4 minute read
FOOD/DRINK
Back-to-Basics Brewing
This small-batch traditional farmhouse brewery specializes in seasonal beers
words :: Colin Field photos :: Jaclyn Roth
Rolling up to the Still Fields Brewery just outside Meaford, a bald eagle circles the property and greets my arrival. I figure it’s a good omen. When I walk into the brewhouse itself, the guys laugh when I ask what their deal is.
“Our joke around here is it looks more like a winery than a brewery, we just happen to make beer,” says partner Owen Roth.
And it’s true; I’m not blinded by massive walls of stainless steel conical fermenters. It looks like a clean farm building with racks of barrels. There’s a brew happening as we speak, but you can barely tell anything’s going on because the kettle is actually outside.
“We’re trying to be a traditional farmhouse brewery,” says Roth. “We don’t have temperature control, we don’t have standard fermentation vessels. Our kettle just has an open flame underneath it. Start-up costs were lower and we thought there was a niche in the market. It’s a romantic idea of back-to-basics-brewing. We’re still loving it and people are recognizing that we’re making good beer pretty simply.”
All of the beers are barrel-aged and mixed-fermented, and their wild ale literally sits outside, exposed overnight to local yeast and bacteria, which then ferments the beer. They started with four core beers: lager, saison, hoppy saison and grisette. But they also release seasonal beers every couple of weeks. They’ve made dandelion beer; they’ve used blueberries, raspberries, strawberries, spruce tips, apple blossoms and honey in their beer. And there’s no end to their experimentation.
Roth cut his teeth at breweries including Mill Street, Bellwoods, Side Launch and Granite, so he knows what he’s doing. Brewing 450 litres at a time, up to three times a week, keeps them busy, and they’re keeping up with demand.
There are no plans to get Still Fields into the Beer Store.
“Our decision to not be in the LCBO or every bar or restaurant isn’t because we’re trying to be pretentious,” says Steven Ormsby, the second of three partners, who grew up on the property. In fact his great-grandfather bought the property and his father and brother still farm in the area. The 22-acre parcel now includes a hop yard where they grow some of the hops for their beer.
“We’re just trying to grow slowly and incrementally. We don’t have any staff. If you come and buy beer, you’re going to talk to one of the owners.”
So where can you get Still Fields beer? Therein lies the charm: You need to visit the brewery itself (you can also order online). Visible from Highway 26, the distinctive green-and-white barns are open to
the public nearly every day of the year. There’s no massive asphalt parking lot, but the dirt and gravel spots will do. It’s a truly rural experience. In the winter they have fires going, there are covered picnic tables with patio heaters surrounding the barn and events are ever-expanding and evolving. They officially opened in September of 2021 and the summer of 2022 was a successful season complete with an on-site vintage clothing shop in a 30-foot Travelux (Canadian version of an Airstream) trailer.
The pet-friendly, kid-friendly brewery grounds are a four-season, on-site experience.
“The whole property is licensed,” Ormsby tells me. “We encourage people to just follow the tractor path; it takes you directly to the hop yard, and you can see Georgian Bay from the back of it, too.”
While you won’t find any double IPAs at Still Fields, you’ll find a well-balanced delicious brew. From the well water to the local hops, yeasts, bacteria and ingredients, these are beers that are totally unique to the area. And it’s an addition to our region we couldn’t be happier about. See you at the farm.
www.stillfieldsbrewery.com
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