Parallel 49 introduces a wicked brew to commemorate PNE Fair's 109th birthday
Credit to Author: Gordon McIntyre| Date: Sun, 18 Aug 2019 16:00:31 +0000
You may not find puns hilarious, but that shouldn’t stop you from trying NeFAIRious.
“In terms of branding, we’re kind of known for our puns,” said Anthony Frustagli, co-founder of Parallel 49 craft brewery. “We use a lot of puns, we’re big fans of them. We feel like puns are like pizza, there’s no such thing as a bad one.”
What NeFAIRious is is a cerveza-style lager custom-made for the PNE Fair by the folks at Parallel 49, while the art on the can is a chupacabra as imagined by East Van artist Steve Kitchen.
The PNE Fair holds a special place in many people’s hearts, but those who grew up in East Van seem to have a particularly fond association with it.
“The fair is such a part of your community, having it right in your backyard,” said Frustagli, who worked the fair for 20 years, long after he got his computer science degree from SFU and began developing software. “It was that thing you did every single year with your parents.
“I remember when I was younger,” the 43-year-old added, “I don’t know if they still do this but you used to get Playland tickets with your final report card in elementary school so it was just automatic, the PNE was something you did with your family.
“I think everyone in East Van, pretty much, has amazing memories of being here.”
Parallel 49 Brewery’s NeFAIRious, a beer brewed for this years PNE. Photo: Gerry Kahrmann/Postmedia
Working the fair is where he met two of his best friends and business partners, Mike Sleeman (no relation to the Guelph-based, Japanese-owned brewery of the same name) and Nick Paladino.
“I met lifelong friends working here, the people here become like family,” Frustagli said. “I think that’s what kept me around so long.”
In fact, on his way to find a reporter and photographer on Friday, he went in a wrong door and bumped into his old boss, Paul Bussanich, the PNE’s director of public safety and parking.
If Bussanich didn’t immediately recognize Frustagli’s face, he only needed to check out the 1990s-vintage PNE name tag pinned to the chest of his former employee.
But before Frustagli was old enough to work in the car park, the Parallel 49 cofounder worked in games. And not what you might think of when you think of games these days.
“Dodging balls being thrown at my head,” he said.
“As people were trying to knock the cans off,” he offered as further explanation.
Wait, what?
“Yeah, yeah. The game where you knock the cans off, I can’t remember what it’s called, it was a long time ago.”
Only five years ago when the fair began planning for a micro-beer gardens, craft breweries still seemed a bit of a novelty.
Today there are almost 200 in the province, and Parallel 49 is located less than two kilometres from the PNE. The brewery may not have existed had not Frustagli, Sleeman and Paladino met at the fair and become friends.
“Anthony had worked here beginning as a young guy and when we heard he’d gone on to be a founder of another great east side company, we wanted to establish a relationship,” PNE spokeswoman Laura Ballance said. “We’ve stayed in touch and when he came up with this idea to do a fair beer we were thrilled.
“We are honoured he’s done this.”