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Photo by Christina Ryan / Swerve

“Why don’t we go out and take what is naturally existing here and then make a flavour that is somewhat unique to this time and place?” asks Ramey. That question inspired Graham Sherman and Jeff Orr, the founders of Tool Shed, to drive around the Keller family farm last summer with a metal basin full of wort (a sugary liquid created during the brewing process) mounted to the bed of their pickup truck. Tool Shed’s contraption attracted many varieties of the micro-organism. With the help of some students from the college’s brewmaster and brewery-operations-management program, Ramey isolated individual strains in the lab and then brewed small batches of beer. Taste tests were conducted at Tool Shed to zero in on the type of yeast that produced the most delectable beer.

“The idea then is to take that and produce a production-scale batch of beer with Alberta barley, Alberta hops, Alberta water and Alberta yeast—so everything is physically harvested right here in the province,” says Ramey. The yeast, Alberta’s own microscopic coat of arms, awaits its destiny in two test tubes, one at Tool Shed’s brewery and another under close guard in Ramey’s office refrigerator. We’ll all get the chance to taste this thoroughly Albertan brew next spring when Tool Shed releases it commercially.

This quest to discover a local strain of yeast is just one example of how over a century’s worth of Alberta’s agricultural acumen—accumulated by multi-generational barley-farming families and rural research institutions—is supporting the province’s nascent craft-beer industry. Craft brewers have an abiding respect for the quality of their raw materials and an insatiable curiosity regarding their source. This fascination brings them into regular contact and collaboration with Alberta’s foundational industry. Parking a metal basin of wort beneath a lilac bush for the night is not an isolated instance of a craft brewer going to unusual lengths to unearth the perfect element for a new recipe. As a species, craft brewers go bonkers for local ingredients. They share many values with the local food movement: support regional economies, know your grower, follow ethical production standards. However, that mad-scientist gleam in your friendly neighbourhood brewer’s eye speaks to a much deeper obsession, one that is linked to the immense creative potential of his or her favourite beverage.