Nano brewery build - Beothuk Brewing

[oceanic_brew]

Hey everyone!

Just thought I would share with the people on here what I'm working on and keep a thread updated with my success and failures.

I moved here as part of a progressive rock band called Oceanic, I've been working on a career in carpentry for about 10 years but Brewing has taken front row center for me.

I've been planning a brewery off and on since moving here from Newfoundland 7 years ago and I started toying with the idea of while I'm waiting to do a full 15 BBl brewhouse, taproom, and restaurant might as well open up a nano and learn the business.

After visiting Keith's brewery in sacville I decided to give it a go at my place off of Portland street near downtown in Dartmouth.

The brewery will be a 1 BBl 1 Tier brewhouse with 6 x 2 BBl fermentors, and 2 x 2 BBl Brites. I'm gonna sell wholesale via keg to a few accounts around town until I either get investment to setup with my original design or win the lottery or find a pile of money in some house i am renovating.

Right now I have everything priced, and have most of the business ends of things ironed out but am about to submit a request for exemption to operate a small commercial operation in an R2 zone.

I honestly do not have much faith that the request will be successful but this process is really teaching me what it's gonna take to do something on a larger scale with a legitimate retail location.

As for beer styles I approach Brewing like music; learn styles to get your chops up and then what's the point to try to emulate the work of someone else? That being said I tend to lean towards the Belgian style of brewing for most of my beers.

My mainstays aren't Belgians though, thus far are a dopelbock base with raspberries that I sour and a Blackberry Saison that's actually the Dec 30th Brewnosers exchange.

I'll keep this thread posted with the ongoings. Thanks for the supportive community over the years it'll be an honor to work in the industry.






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[sleepyjamie]

Goodluck, what I am finding its more business than beer.

[RubberToe]

Good luck man!

[Bowserm]

Sounds like a good place to start. Good luck

[EastCoastHoppers]

Great to see that you are following your dreams! Getting started it a lot of work but it will be worth it! Congrats and good luck!

[jacinthebox]

awesome...good luck

[oceanic_brew]

Goodluck, what I am finding its more business than beer.

Yeah spreadsheets are starting to consume my life already haha


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[elreplica]

Best wishes bud...oh...and hopefully don't end up like the Beothuks

[KMcK]

Based on what I've had of your beers so far I'm definitely looking forward to you opening. There certainly isn't enough good Belgian-style beer in this city yet.

[jason.loxton]

Best of luck!

One comment: I would rethink that name. Although the Beothuk are no more, any business run by a non-First Nations individual that utilizes First Nations iconography, mythology, or otherwise references a First Nation is likely to experience blow back. At very least, I'd run it by local Mi'kmaq leaders to hear their thoughts. There's a very messy history with exploitative indigenous branding, and they are understandably pretty sensitive. Last thing you want to do is have your opening PR all about how offensive your name is and appropriation, instead of how delicious your beers are!

(I am making the assumption that you are not First Nations or Metis yourself.)

[KB1138]

All the best. Looking forward to seeing you operational

[elreplica]

Best of luck!

One comment: I would rethink that name. Although the Beothuk are no more, any business run by a non-First Nations individual that utilizes First Nations iconography, mythology, or otherwise references a First Nation is likely to experience blow back. At very least, I'd run it by local Mi'kmaq leaders to hear their thoughts. There's a very messy history with exploitative indigenous branding, and they are understandably pretty sensitive. Last thing you want to do is have your opening PR all about how offensive your name is and appropriation, instead of how delicious your beers are!

(I am making the assumption that you are not First Nations or Metis yourself.)

I was kinda thinking in that direction as well...here in NS in particular, things need to be so PC, particularly in the brewing industry more so than elsewhere - with its stance on innocuous branding.

[oceanic_brew]

Based on what I've had of your beers so far I'm definitely looking forward to you opening. There certainly isn't enough good Belgian-style beer in this city yet.

Thank you Kyle! Appreciate it!


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[oceanic_brew]

Best of luck!

One comment: I would rethink that name. Although the Beothuk are no more, any business run by a non-First Nations individual that utilizes First Nations iconography, mythology, or otherwise references a First Nation is likely to experience blow back. At very least, I'd run it by local Mi'kmaq leaders to hear their thoughts. There's a very messy history with exploitative indigenous branding, and they are understandably pretty sensitive. Last thing you want to do is have your opening PR all about how offensive your name is and appropriation, instead of how delicious your beers are!

(I am making the assumption that you are not First Nations or Metis yourself.)

This is something I've thought back and forth on and glad somebody brought it up, and there are multiple angles to this. In the event that someone gets oversensitive and tries to right the wrongs of the entire history of the human race from their smartphone in the comforts of their parents basement I do have some issues with the name itself. Things these days get outta your control and no amount of reasoning and evidence matters.

I am a First Nations person, this is my connection with this. The irony of all this is that my ancestors were nearly at war with the Beothuk and "worked" with my other ancestors who came across from Europe. And by work I mean steal there children and starve and beat them in residential schools.

In my opinion First Nations people who aren't Beothuk have not a word to say about what goes on regarding them. Beothuk actually might have had a completely different bloodline which is interesting.

But my approach to the naming is giving respect to a group of people who denied influence from European settlers, they refused to weaponize themselves and ultimately died because of this. My other angle is that

With all this being said I am a bit of a shit disturber (half Irish) it's in my nature to use whatever's at my disposal to bring awareness and invigorate people and make them rethink cultural norms.

It all does seem like a bit of a PR nightmare regardless of what I am. I can imagine it causing some major issues getting investment down the road.

Fortunately I have you guys to bounce this off of.


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[jason.loxton]

Not directly relevant to this thread, but since the potential for named-related bad PR came up, thought I'd drop this here: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/nova-scot ... -1.4498396

New brewery uses image of a tree with a noose on their "Hanging Oak" red ale... Outrage ensues.

[elreplica]

Jason...just finished the podcast...PC fvcktards run amok...but that being said thought exactly about this and your admonition (as well as mine) about it...buddy from the Tuskegee Falls (ironic that my spellcheck replaced Tusket w/Tuskegee) Brewing certainly didn't articulate it well and there's not a snowballs chance in Hell that can would ever pass NSLC muster...

[oceanic_brew]

I’m just gonna keep my mouth shut about the whole “hangin meat from trees thing”

Something I rarely do (hang meat from trees that is)


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[oceanic_brew]

I’m just gonna keep my mouth shut about the whole “hangin meat from trees thing”

Something I rarely do (hang meat from trees that is)


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[Cully]

Sounds great. Will keep an eye open for your kegs. Will you post the businesses who will be stocking your brews?

[chalmers]

Looking forward to this, Glen! Let us know when you're ready for us to bug you for the blog.

[oceanic_brew]

Looking forward to this, Glen! Let us know when you're ready for us to bug you for the blog.

Definitely will man. When I get some things moving, actual physical things..: preferably large ones that will hold beer, then I’ll get in touch.

So I guess a little update:

After some discussion with Keith at Ol Biddys , and Dave at everwood I ended up increasing my size to a point where it was no longer feasible to do wholesale only from a R2 zoned location. It wasn’t really feasible to begin with to be honest, more of a stepping stone. The costs began to grow and grow and I started to realize that I would soon just be tearing it all out of my basement and setting up somewhere.

I’m pricing for a 5 bbl setup, in my business plan right now I have budgeted a large allocation to in house sales with a growing distribution network throughout the year. I haven’t decided on canning or bottling, something just seems more authentic about a Belgian beer in a bottle to me.

I am on the hunt for a location preferably downtown Dartmouth I’m also looking at Eastern passage, and I have looked at a couple decent places on Hammonds plains road.

There’s something about my style of brewing and the place I wanna run that has my heart set on DT Dartmouth. I really feel since moving here and seeing a few small craft type business pop up there that the downtown core is coming around a bit. My current design will be a brewery with tap room, 6 taps dedicated to in-house brews but I’m interested in keeping a decent sized bottle list and rotating taps centered around Belgian style imports.

I know the work that Chris and crew puts into getting some of the worlds best on tap at Stillwell and it would be hard to keep the brewery up and indulge into that as well. But I think it could fly in Dartmouth. Battery Park seems to be doing great and I love how they keep that whole board local/Atlantic selection however a smaller version of Stillwell over here with a brewery would fill a market I think.

Those places have inspired my brewing immensely. I go to battery park to get my ego in check when I think I’m making great beer and Stillwell provides a level of diversity that’s inspiring.

I would like to handle the brewing side completely and have a partner that is willing to do what it takes with the taproom to keep it well stocked.

We’ll see.


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[Lisa J]

There’s something about my style of brewing and the place I wanna run that has my heart set on DT Dartmouth.

I read a couple months ago that downtown Dartmouth is the hip "Brooklyn" of HRM. Undergoing lots of positive changes. Good choice.

[oceanic_brew]

There’s something about my style of brewing and the place I wanna run that has my heart set on DT Dartmouth.

I read a couple months ago that downtown Dartmouth is the hip "Brooklyn" of HRM. Undergoing lots of positive changes. Good choice.

It sounds funny to say that but it’s a perfect comparison


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