The New Old-World of Greenwood City in Boundary Country, British Columbia

Old Stuff

When one visits old-world destinations like Venice, Paris or Amsterdam, you become aware of the stark contrasts between the day-to-day hustle and the much, much longer and older timelines that birthed their character, their people’s cultures and unique personalities. 

In our migratory New World, like Canada or New Zealand, we don’t have a similar appreciation for omnipresent antiquity and the uniquely localized identities of the people. Sometimes, it is even hard to distinguish Calgary from Denver or Regina from Edmonton. If we did, we would discover and appreciate that here too is an “old world” charm, woven into the fabric of what, and who we are. Examples like Montreal and Quebec City come to mind. 

However, further West, we easily forget. Too quickly we lose the charm of our heritage as we hastily pave over it, strip mall, tear down, franchise, and progress it to oblivion. If we look around, we will realize that there are gems to be discovered. Dare I say it, places to be protected and cultures to be preserved and celebrated.

This is part of the TWO COWBOYS' EPIC GLOBAL TRAVEL & CULINARY EXPERIENCE - 2019! 

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New World Gems

Talk about the City of Greenwood with any modern-day Canadian, and most will shrug with just one comment, “Where is that?”. When you visit Greenwood, something grabs your attention about British Columbia’s smallest city, a one-time candidate for the Provincial Capital, and the previous seat of the Provincial High Court. Everyone in the West knew about Greenwood in 1897.

Walk the streets (yes, not speed through it on Highway 3, at 100km/hour) and you become acutely aware of its rich history, thanks to the ongoing efforts of the few remaining residents. They are desperately trying to preserve the crumbling buildings, hold on to the rich can-do mining character, and tell the boom-and-bust stories of days long gone.

There is a character to Greenwood and a hardy identity to its people. It needs to be rediscovered and celebrated. In Greenwood, the old-world charm of the Canadian West and the pioneering spirit of Canada is particularly strong. Even its time-worn accelerated degradation and central location in the Boundary Country offers an eerie charm or omen to the still remaining places around it. It reminds one of that powerful and always-present inescapable universal flow.

Flow of Time

Humanity is insignificant within its force. Regardless of who we are, where we are, what we had for breakfast, or how we drink our coffee, our world will keep on spinning at a speed of 1,800 km/hour. We will continue to be screeching around the sun at 108,000 km/hour, as our solar system spirals at 750,000 km/hour through this galaxy. Our planets will continue to exist for another 4 billion years, our Universe expanding for another 13.5 billion more.

Within this mind-numbing magnitude, we are part of the flow, and we are because of the flow.

All we can do is hang on to a minuscule significance, oblivious of the speed at which we hurtle through time and pace. For us, the sun came up in the morning and will go under this evening. The seasons will pass. Life will begin, friendships made, and partners lost. Civilizations will rise. Some will fall. Industries will blossom and die, presidents elected, killers executed, trees grow, suns collapse, species disappear, climates change and Black Holes born. Gold will be discovered. Fortunes made, and many will be lost.

We will grow old. Our lives will end. Soon, someone will forget.

We stand alone against the massive freight train of life. In the blistering madness of its momentum, we can only try to find a place - our place, a sense of purpose, some significance. A point to it all. The best we can hope for is conscious glimpses grasping at fleeting, subjective moments of awe, splendour, beauty, love, acceptance, and pleasure in the places and with the people we love.

There is no Heaven, no Valhalla, karma, or fortunate re-dos waiting on the other side.

This is it, a sliver of existence in time, a minuscule place in the Universe. Living is all we get. Holding on is what we have. The big question then is, “What to do with it?”

The answer, “Be”. The world forgets easily but definitely.

Greenwood, BC

Greenwood is all about history, it goes back to 1891 with the discovery of gold, silver and copper in this once thriving mining camp. Incorporated as a city on July 12, 1897, the BC Copper Company smelter was built in 1901 and brought prosperity to the city, becoming known as the “hub” of the Boundary. The surrounding mines brought fortune seekers from many parts of the world, but the boom was short-lived. After the first World War, copper prices plummeted and Greenwood’s success soon diminished. People left in droves and by 1940 the population had dwindled to a few hundred.

The forced internment of Japanese Canadians off the west coast of British Columbia in 1942 changed the course of Greenwood’s history. A ghost town from its former glory days, Greenwood became BC’s first internment camp. 1,200 people were crammed into the many empty buildings, hotels and houses; remnants from days long ago. The little city once again began to thrive.

The city has proven its resiliency over the years and now demonstrates an excellent destination for history buffs. Many adventures await you in this historic little city.

Observations

Enjoy the little feature we’ve put together about the museum of Greenwood. Yes, it is a museum, but we know it is also the memories, character and the personality of its people. We have already invested in Greenwood and is soon becoming residents of this charming little gem.

We invite the world to come and visit, stay and build a life with us.

Come to see Greenwood.

Our New Home

Hendrik

Boundary Cowboy

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Photos

Firehall

Supreme Court

Coffee 

Erection

History

The Second Grand Party in the Street in Downtown Grand Forks, British Columbia

Good Grand News

On Saturday 2 May 2018, the news stated: 

“Catastrophic floods in parts of southern British Columbia have forced nearly 2,800 from their homes and warm weather expected in the coming days could worsen the problem. In Grand Forks, B.C., a community about 520 kilometres east of Vancouver, homes are submerged in brown, murky water. 

The Regional District of Kootenay Boundary said fire rescue technicians have rescued more than 30 people by boat in the town. Two days of heavy rain caused flooding in Grand Forks. It’s the worst the region has seen in 70 years, roughly two feet (0.6 metres) higher than ever recorded.” (CTV News)

On Sunday 21 July the news read: 

“The citizens and business in Downtown Grand Forks are showing tremendous resilience and perseverance as they slowly recover from the flooding of 2018. It is a little over 1 year, and businesses are opening again. New businesses are moving to town. 

Look out for a new Craft Brewery, Ice Cream store and others are planning to locate and build their futures in the town as well. They are all discovering and coming for the small-town charm, better lifestyle, and slower pace of this oasis in British Columbia’s Boundary Country. 

To demonstrate how attractive the community of Grand Forks is for business, the Downtown Business Association hosted its 2nd Annual Party in the Street. They invited people from the Boundary, Kootenay's and Okanagan Area to celebrate the rebuild and rebirth of Downtown Grand Forks, after the floods. It was a grand party! Grand Forks is open for business, again.” (Two Cowboys News)

This is part of the TWO COWBOYS' EPIC GLOBAL TRAVEL & CULINARY EXPERIENCE - 2019! 

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Party in the Street

The Cowboys were fortunate to get an invite to the Party in the Street. We celebrated with the people of Grand Forks. While there, we wanted to find out what the business outlook is after a hard year of cleanup and rebuilding. Are there people who are positive about the future? Is there an opportunity for existing businesses and new business to rebuild and grow?

What struck us was how welcoming is the Grand Forks community. They want people to move to the area, to establish businesses, and to open stores in the downtown business district. Grand Forks is not just open for business. They are using the events of the past year as an opportunity for the rebirth of the sleepy town. They are hosting events to celebrate and promote the opportunity.
We’ve seen that significant news events attract attention to places that people may otherwise not think about. Canmore in Alberta received global attention with the flooding of 2013. We were there. The publicity built momentum for growth.

As a result of the attention, more people were charmed by the attractiveness of the location and visited. Some even relocated, even though Canmore has one of the most expensive real estate markets in Canada. Some will agree that the town is still benefiting from this momentum almost 5 years after the event. While Alberta is in an economic downturn since 2014, new businesses are being established in Canmore. More and more people are moving to the area for the lifestyle, natural beauty, and proximity to Alberta’s big business and tourism markets.

We predict, similarly, that Grand Forks has an opportunity to mine gold from the unfortunate events of 2018. Through the ongoing publicity of the flood recovery and the positive developments related to the circumstances, they help people discover and appreciate that there are still places in Canada like Grand Forks. Places where small businesses are embraced and encouraged to start or relocate. Where the economics of the area still make it possible for small entrepreneurs to live and work and have a lifestyle location. It offers excellent infrastructure, a great climate, and proximity to larger markets such as the tourists of the Okanagan.

Grand Forks is open for artisan butchers, bakers, growers, makers, retailers, and related services. The Downtown Business Association is keen to see more people open and operate their businesses in Grand Forks. Even the City Council is making it easier to do it. Property is still affordable, and the lifestyle is superb with trails, sunshine, and shorter winters.

Observations

We are glad we could meet some of these remarkable people during the Party in the Street. We look forward to bringing you more stories about the businesses and people of the town and of the Boundary Country of British Columbia.

We too succumbed to the charms of the "old frontier" and want to help promote it as the “new frontier” for artisans and lifestyle entrepreneurs. That is why we decided to live here and make the Boundary Country our community and our people.

You should come and see it for yourself!

Hendrik

Boundary Cowboy

We earn our livelihood by producing great content and supporting inspiring people, businesses, and communities. Please book us here so we can tell your story too.

Photos

Open for Business!

The Road to Grand Forks

Two Cowboys Sinks a Put for the Canmore and Area Healthcare Foundation in Canmore, Alberta

More Than Expected

Communities are defined by how well its people take care of each other. However, we don't always appreciate or is aware of who these "caretakers" are that we rely on so leisurely. 

In our "modern world", we've become so far removed from the people that make our civilized lives possible that we no longer appreciate who they are, and what they do. How well do you know your neighbour? Do you know the name of the kid behind the coffee machine that served your Espresso this morning, or your fries for your poutine last night? Dare you ask and care about how your pharmacist's day is going?

Let's make it serious. Do you know who paid for the heart monitor used when your wife was at the hospital's emergency room? Who bought the chair in the waiting room you slept on outside the maternity ward while waiting for your son to be born? What is the name of the Doctor who treated your daughter when she fell off her bicycle, on her way back from school?

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Community for Community

We go through our days often unaware of the people behind the scenes that make a difference to our lives. Sages are touching us and shaping our every day, positively. We will never meet them.

It is easy to take the little things for granted. Marriages and friendships fall apart when we no longer pay attention to the value of what is often considered trivial. Relationships suffer when we stop saying "good morning" or forget to ask, "How was your day, my love?". In the same way, it is even easier to just assume that someone else is taking care of the big things. Our roads, water, hospitals, schools, sanitation and our safety. Isn't it is the Government's job? People are getting paid to do it. I pay taxes, that is why it is there. That is why I am entitled to it.

Herein lies the problem. Government, our taxes, and public servants don't always take care of things. It becomes quite evident when the system breaks down. The world is full of examples where bureaucracies misbehave, fall apart, or abuse their role with catastrophic consequences for the societies they are meant to serve.

In South Africa people in towns are no longer safe, no longer have clean drinking water or electricity. Municipalities no longer remove garbage and streets and sidewalks haven't been maintained in years. The "system" fell apart. Public servants became more interested in serving their own bank balances and exorbitant mortgages, than serving the people that are funding their purpose and existence.

With towns in peril, local community members came together to take care of each other. Neighbours are now patrolling streets and keeping each other safe. Areas are generating their own electricity and neighbours are collecting each other's garbage. People are taking care of each other. They know who is making their town livable and they take responsibility for each other.

Canmore Community

In Canada, we are fortunate to have public healthcare. There is a massive system of bureaucracy somewhere in Edmonton, Vancouver or Toronto, with Billions of Dollars responsible for being there when we get sick or have a health emergency. We assume that the Government fits the bill for our much needed and essential health services. We certainly pay a fair chunk of our income in taxes with the belief that our public servants have our best interest at heart and will be there when we need it most.

However, there are cases when our system fails us, and much-needed resources are prioritized elsewhere. This is when the luxury of leaving our salvation to someone else costs us personally and our community in much-needed services or resources. It simply leaves us with two tasks. To put pressure on the health care system to prioritize resources our way, and coming together as a community to take on the responsibility of taking care of each other.

The Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation is a community organization that is tasked with these two crucial asks for the people of Canmore, Alberta. Their mission as a community-initiated organization is to obtain and provide charitable financial resources for the continuing improvement of the health facilities and services of the Canmore General Hospital. They encourage philanthropy and guard these financial resources to benefit the community's health needs.  It is the people of Canmore taking care of each other where the public health services don't meet requirements or fall short.

Observations

Soulafa Al-Abbasi invited the Cowboys to be part of this year's Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation's annual charity golf fundraiser. The goal was to have fun, entice more charitable giving, and more importantly, to tell the story of the Foundation's existence and the vital work they do.

We were residents of Canmore for eleven years. All this time, we used the Canmore Hospital and its facilities not knowing about the Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation. We've always assumed that thanks to generous public funding through our taxes, of Alberta Health Services, that Canmore has an excellent healthcare facility. Now we know that we also benefitted from the work of the Foundation. More importantly, we benefitted from the charitable contributions of our neighbours towards access to better healthcare.

Every resident of Canmore is likely to come in contact with the Canmore Hospital sometime during their lives. Here is the ask, when you know that the hospital is in your future. Don't you want to be sure that the Canmore Hospital will be ready and able to treat you, as you would like to be treated when you need it most?

If you do, then make the Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation part of your charitable contribution. If it is not a monetary contribution, give your time. You will get back much more than you give thanks to your neighbour, who is also contributing for your collective benefit. This is the community looking after each other, in its purest and basic form.

We thank Soulafa and the Canmore and Area Health Care Foundation for the opportunity to share this positive story. We thank them more for the heart monitor they bought for my wife to use when she was in the Hospital's Emergency Room on Friday, 20 July 2019.

It reminds me of a sign I once saw on the wall at one of our best clients. It said, "When you learn, teach. When you get, give." We implore you to give generously!

Hendrik

Canmore Cowboy

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Photos

Perfect Day

Sinking a Put

Canmore

A Gold Mine at Deadwood Junction and Tarnish Turkey Cappuccino in Greenwood, BC, Canada

An Ounce of Gold

Bruce Jepsen, the latest custodian of Deadwood Junction and Tarnished Turkey Cappuccino, acknowledges that he has a gold mine.

He makes a very valid point though, about his mine, "How much effort do you think is required to get an ounce of gold out of the mine?" In the case of Deadwood Junction, a surprising amount of effort is required to operate the small coffee shop, tourism stop, bakery, and summer BBQ joint on BC's Highway 3.

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Deadwood Junction is in a place most people, and some would say time itself, has long gone forgotten. Greenwood, British Columbia and the Boundary Country south of the Okanagan, on the US Border may be the last holdout where small businesses can still stand a chance to mine an ounce of gold.

Ask most small business owner-operators in Canada today, and many will admit that it may not be worth the effort anymore. Many have mines that are abandoned, shut down, or the miners are on strike hoping for another time where small business owners and entrepreneurs will be allowed to succeed again without hindrance from overbearing bureaucracies.

Many, like us, strive to live and work in a Utopia where rules, taxes and operating costs are not an issue. Where entrepreneurs are allowed to hang on to more than half of their profits. Where people can be employed, skills can be developed, where they can create value and can focus on making great products and delivering services that are appreciated by the people around them, their community.

If this is you, then maybe this part of Canada with its rich history, simple pleasures and great weather may have a place for your business. Life here is easier. Much slower and a dollar goes a lot further.

Be prepared to hear more about the Boundary Country in BC from the Two Cowboys.

Deadwood Junction was founded in 2009. It is located in the beautiful City of Greenwood right off Highway 3. It is a must stop and comes highly recommended by the Cowboys. Bruce and Katie Jepsen are the current owners of a business that looks like it pre-dated Canada. Knowing the fascinating history of the area, it probably does date from a couple of centuries ago.

They make great coffee. Bruce has been baking all his life and cannot wait to get out of bed at 03:00 in the morning to get your cinnamon bun hot, sweet, sticky, and ready. He and Katy also make a prize-winning Beef Chilli. That is a story for another time.

Their little store also sells antiques and local artisan work. As small businesses do, they support local small town talent where they can!

Observations

Once a baker, always a baker. Bruce claims that he was born a baker. Nothing can replace the joy he gets from seeing you appreciate his baking and his coffee (which he takes great care to do custom for every one of his favourite clients (you know if you are one ;-))

We are proud to feature Bruce's buns this time and hope to have many more stories for you from Deadwood Junction and Tarnished Turkey Cappuccino and the small communities and entrepreneurs in this fantastic part of British Columbia, Canada.

Hendrik van Wyk 

Cinnamon Cowboy

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Photos

Deadwood

Two Cowboys Flatwhite

The Junction

The Team

Traveling Cowboys: Old School Values and Fun at the Only Great Canadian Barn Dance, Alberta, Canada

Dance More

The Saturday Night Dance used to be an essential town event that brought the community together. Young and old came to share a meal, dance, meet new people, catch up on local news, and have some good old-fashioned fun and laughter. It was good exercise too.

Unfortunately, like the Drive-in and the Roadhouse Diner, the Saturday Night Dance also disappeared from our towns. 

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One cannot precisely pinpoint when and why this happened. It just stopped, and somehow no one seems to be missing it. Maybe it ended because people became distracted by other forms of entertainment like Television, the Internet and Social Media.

If you ask Trevor Kunkel from one of the last Saturday Night Dance hold-outs, The Great Canadain Barn Dance, he blames the introduction of alcohol to these events. "Everybody had a good time and families participated until alcohol was introduced. People started to misbehave. Before you knew it, parents stopped coming. Older folks stayed away, and people found other ways to be entertained", says Trevor.

He may have a point, because the Great Canadian Barn Dance is in a dry county in Southwestern Alberta and he is now the second generation of hosts that still caters to dancers from, and visitors to the area. Saturday evenings is dance night and has been for several decades now. Friday evenings are for dinner shows, and the rest of the Summer calendar is filled with events and workshops for teaching old fashion dancing and music.

The Great Canadian Barn Dance is, quite possibly, the only campground you'll find where the whole family can camp, dance, enjoy recreational activities, and take in live entertainment all in one scenic location. It caters to music for all ages. You can join in complimentary dance lessons, and with no liquor allowed at the dance, it's an event the whole family can enjoy, the way it used to be.

Observations

We stumbled upon this gem in desperation for a Southwestern Alberta camping spot in 2017. Waterton Lakes National Park's campground was full. We needed a place to park in the area, and Google pointed the way to the Barn.

Apparently, it all started with a barn. Instead of the Kunkels taking to the road every Summer, playing for audiences across the Province, they sought a way to draw the patrons to them. It all started with hosting a dance at the Barn. That was 25 years ago. Since then, every Spring to Fall music rung out over the Prairie, and the people continued to come.

Now we have an annual appointment with the Barn too. The first time we arrived we were immediately welcomed to the Barn Dance family with roast beef, corn and mashed potatoes. Before we knew it, we were doing the two-step, the waltz, the line dance and the polka.

I am not sure what exactly draws us to make our annual pilgrimage to the Great Canadian Barn Dance. It could be the location, the food, the music, the dancing, or it could merely be the old-school values that draw everyone in to have fun together, young and old, like we used to.

People should dance more.  Start at the Barn and keep dancing. We did!

Hendrik van Wyk 

Dancing Cowboy

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Photos

Mustering

Dance Place

Old West

The Barn

Roast Beef!

Two Cowboys: Cracking Claws at the Inaugural Lobsterfest at Big Sky BBQ in Okotoks, AB

Lobsters Beware

There is a time of the year when every Atlantic Lobster should run for cover. It is Fall in Alberta, and Rob Bolton launched the inaugural Big Sky BBQ Lobsterfest.

No one told the lobsters. Before they knew it, almost 1,000 of them made the airplane trip to the Prairie town of Okotoks. It is the beginning of what is to become one of the largest events of its kind. You can mark our words. Rob is not going to hold back this time. He already has plans to double its size next year.

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He served the lobsters boiled, with lemon butter and bacon wrapped smoked corn on the cob to 420 hungry local folks. It was the second of two jam-packed entertaining evenings. Many of the guests made sure they got their tickets almost a month in advance. The ones that didn', lost out, or had to bootleg it from a local Okotokian on the Lobsterfest black market.

Observations

If you know the quality of BBQ at Big Sky, you will also know that Rob is a perfectionist. He will not relent until he's done it all perfectly and until every guest is thrilled with their experience. We were just excited to have an invite from Rob and to show you how it gets done at Big Sky BBQ.

By the way, the Lobster was delicious! You should have been there.

Hendrik van Wyk

Atlantic Cowboy

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In the Sun

In the Smoke

Lobster Grooming

Introductions

Machines

My Precious!

Traveling Cowboys: Connecting with the Past, Present and Future at the Galt Museum in Lethbridge, Alberta

Connections

When I think of museums, I associate it with dead things - graveyards.

Suspended items, behind glass and access ropes, sadly manage, although barely, to cling to the last remnants of relevance. While no longer able to fulfill their intended purpose, they are relegated to serving merely as lingering remains of different times and places.

The Galt Museum & Archives in Lethbridge is refreshingly different. It is alive with enthusiastic Lethbridgians who are telling stories, creating exhibits and organizing community events that help to bridge the gap with the past by keeping it relevant in the present. They are also laying the foundations for what is to become of the community of Lethbridge.

At the impressive facility, you are educated about the human history of southwestern Alberta and the value of recognizing history for the role it plays in creating future opportunity.

It also has the best view in town.

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The number and variety of programs at The Galt (as it is known by locals) are staggering. It includes stories, art, and music. All of it is crafted around the heritage of the community. As it goes in Southern Alberta, there is always a lingering of a little alcohol around, concerning the beer and whiskey heritage of the area.

Observations

We checked in early with Dana Inkster to be ahead of the day's busy schedule at the Museum. We were glad we did because the sun rising over the gorge and the wind playing in the long green grass rewarded us with an incredible sight of the famous bridge, from the building's foyer. It is a view that promises to always be amazing, and rarely similar. The seasons change incredibly fast in this part of Alberta and tomorrow it is bound to look different than today.

This turned out to also be a metaphor for our visit.

The museum reminds you that things change and it happens faster than you expect. Yet, there are also things that remain consistent. Lethbridge is the breadbasket of the region and has been for some time. It was the core of its livelihood in the past and that which continues to define the community in future. This heritage creates a sense of comfort and belonging for Lethbridgians as they continue to lead the agricultural industries in Alberta. And the Galt Museum serves to remind us of this responsibility, every day.

Lethbridge continues to intrigue us.

Hendrik van Wyk

Old(er) Cowboy

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The View

The Galt

The Bridge

Traveling Cowboys: Testing the Water at Coulee Brewing Company in Lethbridge, AB - The Home of Alberta Pilsners

Must be the Water

Lethbridge has a brewing history.

Fritz Sick came to Lethbridge in 1901 with $8,000 and started the Alberta Brewery. The brewery had as its 1st brew, a lager called Alberta’s Pride. This “beer without a peer” was advertised as “concentrated liquid food” and families were encouraged to serve the beverage at meals to help maintain strong digestive organs and encourage the appetite.

In 1905, the brewery began to make malt beer and changed its name to Lethbridge Brewing and Malting Co. In 1918 the brewery became Lethbridge Breweries Limited. The Brewery survived Prohibition by making Near Beer or Temperance Beer, a beer with only 2% alcohol.

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Old Style Pilsner was first brewed in 1926 by Fritz Sick at his Sick's Breweries Ltd. in Lethbridge, Alberta. Although Molson’s Breweries Limited bought the brewery in 1958, Molson’s continued to brew Lethbridge Pilsner and Lethbridge Lager Beer. The company continued brewing these brands to “suit local taste preferences with skills, modern techniques, and experience supplied by the entire country-wide organization.”

In 1989, Molson’s merged with Carling O’Keefe Operations and in 1990 operations ceased at the Lethbridge Brewery. In 1991, 90 years after Fritz Sick began brewing in Lethbridge, the brewery was knocked down.

As brewing and craft beer is experiencing a renaissance in Alberta, Coulee Brewing Co stepped in, in 2016, filling the Lethbridge brewing and beer hole left behind by the Lethbridge Brewery's departure. By doing it, they have the opportunity to reinstate the Pilsner and Lager legacy of Lethbridge Brewing and taking it a step further.

Coulee Brew Co.'s beer is now available at select bars, restaurants, and retailers throughout the area. It opened its doors to the public on Jan 16th, 2016.  It is the 3 ½ year vision of craft passionate, local entrepreneurs, Deborah Pallett and Scott Crighton.  Its creation was driven by their desire to restore the history of beer production in the local Lethbridge community while involving the community every step of the way.

Coulee Brew is a 16,000sq ft facility, with 2 separate brewing systems - yes it is big for a craft brewery! Lethbridgians must be a thirsty lot. A 7bbl pilot system, and a 4 vessel 30 bbl system. The tap house and grill is a full-service pub style restaurant with an open concept. Patrons can sit, eat and drink while viewing all things beer through walls of glass to the facilities production area. 

Observations

Coulee has quality beers, created with respect for the history of brewing in the community, a love of craft, and pride for all things Southern Alberta offers.

Cudos to Coulee Brewing Co.'s focus on the well-known Pilsner. This was our favorite when we visited. Maybe the water in Lethbridge adds a character to a Pilsner that is unique to that part of the world. The Bear's Hump Nut Brown (named after a famous landmark in Waterton National Park, not too far away, and a favorite summer spot for us) is also go-to comfort food when we visit the Park or the brewery. 

We were astonished at the size of the facility and the buzz of activity we encountered during our visit. What was even more impressive was their hospitality on the day we arrived, unannounced. This makes Coulee Brewing another local favorite for the Two Cowboys and a recommended Two Cowboys experience in Lethbridge.

Hendrik van Wyk

Pilsner Cowboy

We earn our livelihood from producing great content and supporting inspiring people, businesses, and communities. We use Patreon to help us earn from our work. Please become a patron at http://www.travelingcowboys.com if you want to see more of this and other stories.

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Long Term Commitment

Making Beer

Drinking Beer

Talking Beer

Filming Beer

Traveling Cowboys: Community and Old School Ingenuity at [Theoretically] Brewing in Lethbridge, AB

Brewing & Science

Sometimes, the most rewarding way is the better way. There are people in the world that are so enthralled with the process of creation that they take particular care not to sidestep any part of the journey. Words such as authentic, artisan, original, one-of-a-kind, and unique are associated with these makers.

For them, producing ice cream with a powder mix is not real ice cream. Chocolate without cocoa butter is not chocolate. Boots need to be hand-stitched and hats need to be hand shaped. You've seen and met many of these producers on this site. We want to introduce you to another pair that goes out of their way to keep it local, community focused, traditional and pure. They are Kris and Kelti from [Theoretically] Brewing Co. in Lethbridge.

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Changes in Alberta's liquor laws opened up the opportunity in 2013 for craft brewing. [Theoretically] Brewing, took the plunge with a deluge of other budding brewing entrepreneurs to capitalize on the opportunity of making their community's beer. They joke that the process from fire-pit to tasting-room was the biggest game of chicken the pair have ever played as they kept expecting for reality to put a stop to their dream. Encouraging friends, stalwart enthusiasm, and incredible support from their families helped make [Theoretically] Brewing what it is today - Alberta's second smallest brewery.

Saying that it is the "second smallest craft brewery" doesn't do justice to the journey. Kelti explained that their commitment to their community helped to keep welders employed in Lethbridge during the recession to custom make their brew and fermentation tanks. They wrestled through the permitting system with the AGLC and Lethbridge Council until they pioneered a practical approach to sustainable energy use on their premises. However, all the good intentions will mean nothing if the beer is no good, so let's talk about the beer. It is good!

All of their beers are unpasteurized and unfiltered, meaning that there are live yeast cultures in the beer and that they do not contain preservatives. This sounds like fresh beer to us! They bottle finish their beers, which is gutsy for a commercial brewery. You can never be guaranteed of the end result in a batch. Every bottle can be different. Every batch can be different. At [Theoretically] Brewing it is all done by hand with a lot of love and care, while they tinker with new and creative processes and recipes. This is what craft is all about. Experimentation!

Even their beers are named after scientists and scientific concepts or theories.

Observations

Kelti, didn't spare us on the day we visited the brewery. She took us through their entire repertoire of the brewery's arsenal of beers. Step-by-step we settled into tasting from the lighter to the darker beers until we ended with the stouts. At least, that is as much as I can remember. After the fourth beer, we can't remember what happened. Apparently, she explained how their love of stout is where the inspiration for the Brewery came from.

All we know is that it was a big tasting. We sipped from giant test tubes and savored every moment, aroma and flavor. No beer was wasted. We drank every last drop as Kelti took us through the inspiration for every brew. There is a story behind each one, which we hope to bring you in subsequent installments.

We came away from [Theoretically] brewing with mixed emotions. Somehow, we don't want them to change and grow up. We wish them success and many years of beer market domination and at the same time, we want them to stay as they are.

They must remain one of the smallest breweries in Alberta. We want to keep them our secret. They are quaint, special, practical and passionate about what they do. If you contrast it with some of the other more recent additions to Alberta's Craft Brewing scene, [Theoretically] Brewing inspires what a true Craft Brewery is all about. They don't do hectolitres of yet another Ale, Pilsner or Brown. They don't have the flash taproom or the "beertarts" in sales marketing, crisscrossing the Province and selling yet another label or brand.

Instead, for them, it is about the process of creation. The community that comes from the support of their people. The experiments and the focus on keeping it practical. Theoretically, they are one of the more unique breweries we've had the privilege to visit so far. Believe me, we will be back at the first opportunity we get.

Hendrik van Wyk

Theoretically a Cowboy

We earn our livelihood from producing great content and supporting inspiring people, businesses, and communities. We use Patreon to help us earn from our work. Please become a patron at http://www.travelingcowboys.com if you want to see more of this and other stories.

Photos

"Tube Porn"

Bottle Finished

Smile!

Test Tube Heaven

Two Cowboys: Its About Our People. Who Are Yours?

Who Touched Your Life Today?

It is sad that we know more about people we are unlikely to ever meet than we do about the people that served us our morning coffee.

The tone for our days are set by television, newspapers and social media, by immoral and corrupt politicians, celebrities with paid-for-opinions, leaked emails, the next big tech gadget, the online meme, a cat video, the price of the US Dollar and Aunty Bessie's next inspirational Bible verse.

Apparently, if we follow conventional wisdom, we should be concerned about people who know zip about us and is unlikely to ever care who we are. The monkey is amused.


We suffer from a media-induced "connectedness fallacy" that is perpetuated by our constant fascination with "important" yet worthless content. Why should we be bothered with the politician's email server? How can it matter what Kardashian had for lunch or who is buying DiCaprio's dinner? Cousin Johnny just bought a new motorcycle. Big deal. The Government just introduced a new tax. Boohoo. Putin just took off his shirt. Really?!

We live in an artificially connected algorithmically personalized informational content box driven by classifications, polls, likes and comments from someone somewhere, everywhere. Our real lives are passing us by. Every day, many real people touch our lives. We go through our rituals, work and habits and interactions with human beings not knowing anything about them. Do we know who they are? What are their names? How did it happen that they crossed our path? How do they feel and what do they think about us?

Should we care?

Yes, we should. The real people we touch and those that touch us define who we are, where we are, how we act, feel and who we eventually become. It is easy to ignore a message, email or ping. No connection, right? It is not easy to ignore a person that steps through your door, shakes your hand and asks: "How are you doing today, my friend?"

These are the people that really matter. Let's go out and meet them. Let's introduce ourselves.

Life Stories

Every life is made up of many, many stories. A person begins as part of a parent’s story. It is soon eclipsed by stories of discovery, finding an identity, forming relations, dealing with disappointment, and ultimately discovering or losing their purpose. We are the sum of our stories.

Stories unfold from perspectives, intentionally or otherwise. Stories become the distorted shadows in Plato's reality cave, outlining the elusive and enigmatic, while perpetually weaving itself into our identity. This discovery alone distinguishes the few from the many. Knowing that a story is just that. A perspective. The reality is something much more elusive and a lot less interesting. This is the first step to higher understanding.

Others become part of our stories as we become part of theirs. Some are positive and others less so. A positive story may be the result of a smile from the person that passes. A negative story the upset because of a smiling passing stranger. While we are part of other’s stories, discovering that we can only influence our own, is considered by many as the second step to higher understanding.

No amount of positive intent can account for someone else’s perceived tragedy. We are held accountable only by what we choose to include in our own experience and thought. Because it is what we include that we will perceive and ultimately receive. It is what makes us, us. Intentionally writing one’s own life’s story is the third step to higher understanding.

The question that remains is: If we can only write our own story, why then do we default to doing so for others? What more have we to give one another than our limited version of the truth? It is our story about our human adventure as honestly and as openly as we know how, that we share. In sharing, we hope to be recognised to become part of the stories of others. In sharing our stories and that of others, we become intertwined. They become part of us, and we become part of them. This is the fourth and final step to higher understanding. We are connected.

Let it then be good stories we tell.

On the Road

The Two Cowboys' mission is to learn, inspire and showcase small Producers all over the world - the people that make things. We do it with videos, blog posts, photos and through social media.

While undertaking our journey we travel a lot and interact with many people in local communities. When we interact with someone or reach out to a person, they become part of our story. We influence each others' lives. The people we feature serve us our coffee, brew us our beer, sew our shirts, mould our hats, service our trucks, grill our steaks and much more. They are cashiers, servers, assistants, workers, donors, sponsors and entrepreneurs. These are people in who we are vested. We are connecting with them.

We believe that we have a duty to introduce them to you, our audience. We want the world to know who they are. We want you to know them, meet them, and support them.

We will post photos of them on our Facebook Page and Instagram Feed.
Follow our travels on Patreon: http://www.travelingcowboys.com
Join us for an experience: http://www.twocowboysexperiences.com

See you on the road.

Hendrik van Wyk
Connected Cowboy