ONE FOR THE ROAD
Microbrewery first in Windsor to offer home delivery
One for the road has taken on a new meaning at Brew microbrewery after the Windsor business became the first local craft brewer to launch a free online delivery service.
The brewery’s online sites, canadianmaplebeer.com and brewwindsor.com, began taking orders for cases of its popular Maple Beer late Friday afternoon. The orders will be delivered each Saturday afternoon to Windsor, Tecumseh, LaSalle and the town of Essex. Delivery will be available beyond those areas for a small fee automatically calculated as part of each order.
“Amazon has changed how people shop,” said Jordan Goure, head of marketing and co-owner of the brewery with his brother Joshua. “Working with the Beer Store is difficult. We’ve been thinking of ways to get our beer to people. “We’re allowed to deliver our beer directly to people and restaurants, so this is a way to do that.” The cost of a delivered 24-can case (473 ml/16-ounce cans) will be $70.35. The brewery will deliver the cases using its own truck. Only the Maple Beer will be available online and for each case ordered, the brothers will have a maple tree planted in Essex County. For special events, Goure said the brewery will accommodate delivery on other days given notice. “Our beer is priced similarly to premium and import beers at the Beer Store,” Goure said of the service.
“We’re not looking to be a beer store online. It’s just a way to meet the demand for access to our product.
“We frequently get asked: ‘How can we get your beer?’” In addition to local delivery, those living outside Essex County can receive it via Canada Post. However, Goure feels the online service is more aimed at local lovers of craft brew.
Those using the online service will have to provide proof of proper age on delivery.
Goure said they settled on offering their Maple Beer because it’s the only one of their products available in the tallboy cans and is by far their most popular brew. “We’ve been thinking about doing this for three years, but the logistics were challenging,” said Goure, who also expects to have Brew products in local grocery stores by summer. “Getting to the stage where we could offer the Maple Leaf beer in cans was a big step for us. It creates opportunities for us.”
The last four months have been spent with a web designer getting the technology in place to launch the service.
Goure said Toronto’s Steam Whistle Brewery launched a similar online service last year. “I think our customer base is the person that is ordering from Uber Eats or Skip The Dishes online food services,” said Goure, who has seen the brewery go from producing 10,000 litres in 2014 to 75,000 litres last year.
“We thought a beverage version of that would work.”
The decision to wrap in the planting of maple trees seemed a natural fit when the brothers were contemplating ways the brewery could give back to the community. “What’s more Canadian than 100 per cent pure maple syrup in your beer and planting maple trees?” said Goure, who said he and his brother have been nurturing a 15-acre woodlot in the county for several years. “Maybe some day, some of the syrup we use can be made from the trees we plant.”