Firestone Walker Brewing Company

Firestone Walker is expanding at home, investing upwards of $15 million to increase brewing capacity at its Paso Robles, Calif. brewing facility. In an effort to double brewing capacity and reduce what co-founder David Walker described as a “hectic” brewing schedule, Firestone Walker will integrate a new 250-barrel brewhouse into its existing production facility.

An annual rite came with a twist this year when local winemakers once again joined Firestone Walker’s brewing team for the blending of the next Anniversary Ale—only to discover that hoppy component beers had been taken off the table.

Recently, some of the biggest headlines in the craft beer industry haven’t been about the beer; they have been about the mergers and acquisitions of the brewers of the beer. With the increased frequency of craft brewery transactions, owners should be thinking about what the future holds for their business (and what could be their most valuable asset). That future may include a transition to a family member, selling only a part of the business in order to fund growth or to allow owners to take some chips off the table or, in the right circumstances, to sell the entire business. Even if you have no immediate plans or desire to sell or transition your business, these tips will help you position your business so that you can take advantage of opportunities and respond to challenges that cause you to rethink your plans.

In an effort to continue providing our audience with valuable insight in areas like finance, investment, branding, marketing, sales, and distribution, we’re excited to introduce “Brewbound Voices,” an avenue for experts to contribute their knowledge to our readership. Kicking off the initiative is Mike McCann, the chairman of Kansas-City-based law firm Spencer Fane’s corporate practice group.

Brewmaster Matt Brynildson and his brewing team at Firestone Walker Brewing Company continue to spin gold, earning “Mid-Size Brewing Company and Mid-Size Brewer of The Year” honors once again at the 2015 Great American Beer Festival® held this weekend in Denver, Colorado.

Firestone Walker Brewing Company’s Velvet Merkin barrel-aged oatmeal stout is set to return with its third bottled vintage—and this one promises to be the best yet. Velvet Merkin has always been the barrel-aged version of Firestone Walker’s seasonal Velvet Merlin oatmeal stout. What’s different this time is that the 2015 Velvet Merkin includes a barrel-aged lot of an experimental milk stout version of Velvet Merlin.

First Beverage Financial, the investment banking arm of First Beverage Group, today announced that it acted as the financial advisor to Firestone Walker Brewing Company in its agreement with Duvel Moortgat to combine the two companies in the USA. Firestone Walker will continue to operate independently at its Paso Robles, California facility under its current leadership of co-founders Adam Firestone and David Walker. The companies expect the transaction to close later this year. Terms of the agreement will not be disclosed.

Another top U.S. craft brewery is changing hands. As announced late last night, Duvel Moortgat will add to an impressive roster of American craft brands – one that already includes Kansas City’s Boulevard Brewing and New York’s Brewery Ommegang — by “combining” its U.S. operations with California’s fourth largest craft beer company, Firestone Walker Brewing.

Firestone Walker and Duvel Moortgat have agreed to “combine their two companies” in the USA, according to a press release. Specific financial details were not disclosed. In a note posted to its website, Firestone Walker founders David Walker and Adam Firestone described Duvel Moortgat’s investment in the company as a “partnership,” and a “elegant solution that will enable us to grow within a framework that meets our standards.”

What’s a cheeseburger in paradise without a beer? Maui Brewing, in its plans to open its first Oahu location next fall, is set to take over the space currently occupied by Jimmy Buffett’s at the Beachcomber, reports the Star Advertiser.

You’ve been warned: Helldorado may be blonde in color, but if you take it lightly, you’ll get gunned downed by a blast of barrel-aged flavor at an ABV of 12 percent.

Multiple versions of the same collaborative dark saison wild ale—called La Piccola—will be unveiled at the 2015 Firestone Walker Invitational Beer Fest on May 30, capping off a year of cross-continental brewing hijinks between brewmasters Agostino Arioli of Birrificio Italiano and Matt Brynildson of Firestone Walker Brewing Company.

You could call it a bunch of Monkee business—a beer meticulously brewed in the classic Belgian Quadrupel style, but aged for more than a year in retired bourbon barrels to create a stylistic outlier now known as a “Central Coast Quad.”

Firestone Walker Brewing Company launched Easy Jack last year as a different kind of session IPA, one with surprising complexity fostered by a rare selection of newer hop varieties from around the world.