A spectacular year for The Establishment Brewing Company as this local brewery took home several awards this year including Canadian Brewery of the Year for 2021 and weeks later was awarded Alberta Brewery of the Year. This local brewery and taproom located in the Manchester area off of Macleod Trail has been wowing judges with their unique barrel-aged beers and innovation. Big Kitty Magazine chats with founders and brewmasters David Ronneberg and Mike Foniok on how they make such awesome award-winning beer right in the heart of Calgary.

The pair began brewing together out of a shared interest of cooking and love of beer, soon realizing after connecting with the Homebrew Club in Calgary- that they could make some interesting brews. After entering in some smaller beer competitions and receiving feedback and encouragement from the brewing community, Mike and David began developing their homebrew passion into a business with The Establishment Brewing Company opening in January 2019 including a bright, open tap-room that the guys built themselves, utilizing David’s woodworking experience in the design and construction of the space .

With four core ‘go-to’ beers, a seasonal tap and a constant rotation of new brews, David and Mike relish in the fun they get to enjoy when making new beers and experimenting with new flavours.

“We actually release a new beer almost every two weeks. But it's super fun and it keeps the beer-making processes fun with experimentation. We got into this because we're passionate about sharing new ideas with other people and new styles of beer, new flavour combinations. That's why we got into it and we're able to continue doing that here.”

In a fast-growing Alberta beer industry, the pair credits innovation and community knowledge-sharing to their standout presence in the competitive industry. 

“I like to think that we can be both inspiring to everybody in the brewing industry, as well as being helpful to people if they have questions. So if you need help with anything, you just ask your neighbor or your ‘competitor’. Realistically, we all are striving for the same thing, which is trying to remind people that there's a brewing industry in Alberta, and you don't need to buy beer from outside of Alberta. And because of the variety and the quality...wherever you live in Alberta, there's probably a nearby brewery that's probably making really great beer.”

Establishment’s barrel-aged beers (what David and Mike call the ‘sourdough’ of beers) are what really brought this local brewery to national attention using different blends of fruits and hops. Entering eight of their beers in the Alberta Beer Awards, seven of them won medals- securing their place as Alberta Brewery of the Year. 

The pair draws inspiration from nostalgic moments and music, both when brewing and when naming the beers such as their oak-barrel-aged ‘Born to Run’ Brett saison beer and are supporters of the growing Calgary music and arts communities. Their labels on their limited edition barrel-aged beers are created by local artists on a submission basis- if you are a Calgary-based artist and interested in having your art featured on a label of a special beer, you can learn more and apply at www.establishmentbrewing.ca/art.

While you can find Establishment Brewing Company beer at many local liquor stores and pubs, for the most extensive selection and newest brews visit their taproom at 4407 1 Street SE.