G E T T I NG T O K NO W : RED CIRCLE BREWING CO & FIXED GEAR BREWING CO PREAMBLE & INTERVIEW BY CHRIS TIESSEN When we’re not publishing magazines, we’re branding businesses – most often restaurants, coffee shops and craft breweries. Two of our most recent branding projects include a couple local breweries that will be opening to the public just as this magazine goes to print: Red Circle Brewing Company in Kitchener and Fixed Gear Brewing Company in Guelph. Spearheaded by TOQUE’s design maven, Cai Sepulis, these specific projects have been absolutely fantastic to undertake as we’ve helped craft unique aesthetic identities for these emerging brewing enterprises. Red Circle Brewing Company is opening as part of Graffiti Market in the massive Catalyst137 maker space on Glasgow in Kitchener’s Belmont Village neighbourhood.
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Led by brewmaster Brett Croft and his incredible team (including brewer Shane Devison and Sales Territory Manager Will Hunter), Red Circle has got some real brewing clout behind it. And with a brand that’s rooted in the familiarity of Belmont Village and lore of Kitchener’s maker past, it’s positioned to become an instant regional favourite. Fixed Gear Brewing Company is the perfect archetype of a microbrewery – cozy, nimble and lean. Located in a stand-alone former garage in Guelph’s up-and-coming Junction neighbourhood, it’s only a matter of time before this brewery becomes the ‘local’ for many of the Royal City’s craft beer enthusiasts. Led by head brewer Mike Mayo, Fixed Gear plans to play up its bike-centric brand with sessionable beers that any (of age) cyclist can enjoy as a stop along the ride. We recently managed to pin down Brett and Mike just long enough to let them talk about their new babies… err… breweries. Over a couple cold ones, here’s what they had to say:
