First Beverage Financial, the investment banking arm of First Beverage Group, acted as the financial adviser to Colorado’s Breckenridge Brewery in its agreement to sell to The High End, the craft business unit of Anheuser-Busch. Terms of the transaction, which is expected to close in the first quarter of the year, were not disclosed.
“First Beverage has real insights on our industry—the business, the participants and the culture,” said Todd Usry, brewmaster and general manager of Breckenridge. “Not surprisingly, we benefited greatly from advice that was highly informed, professional and responsive.”
Based in Littleton, Colo., 25-year-old Breckenridge Brewery sold approximately 70,000 barrels in 2015 and recently built a new production facility in Littleton. Its beers are available in 35 states. The partnership with Anheuser-Busch will include the company’s new production facility as well as its Farm House restaurant in Littleton and its original brewpub and innovation center in Breckenridge. The brewery’s current management group, Breckenridge-Wynkoop, will continue to own and operate several brewpubs and ale houses in Colorado, including Ale House at Amato’s in Denver; Breckenridge Ale House in Grand Junction; Breckenridge Colorado Craft in Denver; The Cherry Cricket in Denver; Mainline in Fort Collins; Phantom Canyon Brewing Co. in Colorado Springs; and Wynkoop Brewing Co. in Denver.
“We were glad to be part of a successful transaction for Breckenridge, its stakeholders and employees,” said Townsend Ziebold, managing partner of First Beverage. “Breckenridge has a great heritage as one of Colorado’s oldest craft breweries, and its growth and innovation should continue to flourish in the future.”
First Beverage Financial also acted in the same role in the sale of Arizona’s Four Peaks Brewing Co. to The High End.
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Co-founded in 1996 by Andy Ingram, Jim Scussel and Randy Schultz, Four Peaks produces award-winning beers including its Kilt Lifter Scottish-style ale and sold approximately 70,000 barrels in 2015. The company also operates three brewpubs in Tempe and Scottsdale, as well as a location inside Phoenix’s Sky Harbor International Airport. The founders will maintain their headquarters in Arizona and will continue to manage daily brewery operations.
There is an implicit acknowledgement of the superior quality of craft beer in that name – “The High End”. Are kidding me? Last year, craft was “fussy” and for hipsters.
First Beverage Financial acts as adviser in Breckenridge sale https://t.co/5Oq91PngrI via @craftbrewingbiz