On March 4th and 18th from 12:00 to 4:00 pm, award-winning Canadian Home Brewers Ed Koren and Louis DeBourbon will be teaching you how to brew your very own batch on your kitchen stove.

The 4-hour long lessons sessions cost $20 each ($40 for both) and include pizza + beer.  On March 4th Ed and Louis will lead you through brewing day using a malt-extract kit, and March 18th will focus on bottling, kegging and of course, tasting.

Spaces are limited and available on a first-come, first-serve basis. Email TracyP@blackoakbeer.com to reserve your spot today!

On Sunday, March 25th from 2 – 8 pm, an ALL FEMALE-brewed line up of one-offs will be featured at Bar Volo. The event has a $20 cover charge which, along with raffle proceeds and the cost of beer, will be donated to the Canadian Breast Cancer Foundation.

Toronto’s 11 female brewers will be brewing on pilot systems at Amsterdam, Great Lakes, Granite, Bar Volo, Niagara Teaching College and Black Oak this February and March. The women are also joining forces for a collaboration Sour Ale at Bar Volo’s House Ales.

Two of the women – our own Tracy Phillippi and Burger Bar’s Tamara Wise – will be brewing a Black IPA with Paul Dickey of Cheshire Valley at our brewery in March! We’re also proud to donate a raffle prize to the fundraiser.

Join Toronto’s craft beer community for this great cause in March!

1) Those that eagerly await Valentine’s Day through the dark days of winter, and, 2) Those that are coaxed into romantic dates against their will.

No matter what type of person you are, we’ve got the Valentine’s Day Party for you!  Bring your sweetie (or beer drinkin’ buddies) to Black Oak on Saturday February 18th from 5 to 9 pm. There won’t be any expensive flowers or cheesy music, but there will be plenty of craft beer and local organic food.

We’re joining forces with the Chocosol team to create BEER-CHOCOLATE floats, followed by fresh Ontario corn tortillas stuffed with Double Chocolate Cherry Stout Mole – perfect to satisfy all sorts of cravings.  Wash down the goodness with one-off casks and special kegs, and a possible visit from craft-beer-cupid.

As always our parties cost $20.00 at the door – we’re accessible via the TTC or GO Bus and we’ll gladly call you a taxi at the end of the night.

Since our Winter Warmer Party was sooooo successful (250 people) we’re going to limit the number of attendees to 180 so please email TracyP@blackoakbeer.com to get your name on the guest list.

So bring your lover, your friends or fellow foodies to another great Black Oak party!

• Culinarium on February 4th
  Join us from 11 to 4 at Toronto’s all-Ontario grocery store for a special pairing of Double Chocolate Cherry Stout and Certified Local Sustainable cheese.  We’ll be along side our friends at Local Food Plus talking about the importance of supporting local producers, all while savouring a great pairing!
• Summerhill LCBO on February 11th
  We’re throwing a Craft Beer and BBQ Cocktail Party at Toronto’s classiest LCBO from 11:30 to 3:30.  Pair our Nut Brown and Pale Ale with organic BBQ brisket prepared by The Healthy Butcher.
• Queen’s Quay and Yonge LCBO on March 8th
  Here’s hopin’ that a taste of Nut Brown and Pale Ale will bring the spring weather from 4 to 8 pm on March 8th. Try and buy!
• Healthy Butcher on March 17th
  We’re rolling out the Nut Brown organic sausage for your tasting pleasure. Stop by the Healthy Butcher’s Eglinton location from 11 to 4 for this epic pairing.
• Larid and Eglinton LCBO on April 6th
  Stop by from 4 to 8  for a tasting and grab some Pale Ale for this Holiday weekend.
• King West and Spadina LCBO on April 7th
  We’ll be pouring samples of Nut Brown and Pale Ale from 4 to 8.

Visit our Events Calender for even more tastings, events and brewery parties. Let us know about your favourite neighborhood store and we’ll do our best to bring Black Oak tastings to you! Email TracyP@blackoakbeer.com with your ideas today. Cheers!

Here are three of our favourites….

• The Business News Network  featured our 10 Bitter Years as one of the three best Holiday Beers along side Cheshire Valley’s English Mild and Grand River Brewing’s Jubilation Ale. Check out this video featuring Stephen Beaumont and Bar Volo’s Ralph Morana.
• Although it’s been enjoyed by Ontarians since 1999, our Pale Ale has officially been “Beer Snob Approved”! Check out this review on the Canadian online beer review forum.
• We love to give tours of our brewery! Thanks to Bucky the Beaver Beer Reviews for writing about the tour and promoting artisanal craft brewers across Canada.

Try our flagship, seasonal and one-off beers for yourself at our Winter Warmer Party on January 28th from 5 to 9 pm at our brewery - $20.00 for all you can eat and drink. Delicious beef, chicken and vegan curry will be catered by our friends at The Burger Bar.

Look what Santa got us for Christmas…. We must have been really, really good

Coming to a great craft beer pub near you in 2012!

By Ken Woods

Twas da pint before Christmas, when all through the brew house
Not even a beer geek was stirring, not even their spouse.
The hoses were hung by the boiler with care,
All of our misplaced tools were scattered everywhere.

 The casks were nestled all snug on their pallet,
While visions of dry hopping, just needed a mallet.
With piles of accounting looming on my desk, and I in my green tea,
Had just settled in for an undisturbed paperwork jamboree.

 When out by the door there arose such a clatter,
I sprang from my desk to see what was the matter.
Away to the window I cursed a foul line,
Gesticulating and pointing at the closed sign.

 The moon on the breast of the new fallen snow,
Could not improve the appearance of what lay below.
When, what to my horrified eyes should appear,
But a battered old car, sounding a Bronx cheer.

 With a little old driver, so looking of a disheveled lynch mob,
I knew in a moment it must be a beer snob.
More rapid than bullets his questions they came,
And he shouted, statements peppered with profanities aflame!

 “Now Pale Ale!, now Nut Brown!, Oaktoberfest and Nutcracker!
On Summer Saison, On Transvestites Tipple!
Where’s the 10 Bitter Years, you slacker?
Now drink away, drink away and rate them all!”

 As spent grain that before the wild hurricane fly,
When met with a domestic beer, he raged to the sky.
So up the steps, he did waddle,
With a case full of empties, that beer snob did not dawdle.

 And then, in a twinkling, I heard by the door
The prancing and pawing of this little boor.
As with the door unlocked I did fumble,
Into the brewery the beer snob did stumble.

 He was dressed all in beer paraphernalia, from his hat to his coat,
And his clothes were all tarnished, as if half chewed by a goat.
A case of empties, he had flung under his arm,
And he looked like a beer expert, which caused me alarm.

 His eyes-how they squinted! His attitude so airy!
His cheeks were so pouty, his nose all dribbly!
His droll little mouth was drawn down in a frown,
And the beard of his chin shown he’d just eaten in China Town.

 The stump of a beer opener he held tight in his hand,
And by looking closely I could see it was not our brand.
He had a blank face and a big round belly,
That shook when he swore, like his liver was jelly! 

He was chubby and plump, a right cantankerous old git,
And I laughed when I saw him, just to spite this twit!
A squint of his eye and a shake of his head,
Soon gave me to know I had much to dread.

 He spoke a few words, What do ya got that’s new?
Nothing I said, avoiding his spew.
Cashing in his empties, he slumped to the door,
Off to seek new beers elsewhere some more.

 He waddled to his jalopy, and on the fourth try did it start,
And away he did drive, his smog would soon depart.
But I had to exclaim, ‘ere he drove out of sight,
“Happy Christmas to all, and to all a good pint!”

Our friends and avid Black Oak Beer Nuts – Steve and Reethi – graciously made ‘spent malt’ cookies for our holiday party on December 3rd. And, in case you want to get creative with your baking, Steve has provided us with his ooey gooey ‘spent malt’ recipe:

Nut Brown Spent Malt Cookie Recipe (adapted from Robin Hood Quick Oats package): 

And, while we all like to savour an imported Belgian beer, supporting your local craft brewer has numerous benefits, including:

1. Local breweries support local people - Every time we need to hire an electrician, mechanic or printer, we’re investing our money into our regional economy and keeping jobs in southern Ontario.
2. Drink with the seasons - Ontario craft brewers are continually creating unique brews to match Canada’s ever-changing climate.  You can visit your local brewery for seasonal selections (Black Oak Double Chocolate Cherry Stout available early February!)
3.  Our industry will only be as strong as YOU make it - If you want craft breweries in Ontario continuing to grow and flourish, we need your drinking expertise!

At Black Oak, we’re here to help your 2012 get off to the right start! Join us on Saturday January 28th from 5-9 pm for our Winter Warmer Party!  As always, it’s $20 for all you can eat and drink, and we’ll have special one-off kegs and casks for your drinking pleasure.  Delicious beef, chicken and vegan curry will be served by our friends at Burger Bar.

Black Oak Brewery is accessibly by TTC – click here for directions – but we’re more than happy to call you a taxi at the end of the night. Please enjoy responsibly.

Our monthly brewery parties are a great way to connect with other beer nuts, support your local brewery and make 2012 YOUR year of craft beer! Cheers…

The Healthy Butcher sells food as nature intended – fresh, local and with the minimal amounts of environmentally harmful inputs.  And, as a craft brewery that produces fresh, local and environmentally responsible beer, we’re delighted to lend our expertise for the ultimate collaboration. 

How do you get your hands on this melt-on-your-palate sausage? Stop by the Healthy Butcher for the first batch of sausage on Thursday December 8th. After that, Black Oak Nut Brown Sausage will be available fresh for their Christmas pick-up days on the 22, 23 and 24 of December. 

We’ll be celebrating the sausage on Saturday December 10th from 12 to 5 pm by pouring samples of Nut Brown for holiday shoppers at the Healthy Butcher’s Eglinton location – stop by!

So grab your Nut Brown Sausage and you’ll be the most popular person at the holiday party!

Cheers