Syd Ruhland wants to set up a tasting room at the Firehall Brewery. To do that he needs money and has come up with “Crowd Funding” method to raise over $12 thousand.

Syd writes: “Not only is the big empty room beside the brewery simply wasted space, but it’s also a currently unused license. When the Old Firehall was renovated and re-opened as the Wine Country Welcome Centre (years before the brewery was even conceived), the “Captain’s Room” got fully licensed. So the hardest part is done: getting municipal approval and zoning, and a provincial liquor license from the BCLCLB (British Columbia Liquor Control & Licensing Branch).

Since we’ve opened, the Bistro on the main floor of the Old Firehall building has had to suffer through continuously telling often-frustrated locals that the brewery itself is not open to the public, and retail beer to-go can only be purchased at liquor stores elsewhere.

The next obstacle is fronting the cash for equipment, renovations, and start-up expenses. If our spring campaign is successful and the Beer Shop & Social gets funded, we can get the ball rolling immediately and rock open the doors before summer. We’re pretty convinced that we brew delicious and wholesome beer, so the last thing left to do then is to bring in the people. With competitive pricing, a loyalty program, convenient operating hours, interactive social marketing, and a tasteful, social atmosphere, this should be no problem.

An average of 10,000 cars drive past the Old Firehall building on Highway-97 daily, and the local agri-tourism industry has been highly developed by the Okanagan Wine Industry. Wine Tours and tourists pass this building every day during the spring/summer/fall season, and many of them have been persistent in demanding a stop at our brewery be added to their list of offerings.”

Find out more: www.firehallbrewery.com