A DECADE: Winterlong Celebrates 10 Years

A DECADE: Winterlong Celebrates 10 Years

Wow, what can we say. It feels crazy to reach this milestone. To some it may sound like nothing, but to us, 10 years feels like a lot. It has been a whirlwind, and we’ve finally come into our own.

 

HOW IT STARTED

We were just two homebrewing, high school sweethearts that eventually decided to take the leap and open a little brewery.  We simply wanted to make the kind of beer that we wanted to drink and be able to share that with others.

After 10 years of homebrewing, we took the plunge. We navigated all the red tape, permitting, business planning, equipment purchase, recipe development and building, all while maintaining full time jobs. 

The original 'to do' list on what is needed to open a brewery.

 

Fianlly, in the spring of 2015 we became the 2nd brewery in the Yukon!  Once approved, we got to brewing on our 3 bbl brewhouse. This was a big step up from brewing on a little 10 gallon homebrew setup.  Our first batches were High Noon Hefeweizen and Pingo Pale Ale. 

 

Brewing our first IPA, Weekend Warrior!

 

We opened on a Friday of the May long weekend back in 2015, filling our first growlers for customers. Who remembers our little storefront with nano-brewery in the front room?

 

Our opening day, May Long Weekend, circa 2015.

 

Our first keg sale, went to our friends at Woodcutter’s Blanket, who had Batch #1, High Noon Hefeweizen on tap!  And we even travelled to Haines, Alaska with our first beers for the annual Haines Beer Festival/Great Alaska Craft Beer and Home Brew Festival.

 

 

Within our first few weeks of operation, we realized this was a bigger endeavour than we thought and quickly hired our first employee!  Yes, we were a bit naïve to think we could do it all on our own on the side of our full-time jobs.

 

HOW IT WENT

Since those early days, we have grown little by little. As money came in, we always put it back into more equipment so we could brew more beer. Within 6 months of opening we doubled our brewing capacity and bought a very manual bottling machine to get our beers on liquor store shelves.  Anyone still holding onto some bomber bottles?

 

Bottles just in time for holiday season, Winter 2015.

 

Eventually after a year and a half, we were able to expand from our 800 sq ft space to take over the entire 7,000 sq ft building.  We upgraded to a 7 bbl brewhouse and orderd more fermentation and brite tanks.  This meant we could build a Tasting Room in the front room.  But first we had to work with the Yukon Liquor Corporation to change the regulations so that breweries could serve pints. Before 2016, breweries were only allowed to offer free tasters and beer to go.

 

Moving the brewery to the back building.

 

Pioneering the first Tasting Room in the Yukon.

 

We’ve since bought the building, upgraded to a canning line, built a beautiful beer garden, and installed solar panels on our buildings, among a bunch of other improvements and efficiencies over the years.

We’ve been blessed with amazing staff the past 10 years, some of which have been with us for upwards of 9 years, nearly from the beginning!  Our staff have helped us build Winterlong into what it is today, and our success and longevity is a testament to them.  We are also incredibly grateful to our community and awesome customers, who have always supported us.

 

Crew shot from 2020, COVID times.

 

WHERE IT’S GOING

We are now at a great place in our business where we don't need to grow anymore. Our brewery is at a good size now where we can supply the Yukon with delicious craft beer, while also sending small shipments out to other provinces here and there. We’ve never been about 'growing for growth's sake' or making more money just because we can.  

This doesn't mean we're just going to be standing still, of course!  We will still be making changes to constantly improve and make things more efficient and more sustainable. We will continue to make great beer and stretch our creative muscles with new offerings.  We’ll keep being a force for good in our community with fundraising efforts and supporting your events and causes.

If there’s one thing that hasn’t changed in 10 years, it’s our love of craft beer and the Yukon, and we hope that shows!

 

NOW LET’S PARTY!!!

This will be our biggest party yet!  We’ve been in planning mode for the past 6 months with the help of Raven Events, and you are all in for a treat.

The celebration is on Saturday, May 31st from 12- 7 pm.  What's in store:

  • 3 SPECIAL BEER RELEASES —> Info Here
  • 3 FOOD TRUCKS on site all day (Happy Schnitzel by Harry and Yvonne, Out of the Blue Wood-Fired Pizza and Smoke and Sow).
  • BACK LOT PARTY w/ all day beer garden and lawn games
    • 12-3 pm Lawn Games, Bouncy Castle, Cotton Candy, Face Painting, Kids Crafts
    • 3-7 pm Live Music (4 Bands: Badger Legion, Cows Go Moo, Bria Rose N’ Thorns, and Speed Control) -> Band Profiles Here
    • TICKETS REQUIRED ($10 on our website, but free entry for people under 19 years of age)
  • Front Tasting Room & Beer Garden open as usual (no tickets required), with access to our anniversary beers and the food trucks!

Stay tuned to our Facebook Event page for updates (if you're on the socials).

You won't want to miss it!