Shocking news to craft beer lovers in the area, the South River Brewing Company, formerly Highlander, is going out of business at the end of February.
In a Facebook post, owner Dwayne Wanner says, "Founded in 2009, it is with heavy-felt hearts that we have made the VERY DIFFICULT DECISION to close our brewery on February 29, 2024."
Wanner says the last four years have been "exceedingly difficult" for the brewery.
"Please know how grateful we are for your trust, confidence and support as our customers and to all fellow brewers for whom we have manufactured and canned products. We have been negotiating with a series of buyers over the last year and are still in talks with several groups. However, we are uncertain that these discussions will yield a positive result in the near term."
The post adds that the owners are taking all necessary steps to ensure that the transition is as smooth as possible for everyone involved.
In 2020 New Ontario Brewing, a North Bay company, expanded by taking over the production of all Highlander Brewing Company products, formerly brewed in South River.
At the time, South River Brewery was planning to move production to Ottawa or southern Ontario, but after consultation with New Ontario Brewing, decided to keep all Highlander Brewing production in northern Ontario.
See: New Ontario Brewing takes over production of South River's Highlander Brewing products
That announcement by New Ontario Brewing led to confusion in the marketplace said owner Dwayne Wanner at the time.
"The brewery in South River has not changed ownership or discontinued operations. The decision to change the name of the brewery is a reflection of our commitment to the community of South River with whom we have worked for the past eight years to develop a destination."
In an email to BayToday Friday (Fed. 26) Wanner denied a move was planned. "We never intended to move to Ottawa or southern Ontario. In fact, the duplicitous actions of some caused us to lose the brand name HIghlander. So we adopted the name South River, which we were planning to do anyway. We never consulted with New Ontario on anything."
Wanner said that the owners of the brewery had personally invested several millions of dollars in the enterprise and were committed to continuing to develop the business in the community of South River.
See: 'Hey, we're still open' says South River Brewing
Now, unless new owners can be found, the brewery is closing for good.
"To clear out our inventory, our beer is on sale for only $2/can except our Imperial Stout which is $4/can. Please stop in our brewery or shop online to purchase South River Brewing beer before it’s all gone.
"Thank you for (almost) 15 years wonderful years"
