In Ontario’s picturesque village of Alton sits GoodLot Farm and Farmstead Brewing Co., an organic hopsyard and solar-powered brewery owned by Phil and Gail Winters, who bought the 30-acre property in 2009.Nathan Cyprys/Supplied
In the picturesque northwest corner of Caledon, Ont., lies the historic village of Alton, home to GoodLot Farm and Farmstead Brewing Co., an organic hopyard and solar-powered brewery located on a 19th-century farmstead among lush green fields.
GoodLot is a buzzing community destination where tourists, daytrippers and locals can enjoy live music, rotating food pop-ups and a dozen varieties of craft beer made on site with land-grown hops and other hyper-local ingredients. Two family-friendly beer gardens overlook the hops in bloom, and the restored 1890 Oast Barn tasting room has beers on tap and for sale to take home.
Owners Phil and Gail Winters transformed their 30-acre farmstead into a thriving brewery, but that wasn’t the plan when they purchased the land and buildings in 2009.
“We moved here to become farmers,” says Mr. Winters, whose wife grew up in Caledon. “We wanted to indulge our passions, which for Gail was always growing plants and for me was always growing food in our backyard.”
After eight years of planting, growing more than 1,500 hops varieties and becoming suppliers to a range of Ontario breweries, the Winters opened GoodLot in 2017.
Adding a brewery to a working hops farm on a heritage farmstead transformed the site’s purpose from purely agriculture into agritourism. The shift signals how farm owners are adapting their properties to evolving tourism and real estate trends across Canada.
The rise of agritourism in Ontario
The past five years have reinvigorated agritourism – the practice of farms, ranches, dairy businesses and other agricultural enterprises rezoning and renovating to include features such as breweries, pick-your-own produce, farm-to-table dining, event venues and more.
Influenced by the pandemic and fluctuating economy, Canadian travel habits have shifted toward local exploration.
“People were forced to look in their own backyard in terms of what they can do because we can’t travel or travel as easily,” says Kevin Vallier, CEO of Agritourism Ontario. “I think that’s when a lot of people discovered that they can go visit a local farm…People want to know where their food is grown and support Ontario businesses. The farm owners have been really creative in terms of attracting people to visit.”
In April, Agritourism Ontario released its first-of-its-kind economic growth study, which found the economic output from properties rezoned for agritourism to be $633-million annually, with over 8,700 jobs created in rural communities each year.
Building the brewery took two years and a new concrete floor, footings and perimeter beam were installed to stabilize the structure, before solar panels and equipment were added. The tasting room was also restored in 2023 using original salvaged timber structure and beams.Nathan Cyprys/Supplied
Heritage preservation meets sustainable innovation
GoodLot is just one of a group of heritage farmsteads in Ontario that have transformed into an agritourism destination.
Mr. Winters worked with ERA Architects in Toronto to preserve and protect as much of the original exterior of the 157-year-old barn as possible, while also turning the interior into a modern solar-powered brewery.
ERA has a portfolio of adapted heritage barns, which includes Caledon-based Cambium Farms, Wilda Farmhouse, which produces natural spritzers, and the Brighthouse Farm, an event venue in an 1867 farmhouse and barn based in Prince Edward County.
“Our work at ERA is always grounded by our origin story, which is really about the protection, adaptive reuse and evolution of heritage buildings,” says Shelley Ludman, principal architect. “This specific rural hospitality portfolio evolved naturally from one of our early initiatives that looked at understanding the economic challenges facing Canadian rural communities and trying to help entrepreneurs leverage both natural and cultural local resources.”
The brewery took two years to complete and a new concrete floor, footings and perimeter beam were installed to stabilize the structure, before solar panels and equipment were added.
The Oast Barn tasting room was restored in 2023 using original salvaged timber structure and beams.
“Some upgrades are necessary purely just to be functional, so we do have to make some selective updates, but our goal is always to remain sensitive and true to the building and try to make those interventions as minimal and as less disruptive as possible,” says Lyndsey Sneddon, associate architect at ERA.
California vibes in the County
Jessica Schnurr and her sister and business partner, Natalie, grew up coming to Sandbanks Provincial Park in Prince Edward County with their family every year. They now own and operate the Brighthouse Farm, a stylishly laidback-yet-well-appointed event space located on a 100-acre farmstead in the nearby village of Wellington.
Ms. Schnurr had a vision of a fresh new type of event space and accommodation, inspired by her time in Ojai, California.
“People would set up camp for the day, pack elaborate picnics, play games, drink wine, listen to live music. There was no rush, no pressure, and it was so social and communal,” says Ms. Shnurr. “I hadn’t seen that in Ontario wine country yet.”
The Brighthouse Farm, located in Prince Edward County’s charming Wellington village, presents an elevated yet easygoing vibe. Located on a 100-acre farmstead, the event space is owned by sisters and business partners Jessica and Natalie Schnurr.Brighthouse Farm/Supplied
She found the acreage and got to work with her sister on the rezoning plans, renovating the farmhouse herself before working with ERA to reimagine the 1867 timber-frame barn into a high-functioning multi-purpose event space.
To preserve the barn’s exterior aesthetic and create more outdoor space and flow, an elevated deck was added to the rear of the building. The main floor was mostly preserved as a wide-open space and dance floor, with the addition of a window-flanked marble bar and restroom, while the basement contains areas for food, service and a second bathroom.
“They added two huge 70-foot windows on either side of the bar,” says Ms. Schnurr. “It was really important for us to kind of have that indoor-outdoor feel. Even when you’re indoors, you can see the land, the forest and the gardens outside.”
Continued expansion as local connection grows
Both the Schnurr sisters and the Winters have plans to expand and grow their heritage farmstead operations.
“The next project for us would be the 1890 Italianate farmhouse,” says Mr. Winters. “We want to renovate it into three suites for overnight accommodation, or we might convert it into a farm-to-table restaurant.”
There are big plans for added accommodations at Brighthouse Farm, too.
Ms. Schnurr has plans for cabins on the property, with a central hub for a variety of experiences and events.
“It’s a space that’s really intended to bring people together in the countryside, built around how people gather outdoors,” she says. “It’s less of a traditional hotel and more of a community space.”
Preservation is never far from her mind, a characteristic born from her roots.
“My sister and I actually grew up on 100 acres, and so we’ve grown up around this our whole lives. We do feel an incredible responsibility to the land and the people that came prior,” Ms. Schnurr says.