Breweries

The Boston Beer Co. Inc. is still considering acquiring an interest in the Latrobe, Pa., brewery now owned by City Brewing Co. of La Crosse, despite Thursday’s announcement that the maker of Samuel Adams will buy another Pennsylvania brewery, a spokeswoman said.

The Boston Beer Co., brewer of Samuel Adams beers, said Thursday it has signed a purchase and sale agreement with Diageo North America to acquire a historic brewery in the Lehigh Valley area of Pennsylvania.

Boston Beer chose this acquisition over building a new brewery in Freetown, Mass., where it had entered into an agreement with an option to purchase a parcel of land.

However, after a $4 million evaluation of the cost of constructing a new brewery, Boston Beer has decided that route would not be the company’s best long-term brewing option.

“Comparing the projected construction costs of a new brewery against the price of buying and renovating the Pennsylvania brewery, leads us to believe that this is the better long-term strategic decision for the company,” said Martin Roper, president and CEO, in a prepared statement.

Boston Beer also owns the former Hudepohl-Schoenling brewery in Cincinnati, where it brews much of its beer. It also contracts to have beer brewed elsewhere, including at the Latrobe plant in Pennsylvania where Rolling Rock was once brewed.

The Lehigh Valley brewery was built for the F. & M. Schaefer Brewing Company in the 1970s, and was operated by the Stroh Brewery for many years. During part that period Stroh brewed Samuel Adams beer for Boston Beer.

When Stroh exited the brewing business, Pabst Brewing Company bought it. Pabst and operated it until September of 2001, when discontinued making its own beer. Diageo then bought it to make Smirnoff Ice.

The Publican reports that pubs and breweries in the UK are in a fight to save their businesses as floods devastate areas of England.

In the wettest summer weather since records began, 500 pubs were under water with thousands suffering the knock-on effects leaving them with no water or electricity. Pubs in Gloucester were being urged to close amid health and safety fears.

Flood waters, which have caused destruction in parts of Gloucestershire, Worcestershire and Oxfordshire, are heading east with pubs in Oxford, Reading and Abingdon still on flood alert.

Anheuser-Busch profits increased 6% in the second quarter, helped by strength in its U.S. beer operations. The company forecast accelerating earnings growth for the second half of the year.

A-B sold 27.5 million barrels of beer in the United States, up 2.3%, while it moved 5.9 million barrels overseas, a gain of 1.6%. International gains were driven by increased volume in China, Canada and Mexico, partially offset by lower volume in the United Kingdom.

New products – both those produced by A-B and imports new to the portfolio – drove the growth.

U.S. distributors’ sales to retailers such as gas stations, bars and grocery stores inched up only a tenth of a percent in the second quarter versus a year ago.

If new imports such as Stella Artois and Bass Pale Ale were subtracted from the mix, sales of A-B’s “trademark” brands to retailers would have dropped 1.5%. Those include Budweiser, Michelob and Busch.

So have you wondered by a growing number of Europeans seem to be posting tasting notes for U.S.-brewed beers at Beer Advocate and Rate Beer?

A press release from the Brewers Association the association’s Export Development Program:

Efforts from the Brewers Association’s (BA) Export Development Program (EDP) have made U.S. craft beer available across much of Europe largely in part due to relationships U.S. craft breweries established with Bier & Co. (Holland’s largest specialty beer importer/distributor).

In early 2007 Bier & Co. purchased four containers of U.S. craft beer (valued at $110,000) for distribution in the Netherlands, Germany, UK, Ireland, Greece, Italy, and Switzerland. Additionally, Netherlands retailer, Mitra, has approached Bier & Co. about mixed packs of U.S. craft beers in 350 of Mitra’s stores. The negotiations of this deal are ongoing.

Since 2004 the BA has used funds from United States Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Market Access Program (MAP) to help promote the importance of U.S. craft beer in Europe. The BA uses these funds to educate U.S. breweries about export opportunities and build global recognition for the diversity and quality of American craft beer.

In 2006 with MAP funds the BA brought two representatives from Bier & Co. to the Great American Beer Festival to educate them about U.S. craft beer. Bob Pease, Vice President of the Brewers Association says, “The relationships developed at the Great American Beer Festival between Bier & Co. and U.S. craft breweries helped seal deals between Bier & Co. and three U.S. craft breweries (five more are pending).”

In addition to work with Bier & Co. the BA has been able (with the MAP funds) to attend the Stockholm Beer and Whisky Festival. Since 2004, Systembolaget, Sweden’s alcohol retail monopoly, has added four U.S. craft brands to its general list and many more to its seasonal and limited-time offerings (these companies include: Boston Beer Company, Brooklyn Brewery, Great Divide Brewing Co, Flying Dog Brewery, North Coast Brewing Company, and Rogue Ales). Sweden now represents the largest export market for U.S. craft beers with exports in 2006 totaling in excess of $1 million. This figure does not include purchases from Left Hand Brewing Co. (Colorado), whose Milk Stout is set to launch in 200 stores in 2007.

Just in case you overlooked that last fact: Sweden now represents the largest export market for U.S. craft beers with exports in 2006 totaling in excess of $1 million.

Analysts for Citigroup predict an alliance between Anheuser-Busch Cos. and Belgian-based InBev likely and write it “will have a domino effect on the entire global industry.”

Anheuser-Busch “is at a critical juncture at this stage as it has managed to box itself into a corner,” the analysts wrote. It “has no other choice, in our view, but to combine with another global beer player to quickly dig itself out of the slow growth trajectory and restore the company’s position in global brewing.”

A big reason Citigroup is making the prediction: It believes A-B CEO August Busch IV is “incredibly focused on winning and regaining A-B’s past glory,” the report said.

The rather large boom you heard this morning came out of Yards Brewing Co. in Philadelphia.

Basically, the only production brewery in the city is breaking up. Great reporting about this on multiple fronts:

– Jack Curtin has details has his own site and the Beer Yard (link at his site).

– Don Russell (Joe Sixpack) turns the press release into English:

Founder and co-owner Tom Kehoe is splitting with his partners, Bill and Nancy Barton, and will move the 13-year-old brewery to a new, to-be-chosen location. Production of the beer is expected to continue without interruption.

The Bartons will keep Yards’ hulking brewing facility in Kensington and begin producing a new brand.

The breakup ends an occasionally bumpy, eight-year partnership that saw the beloved brewery grow into the city’s most popular microbrewed brand.

About 200 taverns throughout Philadelphia and the region serve Yards, and its flagship Philly Pale Ale is poured at Phillies and Eagles games.

“We basically had two different philosophies about how to run the company,” Kehoe said yesterday. “It was time for me to move on.”

To recap, when this is over Yards beers will be made someplace else and something else will be made at what was Yards brewery.

Curtin has the full press release and (we expect) will offer more details/commentary in the coming days.

Updated Aug. 7: The Philadelphia Inquirer has an update, more details.

City Brewery in LaCrosse, Wis. – home of the world’s largest six-pack – is selling all its locally owned beer brands to a shareholder and getting out of the beer distribution business.

Brands such as La Crosse Lager, Kul Light and Golden Leaf Wheat still will be made by City Brewery and distributed by the new company.

City Brewery created the brands in 1999 when it reopened the former G. Heileman brewery. Heileman previously had six lagering tanks big enough to hold 7.3 million cans of beer painted to look like a giant six-pack of Old Style. City had the tanks repainted to read “LaCrosse Lager.”

From the British Guild of Beer Writers site:

Adnams, the Southwold-based brewer and leisure retailer, announced today that it had secured exclusive distribution and sales rights of Meantime draught beers throughout the UK and sales rights to all Meantime packaged beers.

The move came following the strategic decision for Adnams to strengthen the range of products available to them. Alastair Hook, founder of Meantime Brewery comments, “I feel very proud that our two companies are working together. Adnams is a brand that is trusted and recognised for pushing the boundaries of what is expected from a regional brewer. They have a strong base of high quality customers throughout London and the South that are well suited to Meantime beers. Adnams and Meantime share a similar philosophy and passion which we strive to express to our consumers, who understand and identify with the special nature of our beers.”

Adnams Managing Director Andy Wood explains, “Adnams is famous for brewing a wide range of excellent English beers. By working with selected third parties like Meantime we can further enhance our portfolio of premium brands and in turn, strengthen our relationship with our customers. Adnams has a record of developing successful long-term partnerships with like-minded companies such as Bitburger and Aspalls, recognising that this gives us access to premium products that we are not able to produce ourselves.

“We have long admired the work of Meantime. Our companies share a passion for brewing interesting and flavourfull beers and the addition of Meantime draught beers compliments the Adnams range extremely well. Our sales team is fired up and roaring to go with their portfolio boosted by the Meantime deal. Meantime offer an exceptional variety of beers from Bavarian-style Helles to their Anglo-American style Pale Ale. Their latest beer, London Stout, is particularly exciting and it is fantastic to see the brewing of this famous style of beer return to its roots in London.”

Both breweries sell a limited numbers of beers from the respective ranges in the United States.