WISEACRE Brewing Company today launches distribution in Central and South Florida via Progressive Distributing. Three of the Memphis-based brewery’s year-round beers – Air Bath Session IPA, Gotta Get Up to Get Down Coffee Milk Stout, and the Great American Beer Festival Bronze Medal-winning Tiny Bomb Pilsner – will be available, along with Seasonal and Specialty Releases, in Total Wine and Whole Foods stores across Florida, as well as in many other stores, bars, and restaurants.
WISEACRE’s expansion into Sunshine State comes on the heels of the recent promotion of long-time employee Amanda Thompson to COO of WISEACRE Brewing Company. Thompson began her time at WISEACRE in the taproom as a way of returning to the workforce after the birth of her two children. In her more than seven years with the brewery, she has worked her way up from the taproom to administration, events, human resources, and operations, all the while exhibiting an incredible work ethic and exceptional communication, organization, and execution skills.
“Davin and I value Amanda’s opinions and insights tremendously, and we are grateful for her ability to recognize challenges and her assertiveness about how to address them. Anytime Amanda faces a hurdle, it’s become an opportunity for her to shine,” said Kellan Bartosch, co-founder along with his brother Davin Bartosch, of WISEACRE. “ Amanda has done all of this with a great attitude, patience, a sense of humor, creativity, and showing the world that ‘everything is figure-outable.’ Beyond work functions, her contributions to company culture have been massive. Her title change is both a recognition of the work she has done across many departments and a reflection of additional levels of responsibility that she’ll take on as WISEACRE continues to grow.”
One of Thompson’s first projects as COO will be working with staff to manage the production increases necessary to accommodate WISEACRE’s entry into the Florida market, including the populous communities of Miami, Orlando, Tampa and Jacksonville, among others.
“In my time at WISEACRE, I’ve seen the industry evolve at each tier, but Tiny Bomb has anchored us in every wave of change and will continue to be the compass that guides us forward through whatever obstacles and opportunities lie ahead,” said Thompson. “We are just starting to package off of our four new 300 BBL fermenters and it couldn’t come at a better time – this recent equipment expansion is what’s making it possible for us to get our beer in the hands of our fans in Central and South Florida. Florida is definitely a competitive market, but our focus on an amazing Pilsner continues to be a strategy that resonates with our distributor partners. We are getting great enthusiasm from our distribution partner Progressive and we feel confident that it will trickle down to retailers and customers.”
WISEACRE’s Tiny Bomb has grown to become the #4 Craft Pilsner in the country, growth fueled in part by the state-of-the-art production facility WISEACRE built in Downtown Memphis in 2020, which quintupled the brewery’s previous capacity. The new facility also led to the development of new beers and the creation of new packaging options, which include 12oz, 16oz, and 19.2oz cans coming in 6-packs, 4-packs, 12-packs, Variety Packs, and single-serve.
WISEACRE is currently sold in Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Colorado, Florida, Georgia, Illinois, Indiana, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, New Jersey, North Carolina, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, Tennessee, Texas, Virginia, Washington, D.C. and Wisconsin, meaning that WISEACRE fans in a total of 20 states and the District of Columbia can buy their WISEACRE favorites closer to home.
WISEACRE will kick-off its Florida launch with events throughout the week at the following locations:
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Miami:
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May 24 – WISEACRE Spotlight @ Old Tom’s – Kendall (9525 N. Kendall Drive, Miami, FL 33176)
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May 25 – WISEACRE Spotlight @ 8250 NE 2nd Ave, Miami, FL
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Jacksonville:
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May 24 – Tiny Bomb Spotlight @ Engine 15 Brewing Co. (1500 Beach Blvd Ste 217, Jacksonville, FL 32250-2624)
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Orlando:
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May 24 – “WISEACRE & Weens” @ GB’s Bottle Shop & Tasting Bar (531 Virginia Dr, Orlando, FL 32803)
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May 25 – Barley and Vine Biergarten (2406 E Washington St, Orlando, FL 32803)
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Tampa area:
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May 24th – Tiny Bomb draft and full package Spotlight @ Jug & Bottle Dept (6203 N Florida Ave, Tampa, FL 33604)
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[divider]ABOUT WISEACRE[/divider]
WISEACRE Brewing Company opened in Memphis, Tennessee in 2013 after brothers and Memphis natives Davin and Kellan Bartosch gained experience working in the brewing industry around the country and even overseas including Davin’s brewing studies at Doeman’s Academy in Germany. Since then, WISEACRE has grown to have two brewery and taproom locations, more than 60 employees and distribution in 20 states, and has made more 170 beers ranging from German lagers, to hoppy American styles, complex and boozy Belgian beers, and barrel aging beers to boot. WISEACRE also has a line extension via liquor based RTDs with Vodka and Tequila sodas called The Set Up.
