| Industry | Alcoholic beverage |
|---|---|
| Founded | 2002 |
| Headquarters | Athens, GA, USA |
| Products | Beer |
Terrapin Beer Company is a brewing company founded in 2002 in Athens, Georgia, USA.
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Terrapin Beer Company was founded by Brian "Spike" Buckowski and John Cochran. The two men actually wanted to develop their own brewery, in 1998, before they had their own beer. After finally developing a beer the two were contemplating names when Buckowski, a Grateful Dead fan, mentioned Terrapin. The name comes from "Terrapin Station," which is a Grateful Dead album. After three years of talking to bankers and investors to no avail, Spike and John realized the only way to start Terrapin Beer Company was to begin as a contract brewery.
After months of anticipation, Terrapin's new brewery in Athens, GA is now operational and open for tours. Located at 265 Newton Bridge Rd. in Athens, GA, the new brewery is 45,000 square feet (4,200 m2) and gives Terrapin flexibility to expand capacity. Tours are offered Wednesdays, Thursdays, Fridays, and Saturdays 5:30 -7:30.
Terrapin Rye Pale Ale was introduced in Spring 2002 at the Classic City Brewfest.[1] Six months later this beer, which was sold only in Athens, Georgia, was awarded the American Pale Ale Gold Medal at the 2002 Great American Beer Festival. With demand for Terrapin growing daily, the Rye Pale Ale was soon made available to beer fans in Atlanta, Georgia as well. Soon after, Terrapin was chosen by producers of "Blue Ribbon" on Turner South to be featured on a TV special about breweries in the South. The viewers of this show voted Terrapin as the Best Brewery in the Southeast by an overwhelming margin of 72%.
Terrapin Golden Ale was introduced in 2004. Only two weeks later the Golden Ale won a Silver Medal at the 2004 World Beer Cup. Terrapin's unofficial motto became: "2 Years, 2 Beers, 2 Medals!". [2]
When a Georgia state law capping beers at 6% alcohol was overturned in 2004, Spike and John turned their attention to creating a line of seasonal beers that pushed the envelope of traditional brewing. It was this desire to challenge the palates of beer drinkers everywhere that led to the creation of the Monster Beer Tour. The seasonal brews consist of Big Hoppy Monster, Wake-n-Bake Coffee Oatmeal Imperial Stout, Rye Squared, and Monk's Revenge.
Terrapin Beer Co. has agreed to sell a minority interest to Miller Coors craft brewing division Tenth & Blake Beer Co., reports the Athens Banner-Herald.
Terrapin has signed a letter of intent to give Tenth & Blake less than 25 percent ownership in the Athens company, said Terrapin Beer Co. President John Cochran, who founded the brewery with partner Brian “Spike” Buckowski.
The minority ownership will be given in exchange for reducing a Tenth & Blake loan that was made in December 2010 to buy out a group of Terrapin investors, Cochran said, the newspaper reported.
Cochran would not say how much was borrowed or how much will be applied to Tenth & Blake’s minority share in the company.