Brewing up a collection

Seven years ago Jim Pace made a wooden bottle for his father-in-law’s 80th birthday. It was a Drambuie bottle. “We used do a shot of Drambuie before every meal,” said Pace, at the Niagara Brewery Collectibles Club Trade Show at Welland Historical Museum Saturday.

The event, which ran from 9 a.m. to 2 p.m., was put on by The Beer Collectors Club of Niagara. The two year old club has 125 members in Niagara

He said his father-in-law had given him all of his tools before his 80th birthday, and he was trying to figure out what to get him. The idea of the wooden bottle came to mind and he used the tools he was given to make it.

“I used wood from the place we both worked, Stelpipe.”

Seeing his father-in-law’s reaction to the wooden bottle, which also contained a cigar, Pace decided to build up an inventory of similar bottles.

“Larry (Lemelin, founder and club president) caught wind that I was making the bottles and invited me to make a presentation at the beer. The members were all quite impressed and they talked me into joining the club.”

Pace said he’s been a member for just more than a year and added the club is a lot of fun.

At Saturday’s buy and trade show, he had a number of wooden bottles for sale, including wine, liquor and various beer bottles.

“I make them as detailed as I can. It takes about 10 to 15 hours to make each one,” Pace said. Lemelin said the tea was held to introduce the residents of Welland and Niagara to the concept of breweriana, the collecting of beer cans, bottles, openers, coasters, beer trays, wooden cases and neon signs associated to one brewery or brand.

“Everyone is familiar with stamp and coin collecting and so forth. This hobby has been going on since 1970, and we’re hoping to raise awareness.

“We want to promote the collecting and preserving of brewery histories.”

Lemelin said brewing has a history of reaching back to the 1920s and 1930s in the Niagara Peninsula, and added there 14 craft breweries in the region now, with two more on the way, one in Welland and one in Port Colborne.

On display at the club trade show were bottles from the Cronmiller and White Brewery, which sat on the east side of Port Colborne, and was the former Jacob North Brewery, and operated from the late 1800s to 1919.

“We have an old seltzer bottle from the brewery, which later moved to Welland became the Welland Brewery,” he said.

Club members meet once a month and membership costs $10. The next meeting is Monday in Port Colborne. For more information about the club and to join call Lemelin at 1-800-517-8708 or also visit www.bccaniagara.ca.