There is no shortage of tales about wayfarers heading up to Canada’s north, looking for a new life adventure. And with nearby diamond and precious metal mining, Yellowknife, Northwest Territories sees its fair share of new faces. The locals will tell you that people come and go, but there are a few constants — it’s very cold much of the year, the Aurora Borealis is stunning, and the inhabitants of Canada’s north enjoy a good brew. Fletcher Stevens has lived in Yellowknife his entire adult life, building a career as a mechanic for a major car company. He and his wife Miranda were looking to beat the high cost of beer in the Northwest Territories by trying their hand at home brewing. However, this hedge against liquor taxes turned into a full-time career in brewing. The NWT Brewing Co. is the northern most brewery in Canada. They combine Canadian- grown grains with the purest water in the world to create their unique beers, infused with the “can-do, make-do” spirit of the North. Spotlight on Business spoke with Fletcher Stevens about how the NWT Brewing Co. came about, and the challenges of brewing in Canada’s remote north.
By John Allaire H ome brewing sparked an interest, and the interest sparked an obsession. Then before you knew it, I was manufacturing my own components and building jimmy- rigged brewhouses.” From there, Fletcher decided to brew the beer to be served at his own wedding reception, and his concoctions received rave reviews from the guests. It was allthe boost he needed. That seed of confi- dence in his brewing capabilities grew until he was finally faced with a choice. Stay on as a mechanic, with a steady income and opportunity for advancement within a larger corporate structure, or walk away and pursue what had now become a full-on obsession. His wife Miranda was, herself, interested in the hospitality industry, but more from the culinary side. Her dream was to run a small café and create unique entrés out of the kitchen. Combining a great
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JANUARY 2018 • SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE
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