(Courtesy Athletic Brewing)

The beer biz never sleeps at American Craft Beer. And here’s just some of what’s been happening in the beer world while you were drinking your way through the weekend.

Athletic Brewing Acquires Ballast Point Brewery In San Diego

America’s biggest non-alcoholic brewery Athletic Brewing has acquired a second brewing facility in San Diego, that was originally owned by Ballast Point owners, Kings and Convicts. Athletic’s new 107,000 sq. ft. location includes 300-barrel and 150-barrel brewhouses which will offer Athletic Brewing the versatility to produce both flagship and limited edition brews.

“Launched in 2018, Athletic Brewing currently has over 19% market share and dollar sales growing more than 62%,” according to the Drinks Business. “The Brewers Association recently ranked Athletic as the 10th largest US craft brewery and 20th largest overall brewing company, a feat recognized all the more for the fact its beers are all non-alcoholic.”

Once operational in late 2025, Athletic estimates that it will be able to double its production capability in the US.

Words to Drink By

“Innovation distinguishes between a leader and a follower.” – Steve Jobs American businessman and inventor.

Vintage Beer Can Sells For $62,830

(Courtesy Morean Auctions)

On February 25, a  world auction record was set for a vintage beer can with the $51,500 final bid for a quart cone top can at Morean Auctions in Massachusetts. And when you add in the “buyer’s premium,” which is the 10% auctioneer company charge that can cost the lucky collector, an astounding $62,830.

“The can dated to the 1940s, when the cone top format was dominant,” according to Antiques Trade Gazette. “Auctioneer Dan Morean described it as “a Grail can for many a quart and Pennsylvania collector”

The can is a relative newcomer in brewing history.

The “official” birthday of the beer can be traced back January 24, 1935 according to Brewery Collectables Club of America. “That’s the day cans of Krueger’s Finest Beer and Krueger’s Cream Ale first went on sale in Richmond, VA. But the beer can really made its debut some 14 months earlier – just before the repeal of Prohibition.”

So maybe hang on to that empty Heady Topper can?

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