Also available at Monday Magazine
Everybody who homebrews jokes around that one day they’ll open a brewery. The difference is that some people actually do it, and Dan van Netten, the driving force behind Howl Brewing is one of them. Outside of Sooke, this is the first brewery to open in the Capital Region in nearly two years, and brings the total number of breweries south of the Malahat to 17, for now.
Located at 1780 Mills Road in North Saanich, alongside The Fickle Fig Market, the nano-brewery is tucked in a 340 square foot space that was once a gravel-floored pergola with a metal roof. The 300 Litre brewhouse is smaller than some kitchens, yet contains everything he needs to make small batch beers that are light, refreshing, and have ties to the community. There is even a small space inside for a tasting bar and growler filling station.
There is a clear desire to make sure there is a local influence not only with names like Land’s End IPA, and Deep Cove Pale Ale, but also with ingredients sourced from local merchants like Michell’s Farm Market. Dan has cultivated some of his own barley on locally rented land, and intends to use it in future recipes and he’s also planted a few hundred hop plants in various locations that he hopes to harvest for use in his beers as well.
One thing he chose to do, which definitely bucks the trend in the industry, was to keep things under wraps until the doors were open. With the exception of a few close family and friends, nobody knew about the project that has been in the works for over a year, and that’s the way he wanted it. With questions surrounding ALR land use for brewing for bigger operations like Persephone Brewing in Gibsons and Crannog Ales in Sorrento, Dan felt he was better off keeping it close to his chest until those issues had been resolved, and he didn’t want to risk constantly having to say he would be opening “soon”, as many breweries have been forced to do.
He’s also had advice and support from some of the more influential local characters in the industry to help guide him to where he is now, which just reinforces the competitive yet collaborative nature of Craft Beer.
At the time of writing, there are three beers available, the nicely balanced Deep Cove Pale Ale (5.0% ABV, 30 IBU), Dan’s self-described aromatic Land’s End IPA (6.0% ABV, 58 IBU), and the bright and fruity Blackberry Wheat Ale (6.0% ABV, 19.8 IBU). Because of the small batch size, the variety will likely change relatively quickly, so if you hear about one you’d really like, don’t delay. Growler fills are $12 plus $6 for the bottle if necessary, and the brewery is open Wednesday and Thursday 10 AM-2PM, Friday 11AM-6PM, Saturday 11AM-4PM, and Sunday 11AM-3PM.
Matter of Beer 