Microbreweries are popping up in all over the world with this recent craft beer movement, and British Columbia is no exception! Some great micro brews call British Columbia home. No matter where you travel within B.C., you are bound to find a microbrewery close by as there are quite a few these days. Here are the best microbreweries in British Columbia for you to spend some time enjoying a good pint.
Green Leaf Brewery Company, Lonsdale Quay, North Vancouver
Green Leaf has taken Vancouver by storm with their Lonsdale Pale Ale that is hoppy but not overly bitter, and quite refreshing to enjoy year round. At Green Leaf, you can take a brewery tour where they are happy to show you the ins and outs of how craft beer gets created. They also are happy to fill up your growler, o you can take some beer home. Green Leaf knows that freshness is the key to a great tasting beer and drinking it straight from the growler is the best way to do this.
Spinnakers Gastro Brew Pub, Downtown Victoria
For over 30 years, Spinnakers has been a leader in the craft beer industry and they are all about pairing great beer with fantastic farm-to-table food! If you are a chocolate fan you have to try the Chocoholic Milk Chocolate Stout which is Heaven in a bottle. A unique thing about Spinnakers is that you can stay on the grounds and truly experience life at a brewhouse and is great for a mini-vacation to Victoria.
Driftwood Brewing Company, Victoria
If you are into Sour Beers, then you have to check out Driftwood’s Bird of Prey Flanders Red. This brewery is known for pushing the limit on new taste profiles and often come out with beers that have people talking about them for days. While you can’t tour the brewery, you can have your growler filled with your favorite beer. Driftwood is distributed throughout Canada so if you can’t make it to Victoria, you can still have a taste of an awesome B.C. brewery in your own backyard.
Granville Island Brewery, Vancouver
In 1984, Granville Island Brewery became Canada’s first microbrewery and introduced beer drinkers to this new concept called craft beer. They have both year round favorites like Robson St Hefeweizen and seasonals like False Creek Raspberry Ale. Their brewmaster loves to come up with very small batches called Small Batch: Book Notebook Series and if you are lucky to catch it, don’t leave the brewery tour without their Chocolate Imperial Stout tucked safely under your arm.
Howe Sound Brewing Company, Squamish
Howe Sound Brewery has been around for years and has a great reputation as helping with the craft beer movement in Canada.  One of their recent beers, the Woolly Bugger Barley Wine has been receiving a lot of attention as remarkable barley wine and has an impressive 10.5 ABV. If barley wine isn’t your thing, you can’t go wrong with their Devil’s Elbow IPA or Cloud Burst Lemongrass White IPA. Howe Sound also has a beautiful Inn and welcomes guests to come and check out the brewery and stay awhile.
Which micro breweries would you add to this list?
Now if we ever get to B.C. this is where I would lose my husband
We have been at a couple of these and enjoyed the visit, next time we visit BC we will see more.
They are popping up everywhere. I do not know if this is good or bad. I guess bad for some of those that don’t know when to stop. I wish I could visit Vancouver. I have seen some beautiful pics from there