[3/17 Update: Trey White, owner of HMB Holdings, has reached out since I published this last night. Here is an excerpt from the email that I don’t think he’ll mind me re-publishing here. Sounds like HMB Holdings is a small outfit that is looking after the best interests of AVBC fans: “We are small guys helping another small guy who is at retirement age transition his brewery to some fellow ‘beer’ guys. My intention is to run hard with the great products Ken et al. have created, lots of great beers with some disc golf and Boonville beer fests thrown in.”]
(Boonville, CA) – Another brewery sold. That brings the count to at least three in the past five months. Some context around the sale below . . .
In December, Long Trail Brewing closed on its purchase of Otter Creek Brewing. Late last month, Flying Bison shareholders approved its sale to F.X. Matt Brewing. Next month, Anderson Valley Brewing will officially be sold.
The difference in the first two deals and this one is that Anderson Valley stands to lose its “craft” status as part of the sale. That is because AVBC would no longer qualify as such under the Brewers Association definition, one that has been the source of debate for many years. Per the “craft” definition:
“Independent: Less than 25% of the craft brewery is owned or controlled (or equivalent economic interest) by an alcoholic beverage industry member who is not themselves a craft brewer.”
HMB Holdings LLC, the purchaser, may have the best intentions here but appears to be a holding company. Widmer Brothers, RedHook and Goose Island, each of whom are part of the Craft Brewers Alliance in some form, are examples of breweries excluded from “craft” rankings each year. [Side note: how is it that Kona Brewing is also a CBAI member but escapes the wrath of the BA on this issue?] Does the CBAI pact makes these breweries any less “craft” to you?
While you ponder that, back to AVBC . . . the Allens started the brewery in 1987. 23 years later, it is the 49th-ranked brewery out of over 1,500 in barrels sold annually. The brewery sold approximately 25,000 barrels last year according to The New Brewer. This is no small sale.
More information about AVBC’s history can be found here.
I couldn’t dig up any information about HMB Holdings or its 15-year industry veteran/owner, Trey White, but from the last line of the press release, it sounds as though this could only be the beginning.
HMB Holdings LLC will have when the deal closes one asset- Anderson Valley Brewing. I am as “crafty” as the next guy…
I think “wrath” is a strong word. The job of the Brewer’s Association is to promote and protect its membership. There is nothing wrong with what Widmer, Redhook and Goose Island have done, lets not forget that each at one point (and perhaps still maybe, I cant recall) had substantial investment from AB. But the fact remains is all it takes is one or two of these “holding” companies or “alliances” to create issues with distribution and attempt to play a heavy hand.
At the end of the day, well made beer is well made beer. Bad beer or mediocre beer is well, bad or mediocre. The size and growth for any product can lead to substantive changes that alter the product character. Sometime that can be negative. Sometimes not.
Thanks, Patrick. I suppose I become a little too choice with words when publishing after a couple beers and at 1am no less! I’m not sure what Widmer’s and the others’ ties are to AB though I think that the craft definition needs desperate revision. There is the Boston Beer problem of which I am sure you are aware. And then there is this problem around “independence.” Know how Stone distributes many crafts in Southern California and does so quite well with a brewers’ mentality? Well, what if HMB became a company kind of like that owning three brands but not making beer itself? I’m sure that the BA can change the wording so that it wouldn’t affect HMB/AVBC but would affect those who are bought by AB-InBev, etc.
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