Faithful readers may recall me waxing poetic about Chestermere’s own Township 24 Brewing, located at 100 Rainbow Road, right beside the dental office.
Township 24 Brewing opened for business on a miserably cold and snowy day in December 2017, but I was the first in line at the door, waiting to drink deeply from the freshest and most local beer ever to grace the shores of Chestermere Lake.
Just 17 months later, Township 24 has become a favourite destination, with lycra-clad yoga fans popping into the taproom for a midday kombucha after a class at the nearby yoga studio, to music fans gathering for the regular open mic nights, and beer lovers popping in at all hours, either for a quick takeaway growler fill or six-pack, or to sit and while the hours away in the taproom with good friends, good beer, and maybe even good vittles from a food truck parked outside.
Every time I am sitting by the bar in the taproom, contemplating my next pint from the shiny brass teats, I think back to my early years in Chestermere, back when the population was only a few hundred brave souls, many of whom overwintered in warmer climes, when our community was still known as the Summer Village of Chestermere Lake.
Those were bleak years for beer drinkers in Chestermere, when the only options were Labatt Blue or Bud Light at the Chestermere Landing, or similar macrobrews at the golf course clubhouse.
Fortunately for the beer fans of Chestermere, those desolate years of our town being a beerless desert are behind us, with Township 24 serving up a multitude of crafty wares, using locally grown Alberta barley and fresh Rocky Mountain water.
The first brew that Township 24 served up to the eager public was the Range 28 Blonde Ale, which is still a crowd favourite today. A malt-forward spin on the classical Blonde Ale style makes this a highly sessionable beer with a complex backbone nicely balanced with a moderate hop bitterness.
With summer threatening to arrive any day now, my prediction is that the Stolen Canoe Pale Ale will be flying off the shelves as more boats appear on the lake. A crisp and clean pale ale with a white fluffy head leaving thick lacing in my pint glass, I found notes of citrus on the tongue followed by hints of pine resin from the assertive hop finish.
Recovering macrobrew drinkers will find the Dominion Kölsch to be the perfect gateway brew into craftier tipples. The style comes from the German city of Cologne, and is a light Pilsener beer that is warm-fermented like an ale, but then cold-conditioned like a lager, for a crisp and refreshing taste.
Guinness fans will not be disappointed with the Last Cabin Stout, the best Dry Irish Stout this side of Dublin! So thick and creamy it drinks like a meal!
My favourite has always been the Meridian Black Lager, made in the difficult-to-pronounce Schwarzbier style, and usually just called a Black Lager for the benefit of non-German speakers.
While Schwarzbier is a fairly uncommon beer style in Canada, I have been a fan since a vacation in Germany over a decade ago, so I am delighted to have access to a fresh and local version.
Schwarzbier is a dark beer for those who claim to not like dark beers, as the lager yeasts and cold conditioning make it a clean-tasting beer with plenty of dark malt backbone, but relatively low residual sweetness and only low to moderate hop bitterness.
The Meridian Black Lager also took home a bronze medal at the Canadian International Beer Awards last month, an auspicious event that I am fortunate enough to serve on the judging panel, blind-tasting the brews that make our province a great place to drink. The medal winners at these awards typically experience great increases in demand, so get the taproom soon for your very own pint or tallboy can.
My favourite way to enjoy Township 24 is directly from the source at the taproom on Rainbow Road, but you can also find their wares at many fine establishments in Chestermere, including the Westcreek Pub, Pour, Browns, Van Son, BPs, Dockside, and many more. Support your local industry by picking up a six-pack or a growler today!
