Support for Ukraine is brewing at the NC Teaching Brewery.
In addition to rolling out two solidarity beers this spring to show support for Ukraine, College Brewmaster Professor Jon Downing will be part of a fundraising event livestream on March 26 organized by Drinkers for Ukraine, an international effort to raise funds for Ukraine.
Downing has joined brewers from Ukraine and around the world who are participating in a Drinkers for Ukraine Fundraising Livestream on March 26. The video will be live-streamed during the fundraising show, profiling the stories of breweries in Ukraine and raising funds for the relief effort.
Drinkers for Ukraine make the recipe for Resist – Ukrainian Anti Imperial Stout available for brewers worldwide.
Source: DrinkersforUkraine.com
The invitation to participate in the video came after the Teaching Brewery answered a call to brew Resist – Ukrainian Anti Imperial Stout in early March. Developed by displaced Ukrainian brewers, the Resist recipe was shared by Drinkers for Ukraine in a call for breweries worldwide to participate in brewing it in solidarity with the beer community in Ukraine whose livelihoods and, in some cases, their businesses have been destroyed by Russian attacks.
Lana Svitankova, co-founder of Drinkers for Ukraine – who is also a writer, translator, educator and Ukraine’s first certified Cicerone – said that the main goal of Drinkers for Ukraine is to raise funds for a cause, get people informed, and give them one more outlet to show support. She noted that while it has been difficult to track how many breweries have hopped on board the initiative, she is aware of 55 so far who have brewed or plan to brew the beer as a show of support.
“First of all, huge thanks for Niagara College’s support,” said Svitankova. “Being Ukrainian, this means so much to me that people are being vocal in their support. This brings me faith in humanity, hope and solace in these difficult times.”
For information about the fundraiser or to view the livestream on March 26 (2 p.m. EST) at youtube.com/watch?v=PYAP-R4Kfqo.
Downing led students from the Brewmaster and Brewery Operations Management program in brewing Resist – Ukrainian Anti Imperial Stout at the Teaching Brewery in early March. They are also brewing a Ukrainian Golden Ale, using a recipe developed from Pravda brewery in Lviv, Ukraine, which has halted beer production to make Molotov cocktails during the war. Pravda released a few of its beer recipes to raise funds and spread awareness and is encouraging brewers around the world to join in brewing their beers.
Brewmaster student Apoena Endyara De Souza Becker from Brazil assists with brewing Resist – Ukrainian Anti Imperial Stout at the Teaching Brewery on March 7.
For Downing, support for Ukraine is both professional and personal. During the early nineties, he was instrumental in launching two microbreweries in Ukraine (in Dnipro and Haivoron). In 1993 – just two years after Ukraine became an independent country – he became the first North American to work in Dnipro where he installed a microbrewery in a former missile factory.
His experiences from Ukraine have seeped into the Teaching Brewery’s solidarity brews.
He recalled how a brewer he trained at the first microbrewery, named Sasha, had previously designed rockets for the factory. It was Sasha’s wife Galina – a name which means ‘calm, healer’ – who inspired the Teaching Brewery’s choice of hops for its Resist beer: 91 grams of Galena. The Teaching Brewery’s Resist was also brewed with a 9.1% ABV in recognition of Ukraine’s independence in 1991.
The Golden Ale brew is also significant, Downing noted, as the Ukrainian beer community has been trying to get Ukrainian Golden Ale recognized as a regional style up until February this year. It is also a walk down memory lane for Downing since, 30 years ago, when he worked on the first two microbreweries in Ukraine, he brewed a Canadian Golden Ale at each of them.
When he looks back on his memories from Ukraine during the early nineties, the College Brewmaster recalls the reconstruction and modernization that was taking place during that pivotal time, as well as the people who were embracing freedom and rebuilding their country.
“Having seen the country being rebuilt once, I know it’s going to be rebuilt again. I know that the strength of Ukrainian people will make it happen,” he said. “Brewing is a part of it. Brewing is a part of the economy locally here in Ontario, worldwide and in Ukraine as well.”
The Teaching Brewery’s Resist – Ukrainian Anti Imperial Stout is expected to be available in on March 30 ($3.75 per can) while supplies last. Ukrainian Golden Ale is expected to be released to the public in mid-May ($3.75 per can).
NC Teaching Brewery displays its Beer 101 series beers featuring the colours of the Ukrainian flag as a show of support.
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