With summer on the horizon, Nelson Brewing Company is already one step ahead preparing for the patio season which means the need for a cold beer.
NBC will be debut two exclusive keg only beers this summer: A wheat beer - not yet named - which will be served at The Royal to celebrate MarketFest and the Shambhalager which will be served at Mike’s Place as part of Shambhala Music Festival’s 15th anniversary.
“The first one that is coming out is a Belgian style wit beer,” said NBC brewer Mike Kelly. “Sometimes they are called Belgian whites or Belgian wheat beers. That’s being made for The Royal. That’s a one-batch, draft only brew.”
Kelly said what makes this beer special is that it will be light, refreshing and unflitered giving it a whitish/yellow colour.
“We flavour it with corriander, orange and lemon peel, so you get a real citrus character,” said Kelly. “It will be fairly delicate but a good classic summer beer to quench your thirst.”
The Royal will start pouring their wheat beer in June as MarketFest begins.
In August, around Shambhala Mike’s Place will be serving up the Shambhalager.
“That will be a classic German style lager. The style is a really nice and refreshing style as well,” said Kelly. “It will be really smooth with a nobel hop character, a really pleasant easy drinking beer.”
The brewery presold the two batches of beer several months ago and Al McLeod of NBC said it’s something that they are hoping to do more of.
“The thing about the Shambhalager is we don’t want to make a beer to benefit us because it’s a not alcoholic event, so Ryan Martin from the Hume Hotel purchased that keg. We’ve come up with the idea that Mike’s Place will become the beer garden venue when it’s over and that’s where they’ll serve the beer,” said McLeod.
NBC is planning on donating any money made from the sale of the Shambhalager to the Hume Hotel to the outdoor skate park project.
McLeod said that the MarketFest beer they are making taps into an idea they have for a future beer.
“The fact that MarketFest celebrates local farmers is something we really enjoy and we’re hoping to eventually make a 100 mile beer,” he said.
MarketFest begins June 29 and Shambhala starts August 8.