Vancouver

This past winter, a gaggle of athletes clad in patriotically colored snow gear confirmed for the rest of the world what many of us had already known—that Vancouver is a pretty badass place to visit. It’s big and dense and modern, the people are welcoming, the food is fresh and tasty, and should you be inclined to venture outside—some pretty staggering natural sights are right outside the city limits. And here’s where to drink while you’re taking it all in—the top beer destinations in Vancouver, as chosen by the BeerFly users on BeerAdvocate.com.

Vancouver shares many of the same attributes that make its American counterparts, Seattle and Portland, such great drinking cities. Namely, its demographics lean toward young and educated, its residents have a strong attachment to fresh, local food, and it’s geographically close to grain and hop suppliers. The difference is, Vancouver is gigantic. Its size makes it a hub for the province’s best brews, as well as whatever wanders across the border. Keep an eye out for offerings from far-inland breweries Tree Brewing, Crannog Ales and Cannery Brewing, and from Victoria across the strait, Lighthouse Brewing and the Phillips Brewery.

Some of the best views of Vancouver’s skyline, and the mountains beyond it, are on Granville Island. It’s a former industrial dumping ground that has recently been reborn as a hot tourist destination, with plenty of shops, markets, restaurants, art galleries and one still-functioning concrete plant. Tour the Granville Island Brewing Company and then enjoy a pint on the patio outside the Dockside Brewery.

Gastown, one of the city’s oldest neighborhoods, sprang up as a commercial and entertainment district full of drinking halls. Today, its low-slung brick buildings stand in contrast to Vancouver’s vertically oriented downtown. Gastown’s former warehouses are currently in varying states of disrepair, renovation and gentrification; this is where you’ll find the Alibi Room, Vancouver’s most buzzed-about bar. It’s everything that’s great about the city, distilled—a sleek and understated room, with a top-notch menu and beers from every regional brewery worth drinking on tap.

Granville Island Brewing Company
Granville Island’s brewing crew sticks close to traditional craft recipes, with nice results. Highlights include solid examples of Hefeweizen, ESB, Nut Brown and a highly sought-after winter Chocolate Stout.

Dockside Restaurant and Brewing Company
The views of the city from this upscale Granville Island brewpub are unparalleled, and the house beers are quite solid, too. Seek out Dockside’s Alder Bay Honey Lager and Pelican Bay Brown.

Stella’s Tap and Tapas Bar [closed]
1191 Commercial Drive
Belgian beers are a regular sight around town. Belgian tapas? Not so much. Still, Stella’s Belgian Poutine, made with Blanche de Chambly and miso gravy, is the best little culinary mutant we’ve met in a while.

Yaletown Brewing Company
Yaletown serves up great house beers in a gleaming post-industrial
warehouse space. Head right for the Velvet Stout—a smooth, roasty, nitro-laced beauty.

The Alibi Room
The Alibi tosses off the best beer selection in town effortlessly, serving up 25 taps and three beer engines in a big, bright room that encourages communal revelry. The tap list touches on every notable brewery in the province, with guest spots from the best of what Oregon and Washington have
to offer.

Stella’s Bierstro [closed]
3305 Cambie Street
Stella’s interpretation of the Belgian café features tight quarters, minimalist decor and a truly formidable list of bottled beers.

Six Acres
Gastown’s oldest brick building houses this decidedly forward-looking pub, which pairs 40 sought-after bottles with creative plates meant for sharing.

Rogue Kitchen and Wetbar
Steamworks’ trendy upscale cousin marries a hip aesthetic (fancy tables and even fancier lighting fixtures) with some damn good plates and 20 taps (weighted toward local selections) worthy of any geek. Be sure to bring your fanciest Chuck Taylors.

The Railway Club
The Railway Club is a legendary dive with a pedigree stretching back to Prohibition’s death throes, as well as a longtime staple of Vancouver’s music scene. And on top of all that, they’ve got a mighty thirst for hops. Which is why we’re best friends for life.

Steamworks Brewing Company
A big, gleaming brewpub near the downtown waterfront, Steamworks traffics in a very nice, fruity IPA and a raved-about Pumpkin Ale.

Central City Brewing Company
Kickass Canadian crafts in a can. BeerFly users go wild for Central City’s incredibly complex Red Racer IPA. Be sure to not overlook their big, bold Red Racer Pale Ale (brewed with Marris Otter and Pacific Northwest hops).

Chambar
A world-class beer bar pouring Belgians from 40 taps, and serving up the requisite mussels and frites that go with them. How can you not fall for a bar that promises civilized debauchery?

R&B Brewing Company
R&B’s show-stopping brew is Dark Star Oatmeal Stout, a complex chocolate wonder. And at under 5 percent ABV, R&B’s Dark Star is one highly sessionable Stout.

St. Augustine’s
St. Augustine’s doesn’t get the buzz some of Vancouver’s other beer bars receive, but with everything the newish pub brings to the table—40 local taps, weekly cask nights and quality pub grub—that should change soon. ■