10 Barrel Bought by the Evil Empire

Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum

Help Support Homebrew Talk - Beer, Wine, Mead, & Cider Brewing Discussion Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Damn I hope they dont change, 10 Barrel is my favorite brewery of all time.
 
Sounds more like the 10 Barrel folks sold for something more appealing.

Folks always whine about InBev buying this and that, but there is ALWAYS a second set of people to this who justified the action for the amount.
 
The folks of Oregon don't seem like the types of people who are going to flock there now that they are owned by InBev.... maybe I'm wrong...

I've never had any of their beers.. what are they most known for?
 
Hopefully they keep operating the same for the most part. I wasn't big on anything I had tried from them for awhile, but since then i've had a couple beers I really enjoyed. It would be a shame to see the quality decline.
 
I don't see this as necessarily a bad thing. InBev has over 200 beer brands around the world and they cover a pretty broad range of categories. Sure, the most successful brands owned by InBev are beers that I would prefer not to drink such as Budweiser, Corona, Natural Ice, Busch, and Michelob, but they also have quite a few breweries that I enjoy such as Goose Island, Leffe, and Lowenbrau. Stella Artois certainly isn't bad and I enjoy a Rolling Rock every now and then.

No need for the doom and gloom.
 
Good for Chris and Jeremy! What a fantastic success story. I think it is amazing what was accomplished in such short of time span. I am Looking forward to seeing their next start up venture.
 
I don't see this as necessarily a bad thing. InBev has over 200 beer brands around the world and they cover a pretty broad range of categories. Sure, the most successful brands owned by InBev are beers that I would prefer not to drink such as Budweiser, Corona, Natural Ice, Busch, and Michelob, but they also have quite a few breweries that I enjoy such as Goose Island, Leffe, and Lowenbrau. Stella Artois certainly isn't bad and I enjoy a Rolling Rock every now and then.

No need for the doom and gloom.

That's how the big guys tap into the craft market without alienating their core drinkers.
 
Bass, Boddingtons, Goose Island, Leffe, Spaten - Yeah, there are some companies owned by InBev that can make pretty good beer. If InBev wanted to buy my brewing empire I'd sell. Nothing wrong with making money. :)
 
I guess it always sort of sucks when an independent business is bought out by a huge company. Living in NoVa I'm used to nothing but chain stores and strip malls so it really is sad when this happens around here. Everyone has their price though I think and their reasons to go along with it. I've never had any of 10 barrel's beers but hopefully they'll still be decent. I know quality usually does suffer when a big company buys out a small business. That's how I lost my last job... laid off after a big company bought us out. Maybe I'm biased though but it's usually not good for the consumer but every industry is different. Time will tell.
 
Bass, Boddingtons, Goose Island, Leffe, Spaten - Yeah, there are some companies owned by InBev that can make pretty good beer. If InBev wanted to by my brewing empire I'd sell. Nothing wrong with making money. :)

Big breweries buying out small breweries is a win-win. They have more quality, genuine craft beer to sell and you have seed money to start again, but bigger and better.

Of course, that's all theory for me. My dream is to start a microbrewery here in China, and I might think differently if I manage to achieve that dream. One side of me thinks the energy and investment to start a new brewery from scratch would be a major barrier, while another side thinks the opportunity to start again from scratch, with the experience of successfully starting a brewery once and the seed money to do it right (and on a larger scale) from day one, would be too compelling to pass up.
 
Most of the time when you sell to a bigger company, you have to sign a non-compete contract.. at least for a few years...

I don't think I'd be able to sell because I'd be worried about how my former business, employees and community were going to be treated by the big boys..

As for Rolling Rock... the quality certainly dropped on that beer....

Goose Island seems to be doing fine, though I've met a few peeps who think their basic beers don't seem as flavorful... I have no idea... being in Texas I never tried them until after the switch... (besides BCBS..which is still great to me)... now I haven't tried any other beer since the switch that I would go out and buy again among their regular line... too many better beers out there... but the barrel stuff is still pretty special tasting to me.
 
I say wait and see what happens to the quality before you automatically shun the brand. They make some good beers and they said the same brew staff will remain on and they seemed optimistic about the future of the brand. My wife and I meet one of the proprietors and his wife one night at a Oktoberfest they were pouring beer at about six years ago, and they are great people and we ended up having a great night drinking beer and having a good old time, after all if you start a business and it grows quickly and you can make a chuck of change, good for you and congratulations! :mug:
 
Hey, I'm all for making a buck. This is the reason why all of us start businesses and the chance to sell it brings me bucks. The problem comes when these big corps. Take a business and gut it for every penny by using inferior products, people and techniques. Not saying that this inbev does this you would have to ask current employees about that. What I really don't like is us companies selling out to foreigners. These companies are draining money and employment from Americans.
 
Hey, I'm all for making a buck. This is the reason why all of us start businesses and the chance to sell it brings me bucks. The problem comes when these big corps. Take a business and gut it for every penny by using inferior products, people and techniques. Not saying that this inbev does this you would have to ask current employees about that. What I really don't like is us companies selling out to foreigners. These companies are draining money and employment from Americans.

Totally agree with the foreign companies gutting the economy, and sadly it's happening every day, I didn't really look at it that way. Hope all the best for the employees.
 
Totally agree with the foreign companies gutting the economy, and sadly it's happening every day, I didn't really look at it that way. Hope all the best for the employees.

I know it is not usually general labor or lower mgmt that lose their job in these situations, it is upper management and suppliers. I did see part of an interview with either the head of inbev or the new head of bud, he was talking about the cuts he made at bud and how much more money he was saving by cutting the benefits of the employees and other cuts he had made at the company.

"The retirements and job cuts are part of the brewer's plan, dubbed Blue Ocean, to cut $1 billion in costs. The plan, announced in June, includes reducing the company's full-time salaried workforce of 8,600 by 10 to 15 percent before the year end."

If they are cutting 1 billion within a year of buying the company how much more did they cut over the next few. ( this was in 2008)
 
I say wait and see what happens to the quality before you automatically shun the brand. They make some good beers and they said the same brew staff will remain on and they seemed optimistic about the future of the brand. My wife and I meet one of the proprietors and his wife one night at a Oktoberfest they were pouring beer at about six years ago, and they are great people and we ended up having a great night drinking beer and having a good old time, after all if you start a business and it grows quickly and you can make a chuck of change, good for you and congratulations! :mug:
They have really pissed off the locals. Check out the responses on their facebook page. The pub will stay packed because Bend is a tourist town and most of the homes in the area are vacation rentals, so it won't matter that the locals are over at Crux, Deschutes, Silver Moon, Goodlife, Bend Brewing Company, etc. But it's kind of bad timing right before the opening of the Portland pub.
 
Maybe my mindset is different than everyone else's here, but if I put a bunch of money and effort into a company, and sometime down the road someone wanted to pay me lots of money for the company, I imagine my main considerations are not going to include the potential ripple effect on the craft beer industry. Maybe they have some external factor driving their decision making. Sick family member? Big medical bills? Desire to travel? Sick of owning a business? Who knows?

People need to step back from the edge. I can't imagine they would be hopping on your Facebook page and writing profanity-laced posts if you sold your start-up IT company to an industry leader.
 
At the end of the day, 10 Barrel is a business. Business is about making money. They had their reasons for selling, and when it gets down to it they don't really owe anyone. Sure, i'd be really bummed if one of the local breweries I have watched grow eventually sold out, but thats life. Its their livelihood, not mine.

Even if the owners sell the business and the minds behind the beer cease to be associated with 10 Barrel, I wouldn't be surprised if they started up another brewery. It's about the beer, not the name.
 
The amount and degree of negative comments on their facebook page is shameful. I'm pretty anti-big corporation, but I can't blame these guys for being successful and cashing in. If these comments represent their customer base, I can't blame them for getting out.

Home brewers do it for the love of beer. These guys started an actual business and likely risked everything to start said business. Good for them.
 
If my favorite local brewery sold to Inbev... I'd be pretty disappointed... and most likely I'd start spending more money on the others that are still locally owned..

I might also go to their facebook page and speak on the disappointment.. but I would do it respectfully.... but craft beer people are passionate... and some are going to go for the jugular if they feel hurt by their favorite brewery....

Not something I would do... but I'm not surprised.
 
If my favorite local brewery sold to Inbev... I'd be pretty disappointed... and most likely I'd start spending more money on the others that are still locally owned..

I might also go to their facebook page and speak on the disappointment.. but I would do it respectfully.... but craft beer people are passionate... and some are going to go for the jugular if they feel hurt by their favorite brewery....

Not something I would do... but I'm not surprised.

I totally get their fan base being disappointed and saddened by the circumstances. I was surprised by the amount of personal attacks.
 
Very few brewers have an exit strategy for their business. They have their life's work and capital it generated tied into their breweries and no way to cash out and retire. So if the opportunity comes I can't blame them for taking the opportunity. Further if such an opportunity comes when you are still young it clears the way for another startup, this time without the financial burden and full of knowledge of how to do it better. I bet the end result is another brewery that makes even better beer. Good for them.
 
So the local fallout has begun. Quoting a guy who is upset at the backlash.

"
I am so upset with my fellow Bendites today that I have to say something. Our local neighborhood brewpub, 10 Barrel Brewery, sold their brand to Budweiser yesterday and their success and inspiration to other small business owners should be celebrated. Instead, Bendites are boycotting 10 Barrel; calling them “sell outs”. I drove by the brewpub tonight and the spot, which is typically jam-packed (60 minute wait every night to get in), was empty! Why? What did they do wrong?"

It's not tourist season. Mt. Bachelor doesn't open until Thanksgiving. I'm really curious how the Portland pub opening is going to go now.
 
Very few brewers have an exit strategy for their business. They have their life's work and capital it generated tied into their breweries and no way to cash out and retire. So if the opportunity comes I can't blame them for taking the opportunity. Further if such an opportunity comes when you are still young it clears the way for another startup, this time without the financial burden and full of knowledge of how to do it better. I bet the end result is another brewery that makes even better beer. Good for them.

Don't be reasonable.
 
So the local fallout has begun. Quoting a guy who is upset at the backlash.

"
I am so upset with my fellow Bendites today that I have to say something. Our local neighborhood brewpub, 10 Barrel Brewery, sold their brand to Budweiser yesterday and their success and inspiration to other small business owners should be celebrated. Instead, Bendites are boycotting 10 Barrel; calling them “sell outs”. I drove by the brewpub tonight and the spot, which is typically jam-packed (60 minute wait every night to get in), was empty! Why? What did they do wrong?"

It's not tourist season. Mt. Bachelor doesn't open until Thanksgiving. I'm really curious how the Portland pub opening is going to go now.

If there's one state in the union that won't tolerate "selling out", it's Oregon. Washington and Oregon are both pretty big on selling out to a corporate overlord, but Oregon moreso than Washington. Make no mistake, on the local scale this will kill 10 Barrel, but if the beer is pumped out nationwide like Goose Island, I think they will do fine. That said, when I'm in the beer aisles I'll be reaching for something besides 10 Barrel, I can't stand InBev and I refuse to give them cash.
 
For me, living in South Dakota, this just increases the odds that I'll actually be able to buy 10 Barrel beer here. Just like InBev's acquisition of Goose Island did. Whether or not the product remains the same remains to be seen (and, honestly, I'll never know the difference one way or another).

I can understand why the Bend locals are pissed. But I can also understand why 10 Barrel did it. It's easy to be all righteous and high and mighty when you don't have a huge paycheck staring you in the face. Ultimately, it's their business and they can do what they want with it.


Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew
 
I can understand why the Bend locals are pissed. But I can also understand why 10 Barrel did it. It's easy to be all righteous and high and mighty when you don't have a huge paycheck staring you in the face. Ultimately, it's their business and they can do what they want with it.
As someone who lives a very short drive from Bend, I can understand why they did it too, but I'm still not going to buy their beer anymore. Why should my $'s be sent to Carlos Brito when I can keep them in our local economy? There are just too many local options. Beer, and seasonal tourism are our economy. Those dollars really matter here. And more importantly, the other locally produced beer is really good.
 
As someone who lives a very short drive from Bend, I can understand why they did it too, but I'm still not going to buy their beer anymore. Why should my $'s be sent to Carlos Brito when I can keep them in our local economy? There are just too many local options. Beer, and seasonal tourism are our economy. Those dollars really matter here. And more importantly, the other locally produced beer is really good.


If I lived in or near Bend, I'd probably feel the same. In fact, I'd probably just live in a tent somewhere near Deschutes. But I live in SD, where I have exactly one brewery within a 20 mile radius and a relatively limited selection of microbrews at the local liquor stores. So, given the chance to try a 10 Barrel brew courtesy of InBev, I probably will. But, I will admit that I have shied away from Goose Island in the past because of InBev. I've tried a few of their beers, but I tend toward independent microbrews instead.



Sent from my iPhone using Home Brew
 
It's like when the Romans just took over kingdoms and let business go on as usual...I don't know what AB inbev has planned for the brewery but it begs the question, what have the Romans ever done for us?
 
Only if they supply ideal brewing water.

Cheers,
--
Don
Forget the forests, rivers, mountains, etc., that's really the true beauty of Central Oregon. Our water is just so damned pure to start with. I'd put our water up against that of Plzeň any day.
 
The owners were sons of the local AB/InBev distributer, if I remember correctly, and they seemed to be building the business to be "commercial" from the start, so I'm not surprised.
I wouldn't blame them, it's business. Consumers can vote with their dollars whether they want to support AB/InBev or not. Oregon tends to support local owned businesses, so I suspect they will lose local business but pick up distant customers like Goose Island did.
 
Exactly, 10B was never about the beer anyways, strictly capitalism. (which is fine) It's not some brewery like Crux, where a seasoned brewmaster want to expand he creativity and do it his own way. Most locals go to 10b for the atmosphere and the amazing food, not so much the beer.
I'm no inbev cheerleader, but in my life, most of the people who complain about the big evil conglomerates, have nike in their closet, apple in their pocket, and walmart in their freezer.
BYO
 
Back
Top