Hilliard's Beer

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Hilliard's Beer

Location	Seattle, Washington, U.S.
Opened	October 7, 2011 (2011-10-07)
Closed	2016 (2016)
Key people	Ryan Hilliard, Adam Merkl
Website	hilliardsbeer.com
Active beers
Name Type Amber Ale Amber Ale Saison Saison Blonde Blonde ale Pils Pilsner

Hilliard's Beer was a brewery in Seattle, Washington, United States. It opened on October 7, 2011 in the city's Ballard neighborhood, at a building constructed in 1947. The company is named for its founder Ryan Hilliard, a self-described home brewer turned professional who stepped back from his career as a flight instructor to open the brewery.

Hilliard's was one of the first craft breweries in Washington to focus on producing beer in aluminum cans.^[1] Packaging beer in cans was an important part of the brewery's business plan: better for the beer's longevity, better for business operation sustainability and better for the environment. The company's brewing philosophy was 'keep it simple' and focus on quality ingredients. Their philosophy was displayed on their beer cans which were created by Seattle design company Mint.^[2] Hilliard's Beer is described as a "retro cool beer brand that embraces good design".^[3]

In June 2016, it was announced that Hilliard's was to be bought out by Tukwila-based Odin Brewing Company and that Hilliard himself was to leave the craft beer industry rather than merge his company or join the new team.^[4] The brewery is now permanently closed.

Products[]

Hilliard's brewed various styles of beer^[5] in 16 ounce tall boy cans. It typically served several beers on draft such as Hilliard's Nautical Reference Pale Ale (Pale Ale), Chrome Satan (California Common 'Style' Beer), Murdered Out Stout (Dry Irish Stout) and E.xtra S.pecial B.elgian (E.S.B. for short, a Dark Saison).

The Hilliard's taproom served people seven days a week.^[6] The brewery's overall production in 2012 (its first calendar year) was 1600 barrels; or 384,000 cans. It was able to can beer at a rate of 24 cans per minute.

Community[]

Hilliard's frequently supported local non-profit groups in the visual arts, theater, youth media, film, and sports. Organizations which partnered with Hilliard's Beer included the Northwest Film Forum, Seattle Art Museum, Henry Art Gallery, Tilted Thunder Rail Birds Roller Derby, Seattle Gay and Lesbian Film Festival, Frye Art Museum, and the Uganda Village Project.^{[citation needed]}

Hilliard's Beer was also active in collaborations within the brewing community and was the first small craft brewery to jointly brew a beer with craft beer veteran, Redhook Ale Brewery. Together they turned out a product in July 2013 called, "Joint Effort",^[7] a hemp-infused beer brewed in response to the legalization of marijuana in Washington state.^[8] The session ale was brewed with hemp seeds and dry-hopped with Zeus, Cascade and Summit hops.^[9][10]

See also[]

• Beer in the United States

References[]