Sooo…we know that we’re inseparable from our glass of wine, but we carry just as much love for a cold pint sitting on a patio or in the back yard. And, let’s face it Canada has some good craft!

For our August Local Feature, we’re so excited to be featuring our favourite Canadian Pilsner, Steam Whistle. The folks at Steam Whistle don’t just make good beer, they make it with passion and love as well as all natural ingredients. It’s no wonder that they have earned the title of the Greenest Brewery in Canada.

Today, we’re sitting down with Kendra Nicholson, Community Manager and “Fairy Beer Mother” to tell us a little bit more about how this amazing company and beer got started as well as what makes them superior in taste and nutrition.

“There is a fifth ingredient in every refreshing bottle, and that is the passion of our dedicated Brewmaster and staff.”

1) The ‘Tour & Taste’ at Steam Whistle pleasantly surprised us with all the natural and green initiatives at the brewery. This makes it extremely exciting to have you as our local feature this month. Could you tell us a little bit about how you got started and where your inspiration came from?

Our inspiration comes from the renowned breweries of Europe. Traditionally, they make what is referred to as “slow beer” using all-natural ingredients and traditional brewing methods, with no short cuts or additives. From our Czech Brewhouse to our Czech-trained Master Brewer and European sourced hops our Pilsner is like an import…. But fresher!

2) Steam Whistle is an amazing name. How did it come up and is it related to the fact that your brewery is on the grounds of the Canadian Pacific Rail steam locomotive repair facility?

The original name for our brewery was 3 Fired Guys this name was scrapped due to its potential negative connotations but we emboss a 3FG on every one of our bottles to remind us where we came from. The name Steam Whistle draws from the inspirational sounds of steam rushing from factory whistles, signaling the end of a fulfilling workday and a time for personal reward. Steam-powered whistles were icons of the 1950’s, a golden era of progress and prosperity, when things were built to last and people enjoyed the simple things in life. It was a time when the marketing of goods relied on a relationship of trust between manufacturers who produced quality goods and consumers who eagerly rewarded genuine results. Steam Whistle was founded on these principles.

3) Our name says it all, at The Naughty Nutritionists we don’t like to place restrictions on eating, we rather focus on finding the healthiest version of the foods we love and creating balance in our lifestyles. And, that is why we enjoy our desserts, chocolate and occasional glass of wine or beer with pleasure. At Steam Whistle, what would you say your motto is?

Our motto is “Do One Thing…. Really, Really, Well”. While most breweries brew a selection of beer, our singular focus at Steam Whistle has enabled us to brew the best beer we can by putting aside variety to focus on consistency, service and quality.

4) We love supporting ‘true’ natural and green local products, and that is one thing we were so happy to learn about your beer. There’s only 4 ingredients that you can actually pronounce! Can you tell us where/how you source your ingredients and where all the beer is made?

Water – Pilsners prefer hard water. We source our Spring Water from Caledon, Ontario for the ideal mineral content

Malted Barley – We use Pale Two Row Barley from Saskatchewan, world-renown for its superior harvest.

Hops – We use Bavarian and Czech hops to perfect our Premium Pilsner.

Yeast – In Steam Whistle, we use bottom fermented (lager) yeast (Saccharomyces Pastorianus). Unfortunately we can’t get more specific than that. A breweries yeast strain is that secret ingredient that is taken to the grave!

5) And, how about Steam Whistle’s nutritional content?

Glad you asked! We are the preferred beer of many athletes and sports sponsorships for a reason. You can read our full nutritional information here (and how it stacks up against other drinks).

6) Congrats! You are Canada’s Greenest Brewery…Can you tell us about some of the initiatives that you have taken to earn this title?

A full list of our green initiatives can be found on our website but we’ll take you through our most impactful initiatives below:

Packaging – Our green bottle really is green! It’s made with 30% more glass which means it can be sanitized and reused 45+ times. We also paint our bottles rather than using a label and glue which cuts down on waste. Every element from our packaging line is recycled: cardboard cartons, broken glass, old bottle caps, aluminum cans, scrap metal, and even shrink wrap are compacted in the bottle shop to be recycled into new packaging materials. We also have the “spent grain” from our brewhouse shipped to farmers in Wellington County to be used for animal feed.

Bullfrog – In 2007 our Brewery made the decision to use clean, renewable power with Bullfrog for 100% of our electricity requirements.

Deep Lake Cooling – Since the year 2000, Steam Whistle Brewing has opted to use Enwave’s Deep Water Cooling for temperature control in our building instead of conventional air conditioners that rely on harmful CFC refrigerants and eat up valuable energy. The icy cold water drawn through intake pipes deep in Lake Ontario moves through our facilities giving off chill (prior to it travelling to Toronto household taps) and helps provide a comfortable working environment for our staff each summer.

Enwave Steam Heating – Steam is the most efficient form of heat and is the exclusive resource used by Steam Whistle to heat water for brewing and climate control of our brewery. Instead of having our own natural gas boiler on site running 24/7, we source steam from Enwave’s efficient central District Steam Plant drawing only what we need, when we need it.

7) Ok, we’ll admit we hadn’t thought of a dessert made with beer… We’d love it if you share a recipe with us.

We highly recommend the Steam Whistle Poached Peach with a Goat Cheese and Vanilla Cream* recipe submitted by Melanie Levac, a student a the Kingston Campus of Liaison College. *Because we’re all about healthier swapping you could try using half the sugar in this recipe and an unrefined sugar such as cane or coconut or even a drizzle of honey on top. 

Or, if you’re craving some really good Steam Whistle Battered Fish & Chips, click here.

8) What is next for Steam Whistle? Apart from your famous Pilsner, do you have any new products in the pipeline?

While our 2017 Hudson’s Bay Opener is still in stores we are working away at the design of our 2018 In-Case opener. The program has a huge collectible appeal and the 2018 one is unlike any opener we’ve ever done in the past! We will also have a collectible Lunch Box gift pack available in select retailers this holiday season.

9) We’re really thirsty for a pint now…so, where can our readers find your beer?

You can find our beer in LCBO’s and Beer Store’s across Ontario. We are currently available in bars, restaurants and liquor stores in every province except for Quebec. If you find yourself in a watering hole that doesn’t offer Steam Whistle feel free to ask them why the heck not 😉