Some treasure maps lead to precious jewels, but the Alberta Ale Trail leads to something far more valuable. Beer. This map shows the location of each brewery and suggests different routes for beer enthusiasts to follow.
“There are so many breweries down here that people don’t really know about until they get here…,” Max Rude, head brewer for Pass Beer Co. in Blairmore, told Global News.
The Alberta Small Brewers Association brought this map to life with help from Alberta Tourism and funding from the Federal Tourism Relief Fund.
“We’ve seen a drastic increase in beer tourism throughout the world. So we really just want to showcase the amazing grain-to-glass story that Alberta has,” commented Blair Berdusco, the Executive Director of the Alberta Small Brewers Association.
Brewers in southern Alberta are thrilled about the Alberta Ale Trail, including Rude. He believes the Ale Trail will positively impact small brewers in a big way.
The map features 150 breweries in southern, central, and northern Alberta, including Edmonton, Calgary, and the Rockies.
“We really just want to make it easy to discover and enjoy these breweries. We’re really excited to be inviting people to try this liquid gold under blue skies,” expressed Berdusco.
Last year, they launched the Highway 3 Regional Trail, and brewers, such as Danielle Radvak, co-owner of The Pass Beer Co., noticed a surge in beer tourism.
No two breweries are ever the same. Each has its own unique styles and beers, according to Ayleigh Henderson, co-owner of Stronghold Brewing Co. in Fort Macleod.
Even more impressive is that some breweries use ingredients found within 20 kilometres of their location to craft their brews.
At Pass Beer Co., they’re even doing a summer series of forager casks, gathering ingredients from the surrounding area to add unique flavours to their beer.
“What we’re trying to do is going out into the bush behind us and picking out spruce tips, fir needles, spruce needles. We just try to use what we can around here for fun casks,” said Rude.
With such dedication to local ingredients, Alberta brewers believe they can make the best beer in the world right here in our province.
The craft beer scene in Alberta is growing rapidly. According to the Brewers Association, the number of craft brew stops has doubled since 2018.
But this is just the beginning.
New branches of trails and an app will be released this summer, making it even easier for beer enthusiasts to explore and enjoy the fantastic breweries of Alberta.
