The Spotlight is a series of interviews with the craft beer heroes behind local organizations who are helping grow the beer scene in our fine city. This week’s spotlight is on Yellow Dog Brewing
I had the chance to head out to Port Moody last week and have a sit down chat with Mike and Melinda Coghill, owners of Yellow Dog Brewing – one of the newer breweries in the Greater Vancouver Area. Over a few beers (which I will get to later) I got the opportunity to hear a little bit about their story and what the plans are for their new Brewery. Here’s what they had to say!
The name “Yellow Dog” comes from Melinda and Mike’s 11-year old Yellow Lab named Chase. “We feel beer has been like a friend, and he has always been there for us as a close companion so we decided to immortalize him in the brewery” explains Mike. In fact, the first beer they created, “Chase my Tail Pale Ale” is named after him as well. Being a dog lover myself, I was immediately intrigued by all the canine paraphernalia in the tasting room; everything from bone shaped tasting paddles, to a big picture of Chase, to pamphlets about the BCSPCA’s Paws for a Cause. Mike and Melinda are avid supporters of the BCSPCA and don’t hide that fact in their brewery. Mike explained, “We sponsor the SPCA, as we love animals. As a business, we are a corporate sponsor and we try and give back to them as much as we can. We are proud to sponsor events like Paws for a Cause.”
So, how did this dog loving couple decide to open a brewery? Formerly of East Vancouver, they were in love with the beer community there. Initially, they were thinking of starting a brewery in that area. Then they had a child, now two years old, and ended up moving to Port Moody to raise their family. They saw an opportunity, as there were no breweries in the tri-city area. They enlisted Liam Murphy – formerly of Parallel 49 Brewing – as their brewmaster and off they went. Now, just passed their grand opening on August 2nd, they are the only brewery in the Tri-Cities area.
Liam has brought a hop-forward focus on their beers as they try and highlight characteristics of various hops without overwhelming the pallet. Take, for example, the Play Dead IPA – a mosaic IPA at 75 IBU and 7.5 ABV that remains incredibly balanced in its balanced flavour profile. Yellow Dog has a love for hops, and wants to make Hoppy Beers for the non-hop lover. In Mike’s words, “Play Dead is a hoppy IPA that is approachable. And we find the establishments where we have placed it, they are going through it quite fast because it isn’t your typical IPA.”
At the tasting room right now, you will also find the Chase my Tail Pale Ale, Take a Walk Wit and Shake a Paw Porter. The Porter is a new addition to the line-up and I got the chance to try it freshly carbonated during my visit. This has a rich and elaborate taste, with an incredibly subtle coffee note to it, but feels as light as air. Didn’t think I would be craving a Porter in the heat of summer, but I know I want one right now! Down the road, Yellow Dog’s priority is to focus on being a community driven brewery. Outside of their larger 25 hectoliter system used for their bigger production, they have an 80 liter system that will produce beers for the tasting room only (which currently has a German Altbier fermenting in it.) They hope to continually get the community’s input into what beers should go into larger production. It is very important for Mike and Melina to remain connected to their community and keep their mandate community driven.
If you haven’t had a chance yet, head on out to Port Moody and experience the Tri-Cities’ only brewery and tasting room; they are located at 2817 Murray St, Port Moody. If this article wasn’t enough to get you out there, check out their awesome patio!
David Perry-@davidjp87
Community Liason – CAMRA BC, Vancouver Branch
[ls_divider type=”dotted” color=”grey”]
For more information about Yellow Dog Brewing, check out their website or get social with Yellow Dog on Facebook or Twitter.
Leave a Reply