Sip Away the Hazy Days of Summer at Cowbell Brewing

On the outskirts of Huron County two hours west of Toronto, sits Cowbell Brewing Co., a jewel in the crown of Huron County. Cowbell Brewing bills itself as Canada’s first ‘Design-Build Destination Brewery,’ and it lives up to this moniker thanks to its state-of-the-art brewing facility, which food blogger David Ort calls a “cathedral for craft beer.”

Cowbell Brewing has been in operation since August 2017, where its gastronomical debut was witnessed by 950 Blyth residents – 94% of the town’s total population. Since then, Cowbell’s fanbase has continued to grow, spreading across Ontario and beyond.

Aside from its award-winning craft beers, Cowbell is also known for its community building, initiative for local sourcing, and commitment to eco-friendliness at every level of production. Cowbell’s facility pairs a traditional timber frame barn with gleaming state-of-the-art equipment and an innovative approach to eco-conscious design. In fact, environmental responsibility is a significant part of Cowbell’s M.O.: their dedication to sustainability is evident from their inclusion in Mediacorp’s list of Greenest Employers of 2020.

But Cowbell is so much more than just a craft beer cultivator: the 120-acre property also features a farm-to-table restaurant and patio, several event venues perfect for gatherings, a well-stocked general store, and of course, a beer garden.

Cowbell Brewing balances excellence in design and a keen eye for detail with an all-important passion for the craft. You can taste the difference that passion makes, so why not try one of Cowbell’s special summer beverages and find out for yourself?

Hazy Days

Hazy Days is Cowbell’s premium New England IPA, a smooth-drinking American IPA featuring intense fruit notes. These New England iterations are hoppy but not as bitter as traditional IPAs and have a hazy, often opaque look. New England IPAs are known for their ‘juicy’ character, a balanced blend of hops and rich tropical fruits that make them beloved among craft beer drinkers.

Cowbell’s Hazy Days is aptly named and is easily recognizable thanks to its titular opaque haze without any hint of floating particulate. This beer is fruity, with strong citrus notes, and has just a little bit of bite from its three hop addition, playing out over a background of bread-like sweetness from toasted wheat, oats, and malted barley. This beverage features a 6% ABV and 35 IBU. 

Pomegranate Honeysuckle

Savour the flavour of Cowbell’s Pomegranate Honeysuckle Fruit Sour. Bright and tart but without the bitterness of hops, this kettle-soured ale is the perfect summer sipper, with its punch of rich fruit and heady honeysuckle. This vibrant Fruit Sour features 4% ABV and 10 Bitterness Units. 

Kettle souring, or fast souring, is a technique Cowbell Brewing uses to quickly sour unfermented wort. Instead of the traditional weeks, months, and years it can take to brew ales using the mixed fermentation method, kettle souring uses Lactobacillus to speed up the process. While kettle-soured beers may not have the flavor nuance of fermented beers, they offer a uniquely sour and oddly satisfying bite to the beverage. Plus, this speedy turnaround makes kettle souring ideal for this seasonal release, featuring pomegranate concentrate and blue honeysuckle juice from Quebec.

Sipping a Cowbell brew sounds like the perfect way to spend the dog days of summer. Cheers to that!