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Ontario Craft Breweries are brewing some delicious beers these days and beer drinkers are taking notice. The LCBO’s sales of Ontario Craft Beer have increased by almost 53% over last year.  That’s pretty amazing considering the sale of Ontario wine only increased a still very respectable 15% over last year.
Now that fall is here and many local breweries are launching fall seasonal beers I thought I’d recommend some Ontario brewed beers that are perfectly suited to sipping this pre-winter.

What makes a good fall beer?
As an avid beer drinker and lover of all things brew my idea of a good autumn beer are typically:
- Amber, copper or brown coloured beers which usually impart a sweeter or more malty flavour
- Ales as opposed to Lagers are typically a better fit to our chilly fall weather for their
- Slightly higher in alcohol content than a lighter coloured summer beer or lager

All the beers mentioned below are beers that I have personally tasted on several occasions. These are tried and tested brews I believe will match up perfectly with your thanksgiving dinner, watching hockey or just watching the leaves fall.

Mill Street Tankhouse Ale – This is one of my favourite everyday brews but this copper ale is perfectly suited to the fall season. Tankhouse Ale is quite a hoppy or bitter beer but it’s perfectly balanced by sweet malts. This is definitely a great session beer where one is just not enough.

Beau’s Night Marzen – This Oktoberfest beer from Beau’s is a beautiful amber/almost ruby colour.  It has a really nice sweet biscuit like flavour up front and then ends with some dried fruit flavour and a nice slightly floral hoppy finish. This is a very drinkable beer.

Kichesippi 1855 – Ottawa’s own Kichessippi has been brewing this dark ale since this summer but this is a fantastic autumn ale.  Visually it’s a more of a brown when compared to the Beau’s Night Marzen’s ruby hue. The flavour is sweet with a hint of roasted malt up front and more of a dry finish and less fruity notes when compared to the Beau’s.

Special Mention:
St. Ambroise Pumpkin Ale  – While this beer is from Quebec I still felt compelled to mention it as it’s a perfect fall beer and might be a revelation to some less experienced beer drinkers. This light amber ale is brewed with pumpkin and spices (nutmeg, cloves and cinnamon) and is a wonderful beer to enjoy with Thanksgiving dinner.

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Thanks to my friend Shaun Desjardins for this wonderful post! Shaun is an an avid beer drinker and lover of all things brew. Cheers!