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Bill Covaleski, founder and brewmaster of Victory Brewing Company, left, and Ron Barchet , COO of Victory Brewing Company.
(Photo courtesy of Victory Brewing Company)
Victory Brewing Company, a Pennsylvania craft brewery that just celebrated its 20th anniversary, has announced it's joining forces with Southern Tier Brewing Company.
The partnership would be under the parent company Artisanal Brewing Ventures of Charlotte, N.C., according to Victory Brewing Company's news release announcing the partnership.
Victory's part in that transaction, essentially coming under the parent company of ABV, is set to close in the next 60 days.
Victory and Southern Tier, while under the umbrella of ABV, are expected to continue independent operations of their breweries. Together, they're expected to command "a joint capacity of over 800,000 barrels of potential annual production," according to the release.
The alliance, Victory's release claims, would create one of the largest brewers in the Northeast and would fall within "the top 15 craft brewing companies in the United States according to Brewers Association criteria with combined 2015 shipments of over 250,000 barrels."
Artisanal Brewing Ventures is expected to help Victory and Southern Tier in their sales and marketing efforts, in part, to help expand their distributor and retail partnerships.
Bill Covaleski, founder and brewmaster of Victory Brewing, in the news release said that the "craft beer community is at its most critical moment since its inception as larger brewing corporations have bought into our grassroots movement, irrevocably changing the marketplace."
"Like-minded brewers such as Victory and Southern Tier can preserve our character, culture and products by banding together," Covaleski said. "Allied we can continue to innovate and best serve the audience who fueled our growth through their loyal thirst."
Covaleski and Ron Barchet, COO of Victory Brewing Company will be joining Artisanal Brewing Ventures' board of directors, and they'll be "significant" shareholders in ABV, according to the release. Phin DeMink, founder of Southern Tier, already is a "major shareholder" in ABV. ABV's management team will be lead by CEO John Coleman and CFO Bill Wild.