Faithful readers will recall that your intrepid liquor reporter is always ready to appreciate a local craft beer, whether it be from right here in Alberta, or far and wide across our fair country.
One particular brand that your humble narrator recalls with fondness is the Muskoka Mad Tom IPA, from the Muskoka Brewing Company in Ontario.
Unfortunately, Muskoka Brewing exited the western Canadian market in November 2015, as a consequence of silly interprovincial barriers on beer trade, which makes it harder for small Canadian brewers to export to the province next door than to a country on the other side of the world.
While their fine brews were but a dim and fading memory for your forlorn liquor reporter, the opportunity for a trip to Toronto presented itself recently, making the prospect of sipping another Muskoka ale a reality.
While your globetrotting liquor reporter normally tries to the avoid the center of the universe, this visit to Toronto was unavoidable, making the opportunity for rekindling my romance with those eastern brews possible, if only for a few days.
For those not familiar with the brand, Muskoka Brewing hails from the small town of Bracebridge, about two hours due north of Toronto, near a beautiful waterfall on the Muskoka River.
With a population under 20 000, you might imagine that the majority of the brewery output is consumed outside of the town they call home.
While we are no longer blessed with their fine wares here in Alberta, our loss is the gain for the 14 million people that call Ontario home.
Lest you think this is a fledgling young upstart of a brewery, merely jumping on the craft beer bandwagon like some millennial gadfly, think again, for Muskoka Brewing recently celebrated their 21st birthday, making them older than some of their customers!
Yes, gentle reader, Muskoka Brewing threw open their doors way back in 1996, when the Macarena was burning up dance floors around the world, and Alanis Morrissette was ironically dooming an entire generation to not understand what irony was.
It all started with an avid home brewer, who decided to go pro when leaving a job as an aerospace engineer in the Canadian Armed Forces, which proves that although you don’t have to be rocket scientist to brew good beer, it certainly doesn’t hurt.
The Muskoka Cream Ale was their flagship brew back in 1996, and is still a crowd-pleasing favourite. Made in a style typical of an old-world English pub, the Cream Ale is an easy drinker, with floral hop notes on the nose, and a full malty flavour on the tongue.
The hopheads in the audience may already be familiar with the Muskoka Mad Tom IPA, made with Pacific Northwest hops for a vibrant citrusy aroma and plenty of pine resin bitterness on the tongue, nicely balanced with a light malt body. If that does not sound appealing to you, rest assured, the IPA fans are watering at the mouth just thinking about having one right now.
Only available during the summer months, the Summerweiss Wheat Ale is only subtly hopped, as is typical for the German Hefeweizen style. Unfiltered and hazy, the unique yeast strain imparts spicy notes, with hints of lemon and cloves. Perfect for pounding on a sunny patio while the world goes by.
Your humble narrator’s all-time favourite is the Muskoka Harvest Ale, made each year to mark the end of the growing season, while mother nature covers the flowing fields of barley grains with a blanket of frost, until the cycle begins anew in springtime.
With a rich and malty backbone, the Muskoka Harvest Ale is reminiscent of freshly cut crops, and is balanced with a sturdy hop bitterness that grabs your palate for a rough and wild ride.
While the fine wares of Muskoka Brewing are enticing, making a trip east to the center of the universe will be a daunting prospect for all but the most dedicated beer tourists, including your globetrotting liquor reporter, who has generally staked out all the breweries within driving distance of the airport before the wheels even touch the ground.
Until the fine folks at Muskoka Brewing are once again able to export to our fair province of Alberta, keep them in mind for your next trip east, and drown your sorrows in one of our local Albertan craft brews.
