In the midst of all this consolidation, we've also seen an explosion of microbrews and brewpubs - local operations that can be as small as couple guys working out of a garage. But for this post I'm interested in breweries that don't belong in either category, breweries that started small, built a following based on quality, gained a wide distribution, and became very successful financially, all while managing to remain independent. There are a few American breweries that fit this description, of which Sam Adams and Sierra Nevada are probably the best examples. Look a little further north and you'll find another example of a beer that has grown from a small family business into an international classic without being absorbed by the mega-breweries.
The Moosehead Brewery is Canada's oldest independent brewery and also its largest, since the only three Canadian breweries larger than Moosehead - Labatt, Molson, and Sleeman - are all foreign-owned. Moosehead was founded in Halifax, Novia Scotia, in 1867 by a British immigrant named Susannah Oland. She crafted her brews according to the old family ale recipes she had brought with her from her native land. The Oland family called their new business the Army and Navy Brewery, in honor of their most loyal customers - the British servicemen were stationed in and around Halifax, home to one of the largest naval installations in the North Atlantic. Oland died in 1886, leaving her brewery in the care of her two sons Conrad and George. By 1900 the brewery had changed its name to the Maritime Brewing & Malting Company. The small business founded by Susannah Oland had grown quickly over the last few decades of the 19th century, which is all the more remarkable considering that the brewery was destroyed twice by fire in the 1870s. And that's not even close to being the worst thing to happen to the Olands' brewery.
During World War I Halifax became one of the largest and busiest port cities in the world. Massive cargo ships left Halifax for Europe laden with Canadian and American troops and supplies, to return with wounded soldiers and refugees. In 1917 a French cargo ship carrying explosives bound for the front collided with a Norwegian vessel in the harbor. The collision triggered a fiery explosion that leveled all buildings along the nearby shoreline over a 2 km area. Over 2000 people were killed by fire, collapsed buildings, and flying debris. The Halifax Explosion remains the deadliest accidental explosion in history, and the Olands' brewery did not escape the carnage. The brewing facility was completely destroyed. Conrad Oland - co-owner, brewmaster, and son of Susannah Oland - was killed in the blast.
The Oland family didn't give up. Susannah's surviving son, George Oland, bought a new brewery in the town of St. John's, New Brunswick, and was back in the beer game by 1918. In 1931, George Oland introduced a new beer to his lineup, a light-yet-flavorful ale called Moosehead Pale Ale. The beer was so popular that in 1947 the business changed its name to the Moosehead Brewery in honor of its flagship ale. To compete with the dominant American lagers of the 1960s and 1970s, Moosehead began producing Moosehead Lager, which quickly became their best-selling brew.
Under Canadian liquor laws, Moosehead was restricted from selling their beers outside of the Maritime provinces (New Brunswick, Nova Scotia, and Prince Edward Island). They were, however, permitted to export it internationally. Moosehead Lager was introduced to the United States in 1978. It was immediately one of the most popular and widely-distributed imported beers in America. By the late 1980s, however, the increased availability of European lagers (particularly from Germany and the Netherlands) in the US of A drastically cut into Moosehead's market share. Still, Moosehead Lager continues to have a following throughout the United States and is even exported to Asia and Europe. Amazingly, the Oland family - now in their sixth generation of brewmasters - still independently owns and operates the brewery.
Moosehead Lager is a high-quality brew that, at least in my opinion, is head-and-shoulders above the Canadian lagers offered by Labatt and Molson (not to pick on those two...but they're the only mass-produced Canadian beers I've tried). Moosehead is ultra-clear, straw-colored, and highly carbonated. It has a full, malty flavor that is more reminiscent of European pilsners than American mass-produced lagers. There's also a sharper bite from hops than you might expect of a light North American beer.
The thing I like the most about the Moosehead story is that despite fire, death, devastation, competition, restrictive laws, and many other obstacles, Moosehead has managed to stay independent and true to its heritage. On the one hand, you don't see any smarmy TV commercials for Moosehead like you do for European imports like Heineken and Amstel; no one in the States (well, at least here on the East Coast) could accuse Moosehead of being over-exposed. On the other hand, Moosehead most certainly does NOT have the hip, underground beer snob vibe that many North American microbrews affect. It's a solid, timeless brew that anyone who likes beer should be able to enjoy.
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