TORONTO, ON – Last night at a gala event at beerbistro in Toronto, the winners of the 2009 Golden Tap Awards were announced, representing the best in beer and brewing in Ontario. This annual awards event is overseen and organized by Cass Enright, founder of The Bar Towel, a website and forum dedicated to covering and promoting the Ontario craft brewing scene.
The winners, as selected by online voting by the general beer-drinking public, were as follows:
- Best micro/craft brewery in Ontario – Beau’s All Natural Brewing Company, Vankleek Hill
- Best micro/craft brewery in Ontario for cask-conditioned ale – Granite Brewery, Toronto
- Best bar in the Ontario in terms of draught beer selection – C’est What, Toronto
- Best bar in the Ontario in terms of bottled beer selection – Volo, Toronto
- Best bar in the Ontario in terms of cask-conditioned ale – Volo, Toronto
- Best brewpub or tied house in Ontario – Mill Street Brewpub, Toronto
- Best regularly-produced craft beer brewed in Ontario – Beau’s Lug-Tread Lagered Ale, Vankleek Hill
- Best seasonally-produced craft beer brewed in Ontario – Black Oak Saison, Toronto
- Best cask-conditioned ale brewed in Ontario – County Durham Hop Head, Pickering
- Best of the Fest (based on votes last night) – Beau’s Lug-Tread Lagered Ale, Vankleek Hill
Four Editor’s Circle awards were also handed out, recognizing significant achievements in the Ontario beer industry. The Editor’s Circle awards were determined by Enright and a panel of Bar Towel members and associates. They went to:
- Cask Ale Crawl, a weekend long event held in Toronto earlier this year that featured cask ale being served at 6 different bars across the city.
- Rob Creighton & Grand River Brewing, for Rob’s long participation on the Bar Towel forum and the brewery’s quick rise to being one of the best in the province.
- Derek Hyde & Amsterdam Brewing, for their Strong Spring Bock, the first high-profile collaboration between a homebrewer and a commercial brewer in Ontario.
- Jim Brickman, founder of Brick Brewing, for his pioneering contribution to the Ontario craft brewing industry.
And finally, the Ontario Craft Brewers presented a surprise award to Enright, recognizing The Bar Towel’s 10 years of support for the province’s craft brewing scene.