Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Adam Donnelly

GREG STEWART

Kamloops breweries collaborate on Shot of Gold 2.0 in support of local Paralympic champ

May 9, 2024 | 7:00 PM

KAMLOOPS — Like the five families of the Italian-American mafia, the five craft breweries of Kamloops gathered on Thursday afternoon (May 9) at Iron Road Brewing.

Representatives from Iron Road, Alchemy, Red Collar, The Noble Pig and Bright Eye all together to celebrate the first of four batches of ‘Shot of Gold 2.0,’ the fundraiser beer inspired by 2020 Paralympic champion Greg Stewart.

“I often get people asking, ‘Hey Greg, when are you brewing your beer again?’” Stewart tells CFJC Today. “I’m like “I didn’t really brew any beer,’ and they’re like, ‘No, when you did that Shot of Gold thing.’ That’s been a conversation I’ve had quite a bit — so yeah. Shot of Gold 2.0. Here it comes.”

Stewart had to ensure his nutritional needs were met after a rigorous training session while the brewers slaved away over a steaming mash tun, making sure the golden, German-style ale came out just right.

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“We had a little email chain going around the city trying to decide which beer might suit this situation the best,” Aaron MacInnis, head brewer at Iron Road, explains. “We all decided that a Kolsch would be a good way to go. It’s nice and clean and drinks like a lager.

The first run of Shot of Gold came out in February 2022, several months after Stewart’s triumph in Tokyo, and sold out in about a week. Proceeds then went to CANFund, an organization that has helped fund Greg’s journey in para-track and field.

“Greg is one of the nicest guys I’ve ever met, and anyone who’s met him — which is a lot [of people] in Kamloops — would say the same thing,” Jared Tarswell, one of the owners of Iron Road Brewing, says. “It’s fun to get behind something that he cares about and help support him.”

According to CANFund, 3-in-5 athletes are in debt and have a negative net income while training to compete in events like the Olympics and Paralympics. With expenses on the rise, the need for support has only grown.

“When I was training for Tokyo, I realized I was spending about $1,000 a month, just on food, just for myself,” Stewart says. “There are a lot of costs, and that’s back in 2020, 2021.”

For Stewart, this collaboration between local breweries embodies a community coming together to help raise athletes as they pursue their athletic dreams of representing Canada on the Olympic and Paralympic stages.

“To have Bright Eye, Iron Road, Alchemy, the Noble Pig and Red Collar come together and share a love for their passion, which is brewing beer, but also to come together and have laughter and share stories and learn from one another is exactly what support does,” Stewart says.

The beer should be ready in just over a month. The plan is to celebrate with a launch party and silent auction event early in June, with proceeds from that event and sales of Shot of Gold 2.0 earmarked for CANFund and to support Greg’s training for the 2024 Paralympics in Paris.