After getting an important liquor licence, the owners of a brewery in Blenheim are counting down the weeks until they officially begin production.
Red Barn Brewing Company, located on Lagoon Road, got its excise license in late February. That federal licence ensures that brewing tanks are calibrated correctly and is needed in order for a brewery to receive a manufacturing licence to sell beer.
The soon-to-be brewery is a family affair -- owned by Denny Vervaet along with his wife Sandy and brother-in-law Daniel English.
According to Denny, the trio just received word on Friday that the brewery was approved for its manufacturing license as well.
"You kind of step back and think of where we started and where we're at now, the process that we've had to follow to get to this point. That's kind of like the top of the cake, is getting that final licence and we can legally sell beer," he said.
A year ago, Red Barn Brewing was an empty field located next to the family's farm. A groundbreaking ceremony took place in April 2019 and since then, construction on the brewery has been an ongoing effort.
According to Sandy, the production and distribution side of things is almost finished. The establishment will also feature a tasting room and offer beer for sale, which Sandy said should be up and running by mid-summer.
"We're getting so close. Hopefully, we'll be brewing in the next couple of weeks," she said. "The plan is to be in a few local restaurants first while we continue to work on the tasting room and finishing that up."
Sandy added that the support that the project has received from the community has been incredible.
"It's amazing," she said. "Just the number of connections we've made through this. Everyone's been so supportive. Everyone's just excited to have a brewery in Blenheim."