Smuttynose Brewing Co. to be sold at auction

Discussion in 'Beer News' started by Rysk22, Jan 18, 2018.

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  1. Rysk22

    Rysk22 Savant (1,228) Nov 12, 2014 Massachusetts
    Trader

    Hopefully someone swoops in and can turn the business around without destroying it. I've yet to visit this new place but I've heard great things, and Smuttynose holds a special place from my early craft years. Might have to buy a pack of Finestkind today.
    http://www.fosters.com/news/20180118/smuttynose-brewing-co-to-be-sold-at-auction
     
  2. TheMattJones88

    TheMattJones88 Savant (1,218) Sep 12, 2009 Massachusetts
    Trader

    Yeah, here's to hoping the new owners can keep things going and improve their presence in the market.

    Smuttynose holds a really special place in my heart, they were my first favorite brewery. Finestkind and Old Brown Dog were staples in college for me.
     
    Tdizzle, cleeze, SaltofOH and 9 others like this.
  3. EnronCFO

    EnronCFO Pooh-Bah (1,969) Mar 29, 2007 Massachusetts
    Pooh-Bah Society

  4. Jbrews

    Jbrews Pooh-Bah (1,800) Aug 6, 2013 New Hampshire
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Being a Portsmouth resident, this is a bummer for sure.

    Wonder if Craft Brewers Alliance will come into play here....
     
  5. cavedave

    cavedave Grand Pooh-Bah (4,145) Mar 12, 2009 New York
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    "Smuttynose owner Peter Egelston said, “The company’s financial models were based on 20 years of consistent growth but the explosion of microbreweries has led to changing dynamics in the marketplace. This dramatic shift occurred just as Smuttynose committed to a major infrastructure investment with the construction of the new production facility. As the turmoil in the marketplace stabilizes, Smuttynose, a trusted brand with strong consumer loyalty, can regain its footing with a major infusion of capital.”
     
    Roguer, Tdizzle, SaltofOH and 8 others like this.
  6. cmoney13

    cmoney13 Initiate (0) Sep 9, 2017 Massachusetts
    Deactivated

    :slight_frown: I still really like finestkind.
     
  7. jlordi12

    jlordi12 Pooh-Bah (1,844) Jun 8, 2011 Massachusetts
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Freshness is killing all the legacy breweries
     
    nc41, rather, Brolo75 and 12 others like this.
  8. ecpho

    ecpho Savant (1,159) Mar 28, 2011 New York

    uh oh, I will have to infuse them with some capital next time I see them in the grocery store.
     
    kexp, flat_lander, GOBLIN and 9 others like this.
  9. lic217

    lic217 Pooh-Bah (2,066) Aug 10, 2010 Connecticut
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Robust porter and old dog were both excellent brews
     
  10. drtth

    drtth Initiate (0) Nov 25, 2007 Pennsylvania
    In Memoriam

    One more, and very few can convincingly blame it on producing sub-standard beers.
     
    drmeto, Tdizzle, Kendo and 28 others like this.
  11. Leebo

    Leebo Initiate (0) Feb 7, 2013 Massachusetts

    Love me some robust porter.
     
    Kendo, Brolo75, mikeinportc and 6 others like this.
  12. Squire

    Squire Grand Pooh-Bah (4,081) Jul 16, 2015 Mississippi
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    From the viewpoint of a spectator "an explosion of microbreweries" can be viewed as a good thing.
     
  13. hopfenunmaltz

    hopfenunmaltz Pooh-Bah (2,611) Jun 8, 2005 Michigan
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Just saw a link to the auction on Facebook. Another sign that the market has slowed. The bet on continued high growth didn’t pan out.
     
    Brolo75, George1005, Jaycase and 3 others like this.
  14. GrimmGrinninGhost

    GrimmGrinninGhost Aspirant (276) Dec 27, 2010 Utah

    This is sad but not entirely unexpected. I remember going to their old garage brewery. They talked for years about building their new facility and it happened to open up as the boom was hitting.
    Their new facility is gorgeous and they did a nice job with hayseed. Smutty was a go to 12 years ago. Old brown dog was a staple in my fridge. I still stop in to their new facility from time to time for a sampler, but rarely do I buy any of their normal offerings anymore. Some of their smuttlabs offerings have been enjoyable. Apple Brandy gravitation was a treat. Seems like they're a large enough brand now that only a large AB type buyer could afford them.
     
    ichorNet, Sabtos, Loops and 1 other person like this.
  15. cavedave

    cavedave Grand Pooh-Bah (4,145) Mar 12, 2009 New York
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    The changing marketplace model, as Mr. Eggleston notes above, is one of the best ongoing discussion within discussions here on BA. Given somewhat of an ominous dataset now by this happening to such a stalwart Northeast brewery.
     
    Kendo, Brolo75, George1005 and 8 others like this.
  16. jrnyc

    jrnyc Pooh-Bah (2,988) Mar 21, 2010 New York
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Yep, this already is and is going to have a huge impact on bigger breweries. Smuttynose, Green Flash, Stone, etc., etc. And it rarely gets talked about on here, but the local beer stores have to be taking a big hit. When people can go to their local small brewery who are making great beer that is fresh, they are not buying from their local store.

    Craft Beer Cellar near me closed down, nice store, good selection, knowledgeable workers but when I can go to local awesome breweries near me and buy direct, it has a big hit on the middleman's business.
     
  17. Immortale25

    Immortale25 Grand Pooh-Bah (3,549) May 13, 2011 North Carolina
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    Totally saw this one coming. Just the other day I was like "No one's buying this stuff anymore." As others have said, Smuttynose was among the first craft offerings I had experimented with as I was cutting my teeth. However, I did not like Finest Kind when I first tried it nor Old Brown Dog. As my palate started to develop, I began to appreciate their beers more, especially in their Big Beer Series (their Wheat Wine still is among the best I've ever had), but they don't produce beers - at least on a national level - that scratch the itch that today's beer geek has, i.e. hop bombs, BA beers and fruited sours. The last beer I even had from them was about two years ago when Durty came out and it was good, but not something I felt the need to revisit. It's a shame, but you've got to stay relevant to survive in today's cutthroat market.
     
  18. Alexmc2

    Alexmc2 Pundit (784) Jul 29, 2006 New Hampshire

    This saddens me greatly. Smutty was always one of my go to brands and one of the ones that introduced me to great craft beer. Wish I had the capital to buy and turn them around.

    Should we have a BA car wash to raise money to bid?
     
  19. Ranbot

    Ranbot Pooh-Bah (2,389) Nov 27, 2006 Pennsylvania
    Pooh-Bah Society

    Wow... did not see that coming. I hope they survive.

    ditto.
     
    HorseheadsHophead likes this.
  20. jesskidden

    jesskidden Grand Pooh-Bah (3,071) Aug 10, 2005 New Jersey
    Pooh-Bah Society Trader

    CBA just sold the 220k bbl. capacity Woodinville, WA brewery to a non-brewing company, which will use the building for offices and sell off the equipment. (An deal to sell it to Pabst fell through earlier).

    In the Brewbound story (below) they mention the company is "considering its options" for their Portsmouth, NH pub and it appears that for needed brewing capacity, they are now brewing at partial-owner AB facilities.

    https://www.brewbound.com/news/craft-brew-alliance-sell-woodinville-brewery-24-5-million

    Well, "lack of freshness" anyway. There's a sixpack of their Vunderbar Pilsner still sitting on the shelf of one of my local stores that I'm pretty sure is the same one I rejected as "too old" a year or so ago.
     
    thebeers, Jaycase, jlordi12 and 2 others like this.
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