Chicago’s Half Acre Beer Company and Maplewood Brewery Merge Amid Craft Consolidation Wave

Half Acre Beer Company and Maplewood Brewery & Distillery, two of Chicago’s largest craft breweries, are set to merge into a new beverage company, the businesses announced on Tuesday. Both breweries will operate independently at their respective taprooms, but the joint venture will consolidate their behind-the-scenes business operations to form an unnamed, “premier Chicago beverage company,” per the release. The merger comes after a wave of shutterings in the Windy City’s craft beer scene. Five breweries, including Casa Humilde, have closed or announced closures in just the last six weeks. The article Chicago’s Half Acre Beer Company and Maplewood Brewery Merge Amid Craft Consolidation Wave appeared first on VinePair.