by CONNIE TABBERT
Editor
BEACHBURG — Chris Thompson and Chris Thompson, owners of Whitewater Brewing Company near Beachburg, are hoping the second location of the brewery will be opened by Canada day.
However, realistically, they realize that may not happen.
With the end of their third year in business coming to an end, they’re happy business owners. They started in an old farm house brewing some craft beer, expanded to a renovated barn, and then did more renovations to include a retail area, art and gift gallery and a pub.
The newest expansion is a large building which is currently under construction on the western edge of Cobden.
“We’re happy with the way things are rolling,” said Mr. Thompson. “We knew the current system was not going to be long-term. We knew it would not be sustainable on a long-term basis.
“We needed a reliable, small-scale system to master and then replicate and develop.”
The men were able to lease some land in Cobden from BEI (Bonnechere Excavating Inc.) where the new brewery will be located.
“They’re leasing us the land until we can afford to purchase it,” he said. “BEI is doing us a favour.”
He also noted how BEI is a driving force in trying to bring development to the Cobden area.
“None of this would have been possible without them,” he said. “They are leasing us the land because we couldn’t afford to build and purchase the land.
“They are pushing for development. They want to see Cobden grow.”
The new facility will have a much larger brewing facility but still allow for a restaurant and pub and small retail shop, Mr. Thompson said. The restaurant/pub will seat about 70 with about 30 more on the patio during good weather.
“If you jam in too many people, you lose the atmosphere,” Mr. Thompson said, adding, “Two-thirds of the building is the brewery.”
However, similar to the current location, people will have the opportunity to view the brewing process through large windows, Mr. Thompson said.
While the two will continue to own the business, they are hoping each facility will have its own character. There will also be different menus at each location.
“We want to create two different experiences,” Mr. Thompson said. “We are the same company, so how can we be different at the two locations.”
The current location will be more seasonal, he said, possibly operating April through September.
They will continue to purchase as much locally as they can, just as they are doing with the construction of the new facility.
Tal-Co of Ottawa is the construction managers and it was agreed as many local contractors as possible would be hired to work on the new building. While the two don’t know all the local contractors being used, they do know they include BEI, Olmstead’s Home Hardware, Andrew Coulas Construction, Campbell Cement, Kent Trusses and Andy Thompson, the architect, are some of them.
“We knew the area had a lot of trades and we wanted to make use of them when possible,” Mr. Thompson said. “We see the Ottawa Valley as a trades-heavy area. There’s a lot of talent in the valley, but, many are low-key.”
And while they support the local contractors, the two Thompson men admit the brewery has received support since it opened three years ago.
“We are pleasantly surprised by the amount of support,” Mr. Thompson said. “We weren’t too sure if people in the valley would like craft beer.”
He added, it’s liked so much, it’s sold in various locations from Ottawa through to Deep River, he said.
The business has expanded and now includes a clothing line and various souvenirs, such as glasses.
The food in the pub, like the beer they brew, must be high quality, Mr. Thompson said.
The mantra of their brewery for everything they do is Brewed by friends for friends.
As they watch their new facility take life, the two owners are now busy interviewing for the 36 positions that will be available, and they already know, they ‘ll need more.
“We’ve started interviewing, but we’ll still take applications,” he said. (To check out the jobs available, go to whitewaterbeer.ca.)
Mr. Thompson said while they are excited about the new facility opening, what’s significant is the impact it will have on the area. While they had been encouraged to open a second brewery in another location outside of Whitewater Region, they both agreed that just wasn’t possible.
“Everything started here,” Mr. Thompson said. “We met each other here. We’re near the water. We fell in love with the area. We don’t want to create a business elsewhere. We want to help develop the area.
“Cobden is a good location for distribution,” he added.
The two friends agree they’ve worked hard the last few years and “learned a lot, sometimes the hard way.”
For now, they’ll keep their heads down and keep working hard.
“We’ve a long way to go,” they both agreed.
