Caps, Corks & Forks - Beer vs Wine @ Niagara College

The students at Niagara College's Teaching Brewery (Brewmaster and Brewery Management Operations program) are getting set to face off against the students in the Teaching Winery program in a Caps, Corks and Forks Beer vs. Wine dinner at the college's Benchmark Restaurant at the Niagara-on-the-Lake campus.

On February 2nd, students in both programs will be offering beer and wine pairings to go along with an elegant six-course menu (prepared by the college's culinary students), explaining why they chose the pairings and why they believe it works together. All the beer and wine will have been prepared by the students themselves.

The individuals in attendance will then vote on which beverage (beer or wine) went best with the food on their plate, which will determine the ultimate winner at the conclusion of the six courses.

Tickets are available by contacting Benchmark at 905.641.2252 ext. 4619. Seating is limited.

If you are looking for local accommodations, contact the White Oaks Resort which is right across the road from the college.

Teaching Brewery Grand Opening Celebrations - Niagara College

On Wednesday April 13th, the Niagara College Teaching Brewery, the first of its kind in Canada, celebrated their official Grand Opening with a cask tapping, Brewmasters Lunch and Dinner, seminars on growing hops and brewery sustainability, tastings and more. It was a great day for the Canadian brewing industry and it was a privilege to attend the days festivities.

I've written about the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program on here numerous times since I first ventured down to the campus, so I won't bore you again with the details about the program, but let me say that it has been a success from the very beginning, and the grand opening showcased the best of the first year program.

After arriving to the beautiful campus shortly after 11am, a short tasting in the brewery's retail store (separate building) was in order. A number of us went through a Kristal Wit (yes, Wit), Rauchbier, Gluten Free beer, Pilsner and a Porter. With the exception of the Gluten Free beer, all were quite well done and the nodding of the heads from other beer writers in the room showed they also received them nicely.

There were some handshakes and some "how ya doing's" before heading into the dining area for the Brewmasters Lunch. Three courses matched with three different beers and without going into detail, they were all exceptional, especially the Double Chocolate Cranberry Stout by Muskoka Cottage Brewery and the Sticky Toffee Pudding. Read Jordan St. John's blog, St. John's Wort, for his thoughts on the food pairings for both lunch and dinner.

After lunch there were a couple of seminars to sit through before the cask tapping to mark the official opening. The first seminar was presented by Mike Driscoll from Harvest Hop located in Guelph, ON. Driscoll presented some interesting information about commercial hop farms in Ontario and provided some industry numbers and some historical Canadian hop growing statistics. *Interesting fact - over 20 commercial hop growers are operating in Ontario today*

Steve Beauchense, co-founder of Beau's All Natural Brewing Co. in Vankleek Hill was the next presenter, firing up a powerpoint presentation on Brewery Sustainability while handing out some samples  of various Beau's product. Steve showed examples of why Beau's is a leader in the Ontario brewing industry in everything from social media to packaging, charitable work, environmental efforts, employee relations and more.

When the samples were finished and the presentation complete it was back outside for the cask tapping. Niagara College President, Dr. Dan Patterson, was getting ready to tap the shiny and decaled firkin, much to the amusement of his lovely wife, who was both excited and nervous for her husband's first cask tapping.

By 4:30pm a large crowd of brewers, media, politicians, and students had gathered under the party tent and watched a number of speeches, including one delivered by John Sleeman, who was quick to point out how exciting this program is for the brewing industry. Once the speeches were out of the way, onlookers watched as Dr. Patterson swung the wooden mallet, tapping the first official cask (Get Fuggled) to mark the grand opening.

Shortly after 6pm we were ushered into the dining room again for a five course Brewmasters Dinner that was simply amazing. The floor was shared between brewers and the chef (Michael Olson) who spoke about their creations respectively.

Here are some cool facts about the program:

• The student made beers, First Draft Campus Lager and First Draft Campus Ale, will start appearing in pubs near the college in the very near future. 

• Each student currently enrolled in the program has been successful in landing work in the brewing industry for the summer break. 

• Like last year, the admissions staff at the college have been assaulted with a barrage of student applications for the 24 student seats, over 200 applications in fact.

And here are two video's on the Grand Opening, one from the CBC that has been posted on the Ontario Craft Brewers YouTube channel and the latter from TAPS The Beer Magazine.

Niagara College - Teaching Brewery Grand Opening

NC Teaching Brewery

I can't believe it has almost been a year since I made my first trip to the Niagara-on-the-Lake Niagara College campus with a number of OCB members to get more information on the new Brewmaster program the college was pulling together. We spent the day hearing about the Teaching Brewery, the staff who'd be educating the first crop of students, the astoundingly high number of applicants and the college's plans moving forward.

I've been back to the college and the Teaching Brewery on a number of occasions for TAPS business and I've been lucky to have met and befriended a number of students, faculty and staff. So, it is with great pleasure that I post the following information, albeit last minute, about the college's Grand Opening Celebrations!
***********************************************************************

Tomorrow is going to be a great day for Niagara College (NC) as the Niagara-On-The-Lake campus is hosting their Grand Opening celebration for the Niagara College Teaching Brewery (Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management Program).

The celebrations will kick off at 12pm with a Brewmasters Lunch at the college's Benchmark Restaurant. Featuring three courses, with three matching beers, the lunch menu has been created by Chef Michael Olson (a new TAPS contributor). The cost of the lunch is $40.

From NC: We’ve planned a full slate of activities in the afternoon and evening that showcase Canada’s first and only teaching brewery, our first-ever class of Brewmaster/Brewery Operations Management students, and the unique approach of our Canadian Food and Wine Institute, which combines food, wine and beer education.

Following what I'm sure will be an excellent lunch there will be a Beer Technical Symposium, where grower Mike Driscoll will talk about the use of Ontario hops in craft beer. The symposium will run from 2pm to 4pm which will be followed up with a cask-tapping ceremony with NC President Dan Patterson, NC faculty and staff and beer industry representatives.

And they're not done yet... To cap off the day, NC will be hosting a five course Brewmasters Dinner that will be paired with five beers.

The dinner will kick off at 6:30pm and run until 9pm, with presentations throughout on food and beer pairings by brewmasters and chefs. The cost to attend the dinner is $75 and the menu, like the lunch menu, has been created by Chef Michael Olson.

To RSVP for the lunch and/or dinner, contact firstdraft@niagaracollege.ca - Space is limited -

Click here to look back on all the NC Brewmaster & Brewery Operations Management posts I have up on the blog

Wednesday, April 13th Niagara College Teaching Brewery Grand Opening!
Canada's First and Only Teaching Brewery
Beer Lunch - $40
Beer Dinner - $75
Menu created by Chef Olson

NC Brewmaster Program - Students 101: Jeff Vlasman

Back in December I started a small feature on the first batch of students enrolled in the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program at Niagara College. The first student profiled was Mark Murphy, who has been coordinating with his fellow classmates to bring readers of this blog more interviews (with students). 


I'd like to continue with the student introductions and allow them to provide updates on how the course is progressing.


So, without further ado, meet Jeff Vlasman.

Tell us how you came to be in the Brewmaster Program?
I’m the oldest student in the class, at 39, my friends tell me it’s my mid-life crisis kicking in. But like a few of my classmates, I was working in an established career and I was ready for a change. I’d spent the last fifteen years or so moving around western Canada and Ontario working in forestry. My last job was with the local conservation authority here in Niagara and I became aware that this program was in the works. I applied and when the offer of acceptance came in it was time for a tough decision. It was hard to justify leaving a solid job with a steady paycheque, but in the end the opportunity was just too good to pass up.

How did you come about your passion for brewing?
Having moved from place to place I was able to sample the many options for local brews throughout western Canada. The first time I visited a brewpub was when I lived in Vancouver in the late 90’s and I was hooked. I love the idea of having these beers that you can’t get anywhere else and are unique to the establishment.

Before I entered the Brewmaster Program though I had never brewed anything myself. I have always been curious about home brewing but not knowing anyone who was into the hobby I never took the plunge. That all changed this past fall when I purchased a Brew Magic system made by Sabco. It’s basically a complete professional mini brewery ready to go out of the box. It’s a great system and I’m having loads of fun with it. I get lots of offers from classmates to come over and brew, which a couple have. I’ve definitely caught the bug though because I am now constantly looking to add more equipment to my set up. The garage is filling up but I see it as an investment in my brewing education and who knows, it could serve as a pilot system for a microbrewery someday.

So how do you rate the Brewmaster program so far?
We are in the home stretch towards the end of the first year and I can say that I’ve absorbed a phenomenal amount of knowledge and it’s still just a scratch in the iceberg of what there is to know. The instructors all work very hard to help us succeeded and their combined knowledge is mind boggling. My classmates are enthusiastic and I’ve learned a lot from them too. Working in the teaching brewery has been an invaluable experience and I learn more every time I walk in the door there.

The best part about the teaching brewery is making mistakes in a controlled environment. It’s especially true in brewing that the best lessons are had when you screw up, and in that regard I’ve learned tons. You take some gentle good natured ribbing from your class mates, you all have a laugh, but you take away something you can’t learn from a book.

Where do you see yourself in 2013, one year after finishing the program?
With any luck I’ll be working at a microbrewery or a brewpub, looking forward to work every day and taking in the satisfaction of seeing others enjoy the fruits of my labour. There is not a single aspect of the brewing industry that does not interest me so I will keep my options open.

That having been said I haven’t lined up a summer job yet, but I am hoping that I’ll be able to secure something soon. Distance isn’t a barrier; I’m used to going where the jobs are. Niagara College is organizing a job fair in the near future so if any brewers are reading this and are interested I would urge them to contact the college and get involved. I can vouch for the work ethic and quality of my fellow students; it’s always a joy to work with them in the brewery.

Niagara College Decadence Event - 3 New Student Beers

The following post was prepared by Mark Murphy from the Niagara College Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management course.
*************************

This weekend the Niagara College Brewmaster program is taking part in the college's Decadence event - A celebration of chocolate and icewine (and beer!). Under the guidance of brewmaster Jon Downing, the students prepared three special beers, and some have offered their own tasting notes!

Black Forest Schwarzbier - 6.5% abv:
"Pours a rich black with mahogany hues and a wispy white head. The aroma is a lovely chocolate and tart cherry while the pilsner and munich malt (malz) still have the opportunity to shine through, giving it a true schwarz character. The taste of this beer is everything you'd find in a black forest cake without the heaviness. There is a great milk chocolate sweetness that catches the pocket of the tongue as the cherry and lactose sugars climb the sides of the tongue to the tip with a clean, yet sharp tartness. There is a lovely bitterness from the hops that sits nicely to balance out the sweetness of the beer. The lactose in this beer adds to a lovely silky mouthfeel that remains light yet covers the whole palate. This beer blends beautifully with a black forest cake or for those looking for something fat free, by itself!"
 - Andrew Bartle, Newf via Toronto

Icewine Wheat - 7% abv:
"Aromas are somewhat similar to a saison, in that it's dry, floral and reminiscent of a funky Belgian yeast. The icewine juice combined with the hallertau hops combine to give a very pleasant riesling like beer with heavy floral tastes and a slight drying bitterness. The beer is light bodied, has a medium carbonation and is a brilliant golden colour."
- Andrew Bullied, Calgary

Chocolate Bockbier - 6% abv:
"The chocobock features a nice sweet malt aroma with notes of alcohol warmth and chocolate. The
chocolate aroma becomes more pronounced as the beer warms. An initially sweet flavour gives way
to a pronounced drying cocoa presence with roasted notes and a nice lingering alcohol warmth. An
excellent accompaniment for any chocolate dessert."
- Austin Roach, Toronto

Two decadence events specifically highlight these beers:

Beer and Chocolate:
Join Brewmaster Jon Downing and sensory expert Jennifer Wilhelm to discover the many ways these two age old indulgences complement each other. Experience unique beers, decadent chocolate treats and take away a gift to help you enjoy your indulgences even more!
When: Saturday, February 19th 2:30 p.m. - 4 p.m.
Room: E110 at the Niagara on the Lake Campus, 135 Taylor Road
Cost: $20

Chocolate and Icewine Gala:
- National Student Pastry Competition
- Delectable Food Stations
- Icewine Tastings
- Special Brewmaster Tastings
- Interactive Chocolate and Icewine Displays
When: Saturday, February 19th 6:00 p.m.
Location: Canadian Food and Wine Institute (Niagara on the lake campus)
Cost: $75
(Must be 19 years or older.)

For full details on all of the weekends events and to order tickets, please visit http://www.niagaracollege.ca/decadence/schedule.htm

Hope you can make it out!

NC Brewmaster Program - Students 101: Chris Freeman

Back in December I started a small feature on the first ever students enrolled in the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program at Niagara College. The first student profiled was Mark Murphy, who also provided his thoughts on the first semester in a post last month.

With the assistance of Murphy, who will be coordinating this with his fellow students, I'd like to continue with the student introductions and allow them to provide updates on how the course is progressing. 

So, without further ado, meet Chris Freeman.


When did you learn about the brewing program at Niagara College?
I first read about it in the newspaper several years ago when it was still being developed. When I read the article, I immediately began to dream of what it might be like to run off and study brewing. It was akin to dreaming about what you would do if you won the lottery. I was pretty settled. I had already studied and completed a degree. I was in my early 30’s, had two kids, and a steady job as an office manager. My wife and I had also just purchased our first home in Toronto. I loved beer and had just started homebrewing; but to move and leave everything to begin again seemed like too much of a risk.

What happened between then and now?
My desire to homebrew began to rage out of control! I was fortunate to work with an avid homebrewer who was kind enough to teach me how to brew. Together we brewed a rich amber ale, the likes of which you would never find at the Beer Store or LCBO. It was then when I saw the possibilities in homebrewing. The next beer I made was on my own and I wanted go all out. I made a Christmas ale with everything in it but the kitchen sink: chocolate, vanilla, orange, cinnamon, star anise, honey and I can’t remember what else. Against the odds, it turned out to be a good beer and is definitely one of my most memorable. I also have a keen interest in cooking, so I was drawn to what spices and different non-traditional ingredients would add to a beer. I actually have to be quite disciplined about making a straight up English bitter or porter. For me, homebrewing has been filled with the joys of making great beer and the frustrations of having to dump batches because of bone-headed mistakes. No matter what, I always desired to know how I could change my process to make my beer better.

So what was the turning point? When did you decide to take the plunge?
When I discovered that the program at the college was a go and that applications were being accepted for 2010, I decided I had some serious thinking to do. I liked my workplace, but my passion did not lie in administration and bookkeeping. As well, one night, over a few homebrewed imperial stouts, my brother and I hatched a plan to start our own brewery. The only hiccup in the plan was that neither of us knew anything about the industry or much about brewing beer commercially. This was the moment of truth, were we really going to try and do this?

With the encouragement of my family and close friends, I decided to go for it. More importantly, my wife was on board and she is my most enthusiastic supporter! After going to night school to get the science prerequisite, I submitted my application and crossed my fingers.

How is it going now?
In September, I moved from Toronto to Niagara with my wife and now three children. I have just completed the first semester of the program and it is exactly what I was hoping for. The first semester was a general overview of the industry and the commercial brewing process. Now we are getting all the wonderful things you would never learn as a homebrewer: the biology and chemistry of brewing. The students are all great people who are enthusiastic about beer and incredibly supportive of each other. The teachers are dedicated to the success of students and are doing everything they can to share their knowledge and give us opportunities. And one of the best parts has been that as a full-time student, I have had a more time to homebrew!

NC Brewmaster Program - Semester One Thoughts

Part 2 of Mark Murphy's take on year one at Niagara College's Brewmaster & Brewery Operations Management Program

by Mark Murphy
In short, the program has been amazing. I think I’ve increased my beer knowledge 1,000% and have found myself consistently bringing up beer in conversation and introducing new styles to friends and family over the Christmas break.

Niagara College Teaching Brewery

From the school’s standpoint, the program has been a huge success. They received over 180 applications for just 24 spots. I was originally wait-listed but I think persistence paid off, as I called the admissions office weekly for a couple of months to check on my status. Part of me thinks they only let me in so that I would stop calling. Of the 24 students in the program, there are 4 from the US, 2 from the East Coast, 2 from Alberta, 6 from the Niagara region, 4 from the GTA and 6 more from other areas of Ontario. There are a handful of people who have actual industry experience and the majority are college or university educated (including engineering, chemistry, music, business and communications majors). I think our diversity bodes well for future job opportunities as most people will likely move back home after school, which means all 24 of us won’t be competing for the same jobs.

We had seven courses this semester, four of them relating to beer (Intro to Brewing, Sensory Evaluation, Basic Practical Brewing and Brewing Ingredients). Of our four instructors this semester, I would guess that they combine at least 70+ years of industry experience, which is pretty awesome. For the school’s brewmaster, Jon Downing, the teaching brewery represents the 107th brewery opening that he’s been a part of. Clearly, we’re learning from the best.

This semester, we’ve covered topics such as the malting process, barley physiology, brewing water, hops and have discussed brewing equipment from the hot liquor tank through to the fermentation tanks and packaging equipment. In our sensory class we tasted 13 different kinds of malt, smelled lots of hops, explored American, English, German and Belgian beer styles and have run through the entire Siebel off-flavour tasting kit (those were some bad weeks!). We’ve also had presentations from Hop Union, Canada Malting, General Filtration, Criveller Brew Tech (our equipment supplier), Eco Lab and Bill White (who will be teaching us next year). We’ve visited Taps Brew Pub, Niagara’s Best, Sleeman’s, Mill Street and Steamwhistle. As you can see, we’ve been pretty busy so far, and this is followed up next semester with 6 of our 7 courses relating to beer.

The program hasn’t been without its faults though, the major one being that we didn’t start brewing until the end of November. On the plus side we have the benefit of being the first students to use the system, and figuring out all the quirks as we go along. Our first releases “First Draft” lager (a crisp golden lager) and a Canadian Pale Ale are already on sale at the campus retail store.

I think things will start to get really interesting once we’re unleashed on the pilot system and start getting into our own recipe formulation. I know everyone is really looking forward to that.

Stay tuned for a chocolate beer in February to be released during the culinary program’s “Decadence” chocolate and ice wine festival. All in all I’m having the time of my life and can’t wait to find a job in the industry this summer.

Niagara College Brewmaster Students 101 - Mark Murphy

I last reported on the new Niagara College Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program back in May 2010 (well, actually earlier today) and since then a lot has happened. A 1,600 square foot brewery has been built, brewing has commenced, their first beer has been launched and a semester has passed. The school received 186 applications, and 24 students were selected to be part of the inaugural class. Throughout the next year of the program I'd like to introduce you to a few of the students and allow them to provide updates on how the course is progressing.


First up is Mark Murphy, who I first met when he volunteered to help steward the 2010 Canadian Brewing Awards.

Tell us a bit about your background. How did you find yourself enrolling in the Brewmaster program?
Well, like a lot of people I've meet, beer was not my first career path, but became a passion that could not be ignored. I graduated with a Bachelors of Accounting degree from Brock University in 2005, and went on to get my Chartered Accountant (CA) designation in 2007. Since 2005 I've worked as an auditor performing financial statement audits, tax returns and operational audits. I can say that I loved the challenge of obtaining my CA designation, but once that was done, I quickly learned that I'm not the type of person who will enjoy sitting at a desk for the next 40 years, doing work that I'm not passionate about. In addition to a love of great beer, I've always had an entrepreneurial mindset and also really enjoy rolling up my sleeves and getting dirty. I actually first heard about the program on this very blog, and immediately could not shake the idea from my head. Since I'm still (relatively) young and don't have kids I figured there would be no better time to make the switch.

Describe the moment when you first saw the craft beer light?
Throughout university I guess you could say I was "price conscious", so I bought pretty much anything that was on sale. It's funny to look back now, but when I first discovered the existence of Keith's red I thought it was a 1,000 times more interesting than the more bland lagers of the day. At the same time I was always open to a Guinness, so there was definitely some potential there. After graduation (when I had a bit more money) I would routinely load up on LCBO single cans and bottles. The scales definitely tipped when I first tried Innis & Gunn (original oak aged) and Fullers annual vintage release (bottle conditioned). At those moments, my mind was blown in terms of the flavour possibilities with beer. Since then I haven't looked back.

What's your favorite beer style?
I love this question! Since I'm in the brewmaster program I usually get asked what my favourite beer is by friends and family... How could I possibly choose just one? These days I'd definitely side with the big American IPA's.

Stay tuned for the next post as Mark updates us on how the first semester has progressed. For more information on the program you can visit www.niagaracollege.ca/brew and be sure to watch here (http://www.niagaracollege.ca/firstdraft/) for the launch of the college's first beers.

First Draft - Niagara College Brewmaster Program Launches First Beer

Friday December 10th was an historic day for Niagara College as they launched their first student brewed beer for the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program at the Niagara-On-The-Lake campus.

The first bottle of First Draft

First Draft, as the college is calling it, is a fairly standard pale ale and was bottled in a standard 341ml non-twist bottle and will be available for purchase at the college's retail store shortly (on campus). Proceeds of sales support student learning. You can follow along at the students' website (currently being updated) at: www.niagaracollege.ca/firstdraft.

Jon Downing with some of the students

Coming up later today on the blog, Niagara Students 101 with Mark Murphy. Mark will be sharing information with us in the coming weeks on the progress of the course, introducing us to other students and will be taking us into the teaching brewery to share some tasting notes...

Brewmaster & Brewery Operations Management Course Update

I'm sure many of you have heard about Niagara College and their efforts to bring the first two-year 'Teaching Brewery' to Canada (two page article in the Spring issue of TAPS: Canada's Beer Magazine by Bill White).  If you haven't, well, here's the deal.

Niagara College has a beautiful campus in Niagara-on-the-Lake just off the QEW.  The college has made quite the name for themselves with their one of a kind Winery & Viticulture Technician program, something they introduced to North America ten years ago.  That program, which has been extremely successful, led the brain-trust at the college to explore the possibility of developing a Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program that would span a two-year period.  That was three years ago, and as I learned on Thursday, during a visit with a small contingent of individuals representing the Ontario Craft Brewers (OCB), the college has all their ducks in a row to welcome the first batch of successful applicants.

As mentioned, I was blessed with the opportunity to visit the NOTL college with OCB members (the OCB are listed as partners in the college's course description, and it was noted how much the association has helped with assisting in the development of the program), and one member of the Provincial Ministry of Agriculture, to speak with the individuals in charge of the new program, and to get a tour of the college grounds.  The group of us were led into the college's state of the art Wine Tasting Lab where we received a hearty update on the progression of the program and to have any questions answered by the Dean (Jon Ogryzlo), Coordinator (Steve Gill), and Chair (Craig Youdale) of the Food & Wine Services Division.

Ogryzlo welcomed everyone to the campus before going straight into his presentation, which provided a brief overview of the academic guidelines and a look into course outline.   He mentioned that the two-year course, once in operation, will be the first of its kind in North America and it will provide the industry with highly skilled individuals upon graduation, something OCB members believe is key to enhancing the commercial brewing community for years to come.  Ogryzlo also provided some future ideas that the college has in mind for the Brewmaster program involving the talented individuals in the acclaimed Culinary Services division within the college.

Craig Youdale was next to present and he began by praising the work Niagara College has put into developing the new program since the idea became a reality.  "Jon (Ogryzlo) and Steve (Gill) have spent ten years building the tremendously successful wine program, so I believe this program will be exceptional, and successful, right from the start."

Youdale spoke about the program outline and offered some administrative numbers that backed up his belief in the program.  "We received 165 applications for the first intake of students.  Extremely, extremely positive program numbers for a new course," he said.  "College's often have to look for students when introducing a brand new program, the wine program did, so these numbers indicate that a program like this is needed."  Out of those 165 applications only 24 could be accepted, and as of Thursday, the program was already full as the successful applicants responded to their acceptance packages right away.  Youdale also mentioned that there were a number of international students accepted into the program along with a number of females.

The program outline was discussed at length and individual courses were touched on.  Things certainly sound great.  Students will be brewing right from the start and there will be a pilot system built within the new brewery for individual brewing assignments.  There are also courses on the history of brewing, sensory evaluation classes, packaging, sales and branding, and much, much more.  See the list below.

Gill was next to speak and his presentation centered on the brewery, which will be erected on the campus by August 1st.  It will be a 1600 square foot fully operational 5hl brewery with 10hl fermenters and will be able to accommodate two brews a day.  The pilot system, as mentioned above, will be a 60 litre system.  Gill mentioned that all the beer brewed will be sold in the on-site Wine store (which will be renamed Beer & Wine Store) and at the college bar, and all dollars generated will be put back into the program, essentially having the brewery pay for itself.

The college wants to become centre of brewing excellence in Canada and one day act as a research centre that could be utilized by breweries across the country.  To measure the success of the 'Teaching Brewery' Niagara College will form an Advisory Counsel of professionals from the brewing industry to review student feedback, talk to employers of graduates, and to assess the skills graduates leave the college with.  The college hopes to attract these professionals from all over Canada, having them meet twice a year.

The day ended with a spectacular lunch prepared by culinary students before we headed for a tour of the Winery and the wine retail store.  The drive home gave me time to think about what was said during the day and left me with this conclusion: Students who were lucky enough to get accepted are in for a solid program.  The college sold me on the program values and the curriculum and I have no doubt whatsoever that the Brewmaster & Brewery Operations Management course will be a success right from the first day.

*Pic #1: (top row left to right) Gary McMullen (Chair, OCB - Founder Muskoka Cottage Brewery), Gill, Ogryzlo, George Eagleson (F&M), John Hay (President, OCB), myself, and Mary (OCB).  (bottom row left to right) Rob Creighton (Grand River), Paul Dickey (Cheshire Valley), Representative from Ministry of Agriculture, Adrian Popowycz (Black Oak), Ron Keefe (Granite)


*Pic #2: Niagara College Brewery Sketch


*Pic #3: Craig Youdale addressing the group