April is a sort of tense time in the beer calendar. Despite our current weather, it’s definitely spring, but May 2-4 is still over a month away and Father’s Day – the real kickoff for brewery events every weekend – isn’t even on the horizon. That said, many of Ontario’s craft breweries have an ideal space for getting neighbours together and establishing their role as a community hub.
Brewmaster dinners, free tour days, and beer-and-cheese tastings are all well and good, but I wanted to create a roundup that showcases the rebels. The events that swim against the current and bring a smile to your face just by reading their title. In no particular order, here are the seven that stand out right now.
Flies & Flights Fly Tying Workshop (Apr 12)
This event is so excellently wacky that I read the Facebook page three times to make sure I wasn’t being pranked. Drift Outfitters & Fly Shop is coming into Left Field to teach small groups of six how to most effectively tie their own fly, you know, for fly-fishing! Throw a few cans of Doubleday in a cooler, the Jays on the transistor radio and you’re all set for an afternoon at the river.
Macrame Plant Hanger Workshop (Apr 15)
Okay, you got me. This event inspired this post. How awesome is it that Junction has teamed up with Made West Workshops to offer a 3-hour session for those who want to learn to macrame their own plant hangers? Don’t feel like drinking? That’s cool, they also have a kombucha option thrown in with the session fee.
Paint Nite at The Exchange (Apr 10)
The most recent happened yesterday, but it looks like The Exchange has a pretty regular one-Tuesday-a-month schedule for these beer and painting nights. Gentle brush strokes seem like the perfect complement for their refined range of beers.
Thursday Nights Live at the Church (Apr 12)
The brewery church on Niagara Stone Road on the way into Niagara-on-the-Lake is such a lovely space that events there are a no-brainer. On Thursdays, Silversmith pulls in the local live-music fans with featured artists and pints of their beer for $5.55.
Richard Garvey Live at Collective Arts (Apr 22)
Continuing our route back from Niagara, we stop in at Collective Arts for Richard Garvey’s show there on April 22. Naturally, such an artistically inclined brewery does a great job of hosting a good-times concert.
Backyard Beekeeping Workshop (Apr 25)
Here’s another one from the folks at Left Field, possibly the east side champs for creative events. I admit it, I’ve often wondered what it would be like to have a backyard hive, but this is definitely not the type of activity you want to set off on based on a whim and a couple Youtube videos. Go to the workshop, listen to the experts, drink some Laser Show.
A full event schedule helps bring the beer drinking public out to Henderson’s brewery on Sterling Road. I like the looks of their Vinyl Show and Tell event later this month and tomorrow’s poetry launch with Anansi should be a winner. Who says beer is only for the unwashed masses?
I won’t be surprised if I missed out on listing a couple dozen oddball events this April. Luckily, we have a Twitter account where you can feel free to name-drop your favourites.
