BREAKING | Dick Cantwell Resigns From Elysian Brewing

As reported earlier today via Seattle Beer News, Elysian Co-Founder and Head Brewer, Dick Cantwell has officially resigned from the brewery. Elysian was acquired by Anheuser-Busch at the beginning of the year in January and joined the likes of Goose Island, Blue Point, 10 Barrel Brewing as recent craft beer additions to their already massive portfolio.

In February, Budweiser, which is also part of the AB-InBev portfolio, aired the now infamous Pumpkin Peach Ale Super Bowl commercial which ignited a firestorm from craft beer fans but also alienated their recently acquired Elysian, who had previously brewed a Pumpkin Peach Ale. Shortly after the airing of the commercial, Cantwell expressed his disappointment behind the acquisition in an interview with the Chicago Tribune. “”I find it kind of incredible that ABI would be so tone-deaf as to pretty directly (even if unwittingly) call out one of the breweries they have recently acquired, even as that brewery is dealing with the anger of the beer community in reaction to the sale,” Cantwell said. “It doesn’t make our job any easier, and it certainly doesn’t make me feel any better about a deal I didn’t even want to happen. It’s made a difficult situation even more painful.”

When talking with Seattle Beer News about his resignation, Cantwell cited his commitment to the craft beer industry. “I’m a craft brewer, first of all, for all its muddiness of definition, whatever I end up doing.”

Cantwell is currently working on a book with New Belgium Brew Master and barrel aging guru Peter Bouckaert, they have spent the past year touring breweries and distilleries to survey the barrel aging scene around the country. Cantwell also serves as a board member to the Brewers Association.

We’d like to commend Mr. Cantwell for his continued dedication to craft beer and we sympathize with the difficulty of the decision to leave such an esteemed brewery which he helped to establish and build from the ground up.