Deschutes Brewery beers coming to Iowa

Deschutes Brewery announced its craft beers will be available in Iowa starting in the summer of 2013. The Oregon-based brewery will be working with Johnson Brothers of Iowa, one of the largest alcoholic beverage distributors in the state. The company is known for its outstanding service, recognized in recent years as “Supplier of the Year” by the Iowa Restaurant Association and the Iowa Grocery Industry Association.

Deschutes beer is slated to be available to Iowans in late July, with a formal launch planned for the fall that will include special tastings and other events in cities around the state.

“We are thrilled to be bringing one of America’s great craft breweries into the state of Iowa,” said Lyle Stutzman, president of Johnson Brothers of Iowa. “We look forward to a long and successful partnership with Deschutes.”

Beer is slated to be available to Iowans in late July, with a formal launch planned for the fall that will include special tastings and other events in cities around the state. Initially, Deschutes Brewery will be offering Mirror Pond Pale Ale, Black Butte Porter (the nation’s number one selling craft porter), Chainbreaker White IPA, and its seasonal Twilight Summer Ale. The beers will be available in six-packs and draft.

Early this year, Deschutes Brewery started distributing in the state of Illinois, and currently sells beer in Missouri and Minnesota. Iowa rounds out the region.

Stacy Denbow, expansion manager for Deschutes Brewery, said: “After Iowa’s revised state laws, we’ve seen an impressive craft beer scene emerge that we’re excited to soon be a part of. We also really appreciated seeing the level of excitement and execution displayed by Johnson Bros.”

Deschutes Brewery added five new 1,300 barrel (bbl) fermentation tanks in 2012 to increase capacity at its Oregon brewing headquarters and plans to add five more tanks this month. When all the new tanks are online, the brewery will have the capacity to brew more than 460,000 bbls annually to fill demand in its expanding distribution footprint.