Hi all, Forgive my lack of knowledge about your geography, but I'll be staying in downtown Ottawa and would like to pick up some beer while I'm there. I see that the LCBO on Riedeau is very close to me, but I haven't been to one of those locations in about seven years, and I seem to remember that the selection consisted entirely of cases of things like Labatt, Molson, and Moosehead. Now, I enjoy all of those beers, but I'd like to find something with a little more depth, and in a smaller than case quantity. Assuming LCBO is not the place for that, where else in that part of the city might I venture? Thank you!
That LCBO is probably your best bet. They don't deal in cases as far as I know and have lot's of singles/sixers with the depth you're looking for. Keep in mind that Ontario, but more specifically Ottawa, is about 20 years behind the U.S. in the craft game, so don't go in with super high expectations. All that said, you'll find some interesting stuff, and imports are typically cheaper than in the U.S. In terms of bars, Brothers Beer Bistro is a great bet for bottles, food, and taps. Also, the Lunenberg, while dingy, has a great tap list of Ontario craft stuff. Avoid Lowertown and Clocktower if you can, unless you really need a tick.
If you are looking for a store to buy bottles at, then the LCBO is your only choice. Due to provincial law, there no traditional bottle shops anywhere in the province. There is also the Beer Store, but it is shit. The LCBO at King Edward and Rideau has a pretty good selection relative to other LCBO's in Ottawa, so that works in your favor. If you are heading up soon, be sure to pick-up a bottle of Great Lakes (Toronoto not Cleveland) Karma Citra. Also, if your are interested in setting up an IP, feel free to PM me! Cheers! EDIT: Ahhh @tbeckett, you beat me too it! Two other food restaurant in that same area would be Bite Burger and The Smoque Shack were you can eat for a bit less and still get a local pint.
I'll be there in about two weeks, so I'll keep an eye out for Karma Citra (I love Citra hopped beers). As I've been traveling for several months already, so I don't have any beer in tow to offer for trade. And since I'm generally working 12 hour days, I'll probably be a hermit and drinking in my hotel. But the advice is greatly appreciated!
If you're willing to travel about 20 minutes outside of the downtown core, I really recommend going to Broue Ha Ha in Gatineau. They offer an incredible selection of some of Quebec's best offerings. Living in Ottawa myself, that is my number 1 beer spot. Here's a link to their site if you're interested: http://brouehaha.com/
Unfortunately, lack of time and transportation probably won't let me pull this off. I stopped in the LCBO today and was pretty underwhelmed. 90% of the shop was wine or liquor, and I didn't recognize a single brewery other than Molson, Labatt, and Moosehead. Didn't see Great Lakes, and I am interested in trying the brother-in-name to one of Ohio's tastier offerings. Guess it's off to the bars for me!
Just to confirm, you were at the Rideau and King Edward flagship store right? Not the one in the Rideau Centre I hope. LCBO site says the only Great Lakes King Edward has is Canuck Pale Ale. Can with a lumberjack on it. They should have a load of Muskoka's offerings, you might give detour, or the mad toms a try. Their Summer Weiss is pretty tasty if you're into that sort of thing. They also have a whole whack of Spring Oddity, which is interesting. Grand River does great traditional styles. Beau's is disliked by a lot of people on here, but that LCBO should have a pretty wide range of their stuff and they're local. They also have a few packs of Collective Arts Rhyme and Reason, which is quite good. Black Oak has some quality offerings. Creemore Springs Kellerbier is a very good lager. Amsterdam Boneshaker is good (can with skeleton riding a bike). Sawdust City Lone Pine. I could certainly see being underwhelmed, but the website tells me all of the above are in stock at that LCBO. Happy hunting!
Just to confirm....no, I was at the one in the mall. That's what comes up on Google Maps when I put my hotel information in and type in "LCBO" for the "search nearby" feature. THAT'S why I was underwhelmed - I think when I used LCBO's stock page, I was looking at the wrong store. I walked over to Vintage the other day and happened to randomly choose Mad Tom, which I was happy with. But since I need to walk that way again to hit a grocery store, I'll head to the larger LCBO as well. Which, for the record, was never showing up on search results until putting in that location. So thanks a bunch for that tip!!
There is definitely stuff at the King Edward location worth trying; if you are into bourbon they can also have a decent selection, same with wine and other booze.
Whoops...update two: walked to the grocery story this morning, and the place I thought was called "Vintage" is actually the LCBO that you're talking about. Got a can of Fire in the Rye in my fridge now; will poke around more tomorrow.
Here are a couple other good ones to try (some already mentioned), all currently available at the King Ed/Rideau LCBO: Great Lakes Canuck Pale (Toronto) Collective Arts Rhyme and Reason (Toronto) Red Racer IPA (Vancouver)
