E-Malt.com News article: USA: Saint Arnold Brewing Company grows more than four times compared to the craft brewing industry nationwide

Saint Arnold Brewing Company, the oldest craft brewery in Texas, reported that its production exceeded 10,000 barrels in the first half of 2008, Market Wire reported on July 29.

The brewery has broken another barrier in its rapid growth. Through June 30th, production volume exceeded 10,500 31-gallon barrels of Saint Arnold beer, an increase of 29 percent over the same period in 2007.

The US Brewers Association reported that in the first half of 2008 volume of beer sold by all craft brewers grew at a 6.5 percent. In the first six months of 2008, Saint Arnold Brewing came close to matching the amount brewed in all of 2005.


Year Production % Growth

2004 9,100 barrels 27 percent
2005 10,946 barrels 20 percent
2006 13,638 barrels 25 percent
2007 17,811 barrels 30 percent
2008 (1st 6 months) 10,567 barrels 29 percent

"While this year has created a challenging economic environment in which to operate, we never lost our focus on brewing full-flavored quality beer," said Brock Wagner, founder of Saint Arnold Brewing. "Like all craft breweries, we have endured rapidly increasing costs for raw materials and shipping. We were concerned how our own price increases would affect demand for our beers, but have been gratified to see that our customers' support has not wavered."

About the record holder

Saint Arnold Brewing's ten brews are made and sold by the company's staff of 21 dedicated employees. The brewery was listed by USA Today as one of the "10 great places to see what's brewing in beer."

Due to strong demand and capacity limitations, Saint Arnold Brewing Company recently announced the purchase of a historic building near downtown Houston for a new brewery. The company has operated out of the same Northwest Houston facility since it was established in 1994. With a projected opening of June 2009, the new facility will immediately double Saint Arnold's brewing capacity.

Saint Arnold is preparing to reintroduce Saint Arnold Oktoberfest in August and plans to release the next version of Saint Arnold Divine Reserve in September. The latest in the brewery's series of small batch craft brews, Saint Arnold Divine Reserve No. 7 will be a Weizenbock, a strong Bavarian wheat beer.


31 July, 2008