Tease your brain
TapTalks at Wild Rose Brewery brings together two elements that don’t necessarily naturally align — brain-stimulating presentations and beer. Wild Rose Brewery, located in an old airplane hangar at the former Currie Barracks, makes a wide array of craft beers from Ales to IPAs. TapTalks presentations are held in the event space at the back of the brewery with plenty of seating for your whole party.
Each presentation features a niche topic and a speaker who guides you through their talk. With topics from true crime to psychedelics, there is something that can pique anyone’s interest. The most recent of the TapTalks was on true crime and the paranormal, with a former detective guiding you through his extensive career of murder investigations with a side of ghost encounters.
Sawyer, a bartender at WildRose Brewery, recommends pairing the presentation with the Pink Velvet, a beer with a fruity twist. “Pink Velvet is very popular. WildRose is really known for mixing our beers, it’s a name we have made for ourselves.”
4580 Quesnay Wood Dr. S.W., wildrosebrewery.com
Test your knowledge
Grab a group and get ready to put yourself to the test by competing in a trivia round at Two Pillars Brewing. Two Pillars Brewing offers a wide array of lagers, ales and even tasting flights, giving you the opportunity to try each of their craft beers.
Trivia nights hosted by Talespin Trivia give customers the opportunity to test their smarts in a game of general knowledge trivia. The not-too-tough questions bring out everyone’s knowledge, creating a fun game of friendly competition. Alan Johnson, host and owner of Talespin Trivia, hosts trivia events at Two Pillars twice a month on Tuesdays and Thursdays.
“It’s kind of a small space, so the [trivia nights] book up fast, but it’s been very popular,” said Johnson. “Loyal patrons come back and compete with each other often.”
Boaz Leung, owner of Two Pillars Brewing, raved about the amount of traction trivia nights bring into the brewery. “We do have a following for our trivia, so [customers] will book again and again. Whenever it’s released, they will sign up,” said Leung.
Trivia at Two Pillars has been happening for two years now, after frequenters of the brewery suggested it. For a drink recommendation to pair with trivia, Leung suggests the ‘Small Batch Flight.’ “We line it up for your tasting experience, from light, sweeter beers all the way to something that is usually a little darker, more intense,” said Leung.
910 Centre St. N.E., twopillars.ca
Dab for prizes
Get your Bingo dabbers ready. If you think you have a shot at correctly identifying songs while playing Bingo, then High Line Brewing is the place to be. Every Wednesday, the Inglewood brewery hosts Name That Tune Bingo.
“It’s gotta be a year since we started [Name That Tune Bingo.] We did it on our birthday, which is the 22nd of December,” said Ricardo Garcia, event coordinator at High Line Brewing.
The variety of prizes caters to almost every participant. “I usually get different types of prizes, I just got cassettes this time, but I usually get vinyls or things like that, candy as well, silly things like that,” said Garcia.
Ricardo suggests the Mate Plus, a hard tea with Yerba Maté, vodka, cherry and lemon to go along with your Bingo experience. The Yerba Maté infusion, which contains caffeine, is like a boozy energy drink. “We also have non alcoholic versions of the tea, which are really good too. So if anybody doesn’t want to partake [in alcohol], it’s fantastic.”
1318 9 Ave. S.E. #113, highlinebrewing.com
Kick out the jams
Live music, good beer and good food set the scene at Prairie Dog Brewing, where weekends are filled with live entertainment, catering to any music lover’s preferred genre.
With a suitable stage for bands both big and small and a great sound system, you can immerse yourself in Calgary’s music scene with a beer in hand.
“We’ve been doing live music for years. About two years ago, they built the stage,” said Duncan Marsden, supervisor at Prairie Dog Brewing. “It used to be a sectioned-off area for private events, and now it’s just public for everyone.”
Marsden recommends the You’re Beautiful, a sour infused with lemon, blueberry and vanilla. “We have a lot of great beers on our core list,” he said.
105D 58 Ave. S.E., prairiedog.bbq.beer
