HomeMy WebLinkAboutThe Citizen, 2016-03-03, Page 11THE CITIZEN, THURSDAY, MARCH 3, 2016. PAGE 11.
`Absent Landlord' to lead Cowbell's beer roster
The Home Opener
Cowbell Brewing General Manager Grant Sparling was one of the evening's speakers
special Home Opener event held last week at the Emergency Services Training Centre.
event was a way to inform Blyth residents and stakeholders about the project before it
announced to the rest of the world. (Denny scop photo)
Continued from page 10
and rich stories to help brand the
company's products going forward.
Grant said it was an eye-opening
experience involving tales that
delved far deeper than he ever
imagined. "It was a bit of a treasure
chest," he said.
What will be in the cans will be
the department of brewmaster
Stephen Rich of Toronto. Rich,
whose resume includes Sweetgrass
Brewing Company and Toronto's
Beer Academy, will be overseeing
the brewing of all Cowbell products.
Grant said Rich is a "passionate
and accomplished" figure, widely
respected in the craft beer industry.
Rich's work has already begun
laying the groundwork for the
company's products. He already has
his boots on the ground in Hamilton
as Cowbell begins to contract brew
(brewing its recipe under Rich's
guidance through a co -packing
agreement with a Hamilton brewery)
the company's first batch of beer that
will be in LCBO stores this May.
Steven said the company has a
quiet aspirational goal of being a
top -five craft brewery in Ontario by
volume. "And we will be diligent in
our efforts to be a co-operative,
respectful and trusted member of the
independent beer community,"
Steven said.
As part of the company's mandate
to give back to the rural community,
Cowbell Brewing has committed a
percentage of earnings from its beer
products to rural community and
leadership organizations, starting
with the Canadian Centre for Rural
Creativity in Blyth. Over the
company's first five years, Steven
said, it is anticipated this
contribution could reach as much as
$200,000.
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The Absent Landlord
Blyth Cowbell Brewing Company's first beer will be named
for Blyth namesake Henry D. Blyth — a man for whom Blyth
is named, but who never travelled from his native England
to see the town with his own eyes. Each Absent Landlord
beer can, as well as subsequent Cowbell products, will
feature a small story component, informing consumers why
the products are named the way they are, while at the same
time passing along some local history. (courtesy Arcane)
at a
The
was
THE EXPERIENCE
"Cowbell Brewing's restaurant
will source as many local products
as possible," Steven said, "and it will
seat more than 100." It will also
feature a bar situated in front with a
full view of the brewhouse.
There are also plans for a
"hometown tap" at the Cowbell bar,
reserved for a rotation of other
Huron County beers, if and when
they are created.
The restaurant will play a key role
in the company's tours, which will
take patrons out into the fields,
through the brewhouse and then into
the restaurant to be part of the
process literally from start to finish.
Cowbell's products will also be on
sale in a small retail space on-site,
including its beer in can, growler and
keg formats, as well as various types
of merchandise.
As a year-round event hosting
space, Cowbell's location will be
versatile, capable of hosting
everything from weddings to
outdoor concerts and even outdoor
hockey games.
"The goal," Steven said, "is to
make the location a year-round
tourism destination through a
number of avenues."
Team members Genny Smith of
Bayfield and Kathryn Peach of Blyth
have been hard at work for a year
and a half touring and visiting events
across Ontario and Michigan,
identifying those events that would
be a good fit for the Blyth location.
THE NEXT STEPS
With its first contract brew set to
begin soon and beer expected in
LCBO stores by May, the group
hopes to break ground on the
brewery building in April, followed
by a grand opening in the spring of
2017.
"One other thing," Grant said, "the
soccer fields will remain right where
they are, but with improvements and
proper parking."
The fields, just south of the future
Cowbell location, have been
provided to the community by the
Sparling family for years.
Cowbell Brewing's website,
cowbellbrewing.com, is now live
and it includes its first video,
produced by Goderich's FauxPop
Media, starring the face of Cowbell
Brewing, L'Oreal the cow.
Readers of The Citizen may
remember a photograph of the
L'Oreal, owned by the Burgess
family of Formosa, walking down
Blyth's main street on the cover of
the Jan. 14 issue.
To keep up with the company, visit
cowbellbrewing.com, find it on
Facebook and keep reading The
Citizen, which will be home to many
of Cowbell Brewing's announce-
ments in the coming months.
Relax and catch up
on some great
reading
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