Shipyard Brewing plans big expansion

The craft brewing industry is starting to feel like a Game of Thrones season, toward the end, when all of the various kingdoms and fiefdoms are readying themselves for the coming battle. Some craft breweries are looking to Big Beer or to other outside investors to bolster their business and aid expansion, and others are continuing to do it themselves.

Count Shipyard Brewing in the latter category at the moment. According to the Bangor Daily News, Shipyard Brewing is making a $4 million investment and is looking for more control of distribution in other states.

From the Bangor Daily News:

But Forsley said efficiency and not capacity is Shipyard’s immediate focus, as the country’s brewing capacity has ballooned in recent years.

“We’re always talking about [adding capacity], but right now … there’s a lot of capacity being built, so maybe there’s opportunities for us working or doing stuff with others,” Forsley said.

Forsley said the company has secured bank loans for about $4 million that in the next two years will be used to double Shipyard’s bottling speed and add a permanent canning line, to address some bottlenecks in production.

…

But there are other reasons why Forsley said the timing is right to invest in new equipment, as rising demand for craft beer has fueled greater expertise in making brewing equipment that is more efficient and can make the brewery more profitable.

The article goes on to say that Shipyard is also seeking legislation that would allow a larger brewery, like Shipyard, to host up to nine other brewers who could use Shipyard’s equipment on site during a slow time in production, without this extra beer counting toward its barrelage (so that it could avoid paying more in excise taxes on this beer that is not really its beer). The bill has been introduced in the Maine Senate.

And there is even more going on than that. Very interesting perspective from the folks at Shipyard. Head to the Bangor Daily News for the full story.