Madtree 2.0- How To Grow A Brewery

Cincinnati Brewery Doubles Down on Quality, Employees, and Charitable Giving

- Jim Dykstra

In February 2017, Cincinnati’s MadTree Brewing transformed from an average-sized local craft brewery into a potential regional powerhouse with the opening of their MadTree 2.0 facility, a 126-barrel brewhouse capable of producing up to 180,000 barrels annually. This massive brewhouse, a custom WM Sprinkman construction, makes it the fifth largest one in Ohio, behind only two other craft breweries in the state: BrewDog’s new Columbus brewery and Cincinnati based Boston Beer Company (the other two Ohio facilities larger than MadTree are owned by MillerCoors and AB-InBev).

Mike Stuart, Director - People and Social Strategy at MadTree, explains that while the additional capacity is a boon, maxing that capacity isn’t the end goal of the new facility. In fact, the brewery will only gradually ramp up production from the 22,000 barrels produced in 2016 at their original 15-barrel brewhouse to a predicted 50,000 barrels at 2.0 in 2018. “For us, the number one thing is always to be the most respected brewery in the region. Not necessarily the biggest, or send the beer to the most places,” he says. “For us, it’s more about having respect as a brewery through our beer quality, our people/ employees, and our community impact.”

Ensuring Quality First