Green Flash Brewing Company

Green Flash Brewing today unveiled a new logo, rebranded packages and a reformulated version of its West Coast IPA flagship. The move comes about eight months after the San Diego-based craft brewery named former Anheuser-Busch executive Michael Taylor as its new CEO, following months of financial turmoil and an eventual foreclosure sale to holding company WC IPA LLC.

Industry headwinds, brewery acquisitions, the emerging cannabis sector, and the seemingly never ending battle between big and small beer makers were the focus of Brewbound’s most-read stories of 2018.

As the U.S. brewing industry inches closer to a record 7,000 craft beer companies in operation, hundreds of distressed breweries are expected to close in 2019 and many of those failed enterprises will turn to asset auctions as a way to pay off debt. Brewers Association chief economist Bart Watson told Brewbound during a live-streamed interview at last week’s California Craft Brewers Association Summit that he anticipates as many as 300 brewery closures by the end of 2018. According to Watson, he expects the gap between openings and closings to shrink over time, and there could be as many as 500 closures in the next couple of years. The increasing number of brewery closures has also meant an uptick in business for auction houses.

Alpine Beer Company’s most popular and exclusive IPA, Nelson is hitting shelves in 12 oz. six-pack bottles and on draft in eight states; Arizona, California, Colorado, Hawaii, Nebraska, Nevada, Texas and Utah. To kick off this legendary release, Nelson will be on draft at the Alpine Beer Company Pub and Tasting Room beginning Sept. 7.

In the latest round of People Moves: Modern Times scales back its taproom staff; North Carolina’s guild director departs; and more beer company changes.

It’s been a turbulent year for Green Flash Brewing, but the San Diego-based craft brewery is hoping the opening of a new satellite brewpub will help turn things around. After closing two production facilities, laying off 76 employees, pulling distribution from 42 states and being sold by its bank to a new investor group, Green Flash has finally commenced operations at the Green Flash Brewhouse & Eatery in Lincoln, Nebraska.

Following months of turmoil, Green Flash Brewing Company has identified its next chief executive. The San Diego-based craft brewery, which was sold to a new investor group last month, today named former Anheuser-Busch executive Michael Taylor as its new CEO.

Loeb in partnership with Heritage Global Partners and Blackbird Asset Services recently announced the sale of Green Flash’s Virginia Beach brewing equipment to New Realm Brewing Company, a southeast based craft brewery.

Atlanta’s New Realm Brewing has won a bid to acquire the brewing equipment assets currently located inside Green Flash Brewing’s former production facility in Virginia Beach, sources told Brewbound.

Following weeks of uncertainty about the future of Green Flash Brewing, the San Diego-based craft beer company today announced that it has finalized a sale to a new investor group. In a note sent to Green Flash Brewing shareholders, posted by various outlets, founder and CEO Mike Hinkley said the brewery’s primary lender, Comerica Bank, had “foreclosed on its loans” and sold the company’s assets to WC IPA LLC via a foreclosure sale.

Another chapter in the story of Green Flash Brewing’s distressed financial situation was written today as the San Diego-based company announced plans to close its Cellar 3 barrel-aging facility and taproom in Poway, California.

After taking on “too much debt” to build an expansive East Coast brewery, San Diego’s Green Flash Brewing today announced that it would cease operations at its 58,000 sq. ft. Virginia Beach production facility and terminate 43 employees in the process. The Virginia Beach brewery, which cost approximately $20 million to build and is capable of being scaled to 100,000 barrels, is currently for sale as part of an online auction run by Heritage Global Partners. Additionally, Green Flash — which also owns the Alpine Beer Company brands — has secured capital from a new but undisclosed investor group.

After taking on a “considerable amount of debt” to build a $20 million secondary production facility in Virginia Beach in 2015, Green Flash Brewing founder and CEO Mike Hinkley is on the hunt for new investment. The San Diego-based craft brewery has retained SSG Capital Advisors — a boutique investment banking firm that specializes in mergers, acquisitions, restructurings and often works with “companies facing complex or challenging situations,” according to its website – to help it bring on a new partner.

Facing increased competition from more than 6,000 U.S. craft breweries, Green Flash Brewing today announced plans to pull distribution from 33 states in a move that will also include a 15 percent reduction of its workforce.