This Week's Beer News: Milwaukee Modifications
Powered by the only constant: change
It’s been a busy week for Milwaukee-area craft breweries.
As we wrap 2024 and head into 2025, my main prediction for the year is that we see fewer closures, but a lot more acquisitions, mergers and partnerships. That seems to have been the big story around Wisconsin last week, though there was one more big closure to close out ‘24.
First, on the 30th, news emerged that Milwaukee’s Gathering Place Brewing acquired Sahale Ale Works, and plans to continue to grow the Sahale brand rather than bring them under the Gathering Place umbrella.
Then, on New Years Eve day, City Lights Brewing announced their closure as of Saturday after seven years in business. (At least maybe I won’t confuse them with Grand Rapids’ City Built Brewing any more.)
Then, the day after that, the owners of The Explorium Brewpub announced that they were buying all four locations of Good City Brewing and rebranding the whole thing as The Explorium Hospitality Group. Good City’s now-former owners kept the rights to the brand and Explorium will be licensing it to keep brewing those beers.
And beyond all that, we’re still waiting to see what’s going to happen with the now-closed MobCraft. Here’s an interesting wrinkle that’s barely been reported on: According to this note at the top of their original story, OnMilwaukee reported that whatever deal MobCraft thought they had in the works fell through. Remember how unclear it was what actually was in the works for them? A sale, a merger, a shutdown, a rebranding? Turns out it was nothing. They’re just gone. For now, I guess.
So … anyone wanna buy a brewery?
Let’s get back to it! This week’s news has some interesting stuff going on. Good way to kick off the year:
Here’s some exciting news: The owners of Funkytown Brewing are preparing to leave the Pilot Project nest. They’ve reportedly purchase a building and are planning open their own space on Lake Street near the United Center later this year.
Joliet’s City Council authorized spending $250K to acquire the assets of MyGrain Brewing and break its lease, which closed a year and a half ago after working from the city-owned Union Station.
WTTW looks at how middle brow makes wine at the Bungalow.
The Illinois Craft Brewers Guild kicked off their 3rd annual “My Illinois Beer Fridge” contest to get people to stock their fridges with beer even if you aren’t drinking it. Keep the cash flow going, everyone! Buy merch, too.
The Greenfield Reporter talked with Scarlet Lane owner Eilise Lane about shuttering their brewery after a decade in business.
Field Day Brewing is the first to sell THC drinks on draft in Iowa, as part of their Day Dreamer line of beverages.
New Holland announced plans to open a new brewery and taproom in Battle Creek after receiving an incentive from the town.
The UP’s newest brewery is open in Gladstone. Meet Saunders Point Brewing.
Brew Detroit announced that they would be closing their taproom at the end of January and focus only on production and distribution moving forward.
Grandville’s Adesanya Mead & Microbrewery announced plans to quadruple its mead production.
We recently saw the first package labels from Finnegans emerge from their Fulton Brewing residency, and just in time, too: they’re being sued for nearly a half-million in back rent.
Fox2Now covers the 4 Hands Brewing series of Voltron beers. TIL that Voltron came to the US via a guy from St. Louis, so now this all makes more sense.
After years of working with MolsonCoors, Pabst is entering a new contract brewing arrangement with AB InBev.
Fat Head’s 2025 brewery schedule is out and it includes the first year-round brand extension of their delicious Head Hunter IPA.
The wave of brewery closures and acquisitions that we talked about above was big enough to generate a local TV news story talking to brewery owners and beer drinkers about all the recent changes.
Lagunitas reportedly purchased a 189,000-square-foot building in the Port of Oakland and applied for a beer manufacturing license there, which I’m sure feels great if you’re a former Lagunitas Chicago employee.
Did you know that Goose Island added two new taprooms in Beijing last year? Now you do.
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