Traditional German Kölsch service is a must-try for all beer enthusiasts. Join us in our cozy Manchester taproom on the last Friday of every month.
Read More
We'll be taking a few breaks to relax and recharge ahead of the new year, but there are still plenty of opportunities to squeeze in one of our 17 beers on tap, or stock up for NYE celebrations!
Read MoreSince we announced our membership in the Alberta Living Wage Network, we’ve received many questions about the process and concept. In the interest of maintaining transparency and encouraging others to consider exploring similar options, we want to continue the conversation.
Read MoreWe’re excited to announce that we have been recognized as a Living Wage Certified company by the Living Wage Network of Alberta. We are the first brewery in the province to receive this recognition.
There are many opportunities to enjoy and work within craft beer, so it's important to continue to ensure that when someone chooses to support us - either by joining the team or by purchasing our beer - they can feel good about that choice.
Every Establishment brew is undoubtedly a labour of love, but any brewer will tell you that it is also a combination of a lot of science, patience, and learning - and this is especially true for our mixed-culture wild beers.
Read MoreFrom plan to pour, we kept our Czech-style brews true to form and adhered to traditional measures and methods wherever possible. We’re lucky enough to have two Czech-style side-pull taps in our taproom, intentionally designed to dispense tight, dense bubbles, allowing us to control the carbonation of the served beer.
Read MoreWe take a lot of care to make sure our barrel-aged wild beers are completely fermented and stable before packaging so that additional fermentation doesn't happen in the bottle, beyond the carbonation that forms during conditioning. Here are some tips for storing and serving our barrel-aged wild beers.
Read MoreBrewing experimental new beers have always been a part of our journey, and this one's no exception. Now, check it for yourself, before you start to step with a home-brew version of this summer palate-pleaser. Just don’t forget your wallet.
This recipe is kickin’ it old school, with a complex sour-sweet-smoky cocktail twist. Tart like a Gose, this Lichtenhainer brings a fire all its own in the form of smoke. It’s a wild combination of pineapple and oak smoke that’s reminiscent of grilled tropical fruit. Think of it as a funky flavour quest for your taste buds.
Enough chit-chit-chatter, you gotta brew it, you got-got ta brew it.
Read MoreTwo words: Mulled Jam Rock. We know you love it cold, but have you tried it hot?
Yes, hot beer may seem totally strange and completely suspect, but if you're a mulled wine fan we can confirm that Jam Rock makes a delightful substitute. The blackberry and vanilla complement traditional mulling spices very well. Put it in a mug and enjoy it outside by the fire, you won't be disappointed.
We love to make all kinds of barrel-aged wild beers, and some of the more special releases are heavily fruited with whole, unpasteurized fruit. There is nothing quite like a wild beer made with whole ripe fruit. Whenever possible we partner with local Alberta farms and also British Columbia producers. Sometimes, we use high-quality fruit purees because of seasonality restraints, but we never use flavourings in any of our beer.
Working with whole fruit is notoriously labour intensive - it's perishable, and the season for ripe whole fruit is incredibly tight. You really have to drop everything and deal with the fruit as soon as it's ready. When whole ripe fruit shows up at our doorstep, we're not the boss, the fruit is the boss!
Read MoreWe’ve always envisioned our taproom as a place to come and drink the best mixed fermentation beers, so we recently launched our Cellar Menu in the taproom, featuring a rotating roster of past, cellared wild beer releases.
Wild beer takes time and develops at its own pace. At any given time we have dozens of barrels full of beer slowly maturing in the taproom and it can take anywhere from 3 months to 3 years for a barrel to mature. And as they do, we will constantly be releasing new creations.
Since we opened, we have released close to 20 different mixed culture wild beers and, little did you know, we secretly tucked some of each of them aside to cellar them. The new Cellar Menu brings back different cellar beers, as we check to see which ones are changing and taste even better after ageing in the bottles.
Read MoreWe can never predict exactly what will come of our mixed culture wild beers as they age over time, but we can predict with great certainty that they will change. Fruit flavours and aromas evolve, dissipate, and transform. The rustic or funky character of the beer will often increase with age, the bitterness can become lower, and the carbonation may increase slightly, and all of this depends on how you store the beer.
Read MoreForce carbonation is pretty much the status quo in the brewing industry; a speedy way to package beer, saving tank space and time. There are few breweries around the world these days that carbonate/condition in the final package. At The Establishment, we bottle condition all of our barrel-aged beers because there are some interesting benefits to naturally carbonated/conditioned beer.
Read MoreSensory testing is pretty much just a fancy term for sitting down with your buddies and drinking the sweet sweet nectar from each of our barrels ageing wild beers. It’s tough work, but we do it #forscience of course. Time is a big ingredient in the creation of these funky sour beers, and tasting each barrel as it progresses is a huge part of the long journey from grain to glass.
Read MoreWhat’s with all those barrels in our taproom? Well to be honest, they’re all just for show. Just kidding! Our barrels don’t only look cool, they also make some mean beer. They’re traditional ageing vessels and are especially good for developing sour beer.
Read More