Canada, ON: Gateway City Brewing preparing to open in North Bay

There’s always room for another good brew.

That’s the attitude Gateway City Brewing has as a four-person team prepares to open North Bay’s newest craft brewery, The North Bay Nugget reported on August 29.

“There’s definitely room,” John “Sully” Sullivan said on August 28 as he and partners Mike Perreault, Jeff Hodge and brewmaster John Palko work on getting the suds flowing hopefully before the end of the year.

“It’s a growing industry,” Sullivan says. “As of last year, the Ontario Craft Brewers Association said craft beer, production wise, accounts for only six per cent of the market.

“There is a lot of room to grow.”

He says all craft breweries offer something different, and have received advice and help from other craft brewers.

The brewery is still in the construction phase, preparing their site at 600 Gormanville Rd. to begin production. Sullivan expects the facility will be completed in mid to late September, when they will begin the licensing phase.

But he admits they still have a way to go. Sullivan was unable to say how many different brews they will serve – they are aiming for licences to sell, serve and sample on site – or what quantities they hope to produce.

“It all depends on the licences,” Sullivan says, as well as government programs they may be able to access.

Sullivan, Perreault and Hodge are all long-time residents of the area, and while they have not been involved in brewing in the past, brewmaster Palko was head brewer for the Jasper Brewing Co. in Alberta.

“We want to showcase what North Bay has to offer,” Sullivan says.

His background is in marketing and sales, while they all have a background in business. Hodge’s parents were long-time owners of Music City in North Bay.

Sullivan says he hopes his business will be able to help grow the craft beer industry in the North, with an eye on getting a foot in the door of craft beer tourism in Northern Ontario.

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