Friday, January 06, 2012

Labatt 613

Labatt has introduced a new beer, the 613. Unfortunately, I cannot find much information other than on the Beer Store website. For those of you not living in Ottawa, 613 is our area code, hinting that this is a local beer.


I was at D'Arcy McGee's the other day and I was convinced by Jeff O'Reilly to try it out. This is Labatt's response to all of the craft breweries that are popping up all over Ontario and, to be honest, I am impressed.

While I will always have a special spot in my heart for La Cinquante (il lance et compte!), I rarely spend money on big beers, opting instead to support the local craft breweries. This was the first time in years that I ordered a Labatt product over Beau's or Kichesippi, or even the new Broadhead.

If I understood correctly, this beer only has four ingredients--what I reproach most of the big beers is that they include too many preservatives and ingredients other than hops, barley, yeast, and water in their beers. This is a big step forward and I hope to see more big companies doing the same instead of buying out craft breweries, such as Creemore Springs and Granville Island, for example.

As I write this, I am drinking a Blanche de Chambly, which is brewed by Unibroue, which is owned by Sleemans, which in turn is owned by Sapporo.