Lagunitas Brewing Company
Template:Short description Template:Infobox brewery
The Lagunitas Brewing Company, founded in 1993 in Petaluma, California, is a subsidiary of Heineken International.[1] Before Heineken bought a 50% share of the company in 2015, the company met the definition of a craft brewery. Two years prior it ranked fifth top-selling craft brewery in the US.[2] Heineken purchased the remainder of the company in 2017.
History
The brewery was founded in 1993 by Tony Magee in Lagunitas, California, and moved a year later to nearby Petaluma, California, after they quickly outgrew their original rural West Marin location.[3]
Lagunitas became one of the fastest-growing craft breweries in the United States. Production increased from Template:Cvt in 2004[4] to Template:Cvt in 2010. In March 2011, Lagunitas had 92 employees with distribution in 32 states. In 2012, Lagunitas began a $9.5 million expansion, which increased its brewing capacity to Template:Cvt.[5]
Also in 2012, Lagunitas began construction of a satellite brewery in the North Lawndale neighborhood of Chicago. The brewery was in a "space owned by film studio Cinespace "for at least 20 years."[6][7] The Chicago brewery started producing beer on April 18, 2014, and opened an on-premises taproom a few months later.[8] The Chicago brewery closed in 2024.[9]
Lagunitas planned to build a third brewery in Azusa, California. However, it has not opened due to a slowdown in growth.[10] In December 2014, Lagunitas sued Sierra Nevada Brewing Company over the use and style of the letters "IPA" on Sierra Nevada's label. The lawsuit was dropped a month later after public outcry.[11]
In 2015, Heineken International acquired a 50% stake in Lagunitas enabling Lagunitas to expand its operations globally.[12] However, since Heineken's stake was greater than 25%, Lagunitas no longer met the Brewers Association definition of "craft brewery". In 2017, Heineken purchased the rest of Lagunitas, becoming sole owner.[13] Founder Tony Magee continued as CEO of Lagunitas, with the intention of expanding production and distribution of Lagunitas beers worldwide.[14]
Cannabis associations
The brewery has long-standing associations with cannabis, which have at times caused legal problems. Some beers have had names associated with the plant, in one case resulting in a name being banned,Template:Efn and using the number 420 in internal materials and external advertising.Template:Efn
On Saint Patrick's Day in 2005, the California Department of Alcoholic Beverage Control raided a weekly tasting party at the brewery to investigate alleged cannabis dealing by employees.[15] Officers had staked out the brewery for two months to observe people consuming cannabis on the premises. No charges were filed. Magee admits "no one was willing to sell it to them, but everyone was willing to give it to them for free." Lagunitas was found in violation of Section 24200 of California's Business and Professions Code, better known as its "disorderly house" law. Lagunitas was eventually served a twenty-day suspension of operations and the ordeal was commemorated with a beer named Undercover Investigation Shut-down Ale.[16]
Lagunitas dropped '420' from its labels in 2013 after a trademark claim by Sweetwater Brewing Company.[17] In 2018, Lagunitas released a IPA-inspired sparkling water infused with THC and CBD. The beverage is called "Hi-Fi Hops" and is a collaboration with AbsoluteXtracts, a cannabis grower. It is currently only available in California.[18]
See also
Notes
References
External links
Template:Heineken International Template:Authority control
- ↑ "Heineken Acquires Remaining Stake in Lagunitas Brewing Company" OTC Markets, May 04, 2015
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- ↑ Digitale, Robert. Lagunitas Brewing undertakes big expansion. The Press Democrat (Santa Rosa). March 20, 2011. Retrieved 2011-3-21.
- ↑ Quackenbush, Jeff. Lagunitas plans $9.5 million expansion The Press Democrat (Santa Rosa). March 15, 2011. Retrieved 2011-5-18.
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- ↑ Hirst, Ellen Jean. "Lagunitas Brewery Officially Opens Chicago Operation", Chicago Tribune, April 18, 2014. Retrieved April 18, 2014.
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- ↑ John Kell, "Heineken buys 50% stake in craft brewer Lagunitas", Fortune, September 10, 2015
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