AdVINEtures writing about a craft brewery? What?? The craft brewery movement across North America is too big and culturally too important to ignore. The current estimates point to craft beer accounting for 10% of production by volume in the United States. On the West Coast, where the movement finds its stronghold, big craft brew cities like Portland, San Francisco and Seattle are estimated to have 20% market share going to the craft breweries. Elsewhere in the States, Boston and Denver are also seeing big support for the movement. The Brewer’s Association in the US has a goal of 20% market share by 2020 and is trumpeting the mantra “20 by 20”. Stats for Canada are a little harder to come by but by appearances we should be close. Certainly Vancouver has become another stronghold for craft brewing with, at last count, over 60 craft breweries in the metropolitan area.

The rapid growth in craft brewing makes nothing but sense. These brewers are passionate about the product they make and those results show clearly in the glass: this is better beer than being made by the big industrial breweries. What is the difference? Craft beer is often “hoppier” than industrial beer, but not just hoppier. The flavours are more intense. Intense flavours bring more pleasure to the beer drinker, just as they do to the wine drinker or the foodie. Your first sip of a good craft brew can be a bit of an adjustment to your palate. They can come across as “strong” if you are used to the milder flavours found in generic beer. But once the adjustment is made, you just cannot go back to the big industrial brews.

We recently visited Black Kettle Brewery, North Vancouver’s fourth craft brewery. Founded by owner Bryan Lockhart and Brewmaster Phil Vandenborre these beer lovers set out two years ago to follow their passion and open Black Kettle near the North Shore Auto Mall. It is a little difficult to find on your first attempt, but the effort is well worth it.

Black Kettle is typical of other craft breweries we have visited: out of the way warehouse space is filled mostly with kettles, fermenters and other brewing equipment and a small tasting area looks into the brewery and enjoys modest decoration. It is not about the room, it is about the beer.

And the beer is terrific. I first visited their tasting room shortly after they opened. But on our most recent visit I could see and taste the positive evolution in their business and in their product over the last two years. Experience counts and their beer is better and more diversified today than when they first opened. We tasted four of their beers as Phil showed us around and explained their brewing process.

We started with their Pale Ale. Phil described this as their “gateway beer”. Its milder flavour profile isn’t going to be too hoppy, and its 5.4% alcohol won’t come across as too strong. It is a great way to start your adventure with craft beer as it offers caramel malt flavours with only a light hoppy bitterness and comes across as crisp and refreshing. To me it is a year-round beer, one that you could enjoy on a sunny deck just as easily as in your living room beside the fireplace on a rainy November night.

We then moved to their oatmeal stout. This beer is black with a creamy head, and like all good stouts it is a knife and fork beer: thick and filling with very smooth texture. (Oatmeal stouts add oats to the mash for the express purpose of adding smoothness.) This is definitely a winter beer, with a malty profile and a plush texture whose rich smoothness makes it stand out from the crowd.

Next on the list was their India Pale Ale. This beer had the immediate enjoyableness of their Pale Ale but here all of the dials were turned up – way up! A hoppy bitterness provided and nice counterpoint to the caramelly sweetness from the malt. All IPAs have a more generous portion of hops, and while Black Kettle’s was no exception, it was also not at the extreme end of the hops scale.

We finished off with their Black IPA and what a great way to finish a tasting! This is the beer that has it all: a thicker, malty body with smooth texture but plenty of hops to keep it bitter and super flavourful. Definitely another winter beer, this one is that beer that stands out and asks to be noticed.

Black Kettle Brewing Company  is doing a terrific job of making individually crafted beer and many different styles. We only tried four and that was about half of their current lineup. Not the easiest to find, but well worth it if you are looking for real craft beer made passionately by locals. Beers sold by the glass (pint) and in Bombers (650 ml) and Growlers (1.9 litres).