Main Street Brewing

Draught and casks in a beautiful heritage building.

Expanding the brewhouse has always been a nerve-shredding experience for the staff at Main St. Brewing. That’s because the only way to get new tanks into this heritage industrial building is lowering them by crane through one of the large skylights. Thankfully, visitors need only worry about what they’re going to sample from the extensive beer list here, which includes five core brands (pilsner, pale ale, IPA, saison and brown ale), several interesting seasonals, and up to four cask ales that are hand pumped in the old-fashioned way.

Adding to this plethora of choice is the Garage Series, which is named after the building’s origins as the Vancouver Breweries’ Garage — an ongoing collection of wild-fermented and barrel-aged beer driven by brewmaster Azlan Graves’ curiousity.

The lounge occupies one corner of the building but is very much part of the brewery as a whole, with the sounds of the brewhouse and the sweet smell of spent grain occasionally wafting through. It’s a beautiful space, featuring exposed brick, large murals, strings of bulbs stretched between sturdy beams and long tables ideal for sharing stories or swapping beer opinions. The food menu, which ranges from excellent tacos to a charcuterie board, is also well worth a try.