They were motivated by a leukemia diagnosis
If you can’t get your hands on a Puppers, how about a Lynn’s Lite Lager?
The beer is a new collaboration brew between East Vancouver’s Container Brewing and Tyler Johnston, an actor best known for his starring role on the iconic show Letterkenny, on which he played Stewart.
It’s a beer created to raise money for and awareness of a cause close to Johnston: the need for blood and platelet donations.
Dan Webster, co-owner of Container, met Johnston when the actor visited the brewery years ago. Recently, when the brewery was coming up with another collaboration beer, Webster had reached out to Johnston to see if he had any ideas.
“With any of the collaboration beers we’ve done (not including with other breweries), there always something we’re trying to do to help the community,” Webster says.
It turns out Johnston’s mother, Lynn, had been diagnosed with leukemia in June 2023.
“We thought this was an obvious one,” says Webster, who lost his mother to a different type of cancer.
Specifically, they discussed the need for blood donations.
“These blood donations are so valuable to the life of someone going through leukemia,” says Webster.
The impact fresh blood transfusions can have on people dealing with leukemia can be dramatic.
“I learned so much in chatting with Tyler,” says Webster. “I didn’t realize it was so impactful for something like this. He says it’s night and day from the beginning of a transfusion to the end.”
Beer event raising money
Together, Container and the Johnstons have developed a beer for Lynn, dubbed Lynn’s Lite Lager, which is currently brewing. It’s an easy-drinking, four-ingredient lager.
The can design has several nods to Lynn, with a steering wheel (she’s a dragracer), purple (her favourite colour), and a hummingbird.
Lynn’s Lite Lager will be launched at an event on June 16 at Container’s 1216 Franklin St. brewpub.
“Ultimately we want to make it a bit bigger than ‘here’s some beer,'” says Webster.
Lots will be going on, with Eastblvd Records DJs playing music, food trucks (including Mom’s Grilled Cheese in honour of Lynn, whose favourite food is grilled cheese sandwiches), and a team from Canadian Blood Services. They’ll be on hand to inform people about donating blood, but won’t draw any at the event.
The Johnston family will also be at the brewery to celebrate the release.
Additionally, 10 per cent of all beer sold on June 16 at Container will go towards a charity of Lynn’s choice, along with $1 from every can sold of the beer named after her.
