In another craft-on-craft acquisition, F.X. Matt Brewing Co. the 135-year-old family-owned brewery has acquired Flying Dog Brewing of Frederick, Maryland. Flying Dog will move all production to its Utica, NY F.X. Matt facility.
The purchase is a natural for F.X. Matt which has available capacity and a decade-long relationship with Flying Dog. F.X. Matt has been contract brewing many of Flying Dog’s beers over the last 10 years.
Flying Dog, the 35th-largest craft brewery in the U.S., was founded in 1990 in Colorado. It acquired Frederick Brewing Co. in 2006 and moved all its production to Frederick. Flying Dog is known for its controversial labels and free speech battles over labelling restrictions. The brewer won a six-year lawsuit against the Michigan Liquor Control Commission after it denied Flying Dog’s “Raging Bitch” beer label on decency grounds. The decision had significant implications as it limited the government’s authority to regulate profanity and indecent graphics on alcohol beverage labeling and packaging.
The multi-generation Matt Brewing Co. was most recently overseen by F.X. Matt II who served as brewery chairman until his death in 2001. Currently, the brewery is overseen by Nick Matt, chairman and CEO, with his nephew Fred Matt serving as president.
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