Anheuser-Busch announced Texas brewery Karbach Brewing Co. is the newest addition to The High End, the business unit within A-B that focuses on its craft and import brands.
Ken Goodman and longtime business partner Chuck Robertson said existing management and brewers will remain in place and the Houston company will retain much of its independence while also gaining access to the resources that will help it continue to grow. Brewmaster Eric Warner said the move will allow his team to collaborate with those other craft breweries. “The High End wants to see us innovate,” he said.
Karbach has been one of the fastest growing breweries in the country since it was launched in 2011 and expects to produce 80,000 barrels this year. A-B plans to continue adding brewing capacity, which will reach 150,000 barrels by 2019.
“Chuck and I started the brewery five years ago on Karbach Street in Houston, where the warehouse was located for the beer distribution company we started decades before. After watching so much great beer move through our warehouse over the years we decided it was time to add our own to that list,†Goodman said for a press release. “Karbach is the heart and soul of our beer industry careers, and we are thrilled about this new partnership with The High End and what it will mean for our dream to give more Texans the most unique, unexpected, and exciting beers they’ll have fun drinking.â€
The deal comes three months after MillerCoors announced it would take over the Fort Worth area’s Revolver Brewing.