Craft Beer Lifestyle Blog

Tag: Ontario brewery (Page 1 of 2)

Common Good Brewing Company

The large sign that hangs over the entrance to Common Good Brewing Company.
The large sign that hangs over the entrance to Common Good Brewing Company.

“It’s a conduit or mechanism…

It was different sort of interview with Ajeet Grover, VP of business development and community relations at Common Good Brewing Company, when we sat down only days after the NBA had shut down its season, triggering the shutdown of much of North America due to the COVID-19 outbreak. While we could not avoid speaking about the pandemic (which we will get to below), I was still also interested to hear his response to my favourite question: Is there such a thing as a craft beer lifestyle, and, if so, how would you define it?

Ajeet was quick to respond: “Ya, I definitely think there is such a thing as a craft beer lifestyle. I think it really centres around the notion of ‘community’… About using craft beer as a conduit or a mechanism to bring people together.

“To us, craft beer is about people, about our relationships – which makes this current crisis so frustrating and challenging, because, you know, craft beer is something to be shared and enjoyed with others. It’s not the same when you’re drinking a beer by yourself at home – it’s ok, but…

“To us it’s all about community – and that’s also what Common Good is about: we’re a partnership-driven business, we’re about working with everyone – other businesses, charities, other breweries… Our unique business model [Common Good produces its own beer, as well as other beer for contract brewers] puts us central into the craft beer community because we’re on the ground working with so many other people in our industry.

“And that’s a big part of what the craft beer community is, is other people who are working in it and doing their best to make great products and get it out there to share it with all the great beer lovers in Scarborough, Toronto, and beyond.”

Continue reading

Manitoulin Brewing Co.

Manitoulin Brewing Co.
Manitoulin Brewing Co.

From travelling and exploring…

After pulling him away from sharpening his chainsaw (ok, I ain’t in Kansas anymore, Ma…) and taking a seat at a high-top table surrounded by fermentors, kettles, and mash tuns, I asked Blair Hagman, co-owner and head brewer at Manitoulin Brewing Co., what he thought a ‘craft beer lifestyle’ might be.

“I think, as a consumer, a craft beer lifestyle is about travelling and exploring craft breweries in the region. It’s about supporting the different breweries and trying the products and flavours they produce, and then engaging them and becoming a part of craft beer culture.”

“As the producer, it’s all about focusing on your local region and supporting local producers by purchasing local ingredients to incorporate in your recipes, collaborating with local businesses on community projects and events, and producing beers that celebrate the region, culture, and people.”

Continue reading

Spearhead Brewing Company

Welcome to Spearhead Brewing Company: the sign above the entrance to the brewery.
Welcome to Spearhead Brewing Company: the sign above the entrance to the brewery.

Creativity, passion, and community…

“It’s about harnessing creativity, passion, and community into one thing,” Martin Villeneuve, CEO and managing partner of Spearhead Brewing Company, told me when I asked him about a ‘craft beer lifestyle.’

Sitting at a four-top table looking through large windows into the brewery’s production area, Martin continued: “It’s not an easy lifestyle – it’s hard work… The lifestyle is about finding the right people that have the same connection, but it’s all fuelled by one word, which is ‘passion.’

“That’s the fuel behind every great beer company: people that are passionate about the craft. All the trials and tribulations are really just noise – it’s probably a necessary noise, but it doesn’t matter in the end…

“What matters is when the place is full and someone tells you, ‘This is so great: thank you,’ But that’s really the icing on the cake, and most people don’t see the cake, which takes a lot of work to make. There’s a lot of sweat – and sometimes blood and tears.”

Continue reading

SanTur Brewing Company Inc.

The sign outside of SanTur Brewing Company Inc.
The sign outside of SanTur Brewing Company Inc.

In search…

“I think there definitely is a ‘craft beer lifestyle’ – and I’m in search of it!” Judah Santos, co-owner of SanTur Brewing Company Inc., proclaimed when I asked him if a ‘craft beer lifestyle’ exists.

Sitting at a four-top table near the production area in the brewpub, Judah then aimed to define it: “My favourite brewery, the MacKinnon Brothers, is totally dedicated to making sure their brewery makes quality products, but at the same time they’re true to their roots… They try to marry great beer in an organic way with the main issues that effect our society.

“And for me – if you were to ask me if that’s what I would dream to do, above and beyond running a successful brewery, that is my next step: to make sure that my business is addressing these main issues – climate, pollution, crime, poverty, supporting the local community…

“That’s one thing that we’ve said from the beginning. In fact, the Kingston police were one of the first guests in here, and they started trying the beers, and then one thing lead to another, and then we were like, ‘Let’s make a beer with the Kingston police.’ All the proceeds can go to local charities to help with drug use, crime, education…

“To me, that’s utopia. That’s a craft beer lifestyle.”

Continue reading
« Older posts

© 2024 PairingwithBeer

Theme by Anders NorenUp ↑