Water & Soil

The water flowing from Toronto's taps comes from Lake Ontario, and the same holds true for many of the city's breweries, which draw their water from the municipal supply. The lake is large and cold, its water relatively soft. That's a good starting point for pale, easy-drinking beers, since too much dissolved calcium and sulfate would make the bitterness taste sharper.

Further north, the ground changes. The Muskoka region sits on the Canadian Shield, an ancient block of granite and gneiss. Water flowing over such rock picks up few minerals and is usually soft. So water drawn from lakes and streams around Bracebridge poses little obstacle to a Pilsner or a pale ale.

What was once a matter of fate is now a matter of craft. Nearly every brewery treats its water these days, removing chlorine, adjusting hardness and salts to build the profile their beer needs. A Pilsner gets soft water; a robust ale can handle more sulfate. Tap water, then, is just the raw material, not the style itself.

More important in Ontario is the climate. Winters are long and cold, summers humid and hot. In the past, beer was kept cool with ice and stored in cellars beneath the cities, where the air stays cool year-round. Today, cold rooms and tanks control the temperature, but the rhythm remains: summer beer has to taste light and ice-cold, while winter beer can be dark and heavy.