Heading up this weekend for a wedding. Any decent places to stop into in Moncton? Or should I just spend all my beer money in Bangor on the way up?
Ugh, no beer stores other than the government owned NB Liquor. Might be worth stopping in to pick up some Picaroons, Propeller, and Garrison, but very little else. There are usually a few different Unibroue beers in stock but you might have better access to these back home being close to Quebec. You might have a heart attack at the prices at NB Liquor. On the flip side, there may be a couple of imports you don't have ready access to back home. Orval is $3.50 a bottle and Aventinus is $3.99. The inventory for every store with pricing is online, so check that out. For regional brews sold at the liquor store, I would recommend checking these out: Picaroons Yippee IPA Picaroons Feels Good Imperial Pilsner Picaroons Best Bitter Picaroons Timberhog Stout Propeller Pale Ale Propeller IPA Propeller London Style Porter Propeller ESB Garrison Hop Yard Pale Ale Garrison Imperial Pale Ale Garrison "One Hop" Citra Garrison NiT WiT Unfortunately most of the above are only sold in six-packs, Picaroons and some Garrison being the exception. Head to the Pump House brewpub to try their beers. Their most popular one is the blueberry ale which I don't particularly like, but their IPA is outstanding and their stout is pretty solid too. The Tide & Boar is a "gastropub" and usually features some Picaroons and Garrison (from Nova Scotia) on tap. Finally, the Laundromat Cafe is a very small bar with a couple of taps that feature some local nano-brews from Acadie-Broue, Shiretown, and Celtic Knot. Enjoy your stay in Moncton!
Forgot to mention, all area NB Liquor stores pretty carry the Pump House and Picaroons beers, though the Picaroons stout inventory can be hit or miss. For Garrison and Propeller (the two Nova Scotia breweries), the best selection is at 936 Mountain Road (Moncton) and 513 Regis St (Dieppe). If you have time to hit up Halifax, NS (about 3 hours east), there are some excellent brew pubs like Hart & Thistle, Rockbottom, Rogue's Roost, and Granite. Greg Nash is a Maritime brewing legend and his hoppy brews at Rockbottom and Hart & Thistle are not to be missed. Also, a new micro brewery called "Bridge Brewing" is doing some excellent Belgian-style ales sold in bombers and growlers, though they sell out quickly and operate short business hours. Atlantic Canada is in the midst of an explosion of new nano-breweries and brewpubs which almost makes up for the ridiculous pricing and over-regulation of the retail sector :-)
