Each month, as part of this 366-day BC craft beer extravaganza that I will be sharing with you throughout 2016, I will highlight a specific style or theme of beers for a whole week of articles. For the opening month of this project, I wanted to look at some of the flagship and original offerings from breweries around the province.

The Phoenix Gold Lager literally rose from the ashes, as a collection of the bottles was rediscovered in 2003, two years after Phillips began making beers. It’s a solid brew that the brewery suggest pairing with spicy Asian foods, seafood, and medium cheeses.

Originally located in Esquimalt, B.C., Phillips began creating beers in 2001. I love the story behind Phillips and if you visit the brewery’s website, you can read a poetic version of the tale. To sum up here, though, brewer Matt Phillips risked his financial future on the success of the brewery, maxing out numerous credit cards (no bank would give him a loan) in order to get the operation up and running.

Obviously, things worked out, as the brewery moved into their current facility, in Victoria, in 2008 and are regarded as one of the province’s most popular brewing companies. For example, their Blue Buck Pale Ale (which will eventually be featured as part of the BC Beer Baron project) has often been credited for successfully introducing drinkers to craft beer.

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