E-Malt.com News article: USA, CA: Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing sells to local buyers

A pillar of the Santa Cruz craft beer community has sold—and the buyers include another local craft beer operation that’s become an area institution in its own right, Edible Monterey Bay reported on January 2.

Westside-sown and -grown Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing has been acquired by Adair Paterno of internationally celebrated Sante Adairius Rustic Ales and Brad Clark of Private Press Brewing on Ingalls Street, which focuses on malt-forward and barrel-aged craft beer.

Launched in 2005, Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing has long paved the way on female-led, organic and sustainable brewing practices.

Combined with the fact it stands as the oldest continuously operating brewery in Santa Cruz County, SCMB represents both a pioneer and a bedrock for the Surf City craft brew community.

To put it another way, if there was a Mount Rushmore for regional brewers, SCMB’s inclusion would be a no-brainer.

After nearly two decades, Emily Thomas and Chad Brill, co-owners at Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing, were ready to make the move—albeit reluctantly.

Thomas calls the sale “a significant milestone.”

“Chad and I have loved this brewery and the community we built,” says Thomas, who Edible profiled in 2016. “While the decision to sell has been incredibly difficult, we couldn’t be happier to sell to Adair and Brad.”

Thomas adds that her 18-year-old brewery baby is landing in wildly capable hands.

“We believe that Adair and Brad will innovate, expand our reach and continue providing our loyal customers with exceptional craft beers,” she says.

Sante Adairius Rustic Ales and Private Press both profess—and practice—the same sort of SCMB passion for unique beers, bold flavor profiles and artisanal habits.

Paterno elaborates.

“Brad and I have long admired the craftsmanship and dedication of Emily and Chad,” she says. “This acquisition aligns with our commitment to producing high-quality, small-batch beers, creating community gathering spaces, and carrying on the tradition of brewing in Santa Cruz. We look forward to collaborating on new and exciting beers that showcase the best of both our breweries.”

Brill will stay involved through the transition while Thomas pursues her next project, which comes after she earned her doctor of jurisprudence degree from Monterey College of Law in 2022. (More on that in a minute.)

They promise that “customers can expect a seamless transition, with the combined expertise of all parties, contributing to an even more diverse and exceptional beer lineup.”

The acquisition is expected to be finalized on or around Jan. 31, and friends and fans are invited to celebrate on Jan. 28 for “Emily and Chad’s Last Call.”

The taproom will be temporarily closed beginning on Jan. 29, but production will remain open.

Beer lovers made cynical by mass-produced breweries buying up little guys will be forgiven for fearing the worst with the sale of SCMB.

But the deal simply doesn’t go down without the trust between Santa Cruz-centric partners.

Longtime friends Thomas and Paterno have been talking industry issues and going on brew-inspired field trips for a dozen years.

“I’m very protective of the brewery,” Thomas says. “I think of it as my youngest kid, and we weren’t going to let it go to just anybody.”

Another cynicism antidote comes with the lofty ambition that draws Thomas from one passion toward another.

In reverse mirroring Paterno—who went from practicing law to brewing—Thomas hopes her legal training catalyzes a peacemaking career inspired in part by her grandmother’s work for the U.S. State Department.

“I want to do public diplomacy, which we do in a way through the brewery, building community and throwing parties that bring people together,” she says. “Celebrating similarities to overcome differences.”

Paterno also circles back to the power of creating third places.

“Beer—and food—are good ways of bringing people together, and Emily’s done an amazing job of that at Santa Cruz Mountain and we’ve done a great job at that with Sante,” she says. “One of the things I love most about being a brewery owner is seeing the same faces—or seeing people meet their spouses—at my brewery, where I’ve met some of my very best friends.”

It will come as no surprise, then, way back before its expansion, these trailblazing brewers met at Santa Cruz Mountain Brewing.


03 January, 2024