What do cheddar and ale soup, 2,500 square feet of sail, and the Gulf Islands have in common? They’re all featured on British Columbia’s craft beer tour by sail: the Tall Sails and Ales Tour, Oct. 23-29 on Canada’s west coast.
This tasting and culinary tour aboard the classic Canadian schooner Maple Leaf includes sampling 50 of the province’s top brews while cruising out-of-the-way places in the popular Gulf Islands. B.C. is one of the hotbeds in Canada for excellent craft beer, with many award-winning breweries.
The 6-night tour is totally customized and includes a packed itinerary not available to the general public. Highlights:
- A hilarious social history of B.C. brewing by historian Greg Evans
- Exclusive brewery tours and tasting meals with brew masters
- Cuisine paired to beer
- Visiting locations as diverse as a luxe new brewpub and a bucolic Gulf Islands brewery housed in a barn next to a field of cows
- Kick off the tour with a behind-the-scenes tour of Victoria
Under the sails of the 92-foot schooner Maple Leaf, guests will also:
- Cruise the Gulf Islands National Park
- Visit off-the-beaten-track wildlife hotspots (think porpoises, sea lions, seabirds)
- Receive a real culinary education
- Participate in frequent shore excursions and walks.
Evans is an astounding – and entertaining – well of information and social history. For example, by the end of the trip you’ll know which 19th century Victoria saloon featured rat-killing competitions for entertainment, how the Canadians took advantage of American prohibition, and which BC beers go best with dessert.
The tour is suitable for both beer aficionados and the traveler interested in island cruising and educational tours.
And guess what? It’s not the exclusive domain of men. The tour operator, Maple Leaf Adventures, has found that over the past three years, 40% of the trip’s guests have been women.
Maple Leaf Adventures is an award-winning B.C. eco-cruise company with a 22-year track record of offering “Trips of a Lifetime”. They’re listed as a Frommer’s “Best Travel Experience” and as one of the top 5 guided trips in Canada by Explore magazine.
Hand-crafted beer, the fastest growing segment of the alcoholic beverage industry in the US for three years in a row, offers the same complexity and range of flavor as wine. This tour’s flavours run the gamut, from Swans’ crisp, cold Arctic Ale to the chocolate creaminess of Gulf Islands Brewery’s Saturna Island Extra Stout. This will be the Tall Sails and Ales tour’s third year of operation.
Oct. 23-29, 6 nights, 7 days, C $2550 all inclusive except airfare. For those more interested in the Gulf Islands than beer, the company also runs an eco-cruise through the new Gulf Islands National Park Oct. 17-22 for C $1950.
Information: www.MapleLeafAdventures.com or 250.386.7245 or toll free 1.888.599.5323
Pre-and post-trip discounts are available for Maple Leaf Adventures guests at the Sidney Waterfront Inn and Spa in Sidney, B.C.
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About Maple Leaf Adventures
Maple Leaf Adventures has been offering natural and cultural history cruises aboard a classic tall ship since 1986. We have a reputation as one of Canada’s finest tour operators. A trip on Maple Leaf has been named by Frommer’s travel guide as one of Canada's 6 "Best Travel Experiences". Our multi-day excursions offer guests the opportunity to experience intimately the most beautiful places on the B.C. and Alaska coast, in the company of expert naturalists or historians, crew and chef. As a longtime practitioner of ecotourism, Maple Leaf pioneered travel in the Great Bear Rainforest and northwestern Vancouver Island, and has made significant contributions to conservation on the coast.
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