New Albion Brewing Company
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The New Albion Brewing Company is known as the first American craft beer
brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of be ...
. Founded in 1976 by Jack McAuliffe, Suzy Stern, and Jane Zimmerman in
Sonoma, California Sonoma is a city in Sonoma County, California, United States, located in the North Bay region of the San Francisco Bay Area. Sonoma is one of the principal cities of California's Wine Country and the center of the Sonoma Valley AVA. Sonoma's p ...
, New Albion is acknowledged as the first
United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
microbrewery 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 o ...
of the modern era, as well as a heavy influence on the subsequent microbrewery and
craft beer 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 o ...
movements of the late 20th century. New Albion was resurrected in 2012 by
Boston Beer Company The Boston Beer Company is an American brewery founded in 1984. Boston Beer Company's first brand of beer was named Samuel Adams after Founding Father Samuel Adams, an American revolutionary patriot. Since its founding, Boston Beer has started se ...
under the supervision of McAuliffe. The current president is McAuliffe's daughter, Renee M. DeLuca.


History

McAuliffe began as a
homebrewer Homebrewing is the brewing of beer or other alcoholic beverages on a small scale for personal, non-commercial purposes. Supplies, such as kits and fermentation tanks, can be purchased locally at specialty stores or online. Beer was brewed dom ...
, influenced by the
beer Beer is one of the oldest and the most widely consumed type of alcoholic drink in the world, and the third most popular drink overall after water and tea. It is produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches, mainly derived from ce ...
he sampled while stationed by the U.S. Navy in Scotland, as well that of
Fritz Maytag Frederick Louis "Fritz" Maytag III (born December 9, 1937 in Newton, Iowa) is the former owner of Anchor Brewing Company in San Francisco and is Chairman of the Board of the Maytag Dairy Farms (maker of Maytag Blue cheese). He is also the owner o ...
's
Anchor Brewing Company Anchor Brewing Company is an American alcoholic beverage producer, operating a brewery on Potrero Hill in San Francisco, California. The brewery was founded in 1896 and was purchased by Frederick Louis Maytag III in 1965, saving it from closure. ...
in nearby
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upon his return. After graduating college in 1971, McAuliffe worked as an optical engineer in the
Silicon Valley Silicon Valley is a region in Northern California that serves as a global center for high technology and innovation. Located in the southern part of the San Francisco Bay Area, it corresponds roughly to the geographical areas San Mateo County ...
, but spent his free time studying the necessities to build his own brewery. Upon presenting his idea to professor Michael Lewis of the
University of California at Davis The University of California, Davis (UC Davis, UCD, or Davis) is a public land-grant research university near Davis, California. Named a Public Ivy, it is the northernmost of the ten campuses of the University of California system. The institut ...
, who would also go on to advise Ken Grossman in the beginning stages of his
Sierra Nevada Brewing Company Sierra Nevada Brewing Co. was established in 1979 by homebrewing, homebrewers Ken Grossman and Paul Camusi in Chico, California, United States. The brewery produced in 2010, and as of 2016, Sierra Nevada Brewing is the seventh-largest Brewery, ...
, McAuliffe utilized the Davis library to build a plan for his brewery. Initial plans to build the brewery in San Francisco and name it the ''Barbary Coast Brewing Company'' were thwarted by expensive real estate and a lack of investors. By 1975, McAuliffe quit his job and moved north to Sonoma, a decision influenced by cheaper expenses and a local food and wine scene which focused on quality and would eventually lead to emergence of
California cuisine California cuisine is a food movement that originated in California. The cuisine focuses on dishes that are driven by local and sustainable ingredients with an attention to seasonality and an emphasis on the bounty of the region. The food is hi ...
. In October 1976, along with business partners Suzy Stern (née Suzanne Denison), and Jane Zimmerman, McAuliffe officially began the New Albion Brewing Company, the name given to the San Francisco Bay Area by sailor-explorer
Francis Drake Sir Francis Drake ( – 28 January 1596) was an English explorer, sea captain, privateer, slave trader, naval officer, and politician. Drake is best known for his circumnavigation of the world in a single expedition, from 1577 to 1580 (t ...
, as well as a former San Francisco brewery of the same name, Albion Brewery. This marked the opening of the first microbrewery in America following
Prohibition Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic ...
. The next year, the brewery brewed its first batch of
ale Ale is a Type of beer, type of beer brewed using a Warm fermentation, warm fermentation method, resulting in a sweet, full-bodied and fruity taste. Historically, the term referred to a drink brewed without hops. As with most beers, ale typicall ...
. The facilities consisted of a shaded steel warehouse with shed housed food-grade
Coca-Cola Coca-Cola, or Coke, is a carbonated soft drink manufactured by the Coca-Cola Company. Originally marketed as a temperance drink and intended as a patent medicine, it was invented in the late 19th century by John Stith Pemberton in Atlanta ...
syrup drums he converted into brewhouse vessels and fermenters, a World War Two era bottle washer made from battleship decking, and a vintage 1910 bottle labeler. Former New Albion employee (and
Mendocino Brewing Company Mendocino Brewing Company () is a brewery founded in 1983 as the Hopland Brewery in the Mendocino County, California, Mendocino County town of Hopland, California, Hopland, California. The brewery expanded and moved its operations to a larger Mend ...
head brewer) Don Barkley described the process: New Albion brewed 7.5 barrels () per week, quickly selling every bottle upon completion. The brewery offered a
pale ale Pale ale is a golden to amber coloured beer style brewed with pale malt. The term first appeared around 1703 for beers made from malts dried with high-carbon coke, which resulted in a lighter colour than other beers popular at that time. Diff ...
,
porter Porter may refer to: Companies * Porter Airlines, Canadian regional airline based in Toronto * Porter Chemical Company, a defunct U.S. toy manufacturer of chemistry sets * Porter Motor Company, defunct U.S. car manufacturer * H.K. Porter, Inc., ...
and
stout Stout is a dark, top-fermented beer with a number of variations, including dry stout, oatmeal stout, milk stout, and imperial stout. The first known use of the word ''stout'' for beer, in a document dated 1677 found in the Egerton Manuscript ...
, all bottle-conditioned for five weeks rather than
pasteurize Pasteurization or pasteurisation is a process of food preservation in which packaged and non-packaged foods (such as milk and fruit juices) are treated with mild heat, usually to less than , to eliminate pathogens and extend shelf life. ...
d. The reputation of the brewery quickly spread, and visits from publications such as ''
The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...
'', ''
Washington Post ''The Washington Post'' (also known as the ''Post'' and, informally, ''WaPo'') is an American daily newspaper published in Washington, D.C. It is the most widely circulated newspaper within the Washington metropolitan area and has a large nati ...
'', and ''Brewers Digest'' served to increase the company's profile. However, production was not enough to turn a profit, and six years after its founding, in November 1982, New Albion brewed its final batch of beer.


Legacy

Despite its failure to survive, which McAuliffe recognized as inevitable due to limitations of space and equipment and inability to find new funding for expansion, the New Albion Brewing Company provided a microbrewery blueprint which, along with Maytag's Anchor Brewing, inspired the craft beer, microbrewing and brewpub movements which began in the 1980s and continue to the present day. Other early Northern California microbreweries such as the
Sierra Nevada The Sierra Nevada () is a mountain range in the Western United States, between the Central Valley of California and the Great Basin. The vast majority of the range lies in the state of California, although the Carson Range spur lies primarily ...
and Hopland Brewing Companies were influenced by New Albion, and their founders credit McAuliffe's creation for their early successes. Hopland (now
Mendocino Brewing Company Mendocino Brewing Company () is a brewery founded in 1983 as the Hopland Brewery in the Mendocino County, California, Mendocino County town of Hopland, California, Hopland, California. The brewery expanded and moved its operations to a larger Mend ...
) inherited New Albion's brewing equipment, and former New Albion employee Don Barkley is the company's former head brewer, currently the master brewer at Napa Smith Brewery in Napa, California. Brewers throughout the country continue to cite New Albion's beer as their first craft beer experience. It has been described by one historian as "the most important failed brewery in the industry's history". As part of their 30th Anniversary, Sierra Nevada Brewing Company released "Jack & Ken's Ale", a collaboration between Jack McAuliffe and Ken Grossman. The ale was released by Sierra Nevada as a tribute to McAuliffe's influence on the brewing of Grossman and his company, and was based on a
barleywine Barley wine is a strong ale between 6–12% alcohol by volume."Barley wine"
The Marin Brewing Company in
Larkspur, California Larkspur is a city in Marin County, California, United States. Larkspur is located south of San Rafael, at an elevation of . As of the 2020 Census, the city's population was 13,064. Larkspur's Police Department is shared with that of the n ...
brews an
amber ale Pale ale is a golden to amber coloured beer style brewed with pale malt. The term first appeared around 1703 for beers made from malts dried with high-carbon coke, which resulted in a lighter colour than other beers popular at that time. Diff ...
named Albion, which it claims is "named in recognition and memory of Sonoma’s New Albion Brewing Co." The original signage from New Albion Brewery is displayed at the
Russian River Brewing Company Russian River Brewing Company is a brewery and brewpub in downtown Santa Rosa, California, with a second location in Windsor. The company is known for strong India pale ales and sour beers. History Russian River Brewing Company was created in ...
in
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, and has been signed by Jack McAuliffe. The New Albion name was eventually acquired by the
Boston Beer Company The Boston Beer Company is an American brewery founded in 1984. Boston Beer Company's first brand of beer was named Samuel Adams after Founding Father Samuel Adams, an American revolutionary patriot. Since its founding, Boston Beer has started se ...
some time prior to 2010. On August 1, 2012,
Jim Koch Charles James Koch ( '; born May 27, 1949) is an American entrepreneur, billionaire, and the co-founder and chairman of the Boston Beer Company, the producers of Samuel Adams beer. Koch is widely considered to be the founding father of the Amer ...
, brewer and founder of
Samuel Adams Samuel Adams ( – October 2, 1803) was an American statesman, political philosopher, and a Founding Father of the United States. He was a politician in colonial Massachusetts, a leader of the movement that became the American Revolution, and ...
, announced they would be brewing ''New Albion Ale'' for the first time in 30 years, as well as transferring all of New Albion's current assets to McAuliffe. The beer was served at special events at 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. ...
and was available nationwide beginning January 2013. After the Boston Brewing production run, McAuliffe released a 5 gallon batch version of the original recipe to the public. McAuliffe is now retired and living in Northwest Arkansas. He has transferred the company to his daughter, Renee M. DeLuca. DeLuca is now brewing Jack's original recipes with BrewDog USA in Columbus, Ohio. BrewDog was founded in Scotland, where McAuliffe learned to enjoy porters, ales and stouts while in the Navy. Suzy Denison is retired and living in
Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...
.


See also

*
List of breweries in California This list of breweries in California, both current and defunct, includes both microbreweries and larger industrial scale breweries. Brewing companies range widely in the volume and variety of beer produced, ranging from small breweries to massive ...
*
List of defunct breweries in the United States At the end of 2017, there were total 7,450 breweries in the United States, including 7,346 craft breweries subdivided into 2,594 brewpubs, 4,522 microbreweries, 230 regional craft breweries and 104 large/non-craft breweries. The following is a pa ...


References

{{reflist, 2


External links


New Albion Brewing Company Pictures (''Brewer's Digest'' Nov 1979 & Dec 1980)
1976 establishments in California 1982 disestablishments in California Beer brewing companies based in the San Francisco Bay Area Food and drink companies disestablished in 1982 American companies established in 1976 Defunct brewery companies of the United States Sonoma, California Food and drink companies established in 1976 American companies disestablished in 1982