Ottawa’s craft beer scene has been flourishing in the last few years, as more tap rooms are opening to the public and holding special events. Ottawa Craft Beer Week aims to highlight the creativity and diversity of Ottawa’s craft beer scene while fostering a sense of community and collaboration. Whether you’re a seasoned beer aficionado or just curious to explore, there’s something for everyone during Ottawa Craft Beer Week 2024.
Unlike a centralized festival, Ottawa Craft Beer Week encourages beer lovers to go right to the source, and experience the various taprooms and restaurants for themselves. Taking place from August 23-30, there is no fee to participate, and you can even win prizes by filling out your free passport with stamps as you work your way across the city from Rockland to Arnprior, Bells Corners to Centretown.
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The brainchild of Spark Beer owners John Sproull and Andrea Gorman, Craft Beer Week is a celebration of Ottawa’s vibrant culture of craft brewing. We sat down with John and Andrea over a super fresh pint of pilsner to chat about where the idea came from, and what to expect this year.
Craft Beer Weeks are taking place in cool cities around Canada, like Vancouver and Halifax and so it seemed like a natural fit for Ottawa after the rolling Covid shutdowns and slow economic rebound.
The timing feels right for something like this because of what we’ve all been through over the last several years. It was important and necessary to do something to kind of bring the community together and call attention to this great beer community. It just felt like we needed to do something to say ‘we’re still here, we all make great beer, and we all appreciate each other’s beer, so let’s shove it on out there and call attention to ourselves—we’re awesome’.
They are passionate about showcasing local products, and decided to reach out to their local counterparts to see if there was any interest in something like this. The response was an overwhelming ‘Yes’.
The weeklong event is all about the breweries opening their doors to the public, and showcasing their own individual products and spaces with the option to plan special events, features and tastings. The week opens with a launch party at Spark Beer in Chinatown on the 23rd with a DJ and great food.
Some highlights of planned events include:
- Orléans Brewing Co is launching a new IPA on the 23rd and celebrating their 8th anniversary on the 28th.
- Bring your dog to Braumeister Bierhalle Pups and Pints Day on the 24th, or go dogless on the 25th for their 6th anniversary party.
- On the 27th you can catch drop-in Brewery Tours at Ridge Rock Brewing in Carp, or win some BINGO prizes at Evergreen.
- Bring the gang for trivia at Stray Dog, Dominion City, Whiprsnapr, or Braumeister Bierhalle.
- Broken Stick is throwing a 5th Anniversary Weiner & Beer Fest.
- Live music everywhere.
To make the most of Ottawa Craft Beer Week, start by planning your itinerary. Pick up your passport at your first brewery stop and collect stamps as you visit different locations. Post a shot of your stamped passport on Instagram or Facebook with the hashtag #OCBW for a chance to win fun prizes. The more stamps you collect, the better your chances of winning!
#OCBW Passport. Photo: Kiersten Vuorimaki
Local brewery expert Brew Donkey is also offering a hop on / hop off shuttle on the 23rd and 30th, with two different loops for only $10 per ticket. This is a fantastic way to get around town responsibly, and get to breweries outside your neck of the woods.
The event isn’t just about the beer, but also about showcasing the breweries themselves. Craft breweries are drivers of tourism, and key locations for so many of our favourite community activities like trivia nights, live music, games nights, paint events, book clubs, networking, speed dating, sing alongs and so much more. Gorman and Sproull see this as a key aspect of Craft Beer Week.
Neighborhood breweries provide, not only a meeting place, a gathering place and place to get good food and for shows and events. It also provides jobs, and they’re great things that were lost for a long time.
The delicate art of brewing can’t be discounted, and by seeking out and engaging with local breweries, consumers can learn about where their beer comes from, and appreciate the crafstmanship, similar to our love for local ingredient and restaurants elevating Ottawa’s culinary scene.
Ottawa’s craft beer scene—we punch above our weight. We’re very good at what we do, we’re modest about it, but we’re really high quality and high caliber in what we do. And I feel like it’s something that we need to call attention to.
Rain or shine, Ottawa Craft Beer Week will be a great opportunity to seek out and enjoy a diverse selection of Ottawa’s best beers, and support the local talent that we have here in the 613.
Check out the Participating Breweries:
Beyond the Pale Brewing
Bicycle Craft Brewery
Big Rig Brewery (Kanata)
Braumeister Brewing Company
Brauwerk Hoffman
Brew Revolution
Broadhead Brewery
Broken Stick Brewing Company
Cold Bear Brewing Company
Dominion City
Evergreen Craft Ales
Flora Hall Brewing
Kichesippi
Orléans Brewing Co.
Ridge Rock Brewing Company
Spark Beer
Stray Dog Brewing Company
Tooth and Nail Brewing
Whiprsnapr
Ottawa Craft Beer Week is taking place August 23-30 in breweries across Ottawa. There is no fee to participate.
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