Highlander details major expansion, new Canadore College brewing certification

South River, ON – Highlander Brew Co. today announced it will undertake a major brewery expansion along Highway 124 in the downtown commercial district of South River in partnership with FedNor, Northern Ontario Heritage Fund Corporation (NOHFC), and the Village of South River.

The new space at the heart of South River will host Highlander’s expanded brewing facilities, in addition to hospitality and event space for the Central Almaguin region.

“This is outstanding news for the people and businesses of the Village of South River and the entire Almaguin Highlands region, said Jim Coleman, Mayor of South River. “We’re pleased for this Government of Canada investment which will help us create local jobs, jump start the development of our newly designated commercial business district along Highway 124, and strengthen the economic outlook for the entire region.”

Highlander will migrate its existing brewing system and fermentation vessels while also acquiring acquiring numerous larger capacity fermentation and aging vessels to maximize and diversify production.

The new brewing facilities will also be made available for contract brewers requiring additional brewing capacity.

Initial engineering of the new building are underway with construction expected to begin in Spring 2015 with a target completion date of September 2015.

Brewing an Education with Canadore College

A new brewing education training program will be offered at the South River facility through a partnership with North Bay’s Canadore College under development in conjunction with Highlander Brew Co. and other northern members of the Ontario Craft Brewers.

“The certificate training program will be of 4 -6 month duration with the goal of making assistant brewers available to existing and start up breweries,” explains Highlander Brew Co. President, Dwayne F. Wanner. “Students will be paid while working at the brewery and tuition fees will be nominal.”

A crowd funding initiative is planned to aid in financing the training program and will be announced shortly