Distillery plans give iconic St. John's hardware store a boost in spirits
CBC News | Posted: October 25, 2018 3:37 PM | Last Updated: October 25, 2018
Templeton's sign to be part of the distillery design
For 150 years, the Templeton's store served the hardware needs of St. John's. Soon it could be serving them drinks.
Wooden Walls Distilling Company is planning to open up the city's first craft distillery in the iconic Harbour Drive building.
"We're trying to maintain as much of the nuance of the Templeton's space that we can," said Chris Dowden, a co-owner of the company.
Their plans include a tasting room complete with house-made cocktails, locally made beers and assorted snacks, a shop for distillery merchandise, and guided tours of the facility that will incorporate stories from the building's history — it was home to the family-run Templeton's hardware store, which closed in late 2016 after 150 years of business.
And yes, the hand-lettered Templeton's sign is part of the dream.
"The painted Templeton's logos will most definitely stay," he said.
With lounge-style furniture on order for the new space, Dowden is hoping the distillery and restaurant will offer a completely new experience for diners and drinkers in the city — a place where people feel "like they're in their living room."
But before that can happen, he said the building needs a serious overhaul.
"It was a hardware store, let's just say that," he said, laughing.
Craft distilleries on the rise
The company will start with so-called white spirits like vodka and gin. They've got their sights on whiskey and rum, too, those take a bit more time, he said.
Dowden wants to partner with local growers and foragers to create smaller-run specialty products with local ingredients, too.
Craft distilling is a "strongly emerging market," he said, and with the success of so many craft breweries in the province, Dowden said now's the time to pop the cork.
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He doesn't see Wooden Walls taking business away from any of the planned or already-established breweries downtown, either.
"If they're willing, I very much expect to be carrying their products in our shop," he said.
In fact, the approval process with the City of St. John's has forced some bylaw changes that will now make it easier for breweries and distilleries to open, he said.
Right now, Wooden Walls is in the final stages of obtaining that approval from the city. Though he's nervous to pin down an exact date for opening — "It could jinx us!" — he said he's hoping to be in time for 2019's tourism season.
"It's exciting for the industry as a whole," he said.