Running out of beer might not seem like a great start for a budding craft brewery, but for husband and wife team, Michael and Karen Kuzyk, it marked a sign of greater things to come and reassurance that pursuing a career change in Saanichton may not have been such a crazy idea after all.
Following years of planning, five days is all it took for patrons to drain the tanks at the company香蕉视频直播檚 funky new taproom on Keating Cross Road back in December of 2014.
香蕉视频直播淲e ran out of beer, so we had to close up shop for a few weeks,香蕉视频直播� says Karen.
The delay evidently didn香蕉视频直播檛 leave a bad taste in anyone香蕉视频直播檚 mouth as the brewery now employs 11 full-time staff, carries some 24 year-round and seasonal brews that can be found in shops across Victoria and beyond, and has imminent plans for a tasting room expansion and lounge.
Now fully immersed in their craft brewing experiment, the couple says it香蕉视频直播檚 hard to believe there was ever any doubt about the road they香蕉视频直播檝e chosen to travel together. Little more than five years ago, Michael was working at a scientific software company just down the road from the brewery. The job was the culmination of doctoral studies in microbiology and biochemistry at the , followed by a promising early research career. With two pre-teen children, Michael and Karen appeared to be living the dream, yet financial uncertainty and questions about their future had them searching for plan B.
| Category 12 Brewing owner and brewer Michael Kuzyk looks over his brewing tanks. Don Denton photograph. |
香蕉视频直播淚 didn香蕉视频直播檛 want to ever say, 香蕉视频直播業 wish we had tried香蕉视频直播� for the illusion of security and having a semi-regular paycheque,香蕉视频直播� says Karen. 香蕉视频直播淵ou香蕉视频直播檝e got one life, so what are you going to do?香蕉视频直播�
Fortunately, Michael wasn香蕉视频直播檛 only studying cellular structures and microscopic organisms during his university days; the Parkland Secondary grad had also cultivated a knack for home-brewing beer.
香蕉视频直播淚 had friends who were always saying, 香蕉视频直播榶ou should start a brewery,香蕉视频直播� but it was kind of a joke,香蕉视频直播� he says. 香蕉视频直播淭hen it just dawned on me following a round of layoffs at my office.香蕉视频直播�
When some of those friends who香蕉视频直播檇 suggested Michael consider brewing full time offered to invest, the prospect of launching the business suddenly became a real possibility.
Like many young home-brewers, a taste for good beer and a tight budget encouraged him to expand his hobby. Unlike many basement brewers, however, Michael香蕉视频直播檚 natural aptitude for experimentation, meticulous record keeping and the scientific method sent his beers in all manner of new directions.
A look through Category 12香蕉视频直播檚 eclectic selection is an exploration that pushes the boundaries of beer making.
香蕉视频直播淲e discovered that the anal retentiveness that helped him obtain his Ph.D is really applicable to different parts of the brewing business,香蕉视频直播� Karen says.
Karen, who confesses to being a 香蕉视频直播渨ine snob香蕉视频直播� in a previous life, says she developed a taste for ale when she learned about the variety of beers available, a discovery assisted by her husband香蕉视频直播檚 pastime. She says the specific beer that got her hooked was a full-bodied Belgian-style brew with a whopping alcohol content of just under 10 per cent.
The sum of Michael香蕉视频直播檚 brewing and scientific background, mixed with Karen香蕉视频直播檚 aptitude for design and marketing has created a unique gem in a province that offers some pretty stiff competition: a boutique brewery wedged into an industrial park that香蕉视频直播檚 churning out some impressive award-winning selections.
| List of the days beer offerings on tap in Category 12 Brewing taproom. Don Denton photograph |
香蕉视频直播淲e香蕉视频直播檝e been described as Mad Men meets Breaking Bad,香蕉视频直播� Karen says. 香蕉视频直播淭he industry has been and is increasingly so busy that having a genuine 香蕉视频直播榙ifferentiater香蕉视频直播� and having branding that represents something true to yourself is really important. That was a pathway that we embarked on very early on,香蕉视频直播� she says.
Part of that difference is evident by a glance at the brewery香蕉视频直播檚 intricately detailed labels, which were mostly inspired by real life events. Many offer insight about the pair香蕉视频直播檚 personalities and experience. Take the label of Hiatus, for example. A man and woman are on the deck of a ship sailing through a West Coast inlet. The woman leans on the railing, taking in the view as her partner sits on a nearby bench, focussed intently and writing in a journal. It only takes a few minutes with Michael and Karen to figure out who the couple in that label might be.
Disruption, an award-winning Black IPA, reveals an underground laboratory beneath the couple香蕉视频直播檚 Peninsula home. Inside, a figure is busily concocting the next great beer. Parked outside is the couple香蕉视频直播檚 faithful Volkswagen Westfalia.
Personal touches such as these are a good match to Category 12 Brewing香蕉视频直播檚 astounding range of flavour profiles. Unlike many craft breweries, Michael and Karen香蕉视频直播檚 tasting room limits their hoppy selections to about half of their taps. The rest are nods to experimentation and variety.
香蕉视频直播淭here香蕉视频直播檚 a common perception that all craft beer is really hoppy, but it香蕉视频直播檚 not. We want to show that there really are a lot of styles out there,香蕉视频直播� she says. 香蕉视频直播淥ne of our goals is to promote anything that broadens our customers香蕉视频直播� understanding of what beer is. We want everyone to know what香蕉视频直播檚 out there and we see our taproom as a way to bring them into the fold, expand their horizons and show them what beer can be.香蕉视频直播�
| Patrons take in the viewing of the brewing tanks from a seat inside the Category 12 Brewing tasting room. Don Denton photograph |
In addition to Michael香蕉视频直播檚 sense of curiosity and experimentation, the secret of Category 12香蕉视频直播檚 diverse and ever-evolving menu of brews stems from his infatuation with yeasts and bacteria. Whereas many breweries focus on different hop varieties for flavour, Michael teases out an additional layer of variables by turning to an amazing variety of yeasts, which he grows onsite in his brewing lab.
香蕉视频直播淢any places use one or two yeast strains and that香蕉视频直播檚 good enough for most breweries, but I actually find how wild yeast and bacteria fit into the historical production of food very fascinating so we香蕉视频直播檙e always experimenting,香蕉视频直播� he says.
And that香蕉视频直播檚 good news for craft beer lovers on the Saanich Peninsula, because it means Category 12 Brewing isn香蕉视频直播檛 likely to run out of beer again any time soon.
-Story by Sean McIntyre Photographs by Don Denton
Story courtesy of , a Black Press Media publication
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