Craft Brewing on Easy Mode: Wicked Weed Brewing & AB-InBev

Craft Brewing on Easy Mode: Wicked Weed Brewing & AB-InBev

MAY 10, 2017 BY CHRISTOPHER BARNES LEAVE A COMMENT

 Beer is business. Let’s get that out of the way right now. This past week, the business of beer flared up into the mainstream in a big way when Wicked Weed Brewing of Asheville, North Carolina announced they’d reached a deal with AB-InBev (ABI), the world’s largest international beer conglomerate. The reaction to the buyout was swift, hot, and intense.

Why was reaction to this acquisition so much more intense when ABI purchased nine American craft breweries prior to Wicked Weed? While people say a lot of the same things regardless of the target of the acquisition, the ferocity of backlash to this acquisition eclipses all the previous announcements since Goose Island’s purchase in 2011. Goose Island was the first purchase in their modern campaign against “Craft Beer.” The industry response was vociferous and national.

Since Goose Island, the response has varied from tepid to mildly annoyed to heart broken, but it’s been contained largely to the region of the brewery’s distribution. With certain breweries, commentators weren’t surprised since they felt the brewery was built to sell. With other breweries, commentators felt they were losing a part of their regional community. With Wicked Weed, people feel like they’ve lost a flag bearer of the modern Craft Beer Revolution—a nationally-known industry darling.

Why do people feel so intensely…(Continue reading at The Full Pint)