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An inside look at The Exchange’s newest brew pub

Winnipeg’s newest brew pub, PEG Beer Co., is scheduled to open in early to mid-March. This innovative new addition to the Exchange District features a growler bar, a casual fare restaurant with an open-kitchen style, a full brewery that can pump out 10 different craft beers, and so much more. The owner of PEG Beer Co., Nicole Barry, her head chef, Aron Epp, and the rest of her team are so excited to share their passion for craft beer and food with the rest of Winnipeg.

This place is super unique. Before you even walk in the door, there’s a space for bike storage and in the future, kayak storage. PEG Beer Co. wants to take full advantage of their amazing location near the river at 125 Pacific Avenue in the Exchange District. During the warmer months, food will be grown in garden planters in the back of the building along with some of the hops for their beer. 

The space inside is even more impressive. PEG Beer Co. features 130 seats with the table and bar tops made in-house with reclaimed wood scavenged from an old decommissioned bridge in Winnipeg. The front room has about 60 seats and features a growler bar where people can fill up on their delicious craft beer to take home. There’s a kitchen which joins the front and back room and is open-style. The food is casual-meets-comfort and features pizzas, flatbreads, share plates, and cheese and charcuterie plates made in-house.

The back room features about 75 seats with a full bar that will hold the taps for their 10 different beers, along with two guest taps and two wine taps. The brewery is located right off the back room with a window so people can see all the action. The brewery is quite large, with six serving tanks, a lab, a boiler room, a grain room and offices. The beer is served right from the tanks to give customers the freshest taste possible. 

For Nicole Barry, the co-founder and previous owner of Half Pints, this is the third brewery she’s opened up and it’s the one she’s been waiting 10 years to build.

“Everyone here has worked so incredibly hard,” said Nicole. “It’s not an easy feat to open up a restaurant or a brewery and we are doing both at the same time. We are so excited at the response we’ve gotten. We’ve sold a lot of merch and tons of PEG 100 memberships already and we’re not even open yet.”

The PEG 100 memberships are going fast so if you want one, you should sign up now. For $150 a year, you get a ton of perks including discounts on beer and food, special happy hour pricing, early access to exclusive beer releases via the brewery back door, a member appreciation party, and so much more. 

With their grand opening just over a month away, Nicole and her team are super busy finishing up construction and putting the final touches on the space.

 

“Everyone is super into it,” said Nicole, “From our event planners to our graphic designers for our merch – they all have a love for craft beer and can’t wait for people to come through the door.”

 

The Exchange District BIZ welcomes PEG Beer Co. to The Exchange. Check out their site for more information and to apply, they’re hiring right now!

 

You can also follow them on  @PEGbeerco on Twitter and Instagram.