Amongst the complaints directed towards the LCBO by craft beer drinkers, one of the most common is the poor selection of beers from elsewhere in Canada. Until very recently, the only Canadian craft brews from outside of Ontario to have regular LCBO listings were a few brands from Big Rock in Alberta and McAuslan and Unibroue in Quebec, which is a very small drop in the very large bucket that is Canada's brewing scene.
At an organization as massive as the LCBO, it takes a while for change to happen, but as with the slow increase in the number of American craft beers available in stores, the agency seems to be making a bit more of an effort to get suds from other provinces onto the shelves. Whistler Export Lager from BC has been added to the general list, with Propeller ESB from Halifax due to follow soon. And as the title of this column indicates, two beers from New Brunswick's Pump House Brewery are now in stores, one as a summer seasonal, and the other as a new year-round listing.
Pump House was founded in 1999 as a brewpub in downtown Moncton, and expanded to a full-scale brewery on the outskirts of the city in 2002. They became known on the national scene in 2005 when they nabbed 9 medals and the Brewery of the Year award at the Canadian Brewing Awards, and gained even more attention last year when Greg Nash, one of the most adventurous brewers in Canada, signed on as head brewer at the brewpub after being let go from his post at Garrison Brewing in Halifax.
The first appearance of Pump House in Ontario came in 2006 when a limited quantity of their Blueberry Ale was brought in and quickly sold out. Three years later and it has returned in a similarly limited shipment (LCBO 14514 - $12.45/6x341 mL), and is now joined by Fire Chief's Red Ale which will remain available on a regular basis (LCBO 120378 - $12.95/6x341 mL). Both are here via the efforts of Dionysus Wines & Spirits, an import agency that has branched out into beer for the first time with the Pump House brands.
I must confess that I avoided the Blueberry Ale in 2006 due to my displeasure with a sample I'd had at a bar in Halifax the summer before. Retasting it now, I suspect that either the beer has improved or the bar didn't clean their lines especially well, as it's actually a very nice summer refresher. Pouring a bright golden colour with a rocky white head, the beer quickly reveals an aroma of fresh blueberries with supporting notes of biscuity malt, bringing to mind a tasty blueberry pie. The flavour is a similarly well-balanced combination of natural tasting blueberry and light malt, with a mildly hopped finish. Unlike many fruit beers, it tastes like a beer with fruit flavour rather than a fruit drink with a faint hint of beer, which could be good or bad depending on personal preference. For me, it's good, as I like my beer - even fruit beer - to taste like beer, not a sickly sweet cooler or kiddie drink.
There are, of course, some drinkers who dislike fruit beer in any form, so I'll direct those folks towards Fire Chief's Red Ale. Despite the lack of actual fruit, this ruby-amber beer does have a slight fruity character, along with some strong caramel notes, and a hint of nuttiness as well. It's definitely a malt-forward ale, with hops playing a supporting role, but it's a big enough part to balance out the finish and keep the sweetness in check. Red and amber ales can be fairly unexciting and pedestrian, especially when they come from large breweries (i.e. Rickard's Red, Keith's Amber, Mick's Red), but Fire Chief's Red has a unique and pleasant flavour that sets it a bit above those boring brews.
