The Okanagan is a massive playground for everyone and packing bottles around just didn’t make sense.
growlers doesn’t really work; by the time you get home your growler is completely flat.
So, as a small brewery we took the leap and invested in cans and canning – despite the logistical challenges that lay ahead on our end. “We hoped it gave them a least some time to get their minds off what was happening at home.” PM: But yes, getting our product into local liquor stores has been single handily the biggest and best exposure yet. People used to have to come in to our brewery to get our products. Now people in neighbouring cities can give us a try. This also has encouraged many people to make the trip to Vernon to come check us out, which is great. And as I understand it, you’ve decided to take a giant leap along with this small step. Care to say a few things about the nitro-canning process and the nitro coffee product you’ll be introducing at the brewery, as well as on grocery store shelves, in the near future? SM: We are super excited about the nitro canning in general. Before, we could only offer those products on-tap, in-house. Now people can enjoy them at home as well. Nitrogen doesn’t bind to liquid as well as C02, so filling
So, popular beers, like our Cookie Monster Stout, have to be consumed in-house. We invested in a nitrogen doser, which essentially is a machine that takes liquid nitrogen and puts a precise millidrop of liquid nitrogen into the can on the filling line just before the lid is put on. Once the lid is sealed moments after the drop is placed, the nitrogen expands in the can infusing the product with nitrogen gas. A simple light shake before you open the can will re-in- fuse the product and you have yourself smooth carbonat- ed beverage that tastes like it just was poured from a nitro faucet or tap at your local brewery. This is a huge leap for craft brewers who have always been subject to the widget technology that breweries like Guinness has had for years. Widget cans are expensive, difficult to get, not to mention that minimum quantities are virtually impossible for small brewers to achieve because of space and upfront cost. PM: We will be making our popular BC Bud IPA available in nitro cans as well. This is a great beer to have on nitro. It’s amazing the different flavours and mouth-feel you get when you compare the same beer side-by- side: one with C02 and the other nitrogen. The nitrogen softens the bitterness you typically get from an IPA and the result is amazing. SM: All that being said, we saw an opportunity at the Marten Brewing Company in addition to brewing clean
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • SEPTEMBER 2017
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