BC Beer

I tackled the British Columbia beer scene in a much different way than the Alberta scene.

Because I was in one place (Calgary) for an extended period of time prior to branching out from the city, I did my homework. I looked into the best breweries in town. I sourced impressions from my local friends.

But when it came to BC, where I ended up was more a product of where I was – convenience, circumstance, or prior recommendation.

This would be the process for much of my travels to come. If I was passing through a town, I’d do a quick google search on breweries in the area. I might only look at google reviews or glance at the meu, or maybe a town only had one brewery (if any). Some cities had gone through brewery booms – Calgary, Vancouver. Other places either weren’t interested or weren’t on the same level.

Some places are known for beer and do beer well (like Portland and Bend, Oregon, aka Beervana). Other places are known for other things. And while it seems like BC is known to have some of the best breweries in Canada (they seem to win a lot of beer awards) – where I went this time was more by chance.

Since being on the road full time and my extensive travels through BC, my passion for beer has deepened. I’m more of a beer nerd now than I was back then. I’ve joined beer reddit groups. I continue to sample as many new beers and beer styles as I can in my pursuit of getting to know them better.

That is to say, I wasn’t as intentional or informed as I might be now when visiting breweries in BC back then. Although that isn’t to say that I didn’t appreciate what I did experience or that I didn’t encounter some good finds. And while researching for my Alberta beer post I did find a resource that ranked beer in southwest BC, which I’ll be touching on in this post and referencing for future visits I’m sure!

But in the spirit of those carefree explorations – this will be a lighter post that documents what I had the pleasure of indulging in, with some resources and beer facts mixed in. And perhaps some retrospective wisdom/ research for good measure.

Side note: While in Alberta there was usually some BC beer available at bottle shops. Memory does not serve, but I would assume BC would also have Alberta beer available in cans. Which is nice, since I rarely see craft beer from western Canada where I am in Ontario.

Breweries

Fernie

What is better than driving through mountains, maybe tackling a hike, then stopping to enjoy the scenery and relax with good beer?

Fernie Brewing Co. is located in southeastern BC along Crowsnest Pass, near the Alberta border. Lucky for me, it was on my way from Waterton to Cranbrook.

This brewery is a definite stand out for me. Their What The Huck huckleberry ale is memorable and unique, and I enjoyed it so much that I would pick up packs of the cans while on the road.

It was October when I visited and they had their seasonals on tap – which I’m always a sucker for. So my flight consisted of their Project 9 Pilsner, What The Huck Huckleberry Ale, Ghostrider Pumpkin Brown Ale, and Java The Hut Coffee Milk Stout.

I wish I could remember more about my specific impressions of these beers at the time. All I’ve got is my general impression of “this is good stuff” and what a gorgeous day in the mountains it was, as well as how I can’t wait to go back.

But I think that’s the thing about sampling – it’s good to sample multiple times on different occasions to see if your impressions change, and maybe you and your palette has changed, and what stands the test of time!

Kelowna

On my way from Alberta, through the BC interior, I suppose beer was not front of mind. I was on a mission to get through the mountains before the winter conditions got too bad, and I was passing through small towns – not that there aren’t small town breweries to be enjoyed, but I think I just didn’t dig deep into options.

From Golden, to Revelstoke, Salmon Arm, Kamloops, and Vernon – I just sailed on through (though I do remember looking into breweries in Vernon but not being sold on any).

Once I got to Lake Country (just north of Kelowna), in the Okanagan Valley, and slowed down while staying with friends, I finally got out to a couple of local breweries.

It wasn’t my typical taste testing, as it was a night out with friends. I think when I’m chilling solo on the road I am more focused on my inner bubble – paying more attention to the beer, doing research on my phone, taking in my surroundings. My attention with company gets divided somewhat.

We drove in to Kelowna and went to Red Bird Brewing first. It was a snowy night. There was live music inside and the place was packed, but we managed to snag a booth outside next to a fire pit. They also gave us blankets to keep us warm. We could hear the band playing from outside, too. They had non-alcoholic beer for my friends (one was DD and the other no longer drinks). I’m not sure why I didn’t get a flight here – they have flights on their menu. Part of me wonders if they weren’t offering them outdoors because of the band playing. I don’t have a positive or negative memory of the beer, so take that as you will that it didn’t leave a lasting impression. But since that’s the case I would probably go back and give it another shot. It was a pretty big venue.

Next Up: Bad Tattoo Brewing Company (now closed). A smaller joint with an open kitchen layout. I’m a sucker for tattoo artistry. And based on the photo of my flight it looks like they had guest taps. Again – no memorable impression – but from the photo a french toast porter sounds pretty good.

I did a few wine tastings in the valley (more on those below), but mostly bee-lined it to Vancouver – through the rest of the interior, Abbotsford, a quick stop through Vancouver, then up the Sea To Sky Highway.

Squamish

Oh Squamish, how lovely you are.

I stopped in for a flight at Howe Sound Brewing, located in downtown Squamish – with its trendy shops that look up at the face of Stawamus Chief, at the tip of Howe Sound. The brewery is located in the Howe Sound Inn and has a spacious rustic feel, wood panels and large windows. It was a warm, lived in atmosphere that I enjoyed.

Once again, I am hazy (pun intended) on the impression of the beer specifically. But looking through my photos I can see a lot of variety on their tap menu that would have interested me – a nut brown, cherry porter, pumpkineater imperial ale, abbey dubbel, and hefeweizen. They also seem to have an extensive history in the BC craft beer world. Would go back!

Whistler

As I trekked further north on the Sea to Sky I made a stop at Whistler Brewing Co. It had been an extra cold day as I hiked the train wreck trail and explored the ski village and Olympic Park. So it was nice to warm by buns and relax with a flight. This was a smaller establishment and felt like a local hangout.

I have a decently good impression of this brewery. I took a case of their honey lager with me (I like how breweries in the mountains have various honey lagers with bears on the cans – which are also tasty). And I remember the Chestnut Ale (though perhaps a bit sweet/ heavy on the flavour).

Tofino

Back down the Sea to Sky, a ferry from Horseshoe Bay to Nanaimo, and the drive through Port Alberni to the Pacific Rim later – and I got to Tofino Brewing Company.

Something I really love in a brewery is when they are infused with elements of their locale. You can tell that Tofino Brewing is part of a community, steeped in surfer ethos, and in touch with the environment. Take their Kelp Stout for example. Another standout to me was the Spruce Tree Ale.

It was packed when I arrived, and while there wasn’t an overwhelming number of beers that I wanted to try, there were just enough, and they were good – the Kelp Stout (didn’t taste like kelp), Spruce Tree Ale (lovely!), a coffee porter (very good), and the Tofino Lager (tasted like beer – in the good, classic way – a beer’s beer). You know I liked a place when I make a purchase from their merch/bottle shop, and I brought home a 4oz glass as a souvenir and a mix pack of tall boys.

Victoria

I didn’t really look into breweries to visit on my travels from Tofino to Victoria – not in Port Alberni, not in Nanaimo. Although I did stop in to a liquor store to try and get my hands on this Nanaimo Bar Porter by Vancouver Island Brewing while in Nanaimo (naturally). Sadly, they didn’t have it (blasphemy). Note: Vancouver Island Brewing, which used to be located in Vancouver, has since closed their taproom and brewery and only outsource their beer production. Also note: Muskoka Brewery, on the edge of Algonquin in Ontario, used to make a Nanaimo Bar Porter.

The brewery that I decided to test out in Victoria was Phillip’s Brewing & Malting Co. – “inspiration through fermentation”. I enjoyed it, and they played decent music.

They gave me a print out with the name of the beers I chose for my flight, including a detailed description of each beer – which I took a photo of – so I actually have a record of what I indulged in. I found their menu to be IPA/ pale ale and sour heavy, but they have a decently large menu of beers on tap, so I found some that satisfied and to my recollection were good. The atmosphere was fun and laid back.

Port Moody

A friend of mine recommended Port Moody so after I got back to the mainland I decided to pay it a visit. I was only passing through, and being on the road I tended to limit my breweries per day to one – since I was always my own designated driver. But having learned that Port Moody has its own Brewers Row / the Port Moody Ale Trail, I certainly would visit again.

I considered visiting Moody Ales, but it seemed loud and crowded at the time, so I opted for Fraser Fermentation – a little further off the beaten path, and ending up being a more chill vibe (other than me almost getting hit by a car on the walk there). They had a bunch of unique experimental brews on their menu, which I tend to appreciate.

My curiosity was particularly peaked with their Gin & Juice Hefeweizen. I was pleased to see they had a Pumpkin Spice Ale. And they just seemed to have a lot of styles that I usually enjoy: a farmhouse ale, brown ale, Belgian dubbel, dark lager, oatmeal stout, some sort of champagne beer, and even a mead! Along with a cerveza and rosehip hibiscus wheat.

I’ve learned that beer can look amazing on paper and end up disappointing you – you really never know until you taste it. But if memory serves I do believe this spot earned a favourable impression.

Next time I go to Port Moody I’ll be heading to Moody Ales and the other breweries on Brewers Row.

Vancouver

Granville Island Brewing earned its place as one of my favourites. The location is stunning and fun, they had exciting seasonals, it was a lovely rustic setting, and the beer was good. I went with the Lions Winter Ale, Sunshine Coast Hefeweizen, Hexenbier Marzen, and Winter Ale Chocolate Orange. Like – a chocolate orange beer? Come on! I wish I could describe in more detail the taste of the beer, but I didn’t make any notes. I took home a tasting glass as a souvenir. And I look forward to going back.

Following a day of exploring downtown Vancouver, I ended my day at Steamworks Brew Pub, on the edge of Gastown, across from the supposedly haunted Waterfront Train Station. My flight included a Kolsch, Pilsner, Lager, Red Ale, and Imperial Breakfast Stout (pretty standard). It was busy in there and there were dimmed lights to create a vibe. I do like my taproom experiences to be a bit more chill, and I don’t think I have the most favourable memory of the beer itself. It’s in a central location, overlooking the Vancouver Harbour, and it has more of a restaurant with beer feel. A quick look at their website confirms that their brewery taproom is in Burnaby, while this location is a steam-powered brew pub, which apparently is known for its 10 Tap Taster paddle.

Cans Along The Way

From the pictured beer above, Fernie’s What The Huck and Granville’s Lions Winter Ale are my top picks, followed by Whistler’s Honey Lager.

Bad Tattoo’s Cerveza Negra was a medium-dark Mexican-inspired lager, which was interesting to try (the can suggested adding a twist of lime).

I don’t remember the taste or impression of the Wolf Brewing (Nanaimo) Black & Tan, but it’s described as a “traditional British blend of dark and light”, featuring both their Golden Honey Ale and Dark Malt Porter. After doing some digging, I found that a “black and tan” is made by adding a pale ale (or lager) to a glass first, followed by slowly pouring a dark beer (stout or porter) over an inverted spoon, resulting in two separate layers of beer. But the name Black and Tan has historically offensive roots in Ireland – which is why Half and Half is the preferred name for the Irish and one may want to think about what they call this drink depending on what company you’re in.

I also don’t remember the taste or impression of the Dageraad Brewing Burnabarian Belgian-Style Table Beer – but according to their site this is a highly awarded beer. I also tend to love Belgian beer, so I’m inclined to say this was a good one. Dageraad Brewing is located in Burnaby, describes themselves as an artisan brewery, and specializes in Belgian beer culture.

Mead

Yeah I know this is a beer blog, but I’m talking wine in this one too, so what’s another addition?

I have never in my life encountered mead as many times as I did in BC. And what a treat. Essentially, mead is fermented honey and water. But there can be added ingredients, such as fruit, spices, grains, hops.

I encountered mead at a farmer’s market in Cranbrook. I found mead at Planet Bee in Vernon. And there was mead on the menu at Fraser’s Fermentation in Port Moody.

I have come across mead in Ontario. And I think it’s becoming more popular. I love to see it. I love anything bees contribute to.

Fun fact: the term Honeymoon comes from the Norse tradition of consuming mead for one full moon cycle following marriage.

Wine

You simply cannot talk about taste testing beverages when you’re in one of the best wine countries in the world without talking about wine tasting.

While I do prefer beer to wine, I do enjoy the occasional wine. And as someone who has come to enjoy sampling beer and paying attention to the flavours and ingredients (and brewing processes) – wine tastings can feel quite similar. Except you usually have a sommelier or the like guiding you through each sample, and it feels more fancy. If drink of choice informs personality, I, like beer, am definitely more laid back. Dank even. Though jury’s out on my approachability.

I visited my first winery in BC near Kamloops – Monte Creek in the Thompson Valley region. It was beautiful there. I picked up their blueberry wine. This was also around the time I’d picked up wine gummies as a treat.

Next, while staying with my friend in Lake Country, she brought me on a little tour of three local wineries. This included Gray Monk (classy), Arrowleaf (small, chill, simple, funny server), and Ex Nihilo (nice, accommodating, resident dog). I absolutely still nerded out. I think it’s fun to learn about these things and get a feel for what you like – as well as learn about the land and the people in the place where the wine comes from.

Since I passed through Kelowna and the surrounding wine country quite quickly, I did not take the time to explore more of what is on offer. But in my research I’ve made note of a few more wineries that seem revered. These include Quail’s Gate winery, Mission Hill winery (Canada’s winery of the year on many occasions), The Hatch winery (looks like a truly unique and creative experience), and Frind winery (located on a beach!).

Also, south of Kelowna, approaching Penticton, is Naramata Bench, a scenic area with many acclaimed wineries.

In my short time in Osoyoos I chose to visit Nk’Mip Cellars Winery. Nk’Mip is the first indigenous owned winery in North America, located in the hottest and driest area of Canada. And it was so so lovely! My sommelier was kind, informative, and generous. He gave me an extra sample – and it was so good and so up my alley that I had to take a bottle with me! I thought I wouldn’t like a dry wine, but it was super refreshing, and would be lovely chilled on a hot day. It was the 2021 Mer’r’iym White Meritage, considered a white Bordeaux. My host gave me a lot of wine facts, which I appreciated. I don’t think my palette is super distinguished (yet), but I enjoyed learning and sampling.

I’d like to visit Moon Curser Vineyards next time I’m in Osoyoos.

The Okanagan is one of the best places for wine in Canada, so it would be a disservice to pass through and not indulge in something the area is known for (in my opinion).

BC (alongside Ontario) is of course one of the best wine producers in Canada, with nine official wine regions to explore.

Resources

I discovered the BC Ale Trail, an appropriate companion, response, mirror, to Alberta’s Ale Trail. If you need a place to start, or just want to know what’s available and the areas that have a concentration of breweries to explore – this is a good guide. They tout 220+ breweries over 22 ale trails – that’s a lot! And it’s organized by location so you can search your destination. I kind of wish they just listed the breweries in each ale trail – instead they have things divided up into separate lists, including various other activities available in an area.

If you’re looking for the best beer, judged by professionals – you can always consult the Canadian Brewing Awards results, along with the BC Beer Awards. For example, Camp Beer Co. in Langley won the 2025 Brewery of the Year in the BC Beer Awards – so I’d definitely look them up (and I did – I’ll say it again, you never know if you’ll like it unless you taste it, though my first impression is that their menu is too IPA/Pale/Sour heavy for me). But perusing these award lists is a place to start!

Then of course you can crowd source impressions from Reddit.

And finally – while combing through the Calgary Brew Review website that I mentioned in my Alberta Beer post (sadly the site has since expired) – I found mention of a resource for BC, namely Justin McElroy’s Southwest BC ranking, which includes 114 breweries in what I would essentially call the greater Vancouver area (a little past it, doesn’t include the interior, does include Abbotsford and Victoria). The rankings are divided into tiers: mediocre (part 1, 114-100, +intro), adequate (part 2, 99-69), average (part 3, 68-51), good (part 4, 50-31), great (part 5, 30-11), and Top 10 (the winner? Brassneck).

The above southwest BC breweries ranking is great for scouting new places to check out. But it’s also interesting to see how my impressions stack up against theirs. Of course there is subjectivity involved, and my experience level in beer tasting may not yet be at their calibre (working on it!). Dageraad was in their top 10, which was nice to see, along with 33 Acres (specifically 33B/EXP – the experimental location – 33A was ranked as adequate), Strange Fellows, and Yellow Dog. In the great section was Phillips, and Persephone – which I’ve not tried but sounds intriguing. In the good tier was Howe Sound and Moody Ales. In the average tier was Steamworks (would agree) and Fraser Mills/ Fraser Fermentation – which made me realize that I may value unique and experimental beers more than the average person, and this could sway my perception of a place. Also, I had valued the quiet here when I visited, while those doing the rankings were taking various categories for scoring under consideration.

As I peruse their lower rankings, I become a little nervous that I had liked what they consider to be bad beer… In the adequate tier is Spinnaker’s, overlooking the water in Victoria, which is said to have inconsistent quality, but rich history (Canada’s first brewpub) – for which I would still consider going. Also in the adequate list is Whistler Brewing (sad!) and Vancouver Island Brewing. Interesting that the beer one may be familiar with based on wide can distribution may also be the brewery that is ranked lower on the list.

Which brings us to the final, worst, mediocre tier. This section featured Yaletown – which I passed by while exploring Vancouver. But my heart hurt to see that it also listed Granville Island. Did I fall for a tourist trap? I genuinely enjoyed my experience there. But as the ranking expounds – they may be one of BC’s oldest breweries, but they are owned by a subsidiary of Molson. I suppose I can take solace (read: comfort my ego) in the fact that I partook in a mainstay and slice of history – as Granville Island Brewing was Canada’s first microbrewery, opening in 1984. Plus, shouldn’t one experience it all, in order to gain perspective? I think I would like to visit the breweries with history, even if they don’t rank quite as high as newer craft breweries.

For The Future

For my Alberta beer post I really dug in to the research and looked at what breweries had good reputations and which put out the styles of beer I favour. But it’s extremely time-consuming to pour into that rabbit hole when there are hundreds of breweries around. So I’m noting here the breweries that I’ve already made note of, or that stood out in the research I’ve done (maybe taking a closer look at the southwest BC ranking’s top 10). And in the future, when passing through areas, I’ll look at my options then, consulting the above resources as I need them, or maybe even wandering into new places by happy accident – sometimes it’s nice to go in blind.

So here’s a list so far of BC breweries I’d like to visit in the future:

Jackknife Brewing (punk/metal?!) in Kelowna (they have a dark lithuanian farmhouse lager – I like a good farmhouse, and my maternal ancestry is from Lithuania, so you know I need to try this beer).
Port Moody’s Brewers Row: *Twin Sails and Yellow Dog.
*Dageraad Brewing in Burnaby for the renowned Belgian style beer and culture.
33 Acres’ experimental location – 33 Brewing Experiment, Vancouver.
Persephone Brewing (it looks like you would have to take a ferry from Horseshoe Bay to get here) – maybe for the setting.
Spinnaker’s in Victoria – maybe for the history and view.
Strange Fellows in Vancouver.
*Brassneck in Vancouver – best brewery?

And I’ll definitely be exploring the Top 10 and “Great” sections of the southwest BC rankings for more places to try.

Fin

I don’t have another beer themed song, but this seems a fitting one for the draw to the mountains and rivers of the west coast:

Till next time,

Kat

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BC Beer

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