LCBO Food & Drink Autumn 2022

LOCAL ATTRACTIONS

Barley provides not only the sugars that will eventually be turned into alcohol, but also lends the finished beer flavour and colour that the individual kernels take on during the malting and kilning process. Ranging from lightly sweet grain character down through biscuity, bready, nutty, toasty and roasty, malt expresses characteristics you might find in baked goods. In the same way that bread can go stale, so can malted grain. Locally malted barley has an advantage over imports: freshness. All of these brews use small- batch local malt from Ontario producers. Meuse Brewing Company Saison de la Meuse (LCBO 16429, 330 mL, $2.75) uses 70-per-cent custom-malted, estate-grown barley, creating a light, whole-grain cracker of a body that allows lemon zest, wildflowers and gentle peppery spices to play in the aroma, and finishes with a brisk snap. Now making all of their beers with locally produced organic malt, London Brewing gives us London Organic Lager (LCBO 635300, 473 mL, $3.25) , which noses as fresh baguette with notes of red apple, fresh- cut grass and lemon zest, developing a little blackcurrant in the mid palate. Hailing from Prince Edward County, Slake Brewing’s Hatch Pale Ale (LCBO 26816, 355 mL, $3.95) pours hazy straw and supports its pine bough and orange-pith nose with a firmly sweet cereal body that balances the bitterness in the tail. Ontario Barley

Brothers Philomena Pilsner (LCBO 26085, 473 mL, $3.35) is made exclusively with barley grown on the brewery’s farm in Bath, near Kingston, and custom-malted in the pilsner style by Barn Owl Malt. The rich, sugared cereal and light caramel nose meets a peppery, floral bite on the palate on the way to a crisp, refreshing finish.

Located in Hastings County, north of Belleville, Barn Owl was founded by Devin and Leslie Huffman in 2015, specializing in a traditional floor-malting technique that was commonplace prior to the 20th century. In addition to richer, more vibrant flavours in your glass, Barn Owl’s malting process starts with local, traceable grain and uses one third of the water of conventional malting. Its malting repertoire has included barley, spelt, wheat and even sunflower seeds. Best of all, any waste products are used as animal feed. barnowlmalt.ca BARN OWL MALT

Named for the brewer’s grandmother, MacKinnon

68 FOOD & DRINK AUTUMN 2022