Ep27 — New Belgium, Buyouts, and Emotional Responses

A small piece of me permanently exists in the city of Fort Collins, Colorado. Ever since my dad emigrated from the UK and took a job here in 2010 I have visited often, and become more enamoured with the place each time I do so. 

While it was the beer that first made me form an attachment with Fort Collins (and, indeed, start writing about it) over the years it became more to me than simply a place I visited. Trips were about seeing friends, hiking, relaxing by the Poudre River, and, over time, the beer became less central to each visit. 

At least, that’s what I convinced myself.

The truth is, as a true beer enthusiast it was always about the beer. And I was reminded about how much this matters to me when New Belgium—headquartered in Fort Collins and once the fourth largest craft brewer in the United States—announced its sale to Australian firm Lion in November 2019. The news of this triggered in me a deeply emotional response. So tied had I become to the story, the people and the product of this place that I could not figure out how to deal with it.

I had hoped to reconcile these feelings on a scheduled visit in April 2020, but when the inevitable happened and my flights were cancelled, this thought process had to be temporarily paused. Thankfully I was finally able to make my way back to Colorado in November 2021 (and I reflect on this trip during the episode.) This meant I was finally able to visit the New Belgium Taproom, enjoy a pint, chat to my friends who work there, and try and figure out how I feel about the next stage in this brewery’s journey. 

Those thoughts stowed away, once I returned home I turned on the mic and riffed on those feelings. Is it truly irrational to have a strong emotional response when a brewery you’re fond of sells out? In this episode, I make my best attempt to answer that question.

I’m also thrilled to welcome on board a brand new sponsor for this episode. Hand and Heart is a business consultancy focussed on supporting industries including hospitality—and that includes breweries and other beer-centric firms. We’ve partnered with them to offer listeners of The Pellicle Podcast a free 30 minute advice session. You could be a business owner wondering what the hell DEI means, an employee wanting to upskill, thinking about starting a business, or at a loss of how to develop your current business. To sign up head to www.handandheart.eu/pellicle

If the Hand and Heart sound familiar, it’s because they recently published the documentary podcast Super Cool Toxic Workplace, investigating the allegations of abuse and toxic workplace culture at the Danish brewery, Mikkeller. We’re thrilled to partner with a business that shares the values we have at Pellicle, and thank them for their support in helping our own podcast to flourish.