Tapping into the beer boom: Nearly 20 microbreweries set to be open in N.L. by 2019

With nearly 20 breweries set to be open in the province by 2019, Newfoundland and Labrador is definitely on the craft-beer bandwagon.

We're really looking at summer 2019 as being the birth of beer again in Newfoundland.- Chris Conway

Several small breweries have launched over the last few years across Newfoundland, in places such as in Port Rexton, Port Au Port EastandPasadena.

According to brewer and beer blogger Chris Conway, the province is just starting to get in on a trend that's been sweepingthe U.S. and the rest of Canada for more than a decade.

"It seems like a lot in just the Newfoundland context, but if you look at larger national context in provinces like Nova Scotia and New Brunswick, we are way, way behind," he told the St. John's Morning Show.

Conway and his wife founded a brewpub in Toronto before moving back to Newfoundland with plans to launch a new one in the St. John's area. Through his blog newfoundlandbeer.org, he's been tracking the development of craft beer in the province over the last few years.

2019: Year of beer?

He said it will take time for recently-announced microbreweries to go through the environmental assessment process. Three proposals are now at that stage.

Most should be clear to open by next year, he said.

"We're really looking at summer 2019 as being the birth of beer again in Newfoundland."

What's interesting about the craft beer renaissance in Canada's most eastern province is that many of the new breweries are not in St. John's, but are spread out across rural areas.

Conway said de-centralization is good to see, and that craft breweries are actually drawing "beer tourists" to small communities that are off the beaten track.

"It's going to drive tourism to all these towns and communities, just for people to say 'I want to go try a beer,'" he said.

"We've seen this so well with Port RextonBrewing Company, who have driven tons and tons of people out to Port Rexton."

Most of the microbreweries that have already opened are having trouble keeping up with demand. YellowBelly and Quidi VidiBreweries seem to be the only two local breweriesbig enough to keep up with demand year-round.

That leads Conway to believe the industry has a lot of opportunity to grow.

"Newfoundland's market could probably deal with four or five Quidi Vidi-sized breweries," he said.

"Everybody that opens sells out of beer immediately. Port Rexton is struggling to keep up and we just saw Bootleg Brew Co. open in Corner Brook and they were open for the weekend and just had to shut down because they were out of beer."

A list of open or proposed N.L. microbreweries can be found below:

• Secret Cove Brewing Company - Port Au Port East (opening soon).
• ScudrunnerBrewery - Gander (opening soon).
• Dildo Brewing Company - Dildo (opening soon).
• RoughWatersBrewing Company- Burin Peninsula (opening soon).
• Baccalieu Trail Brewing Company - Bay Roberts (undergoing environmental assessment).
• BoomstickBrewing Company - Corner Brook (undergoing environmental assessment).
• BrigusBrewing Company -Brigus(undergoing environmental assessment).
• Iron RockBrewing Company - Labrador City (undergoing environmental assessment).
• LandwashBrewery - Mount Pearl (undergoing environmental assessment).
• NinepennyBrewing Company Inc. - Conception Bay South (environmental assessment complete).
• Split Rock Brewing Company -Twillingate(open).
• Western Newfoundland Brewing Company - Pasadena (open).
• PortRextonBrewing Company - PortRexton(open).
• Crooked Feeder Brewing Company - Cormack (in development).
• Bootleg Brew Company - Corner Brook (open).
• RagnaRckNorthern Brewing - St. Anthony (indevelopment).
• The Fire Hall - St. John's (in development).
• Motion Bay- Petty Harbour (in development).