Tag Archives: Saint Arnold

Microbreweries are getting back on track

Posted on October 16, 2022 by Charles Kuffner

A bit of good news. Texas craft breweries rebounded in 2021, a promising sign after the pandemic staggered the industry. The state of beer: Of the state’s 10 largest breweries, seven increased production in 2021 compared with 2020, according to an Axios analysis … Continue reading →

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Saint Arnold whiskey

Posted on December 26, 2021 by Charles Kuffner

For those of you that like spirits. Houston’s oldest craft brewery has quietly launched a new venture that could bear some tasty results. Speaking on this week’s episode of CultureMap’s “What’s Eric Eating” podcast, Saint Arnold Brewing Company founder Brock … Continue reading →

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Beer gardens get jerked around

Posted on July 25, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

First, we had this. Saint Arnold Brewing announced Monday that it will temporarily close its beer garden and restaurant. The reason? Gov. Greg Abbott’s office ruled it is a bar, not a restaurant, and therefore should close according to the … Continue reading →

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Coronavirus and beer

Posted on April 9, 2020 by Charles Kuffner

Houston’s craft breweries are adjusting to life with closed taprooms and beer-to-go sales. The team at Saint Arnold Brewing sat down to taste some test beers one Wednesday morning, as its members do when they work on new releases. But … Continue reading →

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Beer to go is here

Posted on September 3, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Hooray! The highly anticipated beer-to-go legislation officially [went] into effect Sunday, and local breweries [celebrated] the occasion by offering up cans, growlers and crowlers of beer for visitors to bring home — a simple act that has been illegal in … Continue reading →

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Biking and breweries

Posted on July 8, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Actually, this makes perfect sense. This started off in the gray area between a good idea and a bad one. Two years ago, Jason Buhlman and Brian Kondrach got about 30 of their friends together for an afternoon of two-wheel … Continue reading →

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Saint Arnold’s silver anniversary

Posted on May 31, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

A very happy anniversary to them. There is nothing particularly unique about the start-up story behind Saint Arnold. [Founder Brock] Wagner, 54, had been working as an investment banker when he decided to chuck the suit and tie and try … Continue reading →

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Is the craft brewing business in a slowdown?

Posted on January 26, 2019 by Charles Kuffner

Item one. Alluring as those wide-open skies and rugged vistas may be, the hardscrabble life in West Texas can be unforgiving. And so it was last year for the region’s popular and award-winning craft brewer, Big Bend Brewing Co., despite … Continue reading →

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The year in beer

Posted on December 29, 2017 by Charles Kuffner

It was pretty good overall for Texas craft brewers, especially in Houston. Texas craft brewers will close the books on 2017 having made more beer, opened more breweries and garnered more national recognition for the state than ever. Looking ahead … Continue reading →

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Have we reached peak beer in Texas?

Posted on October 9, 2016 by Charles Kuffner

Maybe not, but we are surely testing the limits of the market. Owners of Eureka Heights Brewing Co. signed up 40 bars and restaurants to sell their beer during their first three weeks in business. The taproom was drawing such … Continue reading →

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Keg dispute

Posted on June 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Your beer choices at certain fancy restaurants in Houston have been curtailed. A dispute over deposit fees for kegged beers could slow the flow of several craft brands, including a few that are made locally, at some of Houston’s best-known … Continue reading →

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Karbach’s new brewery

Posted on May 3, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

As we know, Houston has a lot of craft breweries, with the venerable Saint Arnold being the biggest, oldest, and best known. With the forthcoming opening of their new facility, I’d say Karbach is making a strong case to be … Continue reading →

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Who’s up for a macrobrewery tour?

Posted on April 12, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

This used to be a thing in Houston, and now it is once again. The local Anheuser-Busch plant was under construction at the same time as the Astrodome, and its ambitions were just as grand. With an annual capacity of … Continue reading →

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Beer legislation 2.0

Posted on March 17, 2015 by Charles Kuffner

Just because craft brewers succeeded in passing a bill allowing them to sell beer for consumption on their premises last session doesn’t mean there isn’t more that can be done to advance the cause of beer freedom. Twinned bills introduced … Continue reading →

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Good times for the craft brewers

Posted on June 13, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a lot more growth to come for the craft brewing industry. Texas’ smaller craft breweries increased production last year by nearly half and made deeper gains in the overall beer market, suggesting the industry’s growth spurt will continue. “Yes, … Continue reading →

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Big Brew

Posted on January 17, 2014 by Charles Kuffner

I like the sound of this. For three days in October, the [George R. Brown] convention center will host Big Brew, a major new festival that aims to tap into the region’s burgeoning craft-beer scene by putting 1,000 beers out … Continue reading →

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A preview of the next beer battle

Posted on July 12, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Texas microbreweries are now officially selling their wares on premise. Woo hoo! In business for nearly 19 years, Saint Arnold Brewing Co. sold its first cold one directly to a customer [in June], thanks to a new law liberalizing the … Continue reading →

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Craft beer bills now officially the law

Posted on June 17, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Whatever you think of the vetoes or the special session action, this is unequivocally good news. Happy hour started Friday afternoon for Texas brewers. Gov. Rick Perry signed five bills representing the most comprehensive overhaul in two decades of how … Continue reading →

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Craft beer bills pass the House

Posted on May 18, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Hallelujah! A raft of bills that would dramatically alter the way beer is sold and consumed in Texas sailed through tentative approval from the House on Friday after a lengthy and disputatious process between brewers and beer distributors. If finally … Continue reading →

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Craft beer bills pass out of the Senate

Posted on March 28, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

A good day indeed. The Texas Senate voted Monday to give craft brewers and brewpubs new opportunities to sell their beer. “To see that happen was amazing,” said Scott Metzger, a San Antonio brewpub owner who worked with other brewers, … Continue reading →

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Craft beer legislation advances

Posted on March 15, 2013 by Charles Kuffner

Moving forward. Legislation authorizing the most significant changes in 20 years to the way beer is bought and sold in Texas passed a key Senate committee Tuesday with broad support. Under terms of the bills, Houston’s Saint Arnold and other … Continue reading →

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Craft versus crafty

Posted on December 21, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Just because that beer you’re drinking has a quirky name and a whimsical label on the bottle doesn’t mean it came from a microbrewery. In a biting opening salvo, a trade group for the nation’s craft brewers on Thursday accused … Continue reading →

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Beer is still a job creator

Posted on November 18, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

We really owe a debt of gratitude to beer, in particular to microbrewers. Saint Arnold Brewing Co., the city’s oldest craft, has 43 employees and is in the midst of hiring at least three more, founder Brock Wagner said. That … Continue reading →

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What the microbreweries want from the next legislative session

Posted on September 24, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Scott Metzger of Freetail Brewing has an update on what he and his craft-brewing colleagues have been working on. Brock Wagner (of Saint Arnold of course) and I have been Co-Chairing the Texas Craft Brewers Guild Legislative Committee and have … Continue reading →

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Beer is a job creator

Posted on July 29, 2012 by Charles Kuffner

Microbreweries are, anyway. Craft brewing in Texas could add 52,000 jobs and mushroom into a $5.6 billion industry by 2020 if state lawmakers next year ease restrictions on breweries and restaurants that make beer on-site, a study prepared by the … Continue reading →

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713 ™

Posted on July 10, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

WTF? Anheuser-Busch is counting on civic pride to make its next product a smash seller: beer named after America’s various beer-drinking cities, based on their area codes. To that end, AB has already applied for a federal trademark for “713” … Continue reading →

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Another microbrewer comes to town

Posted on May 28, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

The beer scene in Houston keeps getting better. Eric Warner was at the well-regarded Flying Dog Brewery in Colorado for a decade, as brewmaster and then as chief executive. While there, the brewery came out with such beers as Snake … Continue reading →

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RIP, HB602

Posted on May 27, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Dammit. Texans won’t be buying liquor on Sunday and the state’s 29 brewpubs won’t be competing with their out-of-state rivals on local grocery shelves. And Texas breweries or liquor distillers still can’t sell a 12-pack of beer or a souvenir … Continue reading →

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A night with the Skeeters

Posted on April 29, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

I learned a couple of interesting things from this Richard Justice column about the forthcoming Sugar Land Skeeters minor league baseball team. Among them: You may think you know what a Skeeter is, but you don’t. If you’re wondering what … Continue reading →

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A win for the microbrewers

Posted on April 22, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Woo hoo! Craft beer brewers came to the Capitol this session with a number of bills giving them greater latitude in getting their beers to customers. [Thursday], the House gave an early OK to one of those bills, allowing breweries … Continue reading →

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Compromise microbrew bill voted out of committee

Posted on April 5, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

From Brewed and Never Battered: Congrats to Brock Wagner, the folks at St. Arnold, and all the other Texas brewers, distributors and retailers supporting HB 602 which today passed the House Licensing and Administrative Procedures Committee by a vote of … Continue reading →

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Brewery bills get referred to committee

Posted on February 26, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

It’s a first step. State Rep. Jessica Farrar, D-Houston, has introduced House Bill 602, which would allow breweries to distribute up to 48 12-ounce beers at the conclusion of tours of the respective facilities. Brewers would cover the cost of … Continue reading →

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Legislative beer news

Posted on January 24, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

There’s a new player on the beer legislation scene this session. The owner of one of San Antonio’s largest brewpubs, Freetail Brewing Co., is spearheading an effort to change state law to allow it and other brewpubs to distribute their … Continue reading →

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Good beer, good times

Posted on January 15, 2011 by Charles Kuffner

Nice to know that quality still matters. Saint Arnold Brewing Co. increased production by 22  percent last year, continuing a streak of double-digit annual growth even as the U.S. beer industry stagnated. The Houston brewery, founded in 1994, expanded capacity by … Continue reading →

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