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Clifton Park, NY -- Monday, May 21, 2018 -- Shmaltz Brewing Company has sold its Clifton Park, NY, brewery assets to Rich Buceta, Owner of Queens-based SingleCut Beersmiths . Shmaltz has sold only the equipment and the facility but retains full ownership and control of all its brands under the Shmaltz Brewing and He'brew Beer lineup as well as its new upstate New York 518/838 Craft line, its recently acquired and redesigned Alphabet City brands, and its exclusive licensing agreement with CBS for the line of custom Star Trek themed beers. Shmaltz retains all the intellectual property, trademarks, artwork, copyrights, designs and associated assets that have so clearly identified the Shmaltz family of beers for over 21 years.
During a transitional period extending through late 2018, Shmaltz will continue to brew, package and operate as it has been doing for the 5 years since it opened the brewery in 2013. The flow of Shmaltz brands to all its wholesale and retail customers such as core offerings Slingshot, Hop Manna, Messiah and RIPA will continue exactly the same as will coming releases of Hop Momma IPA, Chanukah in Funk, She'brew, and Jewbelation 22. The 518/838 Craft lineup will continue to explore flavors and collaborations based in the local area codes using New York State ingredients under Shmaltz's NYS Farm Brewers License.
Thenew Alphabet City Village IPA and 7th St Blonde will expand to grow alongside the special releases of Loisaida in July and Sugar Plum Fairy for the holidays. Shmaltz will initially maintain all of its current brewing, packaging and production team through the transition during which time the new operator will be obtaining its federal and state licenses and take over all operations.
Shmaltz will continue through late 2018 to run its 2000 sq ft tasting room and host the brewery events that have grown so much over the years including its 5 Year Anniversary Beer Festival bash in June and Black Friday Black Beer Fest in the fall. Shmaltz will be announcing new brewing partners in the coming months and intends to remain brewing with the highest quality craft brewers in its current home state in New York as well as the possibility of brewing again in its birthplace in California. Shmaltz will now also pursue the opportunity to brew special batches and collaborations in new locations around the country.
In preparation for its return to focusing on brand building and growth, Shmaltz recently announced a new national sales and marketing partnership with Artisanal brands that will complement the core Shmaltz team in Upstate New York, NYC, and the San Francisco Bay Area. Selling alongside iconic brewers such as Bosteels (Triple Karmeliet) and La Trappe as well as new American craft including Fulton (MN) and Whiner (IL), the Artisanal network of 15 full time sales professionals covering nearly all 50 states will focus primarily on current Shmaltz markets including New York City (Sarene Distributing), Florida/OH/IN (Cavalier), new wholesalers in California (Young's Market) and Texas (Full Clip), and nearly 30 current markets.
Artisanal and Shmaltz may also expand to additional territories in the coming months, including Nevada and Maine with others to follow. Current Shmaltz full-time sales staff will remain focused independently in upstate New York with our largest wholesaler (Saratoga Eagle), Western NY (Rhino, Sanzone, Northern and Oswego Eagle) and Massachusetts (Girardi, Horizon) as well as with the Alphabet City brand in NYC (Manhattan Beer) and New Jersey (Black River Traders).
Shmaltz is also exited to share details soon with a slew of new and expanding projects. Under its NYS Farm Brewers license, Shmaltz is opening a new retail tasting room and bottle shop in the heart of Troy, NY, focused on its 518 Craft line as well as NYS beer, spirits, and ciders. Shmaltz will also be expanding and releasing new offerings from its acclaimed barrel aged sour program under its current brands as well as new labels to follow. Additionally, the long awaited first offerings from the small batch craft distillation project, Shmaltz Liquor, with its Jewbelation series aged for over 7 years in separate Bourbon barrels from Hudson Valley, Buffalo Trace, and a rare Pappy Van Winkle, will be released later this year with more craft distilling plans to come.
Shmaltz is proud to have grown the Clifton Park brewery from 8,000 barrels annually to over 26,000 barrels of production in 5 years, brewing a blend of its own proprietary award-winning beers as well as having contract brewed for such well respected partners as A&S/Boston Beer (Coney Island), Bronx Brewery, Speakeasy, Heartland and Foreign Objects. Shmaltz also more than doubled its production staff from 8 to 20 full time employees.
Shmaltz will continue to call upstate New York its home, and this change will allow, founder and owner Jeremy Cowan and his dedicated and passionate staff to focus full time on the sales, marketing, and product development so crucial to grow brands in the craft beer world at home, regionally and nationally.
Shmaltz would also like to welcome SingleCut Beersmiths to the Capital Region. The Queens-based brewery has been making some incredible beers for the past 5 years, and Shmaltz is excited for them as they take over the brewery and are able to make the beers their fans have been asking for.
As has been its tradition for over 21 years, Shmaltz remains as dedicated as ever to the creative and relentless pursuit and celebration of Quality, Community, and of course a more than hearty serving of Shtick. Many more details to follow about the evolution of Shmaltz Brewing's next craft beer adventures - L'Chaim, Tribe!
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