Mary Richmond and Michael Cichoki have bought the brewery. Photo: Michael Cichoki.
Beer lovers were sad to hear the news of Tumut River Brewing Co’s closure in September of this year but there’s good news on the horizon! Two former staff members – Michael Cichoki and Mary Richmond – have bought the business back from the liquidators.
Speaking with Region, Michael Cichoki said that he wants to “walk before we run” and return the focus of the business to their Tumut Brewpub.
“I was one of the first employees when they opened the doors as a tourism destination,” he told Region.
“It would have been really sad to see it go to someone else who didn’t have the same passion. Our passion lies in bringing it back to its roots which is a brew pub servicing the local community and being a tourism destination. That’s what we want to focus on.”
The new owners of Tumut River Brewing Co posted on social media to announce their plans to reopen. Photo: Tumut River Brewing Co.
Their second location in Canberra (which opened earlier this year) will close, a decision Michael said he “thought long and hard about”. In the end, the new owners decided that running one venue would be enough of a challenge, although he didn’t rule out further locations in the future.
Former owner Tim Martin cited growing costs, the ongoing impacts of COVID, and disruption to the business from roadworks in Tumut that limited access to the site as factors in his decision to close. Initially, Mr Martin assumed that the Canberra location would remain open.
The range of beers on offer in the brewpub will be reduced to five core beers and fewer seasonal releases, but don’t worry, the beloved Ginja Ninja will stay! The team is bringing in a caretaker brewer alongside former brewing staff to get a pair of fresh eyes on the recipes to improve consistency.
The number of core beers will be reduced for now, with a focus on customer experience and consistency. Photo: TRBC.
The team’s first focus will be on getting the brewpub back to its former glory and refreshing the brand.
“We’re just giving everything a bit of love. Because it’s been so tough, there hasn’t been a lot of money to put into the venue. We want to make sure it looks a bit fresh and new when people walk in the doors,” he said.
“We’re stripping everything back and really making the brewery a destination and a good experience for people.”
The brewpub used local produce like Snowy River Trout on their house-made pizzas and also encouraged independent musicians to tour the town. Michael says that they’re looking forward to being able to support locals once again once they get back on their feet.
Both he and his new business partner, Mary, live in Tumut with their families.
Tim Martin may have called last drinks, but Tumut River Brewing Co will live on! Photo: Michelle Kroll.
Since announcing the news on Instagram, Michael says they’ve received a lot of positive feedback, much of it from Tumut locals who are pleased to see the iconic local business reopening.
“Tumut’s a small town, and I’ve been pulled up in the street a few times by people saying how much they miss it. It’s left a real gap. The support from the local Tumut community has been really good. Even just in the last 24 hours, the comments have been about how great it will be for the town and the region. So that’s what we want to focus on now.”
Tumut River Brewing Co plans to reopen sometime in December. Follow them on Instagram to find out more.
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