Still working on making their mark in the craft beer industry, the members of the Change Is Brewing collective also have their sights set on bigger things.
The four female and three male “solid” members of the collective, all Black or Indigenous, either work or have worked in the food or craft brewing industry.
They’re using that knowledge to “to promote diversity and inclusion in the industry.”
“Right now, we are dealing with the food and beverage industry, but we are not limiting ourselves,” said collective member Damian McCartney.
“Rozina Darvesh, one of the owners of North Brewing, touched on the fact that even though they’re a brewery, they do encompass different industries, such as carpentry, plumbing and (public relations). A lot of different facets go into the production of beer, so we want to include all these industries at the same time.”
McCartney said the collective members are very inspired by the work they’ve embarked on, even though they’re not often all together physically.
“Because we’re young professionals, we do all have our own abodes, but we do not have a central headquarters, or Batcave if you will,” McCartney said.
“We have different schedules, so it’s never an easy task. ... It’s very rare for all seven of us to sit down and actually collaborate. That’s why we rely heavily on social media.”
We are overwhelmed by the love and support you have all shown us! Thank you to everyone who came out for the launch last...
Posted by Change Is Brewing Collective on Wednesday, September 30, 2020
So far, the group is responsible for the creation of two beer collaborations. One with Good Robot, called Blackberry Freedom, quickly sold out. The most recent launch was with North Brewing, called Cherry Brook Wheat Ale, selling briskly at North’s facility on Portland Street in Dartmouth and at nearby Battery Park Beer Bar.
“Saturday was the first day we had it on,” said Battery Park owner George Christakos, who got a 50-litre keg. “We were only able to get one keg, so there must be a limited supply. The cool thing is that people are coming in specifically looking for it. It's not going to last long.”
Proceeds from the sale of Cherry Brook Wheat Ale will go to the collective’s works, and also to Blxckhouse, a company started by Change Is Brewing member LaMeia Reddick, who works with at-risk youth and puts on programs for them in North Preston.
Their beers are packaged in cans and in kegs. Details on a third collaboration are being worked out.
“And we actually have some breweries lined up that want to do collaborations, because they’ve heard about us through social media and different news outlets," McCartney said. "They’ve been inspired by our goals, what we stand for, and they also want to help us out, I guess.”
He thinks another reason breweries are interested in working with them is to get an in with communities they might not have yet penetrated.
Collective member Jayme-Lynn Gloade designs the beer labels, with help from Amber Zaza, and the group as a whole collaborates with the breweries to come up with the beers.
“It depends on the brewery at the time, their capacity, and what they have available,” McCartney said. “Most breweries have a finite amount of space for their regular beers and different collaborations.”
Another positive to working with North Brewing is that the brewery funds a diversity and inclusion scholarship that goes to someone looking to get in the beer industry or plumbing or carpentry. It’s worth $1,500 per year for four years and also includes a summer job.
The two beers made so far have used local blackberries and cherries as ingredients.
