Search VictoriaNow
I’ll start things off by getting right to the point.
Typically, my beer column highlights a specific type or brand of beer for you to try, but this weekend will be a little different.
But since I’m sure my many loyal, thirsty readers are looking for a recommendation for this fine Saturday evening, I’ll give you one before I get into this slightly-different column.
How about one of the many great options from Four Winds Brewing Co. in Delta? I suggest Juxtapose or Nectarous, depending on what you’re in the mood for!
Alright, with that out of the way, we’ll get into our slightly different type of beer column this week, which takes us to British Columbia's northern coastal region and the wettest brewery in Canada.
That’s a self-proclaimed title, but we certainly can’t argue it because Wheelhouse Brewing Co. is located in Prince Rupert, which receives over 2,500 millimetres of rain a year.
A lot of that comes during the fall and winter, which bodes well for beer drinkers looking to take advantage of a fun new promotion that was introduced this week.
It’s called 'When It Rains We Pour' and it essentially centres around the idea that the more it rains, the cheaper the beer gets.
Between now and the end of February, Wheelhouse will measure rainfall outside the brewery using a super-fancy, high-tech apparatus known as a pint glass.
Every Thursday night, staff will measure how much rain was collected in the glass since the previous Friday morning and that amount could equate to a nice little discount on their Flagship Pale Ale.
More than 60 mm of rain means 50 cents off, more than 100 mm means $1 off and if it hits a third, undefined marker, which looks like 200 mm, it’s $2 off.
Hopefully it doesn’t reach that third marker because that is a significant amount of rain in seven days and likely not worth the discount on pints.
However, anything is possible in Prince Rupert, where around 750 mm of rain falls on average between November and February.
“Everyone knows we get our fair share of rain through the winter months, so it helps to have a glass-half-full attitude toward the rain,” explained Kent Orton, a partner at Wheelhouse.
“As our brewery is a real community gathering place, we wanted to create a little bright spot for Prince Rupert – and make sure there was an upside to every downpour.”
Now that is a great attitude and one I can certainly get behind, as there’s something special about enjoying a nice pint inside your favourite brewery on a dreary winter day.
Obviously this promotion will only affect people in Prince Rupert, but if you want to keep an eye on Wheelhouse’s rain gauge you can do so on the brewery’s website.
Josh Duncan is the NowMedia news director and a craft beer lover. Reach him at [email protected]. His beer column appears every Saturday afternoon in this space.