Seattle Hospitality Group (SHG), which owns the pioneering Pike Brewing, has acquired a controlling interest in Seattle’s Fremont Brewing. Freemont Brewing is the third-largest brewery in Washington State, producing over 50,000 barrels of beer in 2022.
SHG owns several well-known Seattle businesses, including Ethan Stowell Restaurants. In 2021, the company acquired Seattle’s Pike Brewing which was founded by industry icons Charles and Rose Ann Finkel who opened the tiny brewery in 1989.
Fremont Brewing was founded by Matt Lincecum and Sara Nelson in 2009. Sara has served on the Board of Directors of the Brewers Association and is currently president of the Seattle City Council. Before opening the brewery, Matt was a homebrewer who became an attorney specializing in beverage and hospitality law.
The deal offers another angle on brewery consolidation as the craft segment continues to soften. Larger companies such as SHG that bought into the craft brewing industry are now looking at ways to expand through additional acquisitions. Although it was not mentioned in the press release announcing the acquisition, it is very possible that SHG will use the Freemont production facility to make and package Pike Brewery beers and to tap into the sophisticated distribution network that Fremont has in place. Pike currently produces just over 5,000 bbls per year.