Massachusetts’ love affair with New Belgium will begin just in time for Valentine’s Day.
The Fort Collins-based, bike-friendly brewery announced today that it will begin distribution throughout the Bay State starting February 13, 2017. (The company has a second production brewery located in Asheville, North Carolina.)
That puts New Belgium — the fourth-largest craft brewer as defined by the Brewers Association, which produced 914,063 barrels of beer in 2015 — in 46 states.
New Belgium’s rollout begins with year-round releases Fat Tire, Ranger IPA and Citradelic IPA as well as seasonal and 22 oz. sour releases such as La Folie.
Wholesalers sending out those beers will be:
- Girardi Distributors LLC (Anheuser-Busch InBev)
- Atlas Distributing Inc. (MillerCoors)
- Knife and Son (A-B/Sheehan owned)
- Craft Brewers Guild. LLC (Independent/Sheehan owned)
- Seaboard Products Company (A-B/Sheehan owned)
- Williams Distributing Company (A-B)
“Massachusetts is a great beer state with a long tradition of embracing good beer,” Rich Rush, New Belgium’s Northeast and Canada Division Sales Director, said in a press release. “It’s a very competitive landscape and we aim to bring something new to the scene with our dynamic portfolio and strong emphasis on beer culture.”
As New Belgium enters the Massachusetts market, the company is in the midst of transition. CEO Christine Perich announced last month that she will depart the organization to “pursue other opportunities.”
Perich, who had served in several executive roles with New Belgium throughout her 16 years with the company, had replaced co-founder Kim Jordan as CEO last October.
“New Belgium is in good hands with the brilliant leadership team in place and the future of NBB looks very bright,” Perich said via a press release. “I am proud of what I have accomplished and I look forward to new adventures.”
Her replacement has not yet been named.
Editor’s Note: An earlier version of this story suggested there was crossover between CBG and Atlas in Boston. While there is crossover across other parts of Massachusetts, Atlas operates in Worcester County and parts of Middlesex and Norfolk counties, not Boston.