Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling Company
 | This article needs additional citations for verification. (November 2012) |
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| Location | Newport, Rhode Island, United States |
|---|---|
| Coordinates | 41°30′46″N 71°19′04″W / 41.5126804°N 71.3176496°W |
| Opened | 1999 (as Coastal Extreme Brewing Company) |
| Key people | Brendan O’Donnell (CEO) Brent Ryan (President, co-founder) |
| Annual production volume | 100,000+ barrel annual capacity (2024)[1] |
| Owned by | Audrain Hospitality Group (Heritage Restaurant Group) |
| Distribution | Northeastern United States (New England) |
| Website | newportcraft.com |
Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling Company (often referred to as Newport Craft) is a brewery and distillery located in Newport, Rhode Island. Established in 1999 as the Coastal Extreme Brewing Company, it was the first microbrewery in Newport and began distilling operations in 2006.[2] The company produces a range of beers and spirits that are distributed in the Northeastern United States. In 2018 it adopted its current name to reflect its combined brewing and distilling operations. Newport Craft is owned by Audrain Hospitality Group (also known as Heritage Restaurant Group), which owns and operates a portfolio of hospitality venues throughout Rhode Island.[3] A major expansion project completed in 2024 increased production capacity and added new visitor facilities, including a taproom, outdoor spaces, and event areas.[4][5]
History
[edit] | This section needs to be updated. (August 2025) |
Coastal Extreme Brewing Company was established by four graduates of Colby College: Brent Ryan, Derek Luke, Mark Sinclair, and Will Rafferty.[6] Rhode Island was chosen as the location because, at the time of opening, there were no other microbreweries in the state.[7] Coastal Extreme Brewing company produces approximately 5000 barrels per year. In 2006, Coastal Extreme Brewing Company expanded to create Newport Distilling Company, producer of Thomas Tew Rum, the only current rum producing operation in Rhode Island.
In 2007, Coastal Extreme also began producing Thomas Tew Rum, named after Rhode Island's first pirate. Brent Ryan, President and CEO of Coastal Extreme, said that the production of rum is part of an effort to "resurrect the rum history of Newport."[8]
In January 2011 the brewery was featured in an episode of the show Dirty Jobs with Mike Rowe in which the brewery showed in detail how they produce and package their Thomas Tew rum.
In March of 2018, Coastal Extreme Brewing rebranded under the Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling Company name. At the same time, Brendan O'Donnell joined the company's management team as Chief Executive Officer."[9]
List of Cyclone Series beers
[edit] |
The Cyclone Series of beers are beers of varying types released by Coastal Extreme Brewing Company approximately every four months. Below is a list of all the Series to date. The names are in the style of the National Weather Service's naming of Tropical Storms where each letter of the alphabet is used as the first letter in each name and male and female names are alternated. Q and X are included in this series unlike the naming of the Tropical Storms. The one exception to the male and female alternation is the letter 'M' because Mark (named for a founder, Mark Sinclair) would have fallen on a female name. All names are someone either involved with the brewery or someone close to the brewers. The notable exceptions are Alyssa, Elle, Gloria, Isabel, Neo, Ophelia and Quinn.
| Name | Type of Beer | IBU | ABV | SRM | Namesake |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Alyssa | Brown Ale | 33 | 8.1 | 83 | Brent Ryan's beloved Porsche |
| Brent | Bock Lager | 26 | 8.5 | 26 | Founder and President, Brent Ryan |
| Chloe | Imperial Pale Ale | 75 | 8.6 | 13 | Niece of a brewer |
| Derek | Stout | 61 | 8.7 | 235 | Founder and Head Brewer, Derek Luke |
| Elle | Belgian Ale | 16 | 8.1 | 20 | "Sexy French Name" |
| Frank | Belgian White (Witbier) | 7 | 6.8 | 13 | Brewer at Coastal Extreme Brewing |
| Gloria | Pumpkin Ale | 16 | 7.3 | 11.5 | Hurricane Gloria of 1985 |
| Henry | Dark Ale | 20 | 7.6 | 39 | Great Grandfather of a brewer at Coastal Extreme Brewing |
| Isabel | India Amber Ale | 53 | 9 | 19 | Hurricane Isabel of 2003 |
| James | Strong Scotch Ale | 20 | 8 | 22 | Brewer at Coastal Extreme Brewing |
| Kim | Marzen Lager | 19 | 7.8 | 20 | Twin sister of founder, Brent Ryan |
| Luke | Indian Red Ale | 65 | 8.6 | 28 | Founder and Head Brewer, Derek Luke |
| Mark | Coffee Milk Stout | 33 | 7 | 33 | Founder, Mark Sinclair |
| Neo | Cascade Pale Ale | 35 | 7 | 13 | Neo from the Matrix |
| Ophelia | Peach Ale | 20 | 5.9 | 25 | Hurricane Ophelia of 2011 |
| Peter | Spiced Ale | 30 | 7.5 | 33 | Distiller/Assistant Brewer at Coastal Extreme Brewing |
| Quinn | Barrel-Aged Porter | 38 | 7 | Unk | Dr. Quinn Medicine Woman Series |
| Ryan | Rye Pale Ale | 48 | 8 | 21 | Founder and President, Brent Ryan |
| Sabrina | Belgian Pale Ale | 38 | 7.1 | 13 | Daughter of founder Brent Ryan |
| Tim | Dunkelweiss | 14 | 6.3 | 35 | Friend of the Brewery |
| Ursula | North American Pale Lager | 19 | 6.1 | 9 | Sea Witch from The Little Mermaid |
| Vlad | Russian Imperial Stout | 77 | 9 | 225 | Employee chosen name |
| Will | West Coast IPA | 89.5 | 8 | 21 | Founder - Will Rafferty |
| Xavier | Sour Ale with Black Cherries (Berliner Weisse) | 5 | 7 | 6 | Employee chosen name |
| Yoko | Dark Ale with Toasted Coconut | 45 | 7 | 105 | Employee chosen name |
| Zach | Oatmeal Stout | 47 | 10.1 | 251 | Massachusetts sales representative |
Awards
[edit]2007 Annual Great International Beer Competition[10]
- 3rd Place - Strong Beer: Other (Imperial Irish Stout)
2005 Annual Great International Beer Competition[11]
- 1st Place - Amber & Dark Lager (Cyclone Series Brent)
- 3rd Place - Brown Ale (Cyclone Series Alyssa)
- 3rd Place - Porter (Bizzard Porter)
Advertising
[edit]Taglines: "Newport Storm beers. Brewed in small batches—so every drop counts."[12]
See also
[edit]References
[edit]- ^ "After 4 years, Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling opens new facility". 17 April 2024.
- ^ Van Siclen, Bill (2007-05-03). "Brewhaha". Projo.com. Archived from the original on 2007-10-17. Retrieved 2008-03-04.
- ^ "Audrain Hospitality". Audrain Hospitality. Retrieved 2025-09-02.
- ^ Audrain Hospitality Group (2021-03-31). "The Audrain Group has announced the launch of a new hospitality entity, Audrain Hospitality Group". GlobeNewswire News Room (Press release). Retrieved 2025-09-02.
- ^ Staff (2021-07-08). "Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling to Expand". Craft Spirits Magazine. Retrieved 2025-09-02.
- ^ Pike, Meaghan (2005-03-16). "Local Micro Brewery is an Extreme Hit on Rhode Island's Coastline". Srumosaic.com. Archived from the original on 2007-05-26. Retrieved 2008-03-04.
- ^ Donnis, Ian (2005-08-19). "The Beer Boom". Providencephoenix.com. Archived from the original on 2008-05-13. Retrieved 2008-03-06.
- ^ "History of Thomas Tew". thomastewrums.com. Archived from the original on 2014-07-15. Retrieved 2014-06-18.
- ^ Pinnock, Tristan (2018-03-23). "Newport Storm Gets New Name, New Leadership, And Some New Ownership". thenewportblast.com. Archived from the original on 2018-04-07. Retrieved 2019-03-24.
- ^ "Great International Beer Competition" (PDF). Archived from the original (PDF) on July 5, 2008. Retrieved March 6, 2008.
- ^ "The 9th Annual Great International Beer Competition". Archived from the original on March 21, 2007. Retrieved March 6, 2008.
- ^ [1][dead link]
External links
[edit]- Newport Craft Brewing & Distilling Company Official Website
- Thomas Tew Rum Official Website
- Craft brewers adopt a can-do attitude - Boston Globe article about craft brewer's use of cans