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The Mt. Begbie Brewing Company wins. No, I’m not talking about Mt. Begbie taking home two gold medals for their High Country Kölsch and Begbie Cream
Ale at the Canadian Brewing Awards in May 2017 – or winning Brewery of the Year in the same competition. No, I’m not talking about the fact that High Country Kölsch was named the world’s best at the 2017 World Beer Awards in London, England.
I’m talking about an informal competition we have here at Spotlight on Business: Best About Page. You can imagine that we read a lot of them – and don’t get me wrong, it’s not all about bios and backstories – but the About Us page at Mt-Begbie.com has the wittiest bent we’ve come across on a company’s website in a long time. Here’s my favourite example: “Bart has a Ph.D. in nuclear physics, but he prefers to make beer and not war.” They win. Bart Larson, the co-owner of the Mt. Begbie Brewing Company in Revelstoke, British Columbia really does have a Ph.D. in nuclear physics and he really does have a laissez- ...
Central Alberta, in Canada’s west, is known for agriculture and oil. But more and more, it’s becoming the newest hot spot for the craft brewing explosion. Leading the charge is Blindman Brewing, a craft brewery located in the small city of Lacombe, just a hop-and- a-skip north of Red Deer. With the local food movement going strong and a large local-business support infrastructure, Lacombe seemed to be the perfect place to set up shop and brew beer. Named after a river that winds its way through Central Alberta, Blindman started with a couple of friends looking for a career change. Founders, Hans Doef and Dave Van- derPlaat saw the ‘craft’ trend coming from other areas of North America and decided to pool talents and resources with some business-savvy “beer geeks” toward opening their own brewery. In June 2015, property had been secured and industrial bays were being converted into brewing stations. In August of the same year, equipment began arriving and, within a couple of months, Blindman was selling kegs. Spotlight on Business spoke with Blindman’s Hans Doef and Shane Groendahl about the craft beer scene in Central Alberta, the incredible local support they have received, and their rapid growth in two short years.
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SPOTLIGHT ON BUSINESS MAGAZINE • FEBRUARY 2018
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