The Erie Brewery Company is an American brewery in

Erie Erie (; ) is a city on the south shore of Lake Erie and the county seat of Erie County, Pennsylvania, United States. Erie is the fifth largest city in Pennsylvania and the largest city in Northwestern Pennsylvania with a population of 94,831 a ...

, Pennsylvania. Founded as a

brewpub Craft beer is a beer that has been made by craft breweries. They produce smaller amounts of beer, typically less than large breweries, and are often independently owned. Such breweries are generally perceived and marketed as having an emphasis ...

in 1993, Erie Brewing transitioned to a full-time brewery in 1999. The brewery has won three medals from the

Great American Beer Festival The Great American Beer Festival (GABF) is an annual beer festival hosted by the Brewers Association, held in Denver, Colorado. Typically held in late September or early October, the event is currently held at Denver's Colorado Convention Center. ...

History

The Erie Brewing Company was established in January 1994 as brewpub—a combination brewery and restaurant—called Hoppers that was operated out of

Union Station A union station (also known as a union terminal, a joint station in Europe, and a joint-use station in Japan) is a railway station at which the tracks and facilities are shared by two or more separate railway companies, allowing passengers to ...

in downtown Erie. In 1999, Hoppers became a full microbrewery, took the name Erie Brewing, and moved into the former

Pennsylvania Department of Transportation The Pennsylvania Department of Transportation (PennDOT) oversees transportation issues in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania. The administrator of PennDOT is the Pennsylvania Secretary of Transportation, currently Yassmin Gramian. Presently, Pe ...

emissions testing building on West 12th Street. It was the first microbrewery to open in

northwestern Pennsylvania Western Pennsylvania is a region in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania, covering the western third of the state. Pittsburgh is the region's principal city, with a metropolitan area population of about 2.4 million people, and serves as its economic ...

. Erie Brewing filed for

Chapter 11 Chapter 11 of the United States Bankruptcy Code (Title 11 of the United States Code) permits reorganization under the bankruptcy laws of the United States. Such reorganization, known as Chapter 11 bankruptcy, is available to every business, wheth ...

bankruptcy in September 2005; the company was restructured and emerged from bankruptcy protection in 2006. A group of 21 investors from the

private equity In the field of finance, the term private equity (PE) refers to investment funds, usually limited partnerships (LP), which buy and restructure financially weak companies that produce goods and provide services. A private-equity fund is both a t ...

firm Cardinal Equity Associates owned the brewery from 2003 until 2012 when it was sold to its current owner Rob Lowther. In June 2016, Erie Brewing announced it was to build and relocate to a new facility in Harborcreek Township at Station Road ( Pennsylvania Route 290) and Knowledge Parkway near Interstate 90; the company cited excessive, city fees and taxes for the inability to expand their current brewery and having to leave downtown.

Beer

The Erie Brewing Company currently produces 6 beers year-round, 5 seasonally, and distributes to 13 states. Railbender Ale is Erie Brewing's best seller and most well-known beer; the beer has won two medals—in 2008 and 2009—from the

Awards

References

Sources

External links