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Craft Brew Alliance

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Craft Brew Alliance
Company typePublic
Nasdaq: BREW
IndustryAlcoholic beverage
FoundedAugust, 2008
Headquarters
Portland, OR
ProductsBeer, Cider
Production output
86,553,060 Liters (724,900 barrels)
Websitecraftbrew.com

Craft Brew Alliance is a beer brewing company that is composed of five beer and cider brands:[1]

  • Redhook Ale Brewery founded by Gordon Bowker and Paul Shipman in 1981 in Seattle, Washington;
  • Widmer Brothers Brewery founded by brothers Kurt and Rob Widmer in 1984 in Portland, Oregon;
  • Kona Brewing Company founded by father and son team Cameron Healy and Spoon Khalsa in 1994 in Kona, Hawaii;
  • Omission Beer developed internally in 2012 in Portland, Oregon;
  • Square Mile Cider, launched in 2013; and
  • KCCO - a collaboration with Resignation Brewery (founded by John and Leo Resig of The Chive) - launched in 2014.

According to the Brewers Association, it is the 9th largest beer brewing company in the United States, based on 2012 sales volume of 724,900 and an annual working capacity of approximately 1,075,000 barrels.[1][2]

As of January, 2013, Anheuser-Busch InBev owned 32.2%[3][4] of the business and is also the company's distribution partner,[3] has two seats on its board of directors, and special status in the company's board committees.[4] As of August, 2010, Brothers Kurt and Rob Widmer, founders of Widmer Brothers beer, owned a combined 18%.[5]

Company history

The company was formed on July 1, 2008,[6][7] with the merger of Redhook Ale Brewery and Widmer Brothers Brewery. CBA acquired Kona Brewing Company on October 1, 2010. In 2012, CBA launched a new brand called "Omission" beer, promoting the beer as specially crafted to remove gluten. In 2013, CBA launched a cider - Square Mile Cider, and in 2014 entered into a partnership with The Chive to create KCCO beer under the independent/Chive-owned Resignation Brewery moniker.[8]

The company was originally named Craft Brewers Alliance, but changed its name to Craft Brew Alliance on January 12, 2012.[9]

As of March 15, 2012, Craft Brew Alliance is publicly traded as Nasdaq: BREW. Prior to this date it was publicly traded as HOOK.[10]

Products

The company produces brands such as Redhook, Widmer Brothers Brewing, Omission Beer and several others.[11]

Officers and Directors[12]

Name Title
Kurt R. Widmer Chairman of the Board
Andrew J. Thomas Chief Executive Officer
Joe Vanderstelt Chief Financial Officer, Treasurer
Scott Mennen Chief Operating Officer
John Glick VP, Emerging Business
Dan Partelow VP, National Field Sales
Peter Schauf VP, National Retail Sales
Derek Hahm Chief of Staff
Matt Abraham Chief Information Officer
Ken Kunze Chief Marketing Officer

On November 21, 2013, the company announced that, effective January 1, 2014, Andy Thomas will take over as the company’s new CEO.[13]

On May 20, 2015 CBA announced the appointment of Joe Vandersteldt to CFO, along with several other changes at the executive leadership level.[14][15]

Redhook

Redhook was founded in the early 1980s in Seattle. At first, the brewery was a small shop in the Seattle neighborhood of Ballard. The beers brewed by Redhook include ESB, IPA, Pilsner, Copperhook, and seasonal brews.[11]

Widmer Brothers Brewing

Widmer Brothers brews various beers including Drifter Pale Ale, Nelson Imperial IPA, Rotator IPA Series, Drop Top Amber Ale, Pitch Black IPA & Upheaval IPA.

Kona Brewing Company

The Kona Brewing Company was founded in the spring of 1994, and is Hawaii's largest brewery.[11]

Omission Beer

The company's Omission beer is designed to have low gluten content by using a proprietary enzyme to remove gluten from traditional beer ingredients - namely malted barley.[16]

Square Mile Cider Company

Launched in 2013, there are two primary products under this brand - "The Original" which is a traditional hard apple cider; and "Spur & Vine" which is a "hopped apple cider."

KCCO

CBA partnered with the founders of The Chive after a call for brewery partners was posted on the Chive's site.[17] Initially, the partnership was a co-branding with KCCO/Redhook, but has since grown into KCCO being managed as its own stand-alone brand. Resignation Brewery was formed as the "brewer" for KCCO beers. Resignation is independent of CBA.

Appalachian Mountain Brewery

On December 2, 2014 CBA entered into a strategic partnership agreement with Boone, NC-based Appalachian Mountain Brewery (AMB).[18] As part of the partnership, CBA will act as "master distributor" for AMB, allowing their products to ship via the Anheuser-Busch InBev distributor network. CBA has taken an undisclosed, minority stake in AMB.

Use of the term "craft brew"

While the company name contains the phrase "craft brew", it does not meet the definition of a craft brewer according to the Brewers Association,[19] due to the percentage stake owned by Anheuser-Busch InBev.[3][20][21][22] The Brewers Association defines American craft brewers as "small, independent and traditional", with 'small' defined as an "annual production of 6 million barrels of beer or less", a limit changed in 2011 from 2 million to 6 million to ensure the ongoing inclusion of Boston Beer Company[23] (the producer of the Samuel Adams brand), 'independent' defined as at least 75% owned or controlled by a craft brewer, and 'traditional' defined as at least 50% of its volume being all malt beer.[19][22]

See also

References

Notes
  1. ^ a b CRAFT BREW ALLIANCE, INC. ANNUAL REPORT For the Fiscal Year Ended: December 31, 2012.
  2. ^ Brewers Association Releases Top 50 Breweries of 2012, Brewers Association, April 10, 2013.
  3. ^ a b c 10 Craft Beers that Aren't, The Street, January 4, 2013.
  4. ^ a b "Craft Brewers Alliance, Inc. Form 10-K". US SEC. p. 18. As of December 31, 2010, A-B owns approximately 32.2% of our outstanding common stock and, under the Exchange Agreement, has the right to appoint two designees to our board of directors and to observe the conduct of all standing board committees.
  5. ^ Page 3 - Anheuser-Busch Takeover Target: Craft Brewers Alliance? - TheStreet
  6. ^ Craft Brewers Alliance accessed 08-30-2009
  7. ^ Post-merger Widmer reports profit Portland Business Journal, August 12, 2009
  8. ^ Craft Brew Alliance Reports Second Quarter 2013 Results, Craft Brew Alliance official web site.
  9. ^ Craft Brewers Alliance is now Craft Brew Alliance
  10. ^ Craft Brew Alliance Changes Ticker Symbol to 'Brew' accessed January 8, 2013
  11. ^ a b c brands of company, accessed, Oct 29, 2013.
  12. ^ Key People in CBA
  13. ^ Next CEO for CBA - Andy Thomas
  14. ^ http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/BREW.O/key-developments/article/3195420
  15. ^ http://www.reuters.com/finance/stocks/companyOfficers?symbol=BREW.O&WTmodLOC=C4-Officers-5
  16. ^ http://omissionbeer.com/f-a-q/#141
  17. ^ http://thechive.com/2013/02/27/kcco-beer-coming-soon-were-seeking-a-brewery-to-partner-with-for-creation-of-liquid-gold-11-photos/
  18. ^ http://appalachianmountainbrewery.com/press/craft-brew-alliance-form-%E2%80%98strategic-partnership%E2%80%99-appalachian-mountain-brewery
  19. ^ a b "Craft Brewer Defined". Brewersassociation.org. Retrieved 2012-03-16.
  20. ^ That Craft Beer You're Drinking isn't Craft Beer – Do You Care?, Time Business & Money, August 13, 2013.
  21. ^ Report: The Craft Beer Industry's Big Year, Associations Now, March 20, 2013.
  22. ^ a b Brewers Association: Craft Beer is Now a $10 Billion Category, Brewbound, March 18, 2013.
  23. ^ "10 Craft Beers That Aren't". TheStreet.com. Retrieved 2013-11-24.
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