Brewing History: Adaptive Reuse in the Canadian Craft Beer Sector

Angry Hen Brewing Co, located in the quaint village of Kaslo, British Columbia, offers a vibrant community hub. The building itself was reconstructed in 1900 as a commercial site following a great fire that destroyed much of the town. Today, the renovated main street heritage building is the perfect setting for the eclectic style of the brewery lounge. Owned and operated almost exclusively by women, the Angry Hen is redefining the image of craft brewing. Shirley Warne (head brewer and co-owner) was one of the first female craft brewers in British Columbia and has a reputation as a trailblazer. Historically, brewing was considered part of domestic labour and was largely performed by women; when beer was commercialized, women were largely excluded from the industry.

The owners of Detention Brewing Co. in Rosalind, Alberta (population 162) transformed a former school into a brewery. The Rosalind School was opened in 1954 and shut its doors in 2013. The brewery, opened in 2022, celebrates the former use of the building in its beer naming (beers include Summer School Cerveza and No Running in the Halls Red Ale) and interior space (the gymnasium now functions as the brewhouse and the science lab as the tasting room). The brewery provides a space for the stories (and nostalgia) of school days to circulate.

The Armoury Brewing Co. in North Battleford, Saskatchewan opened its doors in 2018. It adaptively reused a 1913 armoury building as its base. The basement of the armoury at one time housed a gun range, the holes in the wall still visible. The brewery makes reference to the history of The Battlefords as well as the armoury in its branding and marketing.

Nonsuch Brewing Co. was established in Winnipeg’s historic Exchange District in 2018.  The name, Nonsuch, makes reference to the first trading ship (Nonsuch) that crossed the Atlantic from London to the Hudson Bay in the 17th century, establishing contact between European settlers and the Cree and setting up historical Manitoba trade. The Métis-majority owned brewery makes reference to the significance of the encounter which led to a mixing of European and Indigenous cultures. Among the goods brought over by the explorers in the first expedition was low alcohol beer. In terms of the building itself, originally constructed as a machine shop, its tenure as a popular indoor skatepark created strong connections to place for the city’s youth subculture (there is an entire book published on the 18-year history of the skate park[i]). The building remained vacant after that for over a decade until Nonsuch Brewing filled the space.

[i] A book on the use of the building as a popular skatepark highlights the connection of this space to the community: Brooker, Alana, Joudrey, M.C., & Anders Homenick. (2013) The Edge 125 Pacific Avenue. At Bay Press.  https://atbaypress.com/books/detail/the-edge-125-pacific-avenue

The Mudtown Station Brewery and Restaurant in Owen Sound, Ontario is housed in a 1946 former Canadian Pacific Railway train station. Abandoned in the 1990s, the property received provincial heritage designation in 1996 based on its architectural value as a marker of post-war modernism. The brewery owner, Morag Kloeze, visited the train station as part of a Doors Open event and saw the potential of the space. The features of the train station were maintained where possible in the interior as part of the renovation process, and the history of the station is celebrated through news stories and historic prints on the walls. The name of the brewery, Mudtown, references the historic nickname for the area which was characterized as having muddy streets.

The Mellön Brasserie in the Rosemont-La-Petite-Patrie neighbourhood of Montreal, Quebec, is housed in a former automative garage. The former use of the building lends itself to industrial styling, complete with a large garage door that can be opened up in summer. There’s a conceptual fit between former automative spaces and craft beer making, evidenced by the number of garages adaptively reuses by craft breweries across Canada.

As the first Native-owned brewery on a First Nation’s territory in Canada, the Kahnawake Brewery in Kahnawake, Quebec, is writing new histories. While the building housing the brewery is relatively young compared to some sites on this list (constructed in 2009), the roots to history within the space run deep. The brewery, which opened in 2018, honours the history of Indigenous ironworkers, including their role in the construction of the nearby Black Bridge (commonly known as Saint-Laurent Railway Bridge) in the 1890s. An image of the bridge runs along one wall of the interior space, and the tap designs incorporate tools as the levers.

The Picaroons brewery purchased the former Gibson Roundhouse from the City of Fredericton for $100, transforming it into a brewery and community space. The building, a recognized historic site dating back to 1885, had fallen vacant following its use as an automotive repair service centre. Facing outward to the Saint John River, this space offers an exceptional third space – a space between home and work – for community members to gather.

The Church Brewing Company in Wolfville, Nova Scotia offers a wonderful example of the cultural benefits of heritage conservation. Reconstructed in 1914 following a fire, the historic stone church offers a unique beer venue with stained glass windows and character defining interior and exterior elements. The brewery, which opened its doors in 2019, provides continued space for the community to congregate.

Established in 1997, the Gahan House in downtown Charlottetown was the first brewery on Prince Edward Island. The residential building housing the brewery was constructed in 1880 and was added to the Canadian heritage register in 2005 owing to its architectural value. The name of the brewery references John Gahan, a local merchant who once owned the home.

The 1840s brick building (named Yellow Belly Corner) housing the YellowBelly Brewery in St. John’s, Newfoundland in the Water Street National Historic District, is steeped in history. The building was registered as a heritage structure in 2006 owing to its nineteenth century commercial vernacular design. The brewery, opened in 2008, carries on the name of the building, a reference based on oral history to Irish immigrants from Wexford County who wore yellow sashes.

The Woodcutter’s Blanket – Bar & Brewery is housed in a small log house dating back to 1938 in Whitehorse, Yukon. The structure, registered on the Whitehorse Heritage Buildings list in 1995, has had a range of uses over the decades since its construction including office space and a taxidermy business (the latter of which added the two moose on the front which have enhanced the photographic appeal of the building). In the 1970s, the Widdershin Ltd development company moved the structure from its original location to its present spot. Continued restoration of the building across multiple owners has preserved this gem.