When Daniel Schmitz and Ian Covey were thinking about planning a beer festival—they knew it had to be unique.
“Having attended a few beer festivals over time, we wanted to see if we can bring one to Saint Andrews,” he said, speaking with The Courier. “We’ve noticed when we go to most beer festivals, they take place in convention centres, usually indoor spaces that are way too crowded.”
Schmitz is the director of operations at Kingsbrae Garden in Saint Andrews. It was created by John and Lucinda Flemer and is a 27-acre botanical garden with more than 2,500 species of perennials and a variety of trees and shrubs.
It is also home to the Kingsbrae International Residency for the Arts—which each year picks six artists with a one-month residency.
He said Kingsbrae felt like the perfect location. Schmitz connected with local craft brewery Saint Andrews Brewing Company (SABC)—and its co-founder Ian Covey. SABC opened its doors in 2022.
Covey said he’s spent a long time in the beer industry and local businesses like Kingsbrae have been supportive from the beginning.
“They were one of the first places to serve Saint Andrews Brewing Company,” Covey said.
In total, 17 breweries participated in the festival from across the province, including Edmundston and Moncton.
“We had hoped it was going to have a great reception and with a little help from nature, it definitely did,” he said.
Both Schmitz and Covey hope to make it an annual event, taking on some lessons from the inaugural event.
“I think we nailed quite a few things,” Covey said. “I think bigger and better next year is the plan.”
The festival also partnered with local restaurants to spread out the economic benefits of the festival in what Schmitz still considers the shoulder season.
More than 500 people attended events on Saturday, including about 40 people working with the breweries at the festival. Another 100 people participated in the Saturday beer run as well.
“So, it was three days of fully sold out events,” Schmitz said. “It was a great success.”
