GrainsWest Summer 2018

The Food Issue 2018 grainswest.com 37 a similar desire and they all agreed to become partners on the project. The Geeraerts stress that all parties have been very hands-on, working collaboratively to grow the business. OFF AND BREWING With that, Kyle signed up Lane Gordon, another former co-worker, as Origin’s head maltster. The two trained at the Canadian Malting Barley Technical Centre’s Malt Academy in Winnipeg and also travelled to Fargo where they trained in making malt on a prototype of their own equipment prior to its delivery. As the Geeraerts secured and applied for the rezoning of a former oilfield parts store, they did not foresee brewing competitors emerging in their area. However, just as they had purchased their malting and brewing equipment, Kyle discovered that another brewing licence had been approved in Strathmore for Nick Patterson, an old acquaintance. Knowing the town could not support two breweries, and that Patterson’s interest lay heavily in hands-on beer making, Kyle offered him the head brewer position at Origin, which he gamely accepted. “From there, it was trial and error,” Kyle said. “At the same time, we faced a stereotype circulating in our community that the opening of a brewery would be like the opening of a nightclub. Changing that has been one of the toughest things we’ve had to deal with.” Since then, Origin has earned community loyalty by using the taproom to support causes the Geeraerts care about, including the prevention of domestic violence. Recently, they also hosted an event to raise funds for their local Royal Canadian Legion branch in which members assisted Patterson in creating a batch of beer. The Geeraerts have also noticed that their success is being mirrored outside Alberta’s two big cities. “Rural breweries are taking off and gaining more consumer interest,” Kyle said. “It’s so good for this industry.” “We’re seeing this in smaller communities like Cochrane, High River and Okotoks,” Meleah added. Now a finely tuned operation, Origin offers a variety of craft base malts and specialty malts for use by craft breweries as well as home brewers. Troy Kamphuis-Finnigan of Calgary’s Rapid Ascent Brewing Company said Origin’s malt lent just the right taste to his first beer. Origin’s miniature pilot brewing system allows brewers to test malts and taste the finished product ahead of purchasing a large quantity. “I was looking for a specific taste profile and I was able to taste a sample with some subtleties that really helped put the crispness and sweetness into Finnigan’s Irish Pale Ale,” he said. He added that he liked the fact Origin uses barley grown on the Hilton farm. “Family grown, family story, family owned—I liked the local closeness of their whole story. It was a very motivating factor for me to reach out to them.” Alberta Small Brewers Association chair Neil Herbst congratulated the startup brewers on their early success at the Alberta Beer Awards. “For their first year there, it’s very impressive,” he said. “Consumers are looking for local and so are brewers. It’s nice to see themmaking local specialty malts using local grain.” THE NEXT GENERATION The Origin story continues as expansion plans are already in motion—both business and family. The Geeraerts announced in April that the business purchased a whole new array of equipment from an existing brewery in California. Scheduled to arrive in July, the system will triple beer production and is expected to be fully operational by Origin’s first anniversary. Soon after, in September, the couple also expects to celebrate the arrival of their new baby. Their growing family has the Geeraerts looking ahead to their own future but also at the future of the family farm. “Farmers really need to start thinking about the big picture,” said Kyle. “If we want to see the sixth and seventh generations returning to operate the farm, we’re going to need two to three times the land we currently have in order to support them. If we can start finding other ways to make the farm work for us, other businesses still directly tied to agriculture, it can also be a draw to younger generations to return to the farm in various roles, while better supporting their families at the same time.” Origin’s Last Post Brown Ale took best of show at the 2018 Alberta Beer Awards, one of four awards won by the brewery.