In recognition that the American craft beer market is doing well while sales of Budweiser swill are declining, AB has bought out Chicago craft brewer Goose Island.
Goose Island Beer Co., the Chicago-based brewing powerhouse, announced this morning that it will be taken over by Anheuser-Busch (A-B) for $38.8 million.
As part of the deal, A-B will also invest $1.3 million in the Fulton Street brewery to increase production capacity. Goose Island sold approximately 127,000 barrels of beer in 2010.
Brewmaster Greg Hall will be stepping down. Founder and president John Hall will stay on as CEO.
“Demand for our beers has grown beyond our capacity to serve our wholesale partners, retailers, and beer lovers,” Hall said in a statement. “This agreement helps us achieve our goals with an ideal partner who helped fuel our growth, appreciates our products and supports their success.”
As a fan of craft brews I hate to see Goose Island "sell out" to AB (a.k.a. - the enemy) but I don't doubt that it will mean good things for them. More capital to increase capacity will certainly complement the greater number of distribution channels they were able to get into when AB bought a minority share several years ago. Leinenkugel's sure seems to have benefited from being bought by Miller. Then again I suppose there are risks too. For example, would corporate higher ups put the kibosh on GI's more limited brews if they don't feel the profit margin is good enough? We'll just have to wait and see how things go.
Now, why is the Greg Hall stepping down? It seems like a good time be GI's brewmaster. Hell, maybe he just wants to try something new. I don't know. But it sure seems weird. Hopefully he wasn't pushed out.
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