Planning to cover all of Ontario’s breweries in one magazine is ambitious. It takes some doing to keep track of how many there are, let alone who they are. But it’s also a wonderful opportunity for exploration.

Next on the travel schedule, we’re heading to all points between the GTA and Ottawa. (In fact, some of the Growler team is there as I write this.) There is a great deal of exciting beer coming out of breweries in the capital region. As I discovered on a trip there this summer: The remarkable thing about craft beer in Ottawa right now is that very little of the newest stuff is pedestrian. I don’t mean that it’s all sour or barrel-aged or made with hops you haven’t heard of (though all three of those boxes are ticked), but rather that breweries that have opened are setting very high standards for themselves from the get-go.

I’m also excited to fill in the gaps in my drinking knowledge between there and Toronto. It feels like it’s been too long since I was in Kingston for a pint and the County is flourishing as a beer destination.

This month, I’m heading back down the 401 for a weekend at Cultivate. In between a busy schedule, I’ll make it a point to try more of the beer from breweries like William Street (their North Shore ale is the top photo), Little Beasts and Manantler.

All this means that for our third issue, due out in mid-November, we’re going to add the 60 or so breweries in Eastern Ontario to our brewery directory. Issue 2 is available at a few breweries there right now and by subscription directly from us. That coverage will expand greatly in a couple months when the new one is out.