How to cope with your Craft Brewery selling out

Posted on August 21, 2019 in Australia, Brewery, Comments, The Brewery List // 0 Comments

With the formal announcement today of Green Beacon Brewing being bought by Asahi, another craft beer brewery we identified on our list of Whos Next in Line article, we have prepared this guide to help you through dealing with the news that another craft beer brewery has been bought by a multinational.

Denial

Initially, you’ll be experiencing denial. How could they? You’ve been drinking their beers since they opened, and you know that there’s no way they would sell out. They, themselves have denied all the previous rumours. You know them and their brand. They wouldn’t do that!

Unfortunately as the news keeps comes through, and your social media feed fills up with post after post confirming the sale, you can no longer keep denying the facts. They HAVE SOLD OUT!

Now is the time to stop posting on the many Facebook pages you are a member of trying desperately to prove it’s just another rumour.

Anger

Once you’ve realised that they have actually sold out, you’re now likely to get angry.

If your first thought is to head straight down to the brewery and tell them what you think – Don’t abuse the staff as it’ll probably be as much of a shock to them as it is to you. They are in the same position as you – having had no input into the sale.

This is the time to hide all your social media channels as every post will seem to be mentioning the sale, and every post will trigger you into deeper anger, or nasty sarcasm. That’s not healthy.

You may also feel the need to head to your fridge and pour away their beers you bought yesterday in anger and frustration. But think about that – those beers were made when the brewery was still independent, so it’s perfectly acceptable to drink them. Savour them as they will be the last you will savour and enjoy.

Bargaining

You may think that, maybe if you, and all your mates get together and pool all your cash, you can buy them and keep them independent, but the reality is that once the sale is announced the sale is basically complete. You could try, but it’s unlikely you’ll be able to afford the many millions of dollars that the rumour mill is saying that the big nasty corporate paid for your favourite craft beer brewery.

And ringing up other big independent craft beer breweries begging them to buy your favourite brewery instead is just going to annoy them. As they’ll also be upset. But because they aren’t the ones getting the big pay day by being bought up by Asahi.

Maybe you have a rich uncle or aunt that is looking for a really good investment, you could call them?

Depression

This is the worst phase.

But you can try and overcome it by heading quickly to your local bottle shop and buying up the last stock of beer made before they sold out. You can keep it as a reminder of what the brewery used to be, because you know that from today, the beer isn’t going to taste anything like it did yesterday.

You could try and go to another local brewery, and maybe buy one of their T-shirts to show that you’re moving on, and beginning to love another brewery already. It’s probably time for a new wardrobe addition anyway.

You may even discover a new brewery – a small one that’s just opened, that none of your friends yet know about. They may even make better beer. Just the way it used to be back in the day when you first discovered the brewery that’s now “sold out”.

Acceptance

This is the last phase, and means you’re moving on.

It means that the old brewery, whose name you will no longer let pass your lips, is gone from your thoughts forever. Stop following them on Facebook and Instagram. Delete their website from your bookmarks. You’ll begin to see that they were always going to get bought.

You’ll see the signs that were there all the time – the big new shiny tanks and brewhouse, the ever expanding shelf of awards they won for their beer, the slick marketing campaigns they were running, the fact that you could buy their cans everywhere. Even your old school workmate had heard of them and had been drinking the new version of the IPA.

You remind yourself that you’d even hinted at it to your mates. That you wouldn’t be surprised if they were bought by some big corporation. Deep down, you knew.

But enough of them. They are gone. That new tiny brewery you found is the new hype. And they’ll never sell out. You know that because you spoke to the owners and they are not in it for the money, they are truely in it for the beer. They’ve categorically said that there’s no way they’ll ever sell out. You know you can trust them.

And if you haven’t yet found that new brewery, don’t worry they’ll be another one along in 6 days in which you can invest you hopes, fears and dreams – and hard earned money.

This article is a light hearted look at the emotional investment some beer drinkers put into “their” favourite craft beer brewery, and the reactions they have when that brewery is bought by a multinational. It, in no way diminishes real mental health issues, but if this article has genuinely raised issues for you then, please contact one of the helplines below.

24-hour telephone counselling: