Magic Hat Brewing Company

Lore & Background

Magic Hat Brewing Company was formed in 1994 in Burlington, Vermont by serial entrepreneur Alan Newman and Bob Johnson, the company's original brewmaster. It expanded and moved to an industrial park in neighboring South Burlington in 1997. By 2005 it had 64 employees. In 2008 the company purchased Pyramid Breweries, makers of the Pyramid and MacTarnahan's brands, expanding to 129 employees.

In 2010, Alan Newman sold Magic Hat and all of its assets to North American Breweries, a subsidiary of KPS Capital Partners, a private equity firm with a business model described by Newman as 'stripping out expense and flipping.' The new owners did exactly that: in December 2012, North American Breweries was purchased by Florida Ice & Farm Company (FIFCO), a Costa Rican food and beverages company. FIFCO soon began producing some Magic Hat beer at their Genesee Brewing Company plant in Rochester, New York. The Vermont brewery continued to operate until June 2020, when FIFCO announced that it intended to consolidate the rest of Magic Hat's brewing operations to the Rochester location. Another Burlington based brewery, Zero Gravity, assumed the lease on Magic Hat's physical plant, along with the brewing and retail assets within the space. 43 of Magic Hat's 46 Vermont employees were laid off, although Zero Gravity was in talks to rehire some of them. Zero Gravity moved into the space and began producing beer there in July 2020.

Reader's Guide

Magic Hat Brewing Company holds a notable place in American craft beer history primarily through its flagship beer, #9, an apricot-tinged ale that is widely regarded as a significant early force in introducing many Americans to craft beer, especially in the late 1990s and early 2000s. The brand began as an independent craft brewer in South Burlington, Vermont in 1994, founded by Alan Newman and Bob Johnson. It expanded over the years, moving to a larger facility in 1997 and acquiring Pyramid Breweries in 2008. The company's ownership changed hands multiple times: first sold to North American Breweries in 2010, then to Florida Ice & Farm Company in 2012. Under FIFCO, production was gradually moved to the Genesee Brewing Company plant in Rochester, New York. The original Vermont brewery operated until June 2020, when FIFCO consolidated remaining operations to Rochester, leading to the layoff of 43 of 46 Vermont employees. The physical plant was then taken over by Zero Gravity, which began brewing there in July 2020. Magic Hat continues to produce five year-round beers, seasonal beers, variety packs, and limited releases.

Did You Know?

• Magic Hat was founded in 1994 in Burlington, Vermont by Alan Newman and Bob Johnson.
• Its flagship beer, #9, is an apricot-tinged ale widely regarded as an early force in introducing Americans to craft beer.
• In 2010, founder Alan Newman sold Magic Hat to a private equity firm whose business model he described as 'stripping out expense and flipping.'
• The Vermont brewery closed in June 2020, and Zero Gravity assumed the lease and began brewing there in July 2020.