Cask culture in Vancouver, BC
Brewsville-Vancouver, British Columbia
Maybe its because the queen’s on the money, maybe its because many of the pioneering BC brewers were English, whatever the reason, British Columbians have a great enthusiasm for cask-conditioned beer. Spinnakers, in Victoria hosted its second cask-conditioned beer festival in a year, and Vancouver abounds with cask nights.
St. Augustines on Commercial Drive advertises Cask Night
These weekly events draw a crowd of CAMRA (Campaign For Real Ale) members, and beer enthusiasts. Casks are generally placed on the bar, and served by gravity until empty. DIX Brewing, on Beatty Street, and Yaletown Brewing on Hamilton Street in the heart of Vancouver’s trendy Yaletown neighborhood, are both part of the Mark Jame Group, and offer weekly cask tappings on Thursday nights. The casks range from experimental beers from the host breweries, to casks from brewers throughout the province. The Whip Restaurant and Gallery, located on 4th Street, just off Main holds a cask night every Sunday with different brewers from BC and beyond. (Brooklyn Brewing’s Garrett Oliver, and Elysian’s Dick Cantwell have both hosted tappings of their casks at the Whip in recent years).
St. Augustine’s on Commercial Drive, just north of Broadway, a new sportsbar-cum-multitap takes up the cask torch on Mondays. March 22nd its cask of DIX Grand Cru had been drained by 9pm. The pub’s tap selection is increasing to 50, so the selection on offer was limited to 16 for the change over. One downside to St. Augustine’s is their use of 14 ounce “cheater pints,” which when charging $7.50 for a pint of Deschutes Mirror Pond, is a little ridiculous.
So why such great cask-culture? Part of the excitement about the casks stems from their fleeting nature. Many brewers in BC add herbs and spices directly to the cask. DIX hosts two annual Caskival events, one in summer, and another in December, at which the spices often shine through. Brian MacIsaac, of Crannog Ales in Sorrento, once made a cask of “Droncrem” milk stout, by adding whole milk to a cask of stout for the Okanagan Fest-of-Ales. (the result was rather cloudy, as the milk and beer did not mix so well, but the flavor was enjoyable). Storm Brewing once made a basil IPA, in which fresh basil was added directly to the cask.
Not all the cask beer in Vancouver is served gravity feed, the Alibi Room on Alexander Street offers three rotating casks served on hand-pump at all times. Yaletown serves its ales on handpump in the restaurant, and many other brewpubs boast a handpump or two. The Raven in Deep Cove on the North Shore offers several cask selections. Stay tuned to Brewsville.com for info on upcoming cask events.
This just in from the suburbs- Amberjack’s in Surrey also hosts occasional cask nights, and Taylor’s Crossing Brewery in North Vancouver has a monthly cask night on the first Friday.
