E-Malt.com News article: USA, WA: Pike Brewing Company completes brewery expansion

Pike Brewing has recently added new equipment allowing them to increase production by approximately 30%, Seattlepi.com reported on October, 3.

Pike Head Brewer, Dean Mochizuki, reports that “Our tanks are now full and we have, for the first time in the last few years, sufficient stock to supply orders.”

Pike Sales Manager, Steve Case, had advised distributors to sell Pike beers primarily to existing accounts until the increased capacity was realized.

Steve, a seasoned professional, joined the brewery in early 2011 and reports that the Pike brand is “on fire!”

Dean, who has been with the brewery nine years, was promoted to head brewer in April 2011 and has witnessed a lot of changes at the brewery since the Finkel family re-acquired it five years ago.

Pike is a gravity flow, steam brewery in the heart of Seattle’s Pike Place Market historical district. Pike was the brainchild of Charles Finkel, the founder of “Merchant du Vin.” Charles was the first to introduce a wide selection of brewing styles to the United States market; at the time, though it was the largest beer market in the world, there were only a few styles available. The Pike Brewery brews top fermented beers including Pike Pale, IPA, Double IPA, Naughty Nellie Golden, Dry Wit, Tandem Double, Monk’s Uncle Tripel, Old Bawdy Barley Wine, XXXXX Extra Stout, Auld Acquaintance, and others. Pike beers are distributed throughout the Pacific Northwest, and at select retailers around the country.

Because of Pike’s urban location, room to expand capacity is limited to the existing space. The original brewery on Western Avenue dates back to 1989 and is one-half block below the current brewery. When it opened, it was what would now be known as a ‘nano brewery,’ producing around 500 barrels of Pike’s top fermented ale per year. The company moved to its current location and added The Pike Pub in 1996; by the time Rose Ann and Charles Finkel sold Pike at the end of 1997, the brewery had experienced a ten-fold increase in production to around 5,000 barrels. In the ensuing years sales volume remained around the same level.

Even with the expansion, Pike remains a small craft brewery. According to Charles and Rose Ann Finkel “our sales growth is reliant on word of mouth, much of it from the thousands of people who visit the Pike Pub and tour the brewery annually. Our goal is not to be the biggest brewery, but rather, to be among the best breweries anywhere.”


07 October, 2011