy's 2nd Annual Toronto Pub Crawl

Cass & Troy's 2nd Annual Toronto Pub Crawl

Join Cass and Troy in their East vs. West showdown

3 East End Pubs – 3 West End Pubs – Two Groups Meet In The Middle For A Showdown

Cass and Troy's 2nd annual Pub Crawl

June 20, 2011 - (Toronto, ON) - Join Cass Enright and Troy Burtch on Thursday June 23rd for their 2nd annual Toronto Pub Crawl during Ontario Craft Beer Week 2.0 hosted by the Ontario Craft Brewers (OCB).

Enright, the founder of The Bar Towel, The Brewery Market and the Golden Tap Awards, and Burtch, Director of Sales and Marketing with TAPS The Beer Magazine, creator/publisher of the Great Canadian Beer Blog and co-founder of Toronto Beer Week (TBW), will be leading two groups of passionate craft beer drinkers on two fun and distinct pub crawls through the East and West ends of the city, before meeting head to head in the middle at Victory Café in Mirvish Village to determine which end of the city is better for craft beer drinkers.

Enright will lead the West end tour, stopping at Bryden’s, Whelan’s Gate Irish Pub and Ciro’s. Bryden’s will be featuring “Best of the West” beers from popular west end breweries like Great Lakes and Black Oak, where double IPAs and unique one-offs will be available.

Burtch will lead the East end tour, where crawlers will prop up the bar at Taps & Tales, The Only Café and Dora Keogh’s. Muskoka Cottage Brewery will be on site at The Only Café with their Mad Tom IPA and Summer Weiss and there will also be BBQ food available (separate from pub crawl). There will also be real ale pouring at Dora Keogh’s.

Every stop along each crawl will feature a Cheers! led by both men who will address the crowd with a story or two about their experience working and dealing in the Ontario craft beer industry. There will also be numerous prizes handed out along the way including: subscriptions to TAPS The Beer Magazine, bottle openers, t-shirts, OCB glassware, gift certificates and more.

WEST END CRAWL 
• Bryden’s – 6pm
o 2455 Bloor Street West
o TTC Station: Jane

• Whelan’s Gate – 7:15pm
o 1663 Bloor Street West
o TTC Station: Keele

• Ciro’s – 8:15pm
o 1316 Bloor Street West
o TTC Station: Lansdowne

EAST END CRAWL
• Taps n Tales – 6pm
o 1282 Danforth Avenue
o TTC Station: Greenwood

• The Only Café – 7pm
o 972 Danforth Ave
o TTC Station: Donlands

• Dora Keogh’s – 8pm
o 141 Danforth Avenue
o TTC Station: Broadview

FINAL DESTINATION
• Victory Café - 9ish..
o 581 Markham Street – TTC Station: Bathurst

Rules:
Must be 19 years of age or older
Must be willing to have fun
Must be open to trying new beers
Must wear your personal Cass and Troy’s pub crawl wristband…and love it!
NO ADMISSION - you only pay for what you order

Cool Stuff To Know:
Wear a 2010 Toronto Beer Week t-shirt and get a free high-five!
If you wear a beer shirt featuring an OCB member brewery, you get a double high-five!
If someone dances an entire song at any pub – free pint!
You should obtain a TTC Day Pass in advance – NO DRINKING & DRIVING

Cheers,

Cass Enright and Troy Burtch

Facebook Event Page

And It Was A Successful Pub Crawl

The first Cass' & Troy's Pub Crawl took place on Wednesday night as part of the week long Ontario Craft Brewers Craft Beer Week (OCB Week) and I couldn't be happier with the way the night went.

People starting trickling into our first stop, The Victory Cafe, right on time (6:30pm) and they were promptly given wristbands and ticket stubs for their chance to win prizes throughout the evening.  The Victory was awesome to work with, offering any individual taking part on the crawl a pint for only $5, of any product on tap!  We were situated in the side room of the Victory, which we quickly filled (quicker than I expected).  

It was a great mix of people.  There were some beer bloggers, brewery representatives, pub owners, Bar Towel members, readers of this blog and some people currently working on opening a brand new brewery here in Toronto.  Not everyone knew each other, but everyone chatted seamlessly with each other, sharing their own personal stories of the brewing/pub industry.  

Right before 7pm Enright and I addressed the crowd, thanking them for joining us and letting them in on what the night would include.  Enright let everyone know that he would be making two major announcements along the way and I drew a couple of tickets for two prizes before moving onto our next stop, Caplansky's Deli on College St.

Now, before I continue, I'll let you know why we picked the places on the crawl's list as many people were curious about how we chose the Victory, Caplansky's, Ronnie's Local 069, The Embassy Bar and The Cloak and Dagger.  When the two of us starting thinking about doing something fun like this our immediate thought was to stay in the downtown core near street cars and subway lines.  

There are great places that we have good relations with in the downtown area, but with the police presence for the G20, we figured having a large group of people walking around, or stumbling around, wouldn't go over to well with the men and women in blue (the police).   We started looking at other parts of the city with establishments serving good beer close to each other.  We strongly considered a Danforth crawl (and that could be the next one?), but we took a closer look at the Annex/Kensington area and decided to hit up some places that don't really get the 'beer recognition' that we feel they deserve. 

Now that you know that, on to Caplansky's Deli.  We got there just after 7:15pm and the staff had the entire back of the deli reserved for our group.  If you have never been to Caplansky's - GO now.  Smoked meat, craft beer, great atmosphere and a nice street side patio, all make for a good time.  Not many people know that Zane Caplansky (the founder) features a solid draught selection.  On tap for the crawl - Duggan's No.9 IPA, King Pilsner, Denison's Dunkel, and Mill Street Organic.  The majority of people on the crawl pointed to the Dunkel and those who ordered food thought the pairing was fabulous.  More prizes were handed out and Enright made his first announcement - the launch of the 2010 Golden Tap Awards.  

Down the road to Ronnie's Local 069 in the Kensington area.  Again, Ronnie's, like Caplansky's, doesn't really get the attention it deserves for their beer menu.  Too many people associate Ronnie's with hipsters and tend to stay away; however, everytime I've been there its been packed.  And it was packed on Wednesday.  The group headed straight to the back of the building to occupy Ronnie's private room and pints of Delirium Tremens, Great Lakes Devil's Pale Ale, Stratford Pilsner, and more were ordered.  We packed the inside of the place!  The only drawback we had at Ronnie's was the smell of cat urine seeping into our room from the back door.  

We had picked up some more pub crawl participants now, bumping our numbers up to 33.  Not bad for a first crawl with four days of planning.  We headed across the road to The Embassy Bar and flooded the place.  Again, more people joined us on the crawl and people were really starting to have a good time.  The Embassy has a terrific line-up of draught, including: St. Ambroise Oatmeal, Cream and Apricot beers, Black Oak Saison and more.  The Embassy is also nicely decorated, features a small front patio, has booth seating, leather chairs, and good music.  Definitely worth a visit, but be forewarned, the place is booming on weekend nights.

Enright made his second big announcement of the night at The Embassy with the news that his Import business, Bar Towel Imports, has signed Northhampton Brewing Co. out of Frederiction, NB.  Northhampton, which is better known as Picaroon's, will be represented by Enright here in Ontario and five brands have been chosen for a private order that will be made public shortly.  Imperial Pils, Man's Best Friend Porter, Timber Hog Stout, Yippee IPA, and Best Bitter.

The Cloak and Dagger was the last stop on the crawl and we got there just after 10:15pm and quickly filled the small pub.  There was live music and a fresh cask of Great Lakes Lackey's Caskey, which was simply beautiful.  Some more prizes were handed out, we thanked everyone for coming out and thanked those who stayed until the end.  Everyone was in good spirits and we received some good feedback from the participants.  

In total, 46 people donned the special wristbands we had made for the crawl and there were ten people who received prizes ranging from t-shirts and hats to issues of TAPS Beer Magazines and OCB glassware.  Once again, I would like to thank all those who came out and helped make the night a complete success!!

**Read a great review of the crawl by Jordan St. John on his new blog - St. John's Wort.**