About Us
All trails lead here
It’s our tag line, and we mean it in multiple ways. Our brewery sits at the crossroads of the Trans Canada Trail and multiple town trails, and we also serve as a point of convergence: for beer lovers, for music fans, for visual art aficionados, cycling enthusiasts and, really, anyone who wants to get out into the world and feel a sense of community.
The Second Wedge began as a notion, that grew into a possibility, that snowballed into a reality over several years of careful planning, fundraising and hard work. We opened our brewery in late 2015, in an odd-duck building that had been an illegal grow-op, hidden away on a quiet side street behind the heritage railway in downtown Uxbridge. We transformed it into a bright, open space, and created a beautiful hideaway of a beer garden beside the Uxbridge Brook. We named ourselves after Uxbridge’s location on one of the four wedges of the Oak Ridges Moraine, because we wanted to draw the people who love our trails into downtown Uxbridge, to help it thrive. Our beer and hospitality quickly developed a solid reputation, and as we poured our passion and creativity into our work, our following grew.
But no business is without its challenges, and we have had our share. In 2019, we had to fight to clarify the law allowing breweries, cideries and wineries to permit dogs in tasting rooms. (The petition we started helped change the Ontario law in January 2020.) Not long after came the pandemic closures, a difficult time for everyone.
Our biggest challenge happened in the early afternoon of May 21 2022, when a derecho spawned an EF2 tornado in downtown Uxbridge, and our brewery took a direct hit, ripping off our roof. (Miraculously, though, none of dozen plus customers and staff in the building were seriously hurt.)
In a narrow strip through town, houses were destroyed, giant trees were uprooted and cars were flipped. Our building had to be completely gutted, the interior rebuilt and reroofed. In our beer garden, Foundry pi, the shipping-container wood-fired pizza kitchen owned and operated by Chef Steve Lovisa and Meaghan O’Hara, also had to close during this time.
We had our grand reopening in July 2023, and it was a triumphant homecoming for both businesses. Next on the horizon is the Spring 2025 opening of Steve & Meaghan’s Foundry Kitchen, a permanent, year-round business serving incredible food in our tasting room and beer garden.
This year we celebrate 10 years of The Second Wedge Brewing Co., and we’re excited to continue expanding and adapting, as we put all our care into making beer we love and connecting with our growing community.
Cheers!
Joanne Richter & Rob Garrard, Co-Founders & Owners
(And the crew of amazing people who help make this business great)
