Vancouver Island Brewery: Everything you need to know

History of the Vancouver Island Brewery

Beer brewing has a relatively short history in British Columbia and, operating since 1984, Vancouver Island Brewery is the old dog on the scene. Now one of BC’s largest craft breweries, the first kegs matured in Saanich under the name Island Pacific Brewing. The brewery changed its name to Vancouver Island Brewery before moving in 1995 to a gleaming facility in downtown Victoria.

Since the late 1990s various VIB beers have won multiple awards at the World Beer Championships, Canadian Beer Championships, and Canadian Brewing Awards.

Vancouver Island Brewery Tours

Although the Vancouver Island Brewery store is open Monday to Saturday, samples and tours are available only on Saturday afternoons. The tours run on a first-come, first-served basis. Call ahead to confirm, and then arrive early – especially during the summer months. The one-hour tour of the brewery follows the process of the fermenting fluids.

To make some of British Columbia’s best beer, the microbrewery uses simple ingredients: barley, water, hops, and yeast. This follows the 1516 Bavarian Purity Law that dictates beer can contain only these four ingredients.

On the brewery tour you’ll see and smell mixing ingredients, perhaps the barley soaking to create malt or the mash being mixed with water and heated. Depending on when you visit a different beer will be running through the bottle filler. The brewery crafts a growing number of lagers and ales, including the light Island Lager, the Sea Dog Amber Ale brewed for the 100th anniversary of the Canadian Navy, and the seasonal Hermannator Eisbock with its 9.5% alcohol content.

Remember that the legal drinking age is Vancouver is 19 and visitors must be of legal drinking age to sample the beers at the Vancouver Island Brewery.

Visiting from Vancouver

Located in Victoria, the Vancouver Island Brewery is a day trip from Vancouver by ferry or seaplane. If traveling by ferry, take the BC Ferries route from Tsawwassen to Swartz Bay and drive or bus south to downtown Victoria. The brewery is located at 2330 Government St., a 20-minute walk from the Victoria waterfront and the Provincial Legislature. Daily floatplanes to Victoria also leave the Coal Harbour terminal in downtown Vancouver.

Best Local Beers

The brewery’s award-winning lagers and ales are on-tap for those on the brewery tour, and more widely available at bars in Victoria and Vancouver. Vancouver Island Brewery beers are available for purchase at provincially run BC Liquor Stores and local cold beer stores.

To savor more local brews, grab a barstool at one of the best Vancouver bars, where you’ll find a growing and impressive variety of local drafts and iconic national beers.