Beer in Ontario
Photo: Markbellis, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons
Canada's most populous province, Ontario, has an active beer culture. While globalization of the brewing industry has resulted in the major players in Canada being acquired by or merged with foreign companies, craft brewing has boomed in the province. In 2019, there were 340 craft breweries in Ontario, only 40 of which had been open in 2010.
Much like the popularity of smaller, regional breweries, brewpubs have become increasingly popular in some cities throughout Ontario. These brew unique beers within the restaurant that supposedly reflect local tastes and match some of the dishes offered.
The three largest beer producers are Labatt (owned by the international conglomerate, Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV), Molson (merged with the Adolph Coors Company of the USA), and Sleeman (owned by Sapporo Brewery of Japan).
Carling and O'Keefe were once significant brands; Carling Red Cap was Ontario's best-selling beer in the 1960s. The two companies merged with each other in the 1930s, with Molson in the 1990s, and then into Molson-Coors. Today Carling Black Label is still sold across Canada, but is not remarkably popular; however it is the best-selling lager in the UK.
Canadian stylesCanadian mass-market beers (Molson's, and Labatt's) are generally a pale gold lager, with an alcohol content of 4 to 6 per cent.
SizesDraft beer (or draught beer) served at bars and restaurants in Canada is commonly sold in pints, defined as the imperial pint: 568 millilitres (20 imperial fluid ounces, which is 20% larger than a US pint).
RetailersUntil 2015, about 80 per cent of Ontario's consumer beer trade was handled by the Beer Store, a chain owned by the three large breweries — Molson, Labatt and Sleeman.
Imported beersThe Beer Store sells mainly brands produced by the major breweries that own it, but those include some owned by Anheuser-Busch — Corona, Stella Artois and several other Belgian beers — some from Molson-Coors — Coors,…
Breweries
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Sources and licences
- Guide text adapted from the Wikivoyage article "Beer in Ontario" by its contributors, available under CC BY-SA 4.0. Read on Wikivoyage · Contributors · CC BY-SA 4.0
- Photo: Markbellis, CC BY-SA 4.0 via Wikimedia Commons