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Muskoka Brewery on Ontario’s Evolving Craft Beer Industry
Episode 2 • 1st August 2025 • Making it in Ontario • Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing
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Ontario’s craft brewing industry boomed in the 2010s, rising from  50 breweries in 2010 to more than 350 today. Todd Lewin had a front row seat for it, and helped Muskoka Brewery scale into one of the leading Canadian-owned breweries in Ontario. In this episode, Todd discusses his beer career journey from selling Molson to leading Muskoka Brewery, the brewery’s evolving strategy as demand for beer has plateaued, and where he expects the industry to go from here.

  • 00:00 Introduction to Ontario's Manufacturing Sector and Muskoka Brewery
  • 04:30 Todd Lewin's Career Journey
  • 07:33 Mergers, Acquisitions, and the Rise of Ontario's Craft Beer Industry
  • 12:26 Muskoka Brewery's Growth and Strategy
  • 17:42 Leadership and Challenges in the Brewing Industry
  • 20:04 Investing in Growth
  • 23:19 Ontario’s Craft Brewing Ecosystem
  • 29:03 Tapping Into Evolving Consumer Demands: Beer, RTD, and Non-Alcoholic
  • 39:58 The Future of Ontario's Craft Beer Industry

Find Out More about Muskoka Brewery

  • Website: muskokabrewery.com
  • LinkedIn: linkedin.com/company/muskokabrewery
  • Facebook: facebook.com/muskokabrewery
  • Instagram: instagram.com/muskokabrewery
  • TikTok: tiktok.com/@muskokabrewery

Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing Reports on Craft Brewing

Find Out More About Trillium

About the Making it in Ontario Podcast

Making it in Ontario is your window into what's next in manufacturing. Ontario’s economy depends on manufacturing, but the latest research reveals concerning trends that could undermine the sector’s strength—if we don’t address them. Join us as we talk to CEOs and other leaders at the forefront of the sector about productivity, strategy, talent markets and career opportunities, and the role of manufacturing in a prosperous and sustainable future.

This podcast is an initiative of the Trillium Network for Advanced Manufacturing. It is produced by Storied Places Media.

Transcripts

Michelle Samson:

Welcome to Making it in Ontario, your window into what's next in

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Ontario's manufacturing sector from the

data driven researchers at the Trillium

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Network for Advanced Manufacturing.

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I'm Michelle Samson.

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Brendan Sweeney: And I'm Brendan Sweeney.

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So Michelle, the Trillium Network

for Advanced Manufacturing is mostly

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known for its work in the automotive

industry, around automation and tooling.

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But did you know that in 2020 we wrote

a groundbreaking report on the growth

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of Ontario's craft brewing industry?

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Michelle Samson: Groundbreaking?

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Brendan Sweeney: Well, I mean, in 2019

and:

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look around and go, yeah, there's a lot

more craft breweries then there was 10

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years ago, 15 years ago, 20 years ago,

but no one had actually quantified it.

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Michelle Samson: Hmm.

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Brendan Sweeney: Or really dug

into, Hey, you know, these are

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the reasons why this had happened.

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And you know, this isn't an

industry that in Ontario, you know,

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until 1984 or so, wasn't allowed.

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And then there was a boom, and then there

was a bust, and then there was another

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boom and it went from about 50 breweries

in:

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And now there's more than 350 today.

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And you know, really when you think

about if you're in Ontario and you're

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drinking craft beer, think about

when that brewery was established.

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And with the exception of a handful, Steam

Whistle, Granite, Perth, you know, it was

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probably established in like 2014 or 2017.

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Michelle Samson: Hmm.

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Brendan Sweeney: So there was some

really, really, really rapid growth.

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And that growth was the result

of a combination of things.

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Consumer interest in, in craft

beer and changing consumer tastes.

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Partly about kind of the

de-Canadianization of the three

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biggest breweries in Ontario, run

by Molson Labatts and Sleeman.

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Once they were Canadian, now they aren't.

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They're a combination of

Brazilian, US, and Japanese.

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And then also some really important policy

changes around:

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really helped smaller producers thrive.

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Michelle Samson: What a time it was

to be a beer drinker in Ontario.

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Every time you went to the bar, there

was a new option on tap and the sample

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boards were getting larger and larger.

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Brendan Sweeney: We're gonna hear

about that from someone who lived

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the boom and is really leading the

way in craft brewing in Ontario.

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And this is Todd Lewin.

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Todd is the president and a partner

in Muskoka Brewery, of the leading

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Canadian owned breweries in Ontario.

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Really one of two Canadian owned

breweries that are kind of in

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a beer manufacturer category.

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I mean, we cover a lot of ground

in a relatively short period of

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time in this, we're going to hear

about Muskoka Brewery's particular

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market strategy and how that differs

from a lot of other breweries.

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We're gonna about Todd's approach to

leadership, and we're going to hear

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about how Muskoka's mix has changed

and not changed over the years.

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Some really, really, uh, interesting

and detailed discussion there.

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Michelle Samson: We're even going to hear

some new terms that you might not have

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heard before, including zebra striping.

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What is that?

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And # extend your occasion.

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Brendan Sweeney: Extend your occasion!

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Michelle Samson: We're not gonna

define those in this intro.

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We're gonna make you, uh, wait and listen.

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But we will say, it has to do

with the rise of non-alcoholic

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beer options that have been

coming out and gaining popularity.

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And, uh, a brief note that isn't mentioned

within the interview, but is worth

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noting if Muskoka's Cream Ale was one

of your favorites, but you have since

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moved away from beer, maybe you've

moved to those non-alcoholic options.

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Well, a non-alcoholic Cream Ale is

rolling out as we speak and may even be

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at your local beer provider right now.

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Brendan Sweeney: So Todd,

welcome to the podcast.

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Looks like some exciting times up in

Muskoka with summer, with hiring, with

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growth, with some new policy changes

that will affect the industry in Ontario.

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Again, welcome, great to have you.

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Todd Lewin: Thanks, Brendan.

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Yeah, happy to be here.

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And, uh, finally some good summer

beer weather, so happy to have it.

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Brendan Sweeney: You have been in

the brewing, beer, beverage industry

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for a while, both on the craft

side and on kind of the major side.

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Why don't you walk us through how

you got into the industry, your

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career with Muskoka, your career with

Molson, what you've seen, how you

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got here, how things have changed.

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No stone left unturned.

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Todd Lewin: Yeah, it's been a bit

of an adventure and hard to believe,

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you know, I've been 27 years in

beer, so that's about half my

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life, which is a little bit scary.

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And kind of out of university, I was

working up at a resort at a place near

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Collingwood called Talisman Mountain

Resort, it's no longer but was a great

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family resort, teaching skiing and running

some of the golf facilities in the summer.

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Ended up doing a bunch of cross

promotions with Molson back then

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in terms of the golf course.

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And later that summer, you know, was

offered a position in sales with Molson.

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That would've been 1998.

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And then had a great position as

a sales rep up in cottage country,

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kind of a bit in the Muskoka area,

Wasaga Beach, Blue Mountain area.

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So I had a great territory and

loved it, was a great team.

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And kind of got onto the brand side, went

and relocated to head office for three or

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four years as, you know, brand manager.

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Got into field marketing as

field marketing director and then

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eventually evolved that into a

sales director role at Molson.

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As sometimes happens with those large

multinational companies, there was a

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downsizing and there was a significant

e, I guess it was the fall of:

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and I got caught up in that and wasn't

sure at that point what I wanted

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to do, if I wanted to stay in beer.

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I was exploring a bunch of different

options at that point, and it was kind

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of an exciting time as you're looking

at a bunch of different industries.

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And had met Gary McMullen, who is the

founder of Muskoka Brewery and Bob

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MacDonald, who was as of then his new

partner, and had some great conversations.

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And at that point, you know,

that would've been late:

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And the craft movement was just

really starting to get started,

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and I saw the opportunity.

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Muskoka Brewery was pretty small at that

point, but saw where the craft industry

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had the potential to go and with some

good investment behind us, and knowing

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I had good partners with Gary and Bob,

that it was an opportunity to jump at.

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So I joined Muskoka Brewery in spring of

:

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took over the President's role in 2017.

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So, yeah, it's been quite a journey

and I'm sure we'll get into it, but,

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you know, where the industry is now

compared to where it was back in

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2011 when I joined, or even prior

to that when I was with Molson.

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It's amazing the changes that this whole

brewing beer industry has gone through in

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that 27 years that I've been part of it.

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Brendan Sweeney: In the Molson

days, and I think it was:

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is when Molson and Coors merged.

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Correct?

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Todd Lewin: Yeah, I think

it was around that time.

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Yeah.

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Brendan Sweeney: What were the

effects immediately in Canada, in

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the brewing industry of that merger?

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At the same time, Labatts is merging,

Sleeman is being acquired by Sapporo.

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What happened and what was the,

uh, what were the effects of those

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immediately and maybe over the long term?

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Todd Lewin: Yeah, it was definitely

felt, it was definitely noticeable.

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You know, I remember when I first started

with Molson, just being so proud to

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have my name on that business card.

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You know, a true Canadian

company, the Molson family was

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really involved, knew the team.

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And then post 2005 and the merger,

you felt things change a little bit.

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Things shifted.

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I think more of the direction was

coming stateside, and maybe some of that

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connection that we felt we had to the

Canadian or Ontario market maybe was gone.

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And when I got to Muskoka, I think as

we grew and grew quite quickly, that

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was something I was always conscious

of, retaining all those things that

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make a great culture, and despite growth

making sure that those key things that

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made you successful, you know, you don't

lose those as you grow and your team

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still feels connected and like a team.

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Each customer is just as important as

they were when you only had a handful.

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So I think it was pretty impactful for

me and really something as I joined a

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much smaller company in Muskoka Brewery

that I always tried to stay focused on.

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Brendan Sweeney: And so, I mean, 2010

was really a start of an interesting

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decade for the Canadian-owned or for

the craft beer industry in Canada.

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There had been some, I think it was

:

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had just around that time moved back to

Ontario from Seattle, from spending some

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time at the University of Washington.

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And so I'd kind of seen what

craft scene was like in Seattle,

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in Portland at the time.

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And then got to witness as a consumer,

as an interested consumer, the growth

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of craft beer in Ontario in 2019.

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We did the report to really

quantify it, but you lived it.

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Tell us about the differences from

:

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beer industry, from 2010 to 2015 to

:

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as measured by the number of craft

breweries in Ontario is phenomenal.

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I mean, fivefold, sixfold growth,

and you know, Muskoka was kind

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of there for the whole thing and

leading the way for much of it.

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Todd Lewin: Yeah, thinking back

on it, it was such an exciting

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time to be part of craft beer.

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To your point, Brendan, it

just, everybody was growing.

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Everybody was winning.

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That old saying, tide

rises all boats was true.

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Everybody was growing, jobs were

being added, new breweries were

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popping up in all these communities.

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The cool thing was especially a

lot of rural communities, which

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was awesome, that really needed

the employment and needed the jobs.

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It was such a, you know, especially me

coming from a bigger business, it was

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such a collaborative industry and hard

for people to get their head around

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that, you know, if one brewery ran

out of hops or malt or needed hand or

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a brewer to come in and take a look

at something, everybody was sharing.

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It was an industry that was so unique

and most had never been part of that.

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I think when I arrived and got in

this business, it was probably only

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about 50 or 60 craft breweries in

Ontario, and now there's about 350.

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So think of that explosive growth over

that time period and back when you go to

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the smaller conferences or beer festivals,

or beer dinners or the, you know, OCB

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conference, you kind of knew everybody.

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All of the key players and breweries,

and you tried a lot of their beers.

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And now even for me being in the

industry, it's tough to know everybody.

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You go, you know, the Ontario Craft

Brewers conference is held every fall,

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and this year it's gonna be in Hamilton.

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You don't know many there anymore.

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It's great, the growth of it and

number of people that are there.

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But the industry's shifted as well.

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Uh, obviously lots of challenges.

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We talk to the team about this quite

often, there's always a major curve

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ball, I think, every year thrown at you.

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I remember, there obviously there was a

major can shortage pre pandemic and it

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caused a lot to scramble in the industry.

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Obviously the pandemic was a challenge

for a ton of breweries and a huge,

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you know, whole bunch of pivots

that went on during that time to

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continue to keep the doors open.

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A lot of us did really well through that.

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Then obviously it was challenging

coming out of the pandemic with

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the whole kind of hospitality and

tourism industry not really rebounding

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like everybody thought they would.

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A high taxation.

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Now obviously with tariff challenges, it

seems like there's lots of challenges.

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So, the way that the industry's really

shifted is, I think maybe some of that

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real collaborative spirit and that

momentum when everybody's winning, it's

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evolved into now you have to have a

really solid team, a really good business

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plan to continue to grow and move

forward, 'cause it's tough out there.

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Brendan Sweeney: So in, around 2010,

joining a company that's set to

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grow with 25 employees, um, by the

time you became president in:

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you had more than 100 employees.

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And in Ontario for craft breweries, with

more than 100 employees that puts you

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in a very, very small bracket with Steam

Whistle and maybe one or two others today.

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Todd Lewin: That's it.

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Brendan Sweeney: How

does the culture evolve?

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How do the operations evolve?

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How does the strategy evolve over time?

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What can you keep from the

elements that helped you grow,

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and what do you have to change?

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Todd Lewin: Yeah there's a lot there,

Brendan, I'll be honest with you.

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So, I think a part of it, maybe what

separates us apart is, you're right,

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we fall north of that microbrewery

kind of classification into a small

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beer manufacturer, and there's

really just two of us there in

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Ontario, with us and Steam Whistle.

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And one of the big differences when you

look at maybe how many breweries back

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in say 2010 or 2011 we were bunched

in with around the same scale and same

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size even in terms of volume output

or even number of employees, is we

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always set out to build a real brand.

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I think when Bob McDonald first

got together with Gary, it was

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really about building a long term

sustainable brand and thinking about

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the business longer term in terms of

the investments to make that happen.

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So I think we've always been

very strategic there in terms

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of looking at the long term.

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And the other thing is early on we pulled

together our brewery values and mission.

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And we're very proactive with

communication with those.

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They're not just posted up in a

boardroom for employees to look at,

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you know, at the annual meeting.

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We talk about them all the time

with the team on a weekly or

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monthly basis before a lot of our

meetings, before sales meetings.

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At offsites, we talk to

our customers about them.

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So, you know, I think that's

been part of it for us.

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A big part of it is the strategy, and

then even though the revenue and from a

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profitability perspective wasn't there

early on, knowing that we needed to build

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the team and the infrastructure and the

manufacturing side in advance of what we

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felt was gonna come to fuel that growth.

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And that was a hard pill

to swallow early on.

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Luckily my partner Bob's very

patient from that perspective.

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And we were able to take the time.

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I think what helped fuel our growth

and really accelerate our growth was

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we did a major rebrand back in late

:

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just when I kind of first arrived.

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And I think that kind of put

the new Muskoka on the map.

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That was the same time that we

launched Mad Tom, which became

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our fastest growing brand and our

biggest brand in our portfolio.

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So, you know, that definitely helped.

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At the same time, we really ramped

up our team in advance of the growth

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that we thought was going to come.

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And I'm conscious of how fortunate

we were to do that because obviously

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capital is hard to come by.

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Not everybody was in that fortunate

position that Muskoka was in those early

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days to be able to build like that.

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Brendan Sweeney: And would I be

correct that your ratio of revenue

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from the production and sale of beer

to other activities, whether it's a

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restaurant, whether it's as an event

space, you've really focused on the

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revenue from product compared to some

of the other breweries where you can get

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married, or that have a 200 seat patio.

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Is that accurate?

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Todd Lewin: Yeah, that's bang on.

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We're really focused on retail.

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We've got some great on-premise

licensee partners, and we still are

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involved with some of those key events.

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But most of our volume

is driven through retail.

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We've significantly shifted that since

:

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served us well, especially during the

pandemic when obviously so much of

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that volume shifted in into retail.

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And then obviously as well now with

the recent retail reform changes with

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the MFA being blown up last summer,

you know, I think having a really big

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retail footprint has also benefited us.

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And, in terms of a major tap room

and event space and brew pub, I know

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that's a model for lots of breweries

that are very successful with that.

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That was really never in

our business model for us.

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I think everybody sees Muskoka in July and

August when it's jammed and Bracebridge

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and Huntsville and Gravenhurst are packed

and there's traffic jams and you can't

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get into restaurants and resorts are full,

but that's a couple months of the year.

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It's a long winter up in Muskoka.

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So we've always felt that, like,

The Old Station Restaurant, in

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downtown Bracebridge, Muskoka Brewery

opened in June of '96, you know,

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they basically put Cream Ale on tap

that week and it's still on tap.

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So we have so many good licensee partners

in our backyard in that Muskoka region

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that we've always felt fairly strongly

that if we open a full scale restaurant

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dining facility event space, we're

taking seats from our best customers.

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And that's just not our business model.

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We would rather have them stop at the

tap room for a pint, w e have some apps

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that we offer, a little food truck in

the summer months but then we wanna

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send 'em for lunch or dinner at one of

those key partners and say, go enjoy it.

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And hopefully they'll

get Muskoka beer on tap.

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Brendan Sweeney: Great.

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Tell us a bit about your approach

to leadership, and how that affected

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the kind of periods of sustained

production, growth between:

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oh, I don't know, around early 2020.

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And your approach to leadership

during more challenging periods

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like the COVID pandemic.

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Todd Lewin: I think, for me, so much of

it comes from, I have obviously a sales

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and marketing background, not huge on the

technical or brewing side, so first and

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foremost was really building that team.

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Knowing kind of where my shortfalls

were as a leader or even in terms of a

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knowledge base, and understanding how

to surround myself with a great team.

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And had the total freedom

and flexibility to do that.

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So, that was the first step.

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And then also I think in terms of

just my leadership style is never

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too far removed from the customer.

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Never feeling that you're too far from

being able to pick up the phone or have

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a meeting with any of our employees, but

also a bunch of our customers and being

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able to pop into LCBOs or Beer Stores

or Costco or some of our good on-premise

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partners to have a conversation.

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And so many ideas come from that.

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And I think that's always been front

and center in terms of my mind.

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Obviously as you get into more senior

positions and get busy with other

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things, it's easy to forget those

things and it's a constant fight to

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get into the market and into the field.

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But it's so important.

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And then I think the other thing, and

it's what I referenced maybe a little

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bit earlier, is just being conscious of

what made Muskoka great when I arrived.

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How to improve on that and maybe add

to that, but not step away from what

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had gotten us from that point to

:

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true to those values and those roots.

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Things like, we talk a lot about agility,

resolve, our togetherness as a team.

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Those are key principles

of ours and values.

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And I think something especially like

agility, which we talk to our team

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a lot about, when there is a major

shift in the market like there was

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with the announcement last summer

with the retail reform or during

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the pandemic and we had to pivot.

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I think that has really helped us fuel

our growth in terms of maybe stepping out

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ahead of others because we're quick to

market and we're quick to make decisions

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and move forward with those decisions.

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Brendan Sweeney: In and around, I

think it was:

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became president, Muskoka announced an

investment of, I think it was $5 million

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in the brewery, in the operations,

which I can't say for certain, but let's

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just call it one of the largest single

investments in an existing facility made

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in Ontario's craft beer industry to date.

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The decision behind that,

was it an expansion?

336

:

Modernization?

337

:

Was it capital?

338

:

Was it infrastructure?

339

:

That's a big investment.

340

:

How did that come about, and

how long did it take to really

341

:

realize the return on that?

342

:

Todd Lewin: It took a while.

343

:

We were located in probably a five

or six thousand square foot building

344

:

downtown Bracebridge when I started,

the old granery building that a lot

345

:

of people in Muskoka are aware of.

346

:

And we just outgrew, we realized

the growth potential that Muskoka

347

:

had as a company and as a brand, and

we realized that the whole industry

348

:

had a good growth curve ahead of it.

349

:

And we really needed to tool up

to do that, and we couldn't do

350

:

it out of our existing building.

351

:

So we moved from that granary

building up to our existing

352

:

home on Muskoka Beach Road.

353

:

And when we first got there, it

was just over 40,000 square feet.

354

:

And I remember it was just a big shell.

355

:

It was an old Alcan aluminum plant back

in the day, I think, and felt really

356

:

dated in a lot of ways, you know, how do

you kind of Muskoka-ize it a little bit?

357

:

And we've added a lot in terms of

wood and a post and beam structure

358

:

out front and tried to make it feel

more welcoming and like a cottage.

359

:

But in terms of the manufacturing

and, you know, I also don't think that

360

:

would've happened if we didn't have

good support in terms of government

361

:

programs to help get us there.

362

:

And the research through the Trillium

Network, the report from:

363

:

craft industry and where it was headed

and the growth that it was having at

364

:

that point, things like that are really

important to get in front of government.

365

:

And we did tap into the Eastern Ontario

Development Fund, FedNor, Ron at

366

:

FedNor has been a great partner for us.

367

:

And you know that $5 million that

you spoke of was a few things.

368

:

It was an expansion of the brewery.

369

:

Eventually we went from 40,000 to about

85,000 square feet is where we sit now.

370

:

It was a state-of-the-art Krones

canning line that does 250 cans a

371

:

minute, which was a big step up for us.

372

:

It was a new kegging line.

373

:

It was new refrigeration.

374

:

It was an expansion of the warehouse.

375

:

It was the addition of a wastewater

treatment plant for effluent.

376

:

And more recently, even as of this

spring, installing a pasteurizer, again

377

:

to try to get us out ahead of what we

think is to come in an industry right

378

:

now that's got a lot of challenges.

379

:

So, yeah, it was a big investment.

380

:

We wouldn't have been able

to do that on our own.

381

:

And I think that was so important

to have the government assistance

382

:

and government funding and grants

to be able to help us with that.

383

:

Because the reality is without

that, we wouldn't have created

384

:

those hundred plus jobs that we

have now, and we're hiring more.

385

:

I think we have seven postings

right now for new roles in

386

:

operations, brewing, QC, packaging.

387

:

Those are roles that we're still hiring

for, that we need at the brewery.

388

:

But none of that growth and employment

wouldn't have happened if we didn't

389

:

kind of double down back in 2012

and expand the way that we did.

390

:

Michelle Samson: Todd, that's a good

transition to talking a bit more about

391

:

the ecosystem that you're in and who else

you are working with and partnering with.

392

:

You know, industry associations,

but another interesting one might

393

:

be to talk about Niagara College.

394

:

Todd Lewin: Yeah.

395

:

So, right from day one, from when

I first got into this business, I

396

:

think partnerships have been key in

craft in general across the board.

397

:

I talked about that collaborative

spirit, even with other breweries

398

:

that we've always had, which

is unusual for a business.

399

:

But obviously, probably working

the closest with the OCB.

400

:

Scott and the Ontario Craft Brewers

Association have been so important.

401

:

I think I've been on the board

for eight or nine years there now.

402

:

Recently, a big tax win that was

just announced, it takes effect

403

:

August 1st, that would've never

happened without the OCB and Scott.

404

:

And our GR firm Policy Concepts really

helping to bring that home and continually

405

:

be talking to government about some of the

challenges and the growth and jobs that

406

:

this industry could continue to create.

407

:

You know, despite being 11 share

of the market, we create 80% of

408

:

brewing jobs in the province.

409

:

And that's big.

410

:

And a lot of these jobs are in, like

I spoke about, these smaller rural

411

:

communities where there's maybe not

a lot of great full-time employment.

412

:

Canadian Craft Brewers

Association we work with as well.

413

:

I'm also on the board of what's called

the Ontario Craft RTD Coalition.

414

:

Obviously RTDs have had explosive

growth and so many craft breweries

415

:

have a ready to drink offering

now, and that was kind of a whole

416

:

category that wasn't represented in

terms of a voice with government.

417

:

So been involved there.

418

:

Niagara College and their brewers program

as well as Durham College and the grads

419

:

that are coming out of those programs.

420

:

We've had so many in terms of that

pipeline being able to come into Muskoka

421

:

Brewery and fill those brewing roles and

maybe sometimes even start as a seller

422

:

role and graduate into a brewing role

and then a lead brewer or head brewer.

423

:

And so it's awesome

seeing the progression.

424

:

The challenge there is, I think so many

folks coming out of the Niagara College

425

:

program and Durham College program

wanna own their own brewery one day.

426

:

So keeping them in Muskoka, especially

with housing sometimes being an issue up

427

:

here, has been a bit of a challenge for us

in terms of the business on the brew team.

428

:

There's so many talented brewers

out there, and obviously I think

429

:

there's lots that have made a great

career and we've had a lot of good

430

:

long-term brewers on our team.

431

:

But the reality is there's a lot that

do wanna learn, graduate, and move on

432

:

and do their own thing down the road.

433

:

But yeah, Niagara College has been

a great pipeline for brewers and

434

:

in our operations team as well.

435

:

Brendan Sweeney: I've always thought it'd

be fun to do a bit of an exercise to make

436

:

a family tree of breweries in Ontario.

437

:

Starting with Molsons and how many

Molsons or Labatts and how many people

438

:

spun out of there, or obviously the

Upper Canada Steam Whistle story.

439

:

I had a chance was, uh, up

in Guelph, having a beer at

440

:

Cam's place at Royal City.

441

:

He got his start at Great Lakes, right?

442

:

So it'd be really interesting to

map that out and to see just how

443

:

many people got started in a partner

brewery somewhere else in the province.

444

:

But certainly, that entrepreneurial

spirit is hard to tamp down, nor would

445

:

we want to tamp down, but it is a

reality of operating in an environment

446

:

where the barriers to entry, at least

for a while, were relatively low.

447

:

Todd Lewin: Even though there's, you know,

350 plus craft breweries in Ontario, I

448

:

still think it's a pretty small industry

in terms of that, and that network that

449

:

you referred to, you know how many that

we know in a bunch of different roles

450

:

that have gone from brewery to brewery.

451

:

And I think I don't know the number

right now, but even with us and what

452

:

helped fuel our growth, I think at one

point we had over a dozen employees

453

:

from Molson working for us that brought

that big beer expertise and knowledge

454

:

cross-functionally with various

departments into a small, kind of more

455

:

of a startup craft brewery like we were.

456

:

And just that knowledge base and

expertise of folks that have had that

457

:

training and bigger beer experience,

I think was also a big part of the

458

:

growth that fueled us early on.

459

:

Brendan Sweeney: And now, I mean, just

not to get too, too historical, but in

460

:

the decade of the two thousands, 2000

to:

461

:

working at Muskoka who had been let go

from Molson's large facility in Barrie?

462

:

Or in your neck of the woods, was there

Molson people out there looking for work

463

:

in the beer industry that helped fuel that

in Simcoe County, in Barrie, in Muskoka?

464

:

Todd Lewin: Yes.

465

:

Yeah, a hundred percent.

466

:

That was a, as you remember, that was

a going concern right at Molson Park

467

:

there, and that's where I actually

went to interview back in the day and

468

:

it was a major event center as well.

469

:

And so yeah, it was all part of it.

470

:

And I think our founder, Gary

McMullen talks about that story.

471

:

He was like, you know, there's

a big one located in Barrie, but

472

:

how come there's really nothing

a little further north than that?

473

:

So why not Muskoka?

474

:

And I think just that 'why not

Muskoka' was a big kind of reason

475

:

why it all got kickstarted and

the doors opened back in:

476

:

Brendan Sweeney: Yeah, I went to three

Lollapaloozas at Molson Park in Barrie.

477

:

I think I went to '94, '95 and '96.

478

:

Todd Lewin: The EdgeFests were epic there.

479

:

They were, those were my favorites.

480

:

Brendan Sweeney: Yeah.

481

:

I still think that the most excited

I've ever seen a crowd, again, I

482

:

would've been in like Grade 9 so

it was all kind of new to me, but

483

:

was Beastie Boys, Lollapalooza '94.

484

:

Anyway, Mad Tom.

485

:

You know, at the time, 2010,

:

486

:

discovering what an IPA tastes like.

487

:

And I remember I'd get the 12 packs

where you get like three bottles of Mad

488

:

Tom, three Detours, I think three wheat

beers, maybe three Shinnicked Stouts?

489

:

Todd Lewin: Yeah.

490

:

Brendan Sweeney: So you've,

you know, had the Mad Tom as

491

:

one of your feature products.

492

:

Detour.

493

:

How have consumer tastes evolved and

changed and what are the big sellers now?

494

:

Todd Lewin: That's been such

an interesting journey for us.

495

:

In my time, you know, Iike 14

years at Muskoka Brewery, we've

496

:

had three number one brands.

497

:

So to your point, Brendan, when

I arrived, Cream Ale was by

498

:

far and away our biggest brand.

499

:

Quintessential cottage country

brew, and loved and award-winning.

500

:

And then quickly, through going to the

states, seeing the IPA momentum down

501

:

there at the Craft Brewers Conference,

I think that year was in San Diego,

502

:

really seeing the momentum that these

kind of true, bitter, super hoppy

503

:

West Coast IPAs were having a moment.

504

:

And we got outta the

gate quickly with that.

505

:

And that was my first kind of project

as VP Sales and Marketing when I arrived

506

:

back in 2011 was to launch Mad Tom.

507

:

And it quickly skyrocketed past

Cream Ale to be our number one brand.

508

:

IPAs are a little higher in alcohol, 6.4%,

509

:

so being able to session those or have a

bunch of them became a bit of a challenge.

510

:

And then we started to see these

trends with the more sessionable

511

:

IPAs happening stateside.

512

:

And then we followed up with

our Detour launch back in:

513

:

And it, again, within that year

became our number one brand.

514

:

Now, you know, Detour is still our

largest brand, although nipping at its

515

:

heels is our hard sparkling water, our

RTD variant which continues to grow

516

:

'cause that side of the business is

experiencing explosive growth compared to

517

:

beer overall, which is relatively flat.

518

:

I think beer in Canada last

year was down about 2%.

519

:

It was pretty much flat in Ontario.

520

:

I think we did a little better in Ontario,

buoyed by the new retail and more consumer

521

:

access, I think did result in increased

sales for Ontario versus other provinces.

522

:

But the question about Mad Tom, which

is still my favorite brand, it's

523

:

like your kids, how do you pick one?

524

:

But if that old question about

desert island, you can only

525

:

take one, what would you take?

526

:

It would definitely be a Mad Tom.

527

:

It had six or seven years of phenomenal

growth, and then obviously tailed

528

:

off and flattened as Detour stepped

over it and other brands, and so

529

:

many great IPAs hit the market.

530

:

Well, the last two years and

including after the first six months

531

:

of this year, Mad Tom is again

one of our fastest growing brands.

532

:

And I think it's a signal in terms

of what's shifted in the marketplace.

533

:

You know, with 350 breweries,

a good chunk of those making

534

:

IPAs, it's SKUmageddon out there.

535

:

There's a million IPAs.

536

:

Which ones are great?

537

:

Which ones are not so great?

538

:

Which ones do I...?

539

:

And I think that as beer has gotten very

expensive, our input costs have gone up,

540

:

the impact of tariffs, all breweries are

working really hard to keep our prices

541

:

down to the consumer but the reality

is our input costs have increased north

542

:

of 20% since the pandemic, and you just

can't pass that on to the consumer.

543

:

So I think there's a lot of consumers

that are going back to tried and

544

:

true brands, and then they're

saying, you know, I love IPAs.

545

:

I've tried a million of them

in the past couple years.

546

:

But guess what, if gonna spend

three or four dollars on a can of

547

:

beer, I wanna know it's good and I

wanna know it's consistently gonna

548

:

taste like I want it to taste.

549

:

And I think a brand like Mad

Tom and even Cream Ale, a brand

550

:

that's been around since 1996,

we're really benefiting from that.

551

:

So it's awesome to see a bit of a

legacy brand and one that's got so

552

:

much personality and fun around Mad

Tom really have a big resurgence.

553

:

I'd say early last year we started

noticing it, and then this year it's

554

:

just continued that trajectory and it's

one of our fastest growing brands after

555

:

the first six months of this fiscal.

556

:

Michelle Samson: Todd, I'd really love

to dig into this generationally, starting

557

:

with my own and my own experience 'cause I

feel like I might be a bit representative

558

:

of my fellow millennials here.

559

:

You know, in those, like, big growth

days of craft brewing, I was in

560

:

my late twenties, I loved craft

beer, getting all the samplers

561

:

and going out to the breweries.

562

:

And then I kind of shifted to the hard

sparkling waters, both just for sort of

563

:

like a cleaner experience as I was getting

older, lower sugar, that kind of thing.

564

:

I've now transitioned to

non-alcoholic and that is something

565

:

that Muskoka is also getting into.

566

:

You've got your Veer line as well as

the Rally, which has electrolytes.

567

:

Could you talk more about if I'm

representative of millennials, but also

568

:

talk a bit more about these newer products

that you have and what it's like to be

569

:

a brewer who is venturing into that.

570

:

Todd Lewin: Yeah.

571

:

Michelle, I think your story really

rings true for a lot of us, exactly

572

:

the same, and I think that's really

driving where the market is going and

573

:

some of those shifts that have happened.

574

:

There's obviously lots of

challenges in core beer.

575

:

You know, I think cannabis

has played a role.

576

:

Reading lots about health and wellness

trends coming outta the pandemic,

577

:

Gen Z, maybe drinking a little

less than previous generations.

578

:

And with Muskoka it's always

been capturing those occasions.

579

:

And I think of the long weekend that

we just lived in Canada Day, and

580

:

the days of someone just sticking to

beer, in a large part that's changed.

581

:

People will potentially have

beer, RTDs, and non-alc.

582

:

And again, with our agility and seeing

the shifts and where the market was

583

:

going, we stepped on the seltzer RTD

market, obviously health benefits,

584

:

lower calories, a hundred calories.

585

:

And that's continued to evolve.

586

:

I think you're seeing more of

these canned cocktails, higher ABV.

587

:

Feels like maybe the low calorie,

less flavor seltzer kind of

588

:

side is flattening a little bit.

589

:

It's okay to have a little bit of sugar

or juice or higher ABV or whatever it is.

590

:

So we're really seeing that growth.

591

:

And then on the non-alc, it's such a small

part of the market right now, but looking

592

:

at other markets, especially Europe, and

seeing how significant it's gonna be.

593

:

And a lot of big breweries like ABI

InBev feeling they could be 20 or

594

:

25% of their portfolio in five years.

595

:

And so we're seeing that growth

we're, um, our Veer is experiencing

596

:

huge growth, again, off a smaller

base, obviously compared to our beer.

597

:

But the cool thing is we're

seeing purchases of people coming

598

:

into our tap room or at an LCBO

buying all three categories.

599

:

Buying beer, an RTD mixer maybe, and

then a four pack or two of our Veer.

600

:

And I think the misconception people

have about non-alc is that it's

601

:

the kind of abstainers that are

driving the category, but it's not.

602

:

It's someone like me that

it's very occasion based.

603

:

If I'm going out for lunch and I'm having

a sandwich and I feel like a beer then I

604

:

have the option of having a non-alc Veer.

605

:

Or there's this cool saying that was

coined and I've heard my sales team

606

:

talk about it a lot, it's called a zebra

striping, where if it is a Saturday and

607

:

it's a long day where you might be having

a few drinks or a few beers that you pulse

608

:

these in between your regular ABV beers.

609

:

Extend your occasion.

610

:

So we're seeing that.

611

:

I think about 80% of non-alcoholic

beer drinkers are also beer drinkers.

612

:

So it's, we're seeing it in the taproom.

613

:

They're coming in, buying a 24 of

Detour and throwing a couple of

614

:

four packs of Veer on top of that.

615

:

But it's just amazing, even in

the last year, how many family,

616

:

relatives, neighbors, you go over,

it's just part of the occasions

617

:

that didn't used to be there.

618

:

Non-alc, I think was, especially

on the beer side, was pretty taboo.

619

:

I don't think there was a lot of great

tasting non-alcoholic beer options.

620

:

That's really changed with new

processes and yeast strains

621

:

over the past couple years.

622

:

So it's been really encouraging

to see that because this better

623

:

for you movement, health and

wellness, it's not gonna go away.

624

:

I think it's only gonna continue to grow.

625

:

And it's just us as Muskoka Brewery

trying to get out ahead of that

626

:

curve and plant those early seeds.

627

:

And we're having lots of success with

Veer and it's fun to be part of a category

628

:

that's having explosive growth again.

629

:

Kind of like craft beer did back

in:

630

:

It kind of feels like that right

now on the non-alcoholic beer front.

631

:

But with limited shelf space with our

retailers and hard to get in those doors,

632

:

I think everybody seeing this trend, so

many breweries are wanting to jump in.

633

:

I think the next year or two are really

gonna stratify in terms of winners or

634

:

losers or what are those really legitimate

non-alcoholic beer options, and which

635

:

ones are gonna actually fall away.

636

:

Michelle Samson: And bringing this from

sales and marketing back to manufacturing.

637

:

Just briefly, I'm kind of curious

about the manufacturing process for

638

:

the non-alcoholic beers and paying

attention to that flavor and making

639

:

it so that it's not just, like, here's

a beer that doesn't have booze, but

640

:

an actual, good drinking experience.

641

:

Todd Lewin: There's different processes.

642

:

There's a vacuum distillation

process where you actually can remove

643

:

the alcohol versus processes that

most of the craft breweries are

644

:

using just in the last few years.

645

:

The big change and why, I think,

the big improvement in taste on

646

:

non-alcoholic beers were these new

yeast strains that can ferment out

647

:

at a much lower temperature, not

produce alcohol to the same degree,

648

:

and in some cases, with arrested

fermentation, you can actually stop it.

649

:

You know, still get the beer

taste, but you're not getting

650

:

the alcohol as part of that.

651

:

So I think that that technology and

the development in particular of these

652

:

new yeast strains have really helped.

653

:

We're never gonna produce something that

I personally can't drink or don't like.

654

:

And so maybe the brand that changed it

for me a little bit was when I first

655

:

tried the Corona Sunbrew and thought,

wow, these guys have really nailed it.

656

:

This can be done.

657

:

So we're having some fun right

now because, you know, our first

658

:

launch was our Veer lager with lime.

659

:

And I think the lime does a great job

of maybe cutting some of that non-alc

660

:

sweetness, that residual sweetness

that people get at the back end.

661

:

We launched our Hazy IPA,

which is our fastest growing.

662

:

And we're just launching in the next

couple weeks, and this has been our

663

:

hardest one, we've been developing this

for about a year, is our Veer Cream

664

:

Ale as a nod to our original brand.

665

:

Launching the Veer Cream Ale has been

tough because unlike, you know, having

666

:

more of an open canvas like with lager

with lime or Hazy IPA in terms of a

667

:

flavor profile or taste, we try to

really deliver on this has to kind of

668

:

look, smell, and feel a lot like our

Cream Ale, and how do you do that and

669

:

still not have the alcohol involved?

670

:

So we've done a ton of trials.

671

:

But finally have it to a place where

we've packaged it and we're gonna be

672

:

shipping it in the next couple weeks.

673

:

So that's an exciting step.

674

:

And that's the evolution.

675

:

So we will now have three different

Veer non-alcoholic beer options,

676

:

and so it's obviously becoming

a bigger part of our portfolio.

677

:

And I don't think that would've happened

in this whole category across the

678

:

board of having people, you know, step

away maybe from traditional beer into

679

:

non-alcoholic beer options if there

wasn't those big improvements in the

680

:

flavor and taste, and people actually

can drink 'em and not only feel like

681

:

they're participating in an occasion and

having that can or bottle in their hand,

682

:

but also feeling that it tastes great.

683

:

Michelle Samson: Cool.

684

:

And what a fun full circle

moment with the Cream Ale.

685

:

Todd Lewin: Yeah.

686

:

It's our 29th year this year.

687

:

So next year's a big year for Muskoka.

688

:

We're gonna have our 30th anniversary.

689

:

Got some pretty exciting plans and we're

gonna be talking about Cream Ale a lot

690

:

more than we have in the past two years.

691

:

Brendan Sweeney: So let's look to

the past to look to the future.

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When I think about, you know, it was

:

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:

allowed the craft beer industry to exist

in Ontario and you still have, you know,

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whether it's Wellington, Waterloo via

Brick, I guess Waterloo via Brick and

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Carlsburg, but I mean, you still have a

few breweries that started after that.

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:

Then you have 2008, 2009 changes to the

excise tax system really combined with

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:

consumer growth helped the industry grow.

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:

And in 2025, there's been some

other changes to the tax structure,

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:

loosening up on some of the retail.

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To the best of your knowledge, or at

least ability to predict the future,

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Todd, what are these changes gonna

mean to the industry moving forward?

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:

Todd Lewin: These changes that the

government just announced, in terms

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of the basic beer tax changes,

they come in effect August 1st, and

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they're significant for our industry.

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:

They're massive.

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Again, I've been on the Ontario Craft

Brewers board for eight, nine years.

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We've been talking to government the

whole time about about tax and why

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are we paying so much in Ontario.

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:

You know, I think if our brewery was

located in Alberta, we'd be paying

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:

eight times less in provincial taxes,

three times less if we were in BC.

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So we've always paid the most

provincial beer taxes in Canada.

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So it was great.

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The provincial government did a

great job with really listening,

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getting lots of feedback from all

the key stakeholders across the board

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and reducing the basic beer tax.

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So it's basically a 50% reduction

for micro breweries of which

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that represents, you know, 99.9

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percent of craft breweries in Ontario.

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And then a bit of change to the small

beer manufacturers tax credit for larger

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breweries like Muskoka or Steam Whistle

to help offset that a little bit.

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:

You know, it doesn't

quite get us to the 50%.

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But it does help and is a big

benefit that's gonna allow us to

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:

invest in these capital projects.

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The beer tax framework, not to bore

you guys, in Ontario is very complex.

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It's made up of a basic beer tax,

a beer volume tax, can levy, the

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:

Small Beer Manufacturers Tax Credit.

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So we're working with government and

the government has been really open in

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listening and they want this reform too.

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:

To, I'd say, a more progressive

marginal tax rate where this allows

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breweries to grow gradually as

they get larger and pay more tax

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as they get larger, as they should.

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:

What's existed in my time in craft beer

is something that we've referred to as

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Sale Valley, where because it's not more

of a progressive tax rate that you get

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to a point where it falls off that you

are better off not growing and sitting

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:

at a certain volume because to take that

next step you're probably not coming

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:

out the other side for three or four

years, where you probably lose money

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:

until you get back to profitability.

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:

So a more progressive marginal tax

rate, which the government's very

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open to, is gonna go a long way in

having breweries continue to invest

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:

and not stop growing, but continue

to grow, add jobs, potentially

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acquire, partner with other breweries.

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:

But this tax win that Ontario just

received, not only on the beer side but on

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the RTD side as well, which impacts a ton

of craft breweries in the province, it's

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:

the biggest kind of tax win probably we've

had since the early:

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:

when some of those excise tax reforms hit.

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And it's really gonna go a long

way at kick starting our industry

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:

again, getting us back to growth.

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:

'Cause it has been a challenge coming

outta the pandemic, and then you layer

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in some of input costs and challenges

driven through tariffs, the timing of

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:

this announcement by the provincial

government couldn't have been better.

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:

Brendan Sweeney: Todd, thank

you so much for your time today.

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:

This was great.

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And look forward to, uh,

celebrating Muskoka's 30th

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anniversary with you next year.

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:

Todd Lewin: I really

appreciate the conversation.

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:

We're excited about next year and

we'll definitely keep you in the

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:

loop on, on everything going on.

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:

Um, yeah, 30 years is a long

time in this business, so we're

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:

pretty fired up for what's ahead.

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:

Michelle Samson: New episodes of Making

it in Ontario are published weekly.

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:

Follow us now on Apple Podcasts or

Spotify to make sure you don't miss any.

762

:

Making it in Ontario is an

initiative of the Trillium Network

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:

for Advanced Manufacturing.

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It is produced by Storied Places Media.

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