SEATTLE — Four years after being acquired by beer conglomerate Anheuser-Busch InBev, Seattle’s Redhook Brewery is being sold again.
Redhook’s future owner is Canadian cannabis-product company Tilray, which has been venturing into the craft beer industry.
Tilray entered an $85 million all-cash acquisition deal to acquire Redhook and seven other breweries that are under the Anheuser-Busch umbrella, the companies announced Monday. The transaction includes current employees, breweries and associated pubs. The companies expect the transaction to close this year.
Besides Redhook, Tilray is acquiring Shock Top, Breckenridge Brewery, Blue Point Brewing Co., 10 Barrel Brewing Co., Widmer Brothers Brewing, Square Mile Cider Co. and Hiball Energy from Anheuser-Busch, according to a filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.
“Redhook and Widmer are two of the original ‘institutions’ in craft beer,” according to a Tilray investor presentation. Portland Brewery, which makes Redhook, Widmer and Square Mile beverages, “has additional capacity to brew other beers,” the presentation said. Tilray declined to comment further. Redhook did not respond to inquiries.
With the acquisition, Tilray said it will become the fifth-largest craft brewer in the U.S., with 5% market share. Belgium-based Anheuser-Busch is currently the largest brewer in the world with 36.9% market share. The conglomerate has more than 500 brands under its umbrella, including Bud Light.
Anheuser-Busch said Tilray began the acquisition talks earlier in the year. Since April, the Belgian conglomerate has struggled with sales of its biggest brand, Bud Light, in the U.S. The brand has been facing conservative backlash after launching a marketing campaign with social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney, a transgender woman.
Anheuser-Busch’s U.S. revenue fell 10.5% in the second quarter of the year. Bud Light’s U.S. retail sales were down 26% compared with the same period a year ago.
The company said its total U.S. market share for all brands fell more than 5% in April. In June, Mexican beer Modelo Especial became America’s bestselling beer — a rank Bud Light had held for nearly two decades. While Anheuser-Busch also owns Modelo, the brand is imported and sold by Constellation Brands in the U.S.
With the sales slump, Anheuser-Busch announced in July it was laying off 2% of its workforce. In May, the conglomerate said it would increase spending to counter the sales decline.
With the acquired brands, Tilray said in a news release it expects about $300 million in revenue for its U.S. alcoholic beverage portfolio.
The breweries, from Bend and Portland, Ore.; Breckenridge, Colo.; and Long Island, N.Y., will likely triple Tilray’s beer business, said Ty Gilmore, the company’s president of U.S. beer.
“We will further capitalize on the potential of these brands through product innovation, retailer partnerships and expanded distribution into key markets, including the Pacific Northwest and California,” Gilmore said in a statement.
Tilray owns beer brands SweetWater Brewing Co., Montauk Brewing Co., Alpine Beer Co. and Green Flash Brewing Co.
Before buying Redhook, Anheuser-Busch acquired Seattle-based Elysian Brewing in 2015 for an undisclosed amount. It still owns Elysian.
Founded in 1981, Redhook has one location in Seattle — Redhook Brewlab, in the old Pike Motorworks Building on Capitol Hill. In 2019, Anheuser-Busch bought Redhook for $16.50 per share in Craft Brew Alliance shares.
The Craft Brew Alliance was formed in 2008 when Redhook merged with Portland-based Widmer Brothers Brewing. In 2017, the Craft Brew Alliance sold Redhook’s Woodinville brewery, then the largest beer-making facility in Washington, to a real estate company for $24.5 million.
Includes information from Associated Press reports.
