A limited run of beer celebrating the music of Spirit of the West鈥檚 John Mann hits liquor store shelves today.
Branded as 鈥淪pirit Lifter,鈥� the Off the Rail Brewing Company鈥檚 pilsner was created to raise money for Mann鈥檚 ongoing Alzheimer鈥檚 treatment.
Mann, 51, was diagnosed with early-onset Alzheimer鈥檚 in 2014 and the band played three farewell shows at the Commodore a year later. A benefit gig and subsequent crowdfunding campaign in November 2017 raised $42,000 for his ongoing medical treatments. 听
Making the beer happen is an exercise that鈥檚 almost 30 years in the making.
Off the Rail founder Steve Forsyth previously owned the Railway Club for 27 years and it was at that haunt that Spirit of the West cut its teeth. Forsyth鈥檚 sister Janet went on to manage the band for years.
Forsyth came up with the idea and ran it by Mann鈥檚 wife Jill Daum and bandmate Geoffrey Kelly. From there, it was brew time.
鈥淭hings just get harder and you have to constantly adapt to it getting more and more difficult and the person you love getting farther and farther away,鈥� Daum said in a news release.
Spirit Lifter will be available at B.C. liquor stores and licensed retail locations throughout the province until Sept. 1.
