Toronto is getting a dog-friendly brewery and tap room
Toronto's newest brewery is just weeks from opening, and when it does, guests can expect a dog-friendly space that's open to cyclists and runners too.
Black Lab Brewing, which takes over an old iron and woodworking warehouse at 818 Eastern Avenue in Leslieville, is slated to open sometime during Thanksgiving weekend, adding yet another brewery to the east side's growing list of watering holes.
Run by husband-and-wife duo Billy and Anne Madden, the two-floored, 3,600 square-foot space will have a bottle shop and a 27-foot-bar with 18 taps, though they'll have somewhere between six to eight beers on tap to start off.
According to Billy, the black-and-white space will be filled with hanging plants, a few TVs to watch the game, and in the spring (hopefully) a 600-square-foot rooftop patio. There won't be a food menu, but there will be snacks and occasional pop-ups.
You can also expect to see Snoopy, the couple's nine-year-old black lab and unofficial mascot of the brewery. Black Lab is pet friendly, meaning you can bring your canine companions along for doggie dates while the hoomans sip of Belgian beers.
"[Black labs] represent everything good about what we’re doing," says Billy Madden. "Loyalty, trustworthiness, dedicated, hardworking...all the attributes that black labs possess."
Equipped with four fermenters, Billy says that eventually plan on adding three more by next year.
Belgian beers are inevitable here, as are a couple of flagship beers like the Cornerstone Black Lager, named in honour of the Cornerstone Estate Winery, where the Maddens got Snoopy when she was just four months old.
There'll also be a rye pale ale brewed in their Pilot System, IPAs from both the east and west coast, and at least one sour from their kettle series, including a bright pink one made from rhubarb.
Billy is also an active runner, so the brewery will also be equipped with bike racks and lockers for cyclists and runners to leave their stuff, after which they can maybe hop over to nearby Martin Goodman Trail for a quick jaunt before heading back to Black Lab for a self-congratulatory brew.
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