Out of the Northwest: Brewery News: Sierra Nevada announces brewery expansion near Ashville, NC
Occasionally this blog reports on breweries outside of the Northwest, especially when the subject is the continuous growth of the craft beer market.
Recently Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. announced that they are expanding their operations in the East Coast with the recent acquisition of property in Mill River, NC. With over 90 acres of land in Henderson County the brewery (with a starting capacity for 300k barrels), will host a proposed restaurant and gift shop.
"We are thrilled to have found an ideal location in western North Carolina for our second brewery," says Ken Grossman, founder of Sierra Nevada. "The beer culture, water quality and quality of life are excellent. We feel lucky to be a part of this community."
For years Sierra Nevada has been challenged when it comes to delivering fresh beer to the East coast. But with this purchase & construction, the brewery will finally meet that goal. As an added bonus people along the Atlantic coast can anticipate not just beer like their Pale Ale, but also seasonals and other bottle specialty releases.
But some are probably curious why you haven’t heard sooner. Honestly so are we.
Sierra Nevada began the search for a new location several years ago. The brewery looked at hundreds of potential sites, eventually narrowing the search down to a handful of locations. The list of criteria was long and included quantifiable factors such as ease of shipping and water quality, as well as quality of life issues for its employees. Sierra Nevada has a reputation for a laid-back brewery culture and a love of the outdoors, and the new facility will retain this same tone. The Asheville area offers Sierra Nevada Brewing the perfect confluence of community, recreation and craft beer culture.
Look for the brewery to start operations, with a starting staff of 90 brewery employees, in early 2014.
Cheers
About Sierra Nevada
Founded in 1980, Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. is one of America's premier craft breweries, highly regarded for using only whole-cone hops and ingredients of the finest quality. Sierra Nevada has set the standard for artisan brewers worldwide as a winner of numerous awards for its extensive line of beers including the flagship Pale Ale, Torpedo, Porter, Stout, Kellerweis, four seasonal beers, Estate Ale, Harvest Ales, Ovila Abbey Ales and a host of draught-only specialties.
About the photo’s author
My name is David Monroe, I live in Ringgold GA, work for the auto industry, married for 15 years, and have two boys, 10 and 13.
