By Andrew Macdonald
The Nova Scotia Liquor Corp the other day released its third-quarter financial results.
An interesting fact is that in the period between Sept-Dec. is that total beer sales were down 1%.
The NSLC store network sold 64.45 million hectolitres of beer in the financial reporting period, as compared to 65 million hectolitres in the previous year.
By Andrew Macdonald
At Brazilian owned Oland Brewery, its spokesperson Wade Keller has a constant beef with Halifax media, when it comes to reporting on the beer industry in this city.
“The media has this view that ‘craft’ beer is killing big beer”, opines Keller.
By Andrew Macdonald
NSLC Third Quarter Results: Nova Scotia Made Alcohol Sees Strong Sales Traction
This week, the Nova Scotia liquor monopoly, the NSLC released its third-quarter financials.
The reporting period was between Sept. 30 to Dec. 29, 2019.
By Andrew Macdonald
Story Update
Earlier in the week, I moved a story that millennial entrepreneur Lara Cusson is now selling tacos out of her popular independent café on Agricola Street.
Cafe Lara has entered into an “arrangement” to provide kitchen space to Taco Lina, formerly located in Gus’ Pub.
Reports Cusson: “Taco Lina’s, owned by the Rinaldo brothers, has relocated inside Café Lara”.
The Mexican food offering makes its debut at Café Lara this weekend, opening at 6 p.m. on Saturday and Sundays.
By Andrew Macdonald
Exclusive: Gotta Love It: Craft Brewery Wars Touch Down On Quinpool Road: Garrison & Propeller To Fight For Customers
You gotta love it – and old fashioned independent brewery war is shaping out to play out on Quinpool Road – between the two deans of the craft brew movement.
I refer to the founders and proprietors of Brian Titus’ Garrison Brewery & Jon Allan’s Propeller Brewery – both established in 1997, some 22-years ago.
Garrison late in 2019 opened a fourth expansion brewery and retail store at the Norman Nahas owned Oxford Theatre.
And now comes word that Propeller is going to open a retail store also on Quinpool Road, in the Doug Reid built luxury condo complex, The Keep.
It will spark an old fashioned brewery war from the two craft brewery pioneers.
By Andrew Macdonald
Quinpool Road Brewery Wars: Meet John Allen – The Man Behind Beer Wars
Propeller Brewery, like its staunch foe, Garrison Brewery were both founded in 1997.
Propeller declined to talk to me, while Brian Titus did speak to The Notebook – my cell phone number is embedded in Titus phone. The Titus story is elsewhere.
But, who is John Allen, the man who is sparking an old fashioned brewery war to play out on Quinpool Road?
Well, his Propeller Brewery website declares: “For 20 years, Propeller Brewing Company has been making quality craft beer”.
By Andrew Macdonald
If you can believe it, in a city that is famous for its legions of bars and pubs – fuelled by 30,000 university students in Halifax, Quinpool Road has been a bar/pub desert.
Until the other month, one could not operate a solely dedicated bar or pub on Quinpool because of age-old city bylaws keeping the street free of watering holes.
Existing restaurants can sling beer, but only if a customer also orders food.
So if you order a meal at the street’s legendary Athens, then you can quaff a drink.
By Andrew Macdonald
Story Update: Café Lara Expands Its Food Offering
I heard from Lara Cusson on Wednesday, and she reports exciting news developments for her year-old independent coffee shop, on Agricola Street.
Reports Cusson: Taco Lina’s, owned by the Rinaldo brothers, has relocated inside Café Lara”.
By Phil DeMont
Meet Andrew Murphy – Unfiltered Brewing
Having a beer at the taproom of Unfiltered Brewing on North Street is more a philosophical experience than a good ol ‘ Nova Scotia elbow-bending session.
Think 1950s Minimalism.
The room might not be on the level of a Frank Stella painting.
Still, small, artistic black-and-white photographs dot the walls of the bar. The iron lattice across the top third of the wall feeds the stark motif. The style is well-appointed.
By Carol Dobson
The monkeys are on a shelf, replaced by tartan scarves, hats, bags and bow ties.
It’s all happened since mid-2018 when North End Halifax’s Sherrie and Dale Kearney provided Nova Scotia tartan scarves to a Conservative Party of Canada conference in Halifax. Volunteers wore the distinctive six-and-a-half foot scarves around necks, as belts, and, as more than one volunteer determined, in the traditional Scottish style as a sash over one shoulder.
At that time, the Kearneys operated their business under the name ‘Monkeys and More’, turning out sock puppets, but last year rebranded into MaritimeTartan with a new product line.
