Revolution Brewing

Sporting venues around the country have been beefing up their craft beer programs in recent years and now Guaranteed Rate Field, home of the Chicago White Sox, is teaming up with one of the city’s most well-known breweries. Chicago’s Revolution Brewing has inked a multi-year deal with the White Sox for increased exposure throughout the ballpark as part of what Donn Bichsel, the brewery’s director of sales, described as an opportunity the company couldn’t pass up.

The Brewers Association today released its annual rankings of the top 50 U.S. beer companies based on 2017 sales volume estimates. Here’s how things shook out:

For the 6th year running, Revolution Brewing’s Galaxy-Hero IPA blasts onto the scene as the official beer of the Chicago Comic & Entertainment Expo (C2E2). Chicago’s largest independent brewery will return to C2E2 as the official beer sponsor and participating vendor, bringing an array of comic-inspired merchandise, including the newest issue of the Galaxy-Hero comic book series.

Chicago’s Revolution Brewing proudly employs 68 strong female leaders, a group of whom assembled in late January to brew Spirit of Revolt.

In this week’s distribution roundup: Revolution Brewing expands to Michigan, Boulevard switches wholesalers in Idaho and Dovetail Brewery hits Indiana.

In this week’s edition of press clips: The Brewers Association releases its 2017 beer style guidelines; the Hop Growers of America report on hop acreage growth and Revolution Brewoing, A-B and MillerCoors strike sports sponsorship deals.

In this week’s edition of Last Call: Wicked Weed postpones the Funkatorium Invitational; Speakeasy’s sale price is report; Massachusetts and Maryland alcohol task forces set meeting dates; and much more.

Revolution Brewing yesterday issued a recall of more than 10,000 barrels of beer packaged between Aug. 3 and Oct. 11 due to off-flavors that developed in six of the company’s more popular products. In an interview with Brewbound, brewery founder Josh Deth speculated that a majority of the recalled product had already been consumed, but said that the company would likely be forced to remove at least 3,000 barrels of beer from distributor warehouses and retailer shelves. If that’s the case, Revolution could miss out on about $1 million worth of sales to wholesalers and the company will also incur charges to destroy the damaged product.

Cans of Chicago’s iconic craft beer, Anti-Hero IPA, will soon be landing in New York City. Revolution Brewing, one of the fastest growing breweries in the nation, will distribute its products through Manhattan Beer Distributors in the Metro New York area beginning Oct. 3.

After completing an $8 million expansion earlier this year, Chicago’s Revolution Brewing is now equipped with 150,000 barrels of capacity. They’ll finish 2016 somewhere around 75,000 barrels or, expressed differently, about half of what it is capable of producing. And with new retail opportunities getting tougher to find in its home state, the company has begun looking elsewhere for growth. That’s why in June, the company quietly launched in Wisconsin with General Beverage. It’s also why it will enter New York City with Manhattan Beer in October.

Forbidden Root founder Robert Finkel and 5 Rabbit Cervecería founder Andres Araya will discuss the state of innovation in craft brewing and their experiences operating highly-differentiated craft breweries. A second discussion with Donn Bichsel, Revolution Brewing’s director of sales and marketing, will examine current marketplace trends, increasing competition and struggles that mid-size craft regional brewers are facing as they look to scale their brands.

Upland Brewing Co. announced today that REVved UP Coffee Blonde Ale will be released on draught and in 6 packs starting April 1. Both Upland’s Coffee Blonde Ale and Revolution’s Coffee Brown Ale will be on tap at Upland tap rooms in early April.

Revolution Brewing has announced plans to officially expand distribution to Massachusetts, signing with Massachusetts Beverage Alliance (MBA) for statewide coverage beginning Nov. 2. The decision to begin selling beer on the east coast is more of a personal one for Revolution founder Josh Deth, who was born and raised in Newton, Mass., a Boston suburb.

Brewbound is pleased to announce the next two stops on the 2015 Brew Talks nationwide tour. Brew Talks — a free, traveling meetup series for beer industry professionals – will visit Coronado Brewing in San Diego, Calif. on Tuesday March 10 and Revolution Brewing in Chicago on Tuesday, April 28.