The stars are aligning for Sean Dinsmore. The Beaver Valley-based entrepreneur, farmer, and Dad has covered a lot of ground in the past 10 years, and all of those roads have brought him home to South Georgian Bay. His certified organic brewing company, Son’s Brewing, is an homage to family, home, and a lifestyle that’s all about living sustainably and mindfully. We first met at Good Grief over coffee last winter, and despite knowing nothing about him, it was like chatting with an old friend – laid-back, honest, and genuine – oddly enough, three qualities you can parabolically taste in his beer.
Our Blood, Sweat & Beers department has always represented the intersection of business, opportunity, and passion – and none prior have embodied the trifecta like Son’s. In what couldn’t be a more appropriate locale for the talk that ensued, we caught up in his barn to talk shop, surrounded by his dogs, his kiddos, vintage motorcycles, a few farm animals, and one of the most stunning Chevy’s I’ve ever seen; elements that have all played a profound role in the start of Son’s.
“We had a producing farm,” says Sean, lifting one of his boys into the bed of a 1950’s Chevy stepside. “And my wife, Cass, had an organic grocery store, Daisy Market, pre-COVID. She’s always had a tremendous following and won a sustainability award because she opened one of the first refilleries in the area. So, for those reasons, we were pretty busy people… I was involved with the family transportation business. My grandfather started it. My dad took it over when he was 17. And then I was the only son so it was mine to get involved in, type thing. We sold it in 2022 and it was kind of like, what’s next, you know? It was a high-stress environment – we had 70 employees, we were on all time zones and I just couldn’t see myself in that lifestyle trying to be a dad.”
The idea to start an organic brewery came about by Cass’ encouragement, spurred on by their love of an organic lifestyle focused on family.
“It was almost like, if we’re gonna do this, let’s do our best to do it our way. And we’ve got great friends in Marcus and Mitch at Good Family Farms. We started buying barley from them. The malter’s not from here, he’s out of the county, but it was important that we could say, ‘Hey, we’ve got something local from the valley that’s organic certified.’ And uh… we really thought our goal was to have one beer.”
Sean points to an apple crate in the bed of the truck filled with Son’s offerings. A lager, IPA, amber ale, and a stout. Behind him, branded glassware awaits atop a table overlooking the acreage and the Niagara Escarpment meeting Georgian Bay. A horse and a donkey graze beneath the hay loft, the kids are running around tinkering with tools and at least four motorcycles are within my peripheral vision. To see someone actually live the lifestyle they promote in their product is an increasingly rare thing – profitability can sometimes dictate projecting something you’re not, in order to check a likeability box and garner attention from a targeted market. Not here. This is the epitome of a family business inspired by a lifetime of memories, good stories, and hard work.
How’d the name Son’s come into play? And why the motorcycle riding dogs as part of the branding? That too, has its place and comes from growing up here.
I see [Son’s] as something people who are moving up here can be excited about… whether it’s wine producers or craft beer, or fresh fruit, I would support those developments over another subdivision. Any day of the week.”
“This is the Blue Mountains-Meaford Townline. Calling it Son’s, yeah, it definitely has something to do with having two boys – when I was in grade eight all the way up through high school, I put in the yearbook that I wanted to be a dad and a hockey player. I wanted to make sure that I could imprint on these guys. Try and burn some petrol. And my dad – he’s had a profound impact on my life, and for that reason, it was also kind of for him. His abilities and mentoring made me what I am today in life and business. Being a son to man of such stature along with a supportive and driven wife is what pushes me to succeed. When the trucking company sold, I kind of wanted something that my boys could say, ‘hey, there’s my name.’”
We pour a pint. The colour of the Townline Lager is like liquified hay, accented by the light of the late afternoon sun beaming through the open barn doors. It’s clean on the nose, crisp, refreshing, and light. A bona fide tipper. We start to chat about the plans for Son’s into 2025 and beyond. The plan was always to start with an easy-drinking 4%’er inspired by the active lifestyles South Georgian Bay is known for. Second to the product itself, the customer and licensee support is something Sean takes really seriously.
“We just thought, ‘let’s give this a go locally.’ We’re like we’re just gonna support the hell out of licensees and do our best to get our name out there and see what people think of it… We’re also going to be brewing a beer with the local OEHL Senior AA hockey team, the Georgian Bay Applekings… The nice thing about it is dealing with people, like Tyler and Andrew at Hearts, Todd at Casero, Brandon at Marilynne, Chris and Caity at Savvy, we’re in a few ski clubs – like, they’re all just wicked people. They’ve been super supportive. Meredith at The Corner – she was one of the first around to have us on tap. Cindy and Sean at Bruce Wine Bar, the list goes on. The local support has been fantastic.
The dream for Sean is to one day open his own shop where working on bikes, catching up with friends, and enjoying a hard-earned pint after a long day can all intersect. The Son’s Brewing HQ will be a space where the community can come together in their love of being outdoors in the South Georgian Bay region. Trail riders, mountain bikers, sledders, runners, bikers, ex-racers, families, hockey players, farmers, you name it.
“The province has been changing. Obviously, there would be more places to sell – but the other side of that coin is, you can’t be the guy that sells topsoil and start a landscaping company, right? Our local customers are the ones that are supporting the hell out of us right now. For me, it’s organic growth and it’s the time you have to put into it… Bikes were kind of our nostalgia – there’s so many guys that used to race here and there was never really a place to go. Not just to get bike parts, but more so a soda,” laughs Sean. “I want to build a space to enjoy that community feeling with all the people that come up and ride up here.”
The timeline on the new shop was looking like 18 months from the time we spoke, with organic certification of the property to grow his own barley a top priority. There have also been some rather large changes in the Ontario beer industry with the addition of beer and wine sales to grocery and convenience stores that will inevitably change the landscape of sales moving forward. The hope is that it will all settle down before the Son’s Brewing doors open to the public.
Sean’s inherent honesty dawns on me. The province opening beer sales to everyone and their brother is a compound issue that affects everyone. For Son’s, the added obligation of what it might take to run a successful craft brewery space, so to speak, is opening a space that lures in customers for more than a pint. But luckily for him, his “honest out of the box” approach has been key to his early success.
“It wasn’t our goal to open a restaurant. We wanted to have something that tastes good that we could serve to all our friends one way or another. So we had to find a different way to go about it. I see it as something people who are moving up here can be excited about… I was always one of those people; especially in this area, whether it’s wine producers or craft beer, or fresh fruit, I would support those developments over another subdivision. Any day of the week.”
It’s refreshing to see a new brewer taking things down a notch and enjoying the process of working hard with the people closest to him. This change of pace and attitude is what draws you into the world of Son’s Brewing. I can remember a time when you knew someone or their Dad by what kind of beer they drank; Blue, Ex, Busch, Bud – it can feel tough to adopt a craft beer as your beer, but Son’s feels like it could be adopted as a staple of a household. You’d be proud to be known as a Son’s drinker.
“You know, it’s right on our label: good, honest, organic – we want to do good. Organic is important to our lifestyle. We want to be honest, brew a good product, and acknowledge the people that we’ve met and how we’ve been supported. I can’t say enough about it. I’m happy.”
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Words & photos by Nelson Phillips
