Sons of Kent Brewing Co. of Chatham, Ont., took silver for Mammoth, while Smithers Brewing Company of Smithers, B.C., earned bronze for Let’s Get Ready to Crumble. The competition also recognized producers across beer, cider and packaging categories, showcasing entries from across the country.

Among the beer category winners, Niagara College Teaching Brewery earned gold in English Bitter and Pale Ale for NC Craft Bitter, while Persephone Brewing Company of Gibsons, B.C., won gold in Non-Alcoholic (NA) Beer for its NA Dry Irish Stout. In Saskatchewan, Pile O’ Bones Brewing of Regina took gold in German and American Wheat Beer for White IPA, and Rebellion Brewing Co., also in Regina, won gold in Specialty IPA for Zilla Black IPA.

Cider producers were recognized across five categories. Sea Cider of Saanichton, B.C., won Best in Show for its Pomona, while Wooden Gate Cider of Pilot Mound, Man., earned bronze for Three Spirits.

The Canada Beer Cup is a national competition celebrating independently owned and operated breweries across Canada. The Canadian Craft Brewers Association organizes the competition, which recognizes quality and innovation in the country’s craft beer industry. Explore the complete list of winners: 2026 Canada Beer Cup Results.

“From an industry perspective, it has been encouraging to see the steadfast supportive and united leadership from our provincial and federal governments as our country navigates trade volatility,” 9 Mile Legacy Brewing CEO Shawn Moen said. “Measures like this reflect existing consumer preferences for locally made products, send a message of reciprocity to our American trading partners and focus our efforts on the things that we do control in Saskatchewan: building our local economy and encouraging internal trade.”

“I like the fact that our premier and the Saskatchewan government are leaving it up to the consumer to make the decision, and the government’s not making it for them,” Sherwood Co-op CEO Troy Verboom said. “It is going to drive those prices up on the retail shelf and the consumer can once again make the decision.”

“The premier’s announcement [was] incredibly exciting news for the Saskatchewan craft alcohol industry,” Last Mountain Distillery CEO Meredith Schmidt said. “As a proud and accomplished whisky maker, we hope this announcement encourages more Saskatchewan people to try some of the amazing products made right here.”

“We appreciate Premier [Scott] Moe’s support for a focused, Team Canada response,” Black Fox Farm & Distillery said in a statement.

“No one wins from a trade war, and ultimately, we all want to return to free and fair trade. But when Canadian businesses and the public are being asked to weather the consequences of tariffs, it is equally important that we stand behind the businesses, farmers and manufacturers producing exceptional products here at home. Saskatchewan is an exporting province by nature. We have always looked outward for strong, enduring and reciprocal partnerships. Saskatchewan produces world-class products, and this is an opportunity to make it easier for Canadians to choose Canadian. Perhaps the strongest response is not only what we tariff – it’s what we choose to support at home.”

“The tariff applied to U.S.-produced alcohol should give consumers another reflection point when choosing what alcohol they purchase,” Great Western Brewing Company CEO Michael Brennan said.

“This may give consumers of American-made wine and spirits a reason to return to beer, a product that uses an important Western Canadian ingredient: barley. While the majority of beer sold in this province is produced in Canada, the largest producers of beer are not, in fact, Canadian companies and the profits from their sale do not stay in Canada. I would hope this decision provides further reason for consumers to choose to support products that are produced in this province, and whose profits from operations are reinvested in Saskatchewan, such as the beers made by Great Western Brewing Company.”

Photo: View of Canadian craft beer cans on store shelf. Toronto, Canada – November 20, 2025. Credit: Erman Gunes / Shutterstock

“Saskatchewan has always been a strong supporter of free and fair trade,” Deputy Premier and Minister of Finance Jim Reiter said. “Our preference is to see tariffs removed on both sides of the border, but Saskatchewan cannot ignore measures that negatively affect our producers, exporters and communities.”

The 50-per-cent levy will apply to U.S.-origin alcohol imported into Saskatchewan. Saskatchewan Liquor and Gaming Authority online ordering system used by retailers will be updated to reflect this change. Any U.S. produced alcohol ordered by retailers as of that date will be subject to the 50-per-cent levy. The Government of Saskatchewan continues to advocate for the removal of tariffs and other trade barriers affecting Saskatchewan exports and supports a negotiated resolution that protects Saskatchewan jobs and strengthens the Canada-U.S. trading relationship.

“Pile O Bones is proud to be a Saskatchewan brewery supporting local jobs and suppliers,” Pile O Bones Brewing Co-CEO Glenn Valgardson said. “We are feeling the impact of the trade dispute through higher costs. We appreciate the premier standing up for Saskatchewan businesses and ensuring our province has a strong voice.”

“Our objective is not to prolong a trade dispute,” Reiter said. “Our objective is to defend Saskatchewan’s interests and get back to tariff-free trade as quickly as possible.”

Photo: BCLIQUOR Lynn Valley Centre, North Vancouver, BC, Canada, March 12, 2025. Credit: lenic / Shutterstock

The Saskatchewan-based, family-run distillery cultivates nearly 95 per cent of the grain used in its spirits, managing everything from crop to bottle. Located on farmland where summer temperatures can climb above 40 °C and winter lows plunge to –40 °C, Black Fox embraces these extremes as part of its whiskey-aging process.

The award signals a major achievement for a craft Canadian whiskey producer, showing how terroir, climate and hands-on production can earn global recognition. Congratulations to Black Fox Farm & Distillery on its international success!

“The original Moen and Pederson homesteads were located nine miles apart in southwest Saskatchewan,” said Cassy Appelt, director of LGCY: Innovation Hub, a division of 9 Mile Legacy Brewing. Appelt is referring to 9 Mile Legacy founders Shawn Moen and Garrett Pederson, who have continued a family friendship now over a century long. “Through their business partnership, [Moen] and [Pederson] are the fifth generation to collaborate and work together, but the first to do so off the farm,” she said.

Moen, a lawyer, and Pederson, an environmental consultant, were lifelong friends and avid homebrewers, travelling the world to learn about brewing and business. In 2015, with stable careers and much travel now behind them, 9 Mile Legacy Brewing was born.

“[It]began as an exceptionally small nanobrewery focused on the production of high-quality craft beer,” said Appelt. “They got their start with a 100-litre brew kit with a storefront in Riversdale, one of Saskatoon’s original neighbourhoods and the heart of most city events and festivals. They purchased and restored a beloved business front in the same neighbourhood … and opened a taproom with a 600-litre brewery in 2018. In 2020, [they] expanded to a production facility just a few blocks away from the taproom. In 2023, [they] made the decision to close the taproom and focus on distribution out of [their] larger facility. That taproom is now a world-class comedy club known as Art Bar Theatre.”

A brewery for the community

The brewery has grown from its original one-hectolitre brewery to a two-vessel, six-hectolitre brewery and now to a modern, three-vessel, 20-hectolitre brewery. Both the six-hectolitre brewery and the 20-hectolitre breweries were made by Canada’s Ripley Beverage. They still use their 20-hectolitre brewhouse and tank complement their commercial operation, and the smaller, six-hectolitre brewhouse and tank completment form the basis of LGCY. Despite having grown by multiples, 9 Mile Legacy remains steadfastly tied to its community.

“[Moen] and [Pederson] are still actively involved in the day-to-day operation of the brewery, [Moen] as CEO and [Pederson] as COO and head brewer,” said Appelt. “They strive to continually incorporate their values of being authentic and engaged community members that foster interconnection, collaboration and innovation as 9 Mile grows and changes.”

To that end, 9 Mile Legacy has always collaborated with friends and neighbours. One of the earliest was a custom beer – still made today – for Odd Couple, an Asian fusion restaurant across 20th Street from the brewery taproom. However, that first collaboration has grown into many more, including an extensive Festival Series of beers, where collaboration beers are made in partnership with most of the festivals in Saskatchewan, with proceeds supporting the festivals.

The brewery is also the craft beer sponsor of Saskatoon’s new Minor League Baseball team, the Saskatoon Berries Baseball Club. It is because of this deep connection with the local community that, despite 10 years of operations and incredible growth and success, “we’re still seeing meaningful sales growth throughout Saskatchewan,” says Appelt. The brewery’s beers can be found in almost 300 locations across the province, with 9 Mile Legacy handling all of its own distribution.

“We’ve flirted with other markets in neighbouring provinces, but for the time being, we continue to see growth in Saskatchewan markets year to year and continue to focus our energy on the continued development of this market,” said Appelt.

A scientific approach to brewing

The brewery takes a scientific approach to brewing. “We follow a structured development approach we call nano-iteration: starting with small-scale, data-driven experiments, refining based on results and integrating new knowledge as we scale to meaningful commercial volumes,” said Appelt. “This approach allows us to innovate with confidence, balancing creativity with consistency.”

The top-selling beers are 9 Mile Legacy’s Ticket Belgian Blonde and their West Cast IPA, Rafiki Moja. “In designing our beer, we continue to prioritize the creation of balanced, interesting and unique products, combining the success of traditional, well-established beer styles with innovative brewing techniques and creative ingredients,” said Appelt. The brewery offers a core lineup including the aforementioned Ticket Belgian Blonde and Rafiki Moja IPA, along with Longview Pilsner, Eagles & Bulldogs Hazy IPA and Hybrid Vigour Amber Ale.

“We keep close to our roots as a nano brewery with our core seasonal lineup, offering our Straight Cut dry-hopped kettle sour, award-winning Angus Stout and the sought-after Ella Pacific Pale Ale. Our Nano-Select series features high ABV brews made in small batches with limited releases to highlight our take on premium experiences and traditional European styles with new world influence,” said Appelt.

Supporting the community means supporting the future

The brewery’s ties to the community are not limited to beer. In April 2024, 9 Mile Legacy created LGCY: Innovation Hub. “LGCY: Innovation Hub is many things, but one of the areas we’re passionate about is de-risking new ventures in the craft beverage space,” said Appelt. “We believe small businesses are a vital engine for innovation, and we know how challenging it can be to bring a new idea to market, especially when you’re starting out on your own.

“The Innovation Hub is designed to make that journey less risky and more accessible. We provide access to both startup and commercial-scale brewing equipment, available for rent, so entrepreneurs don’t need to make major capital investments before testing their concepts. Beyond equipment, we offer the support of skilled staff who can help fill knowledge gaps, whether that’s brewing operations, fermentation science or navigating the craft beverage industry for the first time. By pairing hands-on infrastructure with targeted expertise, LGCY gives local brewers and startups the tools and confidence to develop, refine and scale their ideas, turning early-stage concepts into viable, market-ready products.”

With LGCY just over a year old, it has been used to test specialty yeasts and enzyme-based process improvements to new prairie-grown ingredients. “There’s a lot of room to innovate in the craft beverage space, and we see beer not just as a product, but as a platform – an ideal way to test and prove new processes, ingredients and biotech initiatives under real-world production conditions,” said Appelt.

Moen and Pederson hold respective positions with the Saskatchewan Chamber of Commerce and the Brewing and Malting Barley Research Institute. With collaborations with the University of Saskatchewan, LGCY : Innovation Hub is having an impact beyond beer. Of course, supporting the future also means being environmental stewards, something particularly important to 9 Mile Legacy given the founders’ family farm backgrounds.

“Environmental sustainability is an ongoing priority for us. In 2024, we completed an environmental impact assessment to identify opportunities to reduce our energy use, carbon dioxide consumption and water footprint,” said Appelt. “We’ve made practical changes to reduce wastage in our day-to-day brewing. We time our water rinses, and we collect trub and yeast in grain sacks when draining fermenters and boil kettles. Our spent grain is 100 per cent dedicated to feeding cattle, and we’ve worked with local chefs to highlight the value of this circular economy approach, transforming brewing byproducts into food for livestock.”

Such environmentally-conscious activities are not uncommon to brewers, but 9 Mile Legacy goes a few steps beyond.

“We also explore innovative uses for brewing waste. Past collaborations have included creating alternative sugar syrups and bio-based fuels from spent grain. This fall, our LGCY: Innovation Hub will host a biotech startup project where we will be testing an existing malt syrup produced from spent grain as a potential malt replacement in brewing,” said Appelt. “In addition, through LGCY, this past year we’ve worked with Novonesis, a global leader in bio solutions – sustainable, biology-based technologies such as enzymes and microbes – to assess the use of their enzyme cleaners in our fermenters. These trials have shown potential to improve wastewater pH, reduce water consumption and lower the energy required for cleaning, aligning with our commitment to environmentally responsible operations.”

Being a part of the beer community

While supporting festivals, the broader business community and the scientific research community, 9 Mile Legacy supports the beer community as well.

“The majority of our ingredients are Canadian-grown. We source almost all of our malt from Prairie Malt and Maker’s Malt, a boutique maltster in Rosthern, Sask. Nearly all the inputs we use in the mash come from Saskatchewan, with a small portion from Alberta,” said Appelt. “Our yeast is supplied by RahrBSG and AEB. We mostly use dry yeast, but we’ve done a number of high-profile brew experiments this year using liquid pitch from Novonesis to reduce fermentation time and increase operational outputs.”

As an active member of Beer Canada, 9 Mile Legacy enjoys its access to comprehensive, cross-country economic data. “For a small business, that information is truly invaluable,” said Appelt. “It gives us a clear view of market trends and industry-wide performance, allowing us to make informed, strategic decisions. Whether we’re assessing growth opportunities, fine-tuning production or weighing the risks of entering a new market, this data helps ensure our choices are grounded in a strong understanding of the broader industry landscape.”

With a new B.C.-based warehouse, Clearsips now offers non-alcoholic beverages to a wide range of restaurants, hotels and retailers across Western Canada. Alberta customers can also get Oddbird, HP Juniper, Spiritless, Drink Monday, Cipriani, Sinzero and Domaine de L’Arjolle at Liquor Connect. People across Canada can also continue to order their alcohol-free beverages online at Clearsips.ca.

Clearsips has appointed Alberta’s Melanie Kobelka as VP of sales in Western Canada to build wholesale relationships and sales with local grocery stores, hotels, restaurants and retailers. Kobelka brings over 19 years of experience in the consumer-packaged goods industry and is the founder of Caskade Wines (now Vinolution), a boutique wine agency. Kobelka’s passion for the non-alcoholic industry and encouraging the addition of more inclusive options for customers led her to join the Clearsips team.

“We are excited to bring the very best alcohol-free choices to even more Canadians with our expansion in Western Canada,” said Kobelka. “Our mission is to work with more grocery stores, bars, restaurants, hotels and retailers across the country so they can carry quality products to keep up with the growing consumer demand for alternatives to alcohol.”