Medicine Hat Brewing Company

A.P. Burns was a noted businessman, contractor, builder and rancher in post-1900 Medicine Hat. One of his business endeavours was as a principal in the Burnside Development Corporation. Over 100 years later, Burnside sits as bare land and the views of the red rock coulees is spectacular when the sun is setting. It’s a glow that resembles the color of a fire, similar to what you’d expect from a blood orange ale. The Burnside Blood Orange uses our Hatfield Blonde as the base and then we add copious amounts of real blood orange puree. The end result is the perfect thirst quencher, one of Mitch’s mom’s favorites and we are sure A.P. Burns would be quite fond of it as well.

The name is inspired by the iconic, red bricked, hotel that sits in the downtown core of Medicine Hat and has been a part of our city’s history for over 100 years – the stories those walls could tell could make some blush. Our Sin Bin Red Ale is also meant to contribute to some great stories for those that enjoy this damn fine brew. The Sin Bin Red Ale is made to be infinitely drinkable; with its malt-forward profile and just enough hops to keep the malt in check. The Sin Bin is brewed with anticipation of converting some light lager drinkers over to the ale side. Not as malty as an Irish Red Ale, nor as hoppy as an American Amber/Red Ale, the Sin Bin will prove to satisfy the taste buds to a point that you will have a difficult time telling stories because you’ll be too busy enjoying this Red Ale.

In the early 1900’s, there were only a few select ‘places of recreation’ for the men of Medicine Hat and environs, the Cypress Club being one. The building supplied a relaxed atmosphere for the lonely and for the not-so-lonely. The club was patronized by men of the town, of the district, and also by the odd sheepherder who came to town every once in awhile. The Gentlemen’s Stout was inspired by those early business men that enjoyed a few cool ones back in those days, likely with a pipe and scotch as well. The Gentlemen’s Stout is our take on an oatmeal stout. A rich coffee and semi-sweet chocolate flavor is predominate with a slightly burnt flavour. This is a medium full body stout but not overly filling. The use of flaked oats help add to the perception of body and gives a creamy, almost velvety mouth feel. The finish is neither overly dry, nor overly sweet, but rather meets your tastebuds somewhere in the middle. Dark, rich, and delicious — the Gentlemen’s Stout is made to satisfy the dark beer lover no matter what gender you should qualify for.

This crowd favourite is created with abundant amounts of real fruit purees. Taste the sun shine in every sip of this perfect summer quencher.

Industrial Ave is where it all started for Medicine Hat Brewing Company back in 1912. This street owns our heritage and you see many of the original buildings from those years still standing within the city. The Industrial Ave takes on the name of our heritage and is considered the big brother to our Aberdeen Pale Ale. This IPA is made to satiate the self-proclaimed hophead. There are copious amounts of American style hops used in the brew kettle and dry hop additions to assualt the senses with citric aromas and flavours. This beer boasts a 6.7% ABV but the IBUs are one that we must claim as questionable because once you reach a certain point, IBUs are immeasurable without a spectrophotometer - Industrial Ave is in that range.

With our Hatfield Blonde as the base and a generous addition of real red tart cherry puree, our Cherry Ale is the perfect thirst quencher – where the taste of cherry lingers on your tongue for just the right amount of time before you want to take another sip!

Made with a kettle soured beer wort composed of Pale 2 Row malt and generous amounts of unmalted wheat and oats. After the wort is soured it is fermented and aged. When the beer is transferred to the brite tank we add a healthy dose of real pineapple before packaging this tart, juicy, tropical beer for your enjoyment.

In the early 1900’s, Medicine Hat was booming with mills and factories springing up in the city’s industrial districts. The original Medicine Hat Brewery was one that benefited from the boom, as was the clay industry which saw its first brickyard appear in 1886 and saw companies such as I-XL thrive in the city for over one hundred years. Our Brick & Mortar Porter is named after the clay trade that helped put Medicine Hat on the map. This Porter is a slightly smoother, sweeter version of a robust porter. Too dark in color and high in alcohol to be considered an English Porter, the Brick and Mortar Porter might be considered middle ground between an English style and robust porter. Chocolate and coffee notes are supported by caramel malts giving it a lightly sweet finish. The perfect end to a hard day’s work.

In the early 1900’s, Medicine Hat was referred to as “Boomtown” because of the large industries that were created near the banks of the South Saskatchewan. In Medicine Hat, Boomtown Lager takes on this name with great pride and we expect to see the lager’s popularity grow rapidly – similar to the growth of Medicine Hat back in the Boomtown era. The Boomtown Lager is our take on a Vienna Lager. When lager yeast was first isolated, the Vienna Lager was one of the first styles of lager brewed. Our Boomtown is true to style and perfect to introduce industrial pale lager drinkers to the world of craft beer. Neither overly malty, nor overly hoppy, Boomtown is the perfect combination of malt and hops making it enjoyable to the novice but with enough flavour to keep the craft beer aficionado interested. Smooth and satisfying with a crisp finish, the Vienna and Munich malts shine through without overwhelming the palate of the one enjoying the Lager.

Made with our Hatfield Blonde as its base, we add blueberry essence and vanilla post fermentation. The delicate blueberry and vanilla aromas and flavours blend seamlessly with the blonde ale allowing you to enjoy them while still knowing you’re enjoying a beer.

The Stand Tall Series New England Pale Ale is inspired by the bravery of a young man from Medicine Hat who in 1911 saved an unfortunate pilot from Drowning after the pilot had fallen out of their hot air balloon and into the river below. At only 14 years old, this young man showed the everyday courage that has become a hallmark of our town. From History’s Heroes to the supporters of craft, the beers of this series are dedicated to all you hardworking hands that stand tall in your approach to life and always go the extra mile. With its smooth creamy mouthfeel and burst of citric notes; our Brier Park New England Pale Ale is all about easy drinking.

Sharing the banks of the South Saskatchewan River, Medicine Hat and Redcliff have shared over 100 years of history together. Back in the early 1900’s, Rudyard Kipling was noted to state “Medicine Hat was born lucky, but Redcliff has all hell for a basement”. This remark seemed quite appropriate as he had visited a coal mine below where he stood and witnessed an inspiring sight, the burning of the gas from a new gas well. Our Twin City Lager name is a historic one, dating back to the original Medicine Hat Brewing Company. The name was in honour of the relationship Redcliff and Medicine Hat back in those days. This beer is our version of a Pale European Lager. It is lightly hopped with no specialty malts, just good old Pale 2 row malted in Alix, Alberta. This special brew allows the Bohemian lager yeast to showcase its true flavour. Our Twin City is wonderfully refreshing, easy to tip back, and especially good for light lager drinkers attempting to enter the world of craft beer.

In 1912, a man by the name of Charles Hatfield was hired by the Medicine Hat United Agricultural Association to be a “rain-making” wizard. He built a 20-foot tower by a lake just 20 miles northeast of Medicine hat, and he poured secret ingredients, like a witch’s brew, into the tower. People waited anxiously, to see if distant clouds would be drawn into the area, and three days later the rain began to fall. The farmers were no longer apprehensive of Hatfield’s skills, he definitely was a rain-maker. The Hatfield Blonde Ale is in honor of a man that showed this prairie town that sometimes you must have faith that something will turn out better than you could have dreamt – and that is our Hatfield Blonde Ale. The Hatfield is a North American style Blonde Ale designed to introduce the light lager drinker to the world of ales. Lightly hopped, and the use of malted wheat, adds a hint of sweetness to this blonde. It is as sweet as the sight of rain on a hot, dry, summer day.

Back in 2016 when Medicine Hat Brewing Company first opened its doors, co-owner and head chef Brennan established a food truck named “Hoppy Hatter”. Fast forward to 2020 and that food truck can no longer be found driving the streets of Medicine Hat but Chef Brennan has turned the MHBC kitchen into a culinary destination for guests.

First poured in the Taproom at MH Brew Co, these Taproom Classics are brews that have proven their worth as a fan favourite and made their way into hard working hands across Alberta. This special creation is a mix of our award winning Brick and Mortar Porter and our classic Cherry Ale to create a Black Forest Porter. Just like a black forest cake, it has intense rich chocolate and cherry flavours that make this a delicious and unique brew.

Medicine Hat’s first traffic jam may well have occurred on East Toronto Street in 1912. Trudging through the rain and mud, Reverend Morrow came upon a man flogging his horse, urging it through the inclement weather. Speaking up, the Reverend asked the man to halt his cruelty. When met with hostility from the carriage driver, the Reverend stood tall, made peace with his profession, and promptly dropped the man with one blow. Enjoy this rich porter infused with notes of toasted coconut and cocoa to get you through even the most trying of storms.

Prince Arthur, the Duke of Connaught, was the first member of the Royal Family to become Governor General of Canada. The Duke always stressed the importance of Canadian military contributions, but also sought to enhance charity at home. He visited Medicine Hat in 1912 in his role and made his mark in the community of Medicine Hat by laying the corner brick at Connaught School. Our “The Duke” English Pale Ale is in honour of this royal that made his mark in our community’s history. The Duke is our Brewmaster’s take on an English Style Pale Ale. A light fruity nosed, teamed with a deep copper colour makes this a royal delight. The light fruitiness really comes through in the flavour. The hops play more of a supporting role than in its American counterpart where hops take the lead role. The Duke is one of Brewmaster Mitch’s favourite styles, medium light bodied with a slightly dry finish.

Made with 50% malted wheat which is true to a German wheat beer. Medium-light bodied and ever so refreshing, our “Hef” lets the German weizen yeast character shine through. The yeast produces banana aroma and flavour from ester production during fermentation as well as some clove character. The yeast remains in suspension lending itself to the cloudy appearance and banana and clove flavours and aromas.

When our good friends at Oregon Fruit Products let us know about their new prickly pear puree, we couldn’t resist. This kettle sour is composed of pale row 2 malt and generous amounts of unmalted wheat and oats. After souring the wort it is fermented and aged, we then added a healthy dose of real prickly pear puree before packaging this fresh, juicy and tart ale.

Oregon Fruit Products and Medicine Hat Brewing Company are proud to collaborate to bring you Bussmann Cranberries in this holiday creation. In every great beer is great ingredients. From the malt, to the hops, to the fruit, it is all part of crafting a delicious beverage. With both companies sharing a long history for quality, they were inspired by a fruit with an equally rich history: The cranberry. And they knew just the farmer. This prized fruit was known as a common delicacy that indigenous people shared with explorers throughout North America. To this day, the cranberry still has an extraordinary way of gathering people together as it remains a staple of holiday celebrations and family functions. Bussmann Cranberries has been using the unique fertile landscape of the Southern Oregon Coast to grow some of the reddest, sweetest cranberries around. Located on Oregon’s westernmost cape, these cranberries thrive in the sandy marine soil with the Pacific Ocean on each side of the property. Harvested in bogs, these marsh-like bodies of water help the ripest berries float, which guarantees only the best berries are picked. Fruit, like beer, has a way of uniting people. That’s why two timeless companies are bringing you a timeless craft beer to enjoy with friends and family this holiday season.

Made with a copious amount of Vienna malt with Munich malt in a supporting role, our Brewmaster Series Oktoberfest has a rich malty aroma. The sweet grainy toasted malt flavour hits the palate to start, followed by a light noble hop flavour, and finishes somewhat dry. Slightly more robust than a traditional German Oktoberfest, but what better way to celebrate a bountiful harvest.

William Arthur Woolfrey Sr came to Medicine Hat from England in 1912. In 1920, He established one of the first dairy farms in southeastern Alberta – Woolfrey Dairy Farm, which became an integral part of Medicine Hat for generations. He had the first registered Ayrshire herd in the area, utilized the first milking machine and pioneered purebred herds. In 1945, he turned over the farm to his son Bill, who became the President of the Dairy Farmers of Canada in the 1970’s. The Woolfrey farmhouse built between 1890-1900 is now restored and on display at Echo Dale Park. This milk stout uses lactose to contribute to its creamy chocolatey goodness.

Poring over the stories of Medicine Hat and its historical breweries taught us a few things about time, and all the wonderful change it brings. Our vault series is about finding those few timeless styles worth preserving precisely as they are. Subtle notes of dried cherries, fig, fine-grind espresso, and licorice compliment the impressive body of chocolate, vanilla, toffee, and roasted Albertan barley. We recommend allowing this strong ale to warm in a snifter or tulip before enjoying, Allowing time for the flavours to develop and open up in the glass. We Recommend Cellaring This Dark, Rich, & Complex Brew.

Though “Dunkel” may come from the German word for “dark”, we sacrificed no drinkability in crafting this seasonal lager. Rich notes of biscuit and toast, a sweet maltiness, and an easy finish characterize Mitch’s take on one of Germany’s oldest styles.

This Hazy Pale Ale to celebrate International Women’s Day takes its inspiration from the ultimate Medicine Hat born badass – Doris Anderson. Doris grew up in Calgary, was the first female editor of Chatelaine Magazine and a Women’s Rights activist. She was a catalyst in the Canadian Women’s Rights Movement who wasn’t afraid to step into the social issues of the time. Rebel Daughter Hazy Pale Ale is a Pink Boots Collaboration brew made with Pink Boots Hops, a blend of Azacca, El Dorado, Idaho Gem and Loral hops. Generously dry hopped to impart tropical, citrus, piney aroma and flavour. Made on International Women’s Day to celebrate the varied and vital contributions of women everywhere.

I stopped here for a few drinks last month and can't recommend it enough! I ended up getting a flight with 8 different beers and it was fun trying lots of different flavours, especially since all of them were delicious. I didn't order food but definitely got food envy looking at other tables, so I'd like to come back and try the food (and more drinks of course).

I absolutely need to leave a review for Brew Co. Back in December, I booked the private room for a Christmas party and it was awesome. I also booked it just this past weekend for a surprise Birthday party and it was incredible!! Such a fantastic space, it's nice that the private room is situated a little bit away from the tap room and there are two bathrooms right next to it. The servers were wonderful, always checking in to make sure everyone had drinks and that food was coming out when needed. And if course all the food and drinks were delicious and good portions too! And even planning it was such a smooth process, anytime I needed to contact them, Brennan always supplied information and answered questions in a timely manner. We didn't need to worry about clean up either like we would have if we rented a hall. And they allow kids there too as we had a couple in attendance. It was so perfect! I recommend anyone looking for a mid-size group to rent the space if looking for a place. It was such a great experience from beginning to end. Thank you all so very much for everything. Looking forward to coming back again!! Brew Co is a definite 10/10!!

As for me, this is the best craft beer in Medicine Hat! Large selection of craft beers. Absolutely all types of IPA beer deserve special attention. This is not beer - this is a real art for real connoisseurs of craft beer!!! Unreal friendly staff)

We came with a small group on Saturday, had a few different beers and some food. All were fantastic! Service was wonderful the salad was absolutely delicious and we will definitely be back! Next time we're in town!

Really disappointed with my first dining experience there. They were out of steak, all salads, crispy onions, and pretzels, and that's all we were told, could have been even more things. Most of which we were not told about for more than 15 minutes after we ordered. I'm not sure the chef understands what Buffalo Chicken is supposed to taste like, or that there is some expectation that it should be spicy. The fries were not enjoyable at all. Others have told me it's normally a good experience, but I have learned my lesson and will not be returning.