Anheuser-Busch InBev has announced that they will close the Elysian Brewing Company Georgetown brewery in Seattle, WA. The brewery employs about 90 people and is the largest brewery in Washington state. It is yet another sign that global brewers have a waning interest in the craft beer category.
ABInBev played a significant card in the craft-beer-shedding process in August of last year when they sold eight of their craft beer, cider, and energy drink brands to Tilray Brands Inc. The sell-off included 10-barrel Brewing, Widmer Brothers, Redhook, Breckenridge Brewery and Blue Point Brewing along with the AB in-house craft brand Shock Top. Elysian was not one of them.
The Georgetown brewery has 60,000 square feet of production space and operates with a 60 bbl brewhouse.
ABInbev will continue to make and sell the Elysian brand with production reportedly being moved to the much smaller original Elysian Capitol Hill brewpub and other A-B owned facilities. The company recently made a $1.7 million investment int the Capitol Hill Brewery & Pub.
One year ago, the employees of Elysian’s Georgetown production facility voted overwhelmingly to join the Teamsters Union. In October of 2024, the brewery members of Teamsters 117 voted to authorize a strike.
Elysian, which was founded in 1995 by Dave Buhler, Joe Bisacca, and Dick Cantwell has been owned by ABInbev since 2015.