Seattle’s Rooftop Brewing Has Been Saved by a Merger With Maritime Pacific | Eater Seattle
"After a fire last August that devastated its Nickerson Street brewery, the business’s future looked in serious danger but has brightened thanks to an agreement with a longtime Ballard brewery whose owners are retiring and passing the lease to the brewery's owner. Rather than a simple rebranding, this will be a merger where both brands carry forward and have their beers housed under one roof. The owner says he was able to retain most of his employees in addition to most of the other brewery’s staff staying on, which will help expedite revival and enable use of much larger brewing capacity; the acquired space is roughly triple the capacity of the old location and is not fully utilized, so they’ll be able to do more and keep both names going. The takeover of the Ballard facility is scheduled for April 2, but draft service awaits new county licensing — as the owner puts it, he hopes to get approval “within weeks, though hopefully at least a temporary permit in days.” When brewing resumes they plan to kick things off with fan favorites Gateway Hazy Pale Ale, Tropical Staycation IPA, and La Azotea Mexi Lager, along with the acquired brewery’s popular Old Seattle Lager. “We’re just really honored that this was able to come to together and that [George Hancock] trusts us with his baby,” the owner says, adding that “[George and Jane] treated their employees as their children, and their brewery was something they built over almost 40 years. So, entrusting that to us is a real honor.” The Nickerson Street taproom is now permanently shuttered." - Brianna Gunter
