By Chad Klassen

Red Collar not to benefit greatly from new liquor rules

Dec 8, 2015 | 1:45 PM

KAMLOOPS — As JP Lancaster makes his weekly beer deliveries around Kamloops, he has a dolley full of Red Collar beer, marveling at the growing in popularity in the craft brewery both locally and beyond. 

“Since the summer, we’ve seen a huge explosion,” says Lancaster, who does sales and marketing for Red Collar Brewing. “We’ve seen a trickle-down effect, people coming to our brewery, all of our accounts getting busier. People are just aware of the product. It’s awesome. That’s what our business is built on, being community-centre first.”

Red Collar started brewing last November before distributing to private liquor stores in January, including Sahali Liquor Store, which has carried it from the beginning. 

“We sell a ton of Red Collar,” says Linda Coles, manager of the Sahali Liquor Store. “We get a delivery every week, and also at the pub have some of the Red Collar on tap. Sales are very brisk, and not just because it’s local, it’s really good beer.”

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In August, Red Collar started showing up on B.C. Liquor Store shelves, nearly six months before the province recently allowed 12 non-listed products from breweries to be sold locally.

“We have had support locally. For about six months, we’ve been selling in five [BC Liquor] stores. That was a stipulation, where if you were able to deliver the product yourself, which we do, they would take you on,” says Lancaster.

Red Collar says it sells close to 15 cases of its IPA to the B.C. Liquor Store at Columbia Place, and sells up to 60 cases across the city. But beyond Kamloops, it’s been a tough selling getting product into government stores. 

“The recent changes, with the local allocations, doesn’t really do us much,” says Lancaster. “We’re penalized for where we’re located. We’re already in the Kamloops stores. It gave us one new store in Salmon Arm. The other potential ones that were given to us were rural B.C., so basically between here and Prince George and even further north.”

The issue is, Red Collar delivers locally, but logistically at this point can’t deliver up north. The brewery would like to deliver to government stores in places like Kelowna, but it’s not considered local under the new rules. 

But with private distribution, Red Collar has done well.

“We sell as far south as Penticton, and we’re in the Lower Mainland into Vancouver. That’s 100% based on private businesses taking us on. If it weren’t for those private stores, we would’ve been out of business eight or nine months ago,” says Lancaster.

Now the plan is to start distributing to Alberta, a solely private system that’s more favourable to craft breweries. 

Some B.C. Liquor Stores in Kamloops want even more craft beers on their shelves, including Crannog Ales out of Sorrento.