Archive for the 'beer' category
Magic Hat Brewing to Buy Pyramid Breweries
April 29, 2008 9:49 pm
For the last several months I’ve been saying that Pyramid was ripe to be bought. However, I anticipated a very large player (like Miller) to swoop in and make the purchase. On that point, I was quite mistaken. Magic Hat Brewing Company and Pyramid Breweries announced that they will merge, pursuant to a letter of intent. The plan is for Magic Hat to aquire Pyramid for $2.75 per share - the stock closed at $1.76 a day before the announcement. Once the assumption of Pyramid’s ten million dollars in dept is taken into account, the deal will be valued at nearly 35 million dollars.
According to Pyramid CEO Scott Barnum, “the combination of these two well established, high profile craft breweries will be very complementary given our respective brand portfolios and the geographies in which we predominantly operate. Additionally, there will be a number of important benefits for Pyramid to be part of a private company versus continuing to operate as a stand alone public entity.”
The CEO of Magic Hat, Martin Kelly stated that “we have a great deal of respect for Pyramid’s brand heritage, award-winning beers and its dedicated employees…” Martin Kelly should know a little something about Pyramid given that he is an ex-employee. He joined Pyramid in 1999 as President and Chief Operating Officer, and then became the CEO in December of that year. In the years that followed, Pyramid expanded its operations significantly, bringing on two new Alehouses (Walnut Creek and Sacramento) and acquiring the Portland Brewing Company. At the time of acquiring the Portland brewing company in January of 2004, Kelly delivered a message that seems consistent with this current move, “The craft brewing business is very competitive and changes daily. To stay ahead, breweries must keep moving forward. Some breweries have chosen to go the route of aligning themselves with large, multinational, industrial brewers. We believe that approach can stifle creativity and lead to less choice for consumers. Our approach aligns two independent Northwest breweries and retains the creativity and integrity craft brewers are known for.”
It seems that as CEO of Vermont’s Magic Hat Brewing, Kelly’s style has not changed. Prior to making this move to grow through the acquisition of Pyramid, Magic Hat was in the midst of an expansion project that will double the capacity of its South Burlington Brewery.
In my opinion, aggressive growth can be a good thing. However, it can also be a risk in the beer industry because slight changes in the landscape (ingredient availability, cost of sales, cost of metal for kegs, consumer preferences, etc) can have a severe impact on the bottom line. Could Pyramid have weathered the current industry climate had it not been so aggressive in the Martin Kelly years? That’s hard to say. Even Redhook brewery, (who has strong distribution ties with Anheuser-Busch and were once stock market investor favorites) have had to resort to merging with Widmer in order to stay in the game.
This move could also give Pyramid a chance to start over. With the Magic Hat buy out, Pyramid can escape the scrutiny of being a public company and return their focus to the core: brewing great beer. That said, it will be interesting to see how or if the two breweries merge their cultures and brands. Magic Hat is known for being fun and somewhat unpredictable. To the contrary, Pyramid is a well thought out and dependable brand. Magic Hat’s Website looks like the worst elements of pop culture slammed into into it at full speed, while the Pyramid website feels conservative and stuffy. Most likely, the two will consolidate some of their business operations and perhaps some of their beer line (aka, some folks will be laid off), but both will continue to maintain their current brands and marketing philosophies. On the upside, both breweries may also get a foot in the door to distributors on the opposite coast. As a result, Seattle folks may start to see more Magic Hat beer in the stores and the East Coast might start to see more Pyramid on the store shelves.
Whatever happens next, I hope it only strengthens Pyramid’s footing in the market and makes it an even more valuable asset to the Pacific Northwest. Still, I’m always skeptical about out of town ownership and I’m curious to see if Pyramid continues to feel like a resident of the Pacific Northwest given the new arrangement. At any rate, I guess there’s little more to do now than sit back, drink down a Thunderhead IPA, and watch as the acquisition proceeds.
The CrapMonkey Podcast Episode #127
April 25, 2008 10:43 pm
Thanks for tuning in to another Crapmonkey Podcast. There has been a lot going on lately… but enough about me. Let’s look at what’s coming up in the near future. In the beer department, there are a few different festivals to look forward to attending. Right around the corner on May 2nd and 3rd is the Hop Scotch Spring Beer and Scotch Festival. July 4 through July 6th is the Seattle International Beerfest and from July 18th through July 20th is the Portland International Beerfest. If you can do only one brewfest in Oregon this year, you’ll want to check out the Oregon Brewfest July 24th through July 27th (warning: hotels book up fast!). Check out last year’s Oregon Brewfest Video! Looking for something to do on Memorial Day Weekend? How about attending the Crypticon Horror Convention in Seattle or the Vancouver International Digital Festival in Canada? In the Tech arena, Microsoft has launched Live Mesh as a tech preview. If you need help getting your digital life in sync, Live Mesh might be just the right thing for you.
The song of the day is Souls Come Rising by Lords of the North and the website of the day is TeachStreet.com. The show closed on What’s Eatin’ You by Airbourne, recorded live (from the crowd) at the Tractor Tavern in Ballard. Special thanks to the AndyCast Podcast for the intro, go subscribe to Andycast - you’ll laugh till you stop!
Sin City Brewing Company
March 8, 2008 11:59 amThe beers that you find in the casinos in Vegas are typically not that great. That’s why I decided to head over to the Sin City Brewing Company’s Pub and have something a little different. You may view the brief video below (apologies to Ipod users as the video is in WMV format).
If I Had A Buttrock Brewery
February 16, 2008 2:32 pm
Wendy and I have always thought it would be cool to open a buttrock brewery. While we may never actually achieve the goal, we do find it fun to dream up the kind of beers we would have on tap.
Perhaps one day we will achieve our dream, but until then, here are a few of our ideas:
Hef Leppard
Iron Marzen
Motley Brue
Van Weizen, StrIPA
Great Witte
QueensRye
Sabastian Bock
Do you have any others? Leave your buttrock beer styles in the comments!
POC #17: Maui Brewing Company
February 5, 2008 9:08 pm
On Monday, we made the trek into Lahaina to check out the beers brewed by the Maui Brewing Company. Located on the NorthWest side of the island, this award winning brewery is both charming and unique. Their beers range from blonde to Stout and include everything in between. In this Piece of Crap we speak with beer-tender, Anton, about topics ranging from the beers themselves to the reasons the brewery chose to package in cans instead of bottles.
Most of the beers in the Maui Brewing company line were enjoyable, but a couple that stood out were the Big Swell IPA (57 IBU) and the Coconut Porter (and I don’t even like coconut). Click below to hang with us at the brew pub and, by all means, when in Maui - be sure to check out the Maui Brewing Company.
POC #17: 02-05-2008 - Maui Brewing Company [10:41m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | DownloadPOC #13: Brouwers Bigwood Festival
December 1, 2007 2:00 pm
Brouwers Cafe in Fremont is in full swing with their Bigwood Festival. Over 40 excellent beers that have been conditioned in wood make this festival a must attend event. The beers were rolled out Thursday night and will continue until supplies run out - so get there sooner than later.
In this Piece of Crap, we are hanging out at Brouwers and enjoying some fine beers conditioned in bourbon barrels. We also chat with manager and bartender, Chris Cavanaugh, to find out a little more about the Bigwood Festival, bourbon, and the Brouwers Cafe in general.
Also, don’t forget, tonight is the last night of the Washington Winter Beer Festival. Given that it is being held at Hales Brewery, only a stones throw from Brouwers, this could be the night to check them both out.
Show Beer a Little Gratitude this Thanksgiving
November 18, 2007 4:12 pm
Thanksgiving is just around the corner and many of us will be joining friends and family for festive dining and cheerful imbibing. Although I suspect that wine is the most traditionally served drink on this festive occasion; this year I’d like to encourage you to include Craft Beer in your holiday menu. While beer may not be a common part of your family tradition, even the Pilgrims were Ale drinkers and it is widely believed that beer had a place on the table at the first Thanksgiving.
The notion would make sense since beers accentuate the typical Thanksgiving feast even better than most wines. Caramelized and toasted grain flavors in many beers complement the flavors of roast turkey. Furthermore, the carbonation, fruitiness and balanced bitterness of many craft beers allow them to stand up to creamy, butter-rich preparations like mashed potatoes and creamed corn. According to Brewers Association Spokesperson Julia Herz, “Many styles of beer both complement and contrast the food they are paired with, whereas wine mostly contrasts. The holiday dinner table is a very appropriate place for beer made from America’s small, independent and traditional brewers.”
A lot of terrific seasonal ales hit the shelves this time of year so be sure to spend some time in the Craft Beer isle of your favorite grocer before making your way to meet your host. If you’re hosting this season, click here to get some ideas on how to pair and serve like a pro. Still not conviced? Below is a brief interview with Garrett Oliver, Brewmaster of the Brooklyn Brewery and Author of the Brewmasters’ Table, that I recorded in 2006 at the Craft Brewers Conference in Seattle.
The CrapMonkey Podcast Episode #124
November 4, 2007 10:56 pm
Fun times with beer are just around the corner. This weekend you’ll want to check out the Pyramid Snowed In Party at the Seattle Brewery. The Presidents are the Friday night headliner and the Dandy Warhols are Saturday’s attraction (besides the SnowCap of course). Click here for more details. On November 30th and December 1st, don’t miss the Winter Beer Festival at Hales Brewery.
In this podcast I have a couple of audio clips from the Podcast and New Media Expo. At the Wizzard Media party, I ran into Omaha Sternberg of MacRadio getting tied up by GrayDancer, producer of the Ropecast (who was there on behalf of TwistedMonk.com). Photos are on Flickr.
The song of the day is There She Goes by Brother Love and the website of the day is the Association of Downloadable Media. The show closes on Two Years Down by Stonehoney.
Fremont Oktoberfest 2007: Worst Brewfest Ever
September 25, 2007 8:55 pm
Oktoberfest in Fremont definitely felt like it was put on by people with little or no experience in the brewfest business. For starters, the price was too high and the taster glasses too small. Taster glasses for all brewfests in Washington have been shrinking year over year, however, the price isn’t usually as gouging as Fremont demonstrated this weekend. Entrance to the garden was $20, which included only four tastes, $25 would get you eight tastes, and any additional tastes were $1.75 each. The beer selection was decent, but could have definitely been better (approximately 70 brews representing 35 breweries). The worst part of the event came down to organization. I believe there were three tents in all, each tent containing about 10 or 12 breweries. The tents were labeled as to which beers were housed within, but just where in the tent the beers resided was a mystery that could only be solved once you were close enough to the tap to read the accompanying table tents. This proved to be very challenging because the lines were quite long after about 3pm on Saturday. To get a beer, one had to weave between the lines in order to get close enough to determine just where the beer was being poured, then return to the back to actually stand in the line. It was definitely not an ideal layout. In the early evening on Saturday, one of the tents discovered this dilemma and used duct tape to hang signs on the outside of the tent (where they could actually be read from a distance). The others may have followed suit eventually, but I didn’t stay the entire evening to find out. Those that did stay for the evening reported that many of the beers ran dry and festival goers began to get understandably cranky as a result.
To put an ironic head on this skunky, contaminated beer: just outside the festival gates sits Brouwers Café. Boasting over 50 taps and over 100 bottles, it was a welcome escape from the chaos of the brewfest. Once I sat down and ordered a full glass of Diamond Knot XIPA, I wondered why I ever bothered with the festival in the first place.
I do want to be careful not to paint the entire festival in a bad light because my real frustration was with the Stranger Microbrew Garden (even the name, since I would contend that most of the beers present were Craft beers… but I digress). The Street Fair and the Texas Chainsaw Pumpkin Carving Contest are a regular draw for the festival and are surely an excellent source of entertainment. Additionally, the funds raised go to the Fremont Chamber of Commerce to support Fremont schools, art groups and other community events. Those footnotes should certainly not go unrecognized. Still, the real star of the show should be the beer, and that part went heinously wrong this year. Hopefully the fine folks in Fremont learned a few lessons this time around so that the only thing worth saying about next year’s event is one, simple, little word… “prost.”
CMP-8-26-2007: CrapMonkey Podcast Episode 122
August 26, 2007 7:45 pm
It’s Sunday afternoon and a very busy summer is coming to an end. In this episode, I am proud to say I’ve put my iRiver back into the CrapMonkey Mix. I upgraded to the M-Audio microtrack a long time back, and my ability to capture spontaneous moments has suffered ever since. Having the iRiver back on board is already starting to pay off. On Saturday night, outside of a bar in lower Queen Anne, I caught a great rendition of the Big Mac drive through rap (performed by some of the Seattle Pyramid Alehouse crew). Not sure where this rap came from? Check it out on YouTube.
This episode also boasts a guest restroom review of the Heritage Hall in Vancouver B.C., brought to us by Cosmo G. Spacely of the Clubside Breakfast Time Podcast (aka - Jacob Stewart). The urinal in this review is truly unique, so check out the images here.
Beer lovers, we are on our way to brewfest bliss. Here are a few to think about over the next couple of months:
- Washington Beer Commission Oktoberfest
- Fremont Oktoberfest
- Leavenworth Oktoberfest
- Great American Beer Festival
- Great Canadian Beer Festival
The song of the day is Here with You, by Tracy Hoyt and Jeff Fielder, the website of the day is NoonHat. Today’s program closes with “Seahawk’s, Give It All You’ve Got” by Keith Sexton.
Want to chime in? Send an email to Travis@crapmonkey.com. Audio comments are welcome.
CMP-8-26-2007: CrapMonkey Podcast Episode 122 [22:13m]: Play Now | Play in Popup | Download
