The Saint Louis Brewery’s specially-designed glass bottles

Ardagh Group, producer of glass containers for the food and beverage industries, announced an exclusive, long- term supply agreement with The Saint Louis Brewery to produce 12-ounce specially-designed glass bottles for its Schlafly Beer. The partnership connects The Saint Louis Brewery with Ardagh Group’s Pevely, Mo., plant located just 20 miles away, helping to keep the brewery’s brand promise to stay local and sustainable.

“The agreement with the Ardagh Group helps us achieve sustainable practices, but more importantly, it just makes sense because it’s so close to home,” said Dan Kopman, co-founder and CEO of The Saint Louis Brewery. “We are keeping more dollars in our community, which is critical to us as a local brewery.”

According to Kopman, a beer business always starts as a local brewery and can grow from there, but the focus must remain on the local market to truly succeed. Therefore, the closer the business is to the supply of packaging (glass), the more beneficial for all. The Saint Louis Brewery will produce 500,000 cases of 20 different Schlafly beers in the 12 ounce glass bottles this year.

“Ardagh Group takes great pride in being a part of this success story in the community,” said Clint Gawart, director of beer sales for Ardagh Group’s North American Glass division. “We value the strong relationship we have with The Saint Louis Brewery and are passionate about the success of the craft beer industry, operating environmentally friendly businesses and offering the market innovative products.”

Many craft brewers choose to package their products in glass. By using glass bottles, the beer is preserved in a non-porous and impermeable container, maintaining the beer’s integrity. Glass bottles are 100 percent recyclable and rated Generally Regarded as Safe (GRAS) by the Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the only packaging material to receive that rating for foods and beverages.

“Since 1991, we’ve held true to our promise to be a great local brewer and to be as green as possible,” Kopman added. “Sourcing from Ardagh Group’s Pevely plant location helps us do this by enabling us to keep as much as possible close to home.”