USA, MT: Bozeman Brewing launches three new canned beers

Bozeman Brewing is expanding its canning operation to include its Hopzone IPA, Plum St. Porter and Hefeweizen beer, Bozeman Daily Chronicle reported on August, 27.

It comes about a year after the brewery first began canning its Amber Select. From what they've learned after that year, the brewers believe these new cans are going to be a hit.

Four new tanks were crane-lifted through a hole cut in the brewery's ceiling to increase production capacity, and two more employees were hired. The new tanks give the brewery the ability to brew upwards of 10,000 barrels of beer each year, the largest volume of beer a brewery can produce under state law without having to close its taproom.

The state Legislature created the law in 1999, called the sample room exception, which allows breweries to sell up to 48 ounces of beer on site between 10 a.m. and 8 p.m., as long as they brew fewer than 10,000 barrels of beer annually. The law helped the craft beer industry grow, and today there are several breweries around the state either above or close to the state-mandated limit.

Todd Scott, owner of Bozeman Brewing, said the brewery wouldn't approach that figure.

“Obviously, we'd like to see that 10,000 barrel cap go away because we're not going to close down our tasting room. It's a great place to hear consumer comments on a daily basis,” Scott said.

Right now, he and the brewery employees are solely focused on the new six-packs hitting the shelves and preparing themselves for potentially having to ramp up their brewing schedule to meet demand.

28 August, 2013