Best Brewery: Village Brewery

Village Brewery

Brewing 37 tasty craft beers since 2011 with local ingredients, Village Brewery is a must-try in Calgary. With a focus on supporting their neighbours and the arts, Village aims to gather community, whether that's around a table to drink a beer or at an event where they are serving up their delicious brews. It takes a village to make this place run, so 10 per cent of their bottom line goes straight back into the community.

Since so much of this business rests on the ability to gather people and spend time together, the COVID-19 shutdown was difficult for the Village team and their customers. Not being able to interact and share in the usual ways was challenging for everyone. The brewery did start an initiative called “Spread Cheers, Send Beers” during quarantine, where the team encouraged people to purchase beer online and send it to a friend in need. The beer was an added perk, but Village Brewery really wanted to demonstrate the importance of reaching out and staying socially connected during times of physical distancing.

During this time, you can support Village Brewery by, you guessed it, drinking local beer. The brewery offers home delivery, so check out their online store and order your favourite beers right to your doorstep. The Village taproom is currently closed, but their retail store remains open from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., Monday to Friday.

FIRST RUNNER UP: COLD GARDEN

SECOND RUNNER UP: OTHER