Gorgeous spot! Ocean views, vineyards, gardens, patio, but book in advance! If you can't though,…read morethere's a lovely public seating area outside where you can just buy a bottle to enjoy on your own

This is a unique family owned business in Victoria. We got the non-alcoholic flight of ciders and…read morethe traditional apple cider was our favorite. The service was prompt and efficient. We sat on the back patio which had incredible views, including seeing Mount Baker in the distance that was completely snow covered. We got a short interesting story of their business. We stopped here after a visit to butchart gardens, which is recommended too. Enjoy!

This place is a rare Gem!!! Amazing food, phenomenal…read morebeverages and outrageously awesome staff! Griffin spent time recommending food, drinks and local "must dos".

I'll start off with the positive... good beer! Had the flight and enjoyed them all. The person I…read morewas with had one of their slushy drinks from the machine and it was undrinkable. Tasted like they forgot to add any flavoring or something... just off. The posted hours on their website didn't match their actual hours, according to the server, so we had to rush out just after we were served. Not a place I'd return to.

This was a cruise ship shore excursion and my party had a great time! Met the owner and the bar…read moremanager who gave our group a tour which was informative. The whiskey and beer they produce was very much to my liking. If you have the opportunity to make it there, give them a try. I loved the logo, they have won awards and they are conservation conscious, which I appreciate! I cannot say anything about the food.

I had a great tour here today. It was very informative and fun. Had a couple of tastings and highly…read morerecommend this place!

While in Victoria, BC during a port stop on a cruise we went on an Ale Trail excursion and the…read morefirst of three stops was Whistle Buoy. Talk about hitting out of the park with the first stop! Whistle Buoy is located in a Market Square that's a beautiful open air area surrounded by shops, boutiques, restaurants, assorted businesses, and vast tracts of land with chairs and tables. Since it's surrounded by buildings on all four sides the wind would be challenged to ruffle your hair once inside. For this stop of the Ale Trail excursion we were each allowed one glass (not a taster...a full 12oz glass) of one brew. They have roughly a dozen taps that run the typical gamut of beer styles. I immediately gravitated toward the Shaft Coffee Stout. Not my usual go-to, (I'm usually more of an IPA / Pale Ale kinda guy) but something about "Dark. Coffee. Chocolate" grabbed my attention (Here's the part where Jim has an advantage. Jim's wife doesn't drink beer, so Jim gets her selection, too, so she (ok, I) chose the Froth Hazy Pale for hers (ok, for me).) I didn't expect the highlight of the excursion to be the very first beer I had, but the Shaft Coffee Stout was quite possibly the best beer I've ever had. It was smooth and rich and had such an amazing flavor. Honestly, it was more like dessert. I'm not saying my wife's beer (ok, my 2nd) wasn't awesome, it's just that the Shaft set the bar REALLY high. ( I'm just talkin' 'bout Shaft! ) Our group sat in the outdoor, covered beer garden, the weather was slightly overcast, and we were surrounded by like-minded beer lovers (except my wife, who donates to my cause.) As we sat the Market Square was busy with life as people walked their dogs, visited businesses, and a group of elementary school kids was escorted through the square. Sometimes it's nice to sit back and watch the world go by. The restrooms (gender neutral, thank you) are small...ok, tiny. There's barely enough room to change your mind. I do have to call attention to two things, though. First, it has the tiniest sink I've ever seen. Surely this thing had to be custom made. Second, they have a Code of Conduct posted on the wall, which I genuinely appreciated. Nothing outrageous, just a focus on respect and common decency. If I were able to get Shaft Coffee Stout at home I'd never leave home (actually I would just to get more Shaft Coffee Stout). It was only a brief visit to Whistle Buoy Brewing, but if I ever found myself living in Victoria, BC, there is no doubt this is where I'd hang out.

Located in Market Square, there seems to be outdoor patio, but we came on a rainy day so we sat…read moreinside. The brewery is very casual for hang out, and offers some board games. For our flight, we chose Marketplatz German Pils, fuzzy peach sour, lemon lime fizz and the Shaft coffee stout. My favorite two were the Pils and peach sour, the stout was also solid, not a fan of the lemon lime fizz tho.

I think I have to bump up the stars since my last beer experience here…read more On our latest trip to our northern neighbor we had another beer from Driftwood that we immensely enjoyed. That beer was the Spiff Corn Lager. It was such a refreshing beverage to have as we were ready to get out of the hot mugginess of summer. Flavor features with this delightful beer are a natural sweetness along with crispness and a clean finish. The beer is very light bodied and extremely persuasive in having you get another one.

We researched before traveling and knew we needed to stop by for a Fat Tug IPA for my partner. We…read morehad a round then a group of people who had already drank away enough of their inhibitions for the day sat down next to us: we opted to leave. As I paid the tab they were asked to leave. We opened a second tab and were so glad we did. We truly had a lovely time. The staff were thoughtful and offered great and friendly service. By dealing with an uncomfortable situation they made us feel comfortable staying for a second round. If we lived here, we'd be back! I loved the raspberry sour! So light and refreshing!

We'd seen Valley Cider a few years ago back during Cider Festival. While on the island, we decided…read moreto check out their taproom. We dropped in on a late Saturday afternoon (around 3:30pm). The tasting room can fit two groups in at a time. Service was friendly and informative. We lucked out and our tasting was done by the cidermaker himself! Interesting to see what went behind certain flavours and ideas. Tasting is complimentary and we were given 5 cider samples to try (plus a bonus soda). Cider bottles are $4.99 (330ml) and sodas are $3.99. They even had a mingler ($50.00 for 12 bottles). - Community-in-cider - a smorgasboard of apples (that would have been discarded) from the surrounding area. Pleasantly smooth. A good heritage cider. - Ginnish - we liked that it wasn't overly juniper heavy. Light with different flavour notes coming through. - Humulus lupulus - a lot of lychee and honey on the nose. Again, light but refreshing. An excellent hopped cider (which is due to using aromatic hops). - Poïple - beautiful colour from using the pea blossom. More of the fruitier style that we are used to with crushed blueberries and lemon zest. - Winter - a mix of winter spices (we tasted notes of cloves, cinnamon, nutmeg and vanilla). - Absinthe soda - normally we don't like anise but it was very well balanced and rounded. A variety of flavours come through and these soda babies only have 50g of sugar. We bought half a dozen cider bottles (love potion, farriessence, gingerella, rouge, cider noir and ¡feugo!) and two sodas (ginger and citrus). Can't wait to try out these flavours! VC was a pleasant surprise. Worth a visit if you're a cider aficionado.

In the heart of no where close to nature what more could you ask when on a great drive up island.read more

I love this classic joint! It's much more than a pub, it has really delicious food and brew, great…read morestaff, and an awesome view! They also have their own little chocolate shop too. We went here on Canada Day for dinner and everything we had was so damn good. We got the chowder and the Mac n cheese and shares both. So much flavour in the chowder and tons of fish and clams. Beautifully seasoned! The Mac and cheese was superior to most resto Mac's. It had a really yummy applewood cheddar flavour. Great seasoning as well on this one. And so dang creamy! Highly highly reco. Portion size are also excellent! We also got the brownie to share and omg what a decadent homemade style brownie, had all the right flavours and with the homemade ice cream ontop, even better. What I love here is you know you're going to have a great time! I'm so happy it's still as good as it was even after so many years. I used to come here during college so it still stacks up.

This was our first stop in Victoria. Our taxi driver actually recommended this place to us. We got…read moreseated and our view was amazing. Looking out over the water. Our server came and was very friendly. Asked us if we had any questions. It was such a chill atmosphere in there people were just hanging out eating and drinking. I had a chicken burger and crispy fries. It was so juicy and flavorful. We got beer cheese as an appetizer and it was very cheesy and had great flavor!

It's new and NOT to be missed! I was astonished by the lack over reviews for this standout cider…read morehouse. I've been on a self-guided craft cidery tour of Victoria Island and the quality of the cider here is second to none. And the atmosphere is classy modern-farmhouse if you are collecting Instagram pics! They won the People's Choice cider festival award for a reason! The owner was on site and very friendly. She explained the apple cultivars are all old-world imports, and you can absolutely taste that in the flavor bouquet. None of the usual flavor gimmicks here! The staff was knowledgeable and friendly and encouraged me to try the lavender, (normally I'd not bother with flavors) an it was fantastic-- inviting and crisp on the nose and pallet. After that taste, I dove into a quince and a hopped semisweet, and was blown away the complexity. All selections had beautiful clarity and a mellow butter smoothness and full bodied viscosity. Of note, even on a busy holiday weekend there was plenty of room and very fast service--unlike some of the more touristy spots. Families, doggos, couples and groups all had space and privacy to laugh and enjoy themselves. Don't hesitate. Go now!

We were out for a drive looking for a unique spot to stop for a nice beverage....voila...wow, did…read morethis place impress. We will be back for sure. Great venue, cider was outstanding! Ended up leaving with a few bottles for the fridge at home.