Nova ScotiaEarlier this year, Route 19 Brewing in Inverness was found guilty of violating one liquor licensing regulation for failing to maintain control of the premises the night brewmaster Dallas Lewis fell off the roof and died.N.S. Regulatory and Appeals Board penalizes Route 19 Brewing for administrative infractionTom Ayers · CBC News · Posted: Oct 23, 2025 4:51 PM EDT | Last Updated: 2 hours agoListen to this articleEstimated 3 minutesRoute 19 Brewing in Inverness, N.S., will lose its liquor licence for 16 days for an administrative infraction after brewmaster Dallas Lewis fell off the roof and died in 2023. (Tom Ayers/CBC)A Cape Breton craft beer maker and restaurant has been handed a 16-day suspension after the death of its brewmaster, Dallas Lewis, in 2023.Earlier this year, Route 19 Brewing in Inverness was found guilty of violating one liquor licensing regulation for failing to maintain control of the premises on the night an intoxicated Lewis fell from the establishment’s roof, suffering fatal injuries.Nova Scotia’s alcohol and gaming enforcement division had called for a 50-day suspension, but in a ruling Thursday, the Regulatory and Appeals Board said the brewery has taken a measure of responsibility since then and demonstrated it understands the seriousness of liquor regulations.The RCMP and the Department of Labour both investigated after Lewis’s death, but no criminal charges were laid.Even so, the regulatory board said in its ruling the administrative failure was a serious matter.It said Route 19’s “actions did not meet the expectations of the regulations, but the board did not find the actions, or inaction, to be reckless or intentional.”Blood alcohol 3 times legal limitThe medical examiner determined Lewis’s blood-alcohol level was three times the legal limit for driving, a board hearing last year in Port Hood was told.It heard Lewis had been drinking while working, and video evidence showed him doing some work tasks while drinking, but the board found that it was not clear whether the brewmaster was actually on the clock at the time.In one of its submissions since being found guilty, the brewery said it has taken steps to improve safety.Lewis’s widow, Erinn, has launched a lawsuit against the brewery, but has declined interview requests.In its ruling, the board said it does not assess blame or culpability in a criminal or civil context or make any findings on whether the brewery contributed to the circumstances of Lewis’s death.It said a suspension of two or three days, as suggested by the brewery, would not have sufficiently reflected the gravity of the incident.’Series of actions and omissions'”This violation was not based on a single incident but a series of actions and omissions over the course of the evening that culminated with Mr. Lewis being unaccounted for over an extended period of time, during which he apparently climbed to the roof, fell, and was fatally injured,” the board said.”His whereabouts were generally unknown as he entered the brewery approximately 13 times consuming alcohol, and he was seen behind the bar and serving alcohol when he was not working.”Based on the board’s past precedents, any of these individual incidents would warrant a suspension at the lower end of the range.”The restaurant’s liquor licence is suspended for 16 days starting on a Thursday within the next month, but it will be lifted temporarily for pre-booked private functions only in the upstairs banquet space of the establishment.MORE TOP STORIESABOUT THE AUTHORTom Ayers has been a reporter and editor for 39 years. He has spent the last 21 covering Cape Breton and Nova Scotia stories. You can reach him at tom.ayers@cbc.ca.
Cape Breton brewery hit with 16-day liquor licence suspension after death
