Rhonda Kallman talk on the rise and fall of New Century Brewing (video)
Feelings about New Century Brewing products aside, this is a worthy watch for those hoping to enter the beer business (and in general, beer people and entrepreneurs). Runtime: 1 hour.
In 1983 Rhonda Kallman and Jim Koch created The Boston Brewing Company and launched Samuel Adams Lager. Rhonda tells an amazing story of entrepreneurship, filled with both ups and downs.
Today Rhonda owns New Century Brewing and has faced FDA regulations and many other issues. Rhonda is very transparent about her struggles of building this new brewing company.
via >> LessEverything.
The market has turned drastically since she started new century. She continuously claims that the big guys are putting regional breweries out of business. This is far from the truth. Reinventing the light beer seems counter productive in today’s industry. I wish miss Kallman the best. She seems very knowledgeable and i would never crucify her for starting a brewing company, its just a shame she focused on the wrong aspects of today’s market.
@mmhs
Yeah, it seems like her idea was to do what the “big guys” do, but better. Problem is, the market of people that purchase from the big guys don’t care about anything better.
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Why leave Sam Adams, the largest American owned brewery to make a Light Beer, when she stated Boston Brewing was to release Sam Adams Light…hmmm. No wonder Koch wouldn’t join in. And how are you a “craft brewery” trying to have it marketed and distributed by Bud, Miller or Coors. The passion to craft beer (lager’s in her case) i just don’t see, the good doctor whipped up the recipe and she did what she does. I’m sure she would be a great marketeer or sales and distribution chief for any micro or macro brewery…but then again she was.
To suggest that the big guys are not trying to put the small breweries out of business is absurd.
You don’t have to go back in time and see what that South African brewery, Miller, did to Celis. Look at that Belgian brewery, Anheuser-Busch, going after Dogfishhead for putting Chicory on their label.
The support of the three tier system by the big foreign breweries, Anheuser, Coors and Miller, is another example. The three tier prevents smaller breweries getting traction via limiting distribution. They say ‘well, the wholesalers can distribute whatever they want’, but then put pressure on them not to on the QT. The beer distributors seem like mafia to me. Seriously … look at some of them and how they act. Mafia.
Look also at the expansion of SKUs from the big 3 foreign owned breweries. Why? Well, they sell the same amount of beer, but that leaves less space for the small breweries.
In Rhonda’s case, there was no distribution of Edison or Moonshot in VA where I live, so I have no idea what they taste like. A light lager with caffeine doesn’t ring bells for me. Then again, I think Jaeger is crap – apparently a few people disagree with me.
Rhonda is a hardworking and talented lady – a shame things didn’t work out in the arena she was in, but that was the pond she wanted to swim in. Too bad there were sharks in with her.
Millercoors made Samuel Adams beer for years.
Hi Rhonda,
I enjoyed watching your video. I was your Los Angeles area sales rep. in 2002. I admire your courage, and ambition. We all worked very hard to launch Edison Beer and it was a fun experience. Thank you for being such a hands on owner and chasing your dream. I am glad to see you are doing well and still smiling.
Cheers,
Michelle Terry