The Karbach Controversy

When controversy strikes, the public has this amusing way of immediately pouncing on said scandal — and it’s usually accompanied by profound fury. The latest to experience this fall from grace is beloved (or should I say once beloved) local brewery Karbach, whose owners made the controversial decision to sell the burgeoning business to mammoth beer corporation Anheuser-Busch.

Karbach — which lasted five years as an independent after being founded in a warehouse on Karbach Street by Chuck Robertson and Ken Goodman — now joins the beer giant driven by Budweiser. It joins Bud’s so-called High End division, which already includes craft beers Goose Island, Blue Point, 10 Barrel, Elysian, Golden Road, Virtue Cider, Four Peaks, Breckenridge Brewery, Devils Backbone and SpikedSeltzer.

To say that Houstonians are less than pleased is an understatement. Social media was riddled with criticism after news of the acquisition hit the Internet today, with several Houston restaurants even announcing the Houston-based brew would be pulled from their offerings.

Kevin Floyd, a partner at local haunts including Underbelly, Hay Merchant, Blacksmith, and Anvil Bar & Refuge took to Facebook to share his disappointment with the acquisition.

“It’s a sad day. I wish I could say I was surprised … but I’m not. On the upside, I am pulling all Karbach out of Hay Merchant and Underbelly. My first impulse was to dump it all, but realizing that everything I have in stock was brewed while they were a true, independently-owned Texas craft brewer, I decided to celebrate who Karbach was by selling everything we have for as cheap as possible,” Floyd professed. “All drafts are $1; all cans are $1.50; and all 22oz are $3. Feel free to take it home. Half growlers are $3; and growlers are $6. We are working hard to pull all the kegs out of the cellar and will have a full draft list ASAP on the Hay Merchant FB page.”

Houston-based brewery Saint Arnold opted for a more subtle dig.

“We wish @karbachbrewing well going forward. We are proud to remain Texas’ Oldest Craft Brewery and will continue to serve Houston community,” Saint Arnold tweeted. Twitter user @_itsmatthew_ replied: “Thanks @SaintArnold for remaining independent and dedicated to quality!”

Industry professionals weren’t the only ones expressing their opinions, with many Houstonians taking to Twitter to slam and defend Karbach’s decision.

Bummed to hear about Karbach stabbing Houston craft beer in the back. Good news, there’s lots of great real,… https://t.co/BzPOU7hUYd

— Uncle Hoppy (@Petrol_Station) November 3, 2016

Lotta dorks selling records out of the back of their Subaru are very upset at their talented friend for landing a record deal. #Karbach

— Paul Pelc (@PaulPelc_) November 3, 2016

Karbach Brewing Sells Out To Big Beer https://t.co/FtT5gfHCPI #CraftBeer @karbachbrewing #BREAKING pic.twitter.com/7Yi6ogh59o

— American Craft Beer (@AmericaCrftBeer) November 3, 2016

Hopefully ABI will be able to buy Karbach a faster website.

— J.C. Reid (@jcreidtx) November 3, 2016

For those upset about Karbach deal, think of it this way: If this was a local technology company, we would be celebrating this.

— Joe Martin (@HBJMartin) November 3, 2016

So now you know who sold out to ABI. The question is now are you still a Karbach fan? #HoustonBeer https://t.co/DV3VYW15wd

— Houston Beer Guide (@HoustonBeer) November 3, 2016

Why boycott Karbach? Because their new owner ABInbev uses their profit to aggressively lobby legislation to crush craft brewers.

— Dr Maya Angeboobs (@deathbysexy) November 3, 2016

Don’t freak about Karbach. Five new craft breweries will sprout in its place and they will produce 73 versions of an IPA.

— Shooter Flatch (@texasagsec) November 3, 2016

Super bummed to hear about Karbach, but people start businesses to make money. Can’t hate.

— AJ Hoffman (@AJIsTheReal) November 3, 2016

Karbach will be added to my boycott list, not because quality will suffer but bc ABI does bad things in the legislature with their profits.

— Kyle Jack (@kylejack) November 3, 2016

We’ll see if the Karbach deal draws DOJ scrutiny. AB currently has greater than 50 share in Houston market in scan data so HHI > 2500.

— Bart Watson (@BrewersStats) November 3, 2016

Goodman tells the Chronicle that it wasn’t about the money, it was about resources. (The sales price has not been disclosed.) He insists that Karbach will still mostly operate independently. Karbach is on pace to produce more than 80,000 barrels of beer this year — and Anheuser-Busch expects to boost production of Karbach to 150,000 barrels a year by 2019.

Anheuser-Busch already controls more than 45 percent of the nation’s beer market and it has upset craft beer lovers by working to keep legislation in place that makes it harder for independent beer producers (it aired an anti craft beer ad during last year’s Super Bowl).

What do you think? Did Karbach sell out? Did its owners abandon the local craft beer community? Or is this just a smart business move?

Sound off in the comments section below.