Most of us order beer after work. But not Orest Poluch.
Every Monday morning, he goes into the office, picks up the phone and starts ordering beer – from as many as 52 craft breweries, and all before noon.
As the assistant manager at the Speedvale LCBO, Guelph’s destination store for craft beer, one of his jobs is to gauge weekend sales and ensure shelves will be well stocked for craft beer aficionados when the weekend rolls around.
Ordering for this Saturday was a little different.
From noon to 5 p.m., the Speedvale store will present the second annual Beers for Bracelets event. It’s a craft beer tasting event with 12 breweries, including Guelph’s Wellington Brewery, Descendents Beer and Beverage company of Kitchener, Innocente Brewing Company of Waterloo and Cowbell Brewing Co. from Blythe.
Proceeds from the event will go towards the Bracelet of Hope program, a charitable community-based organization that raises awareness of the HIV/AIDS pandemic in sub-Saharan Africa and funds for HIV/AIDS relief in Lesotho, Africa, where infection is rampant.
The program was founded by Guelph physician and regional HIV specialist Dr. Anne Marie Zajdlik.
Poluch says the event has two purposes: to help support the bracelet program, and to further raise the profile of fresh Ontario craft beer.
“Tastings are fun, and the Bracelet of Hope program is a very good cause,” he says. “We’re glad to support both in this way.”
The breweries will be stationed throughout the Speedvale store, along with Planet Bean coffee and Quican bread.
Poluch is optimistic that the event, for which participants will pay $10 for four tasting tickets, will raise $700 in its sophomore year. Last year’s inaugural event took place the same weekend that labour negotiations involving the union representing LCBO workers went down to the wire. Fortunately, the two sides settled, but it created some uncertainty around the event’s work up.
Not this year. Poluch says it’s full steam ahead, and anticipates the store’s customers will appreciate the opportunity to sample the variety of craft beer he’s assembled.
“The craft beer sector has become even more active than it was a year ago, with new breweries coming on all the time,” he says. “We’re No. 1 in the city for craft beer selection, so I’m glad we could take a leadership position and give our customers something different. You couldn’t offer this kind of event in the beer section of a grocery store.”
Cowbell’s territory manager Zak Gordon stopped by the Speedvale store when I was there Wednesday. He says the craft beer market is continuing to reach new heights.
“It’s an exciting time… every new brewery has their niche and goals within the industry, and it’s fascinating to see how they play out,” he says. “We push one another for better quality, innovation and representation in Ontario, and collectively we’re making some great progress. Support from the LCBO has been fantastic and events like this are no exception.”
