Welcome to Brasserie du Bon Temps

I’m glad you’re here. Thank you for being with me as we embark on this journey.

I like beer, but I love the culture. I can’t remember how it happened, but when I heard about Belgian Trappist ales for the first time - made from centuries old recipes passed down by generations of monks - I was hooked. Beer was for me a way of connecting with history in a physical way. With Trappist ales I could taste the same things people did in times past. It was a sort of communion with ghosts, a way of transporting my imagination back in time. It was, and remains for me, a window into culture.

I moved to BC in 2006, right at the beginning of what the great BC beer writer Joel Weibe calls the Craft Beer Revolution. I discovered hops. I discovered new styles and could taste the creative energy of entrepreneurs building a new gastronomic culture right here in my neighbourhood.

I was a fan of beer, but a pragmatic graduate student in environmental science and never considered entering the industry. In spite of my determined march toward regular employment I had an open mind, and to be blunt a desire to do cool shit for a living. Then, almost suddenly, a combination of good luck, hard work and fortunate timing led me to become an entrepreneur.

To save you a long story, a series of random events and an off-the-wall late night idea led me to take a serious interest in hop terroir. Four years later I’m still up at 3am, but this time cobbling together a website a few hours before a fresh hop event that will launch a nano-brewery - right in the middle of a pandemic. Why not, eh?

This blog is a place to write about beer, the culture behind it, the people who grow its ingredients, brew it, and the science that will drive the next craft beer revolution. I invite you to engage, comment, criticize, and above all participate with an honest desire to do cool shit. Together we can create something people will be proud to say started right here, in our neighbourhood.