In 2023, the best-selling beer in America was Modelo Especial. For two decades prior, Bud Light was king.
Both beer brands are owned by the same parent company, Anheuser-Busch InBev, which is based in Belgium.
Technically, in the United States, the beers are not owned by the same company. Bud Light’s parent company had to give up ownership of Modelo in the U.S. as part of a settlement agreement in a federal antitrust lawsuit.
Still, with the turmoil of Modelo dethroning Bud Light, along with the brands’ foreign ownership, Mike Sadler told Memphis Beer Blog that he sees an opportunity to shake up the beer industry.
Sadler, founder of Hook Point Brewing Co. in Collierville, is expanding beyond Hook Point’s craft roots and starting Original Brands, a new line of “domestic premium beers.”
“We felt that the best-selling beer in American ought to be brewed in America, be owned by Americans, and be an American brewery,” said Sadler, a former U.S. Navy pilot who now flies for FedEx.
“Instead of being a craft beer line, we’re going to market (Original Brands) as a domestic premium beer along the lines of the Ultras and Bud Lights and Miller Lites and those kinds of things. We’re going to try to market it and position it along those other beers in the stores, and it’s going to be along those price lines, as well.”
Hook Point will still brew craft beers in Collierville and sell locally, including in Hook Point’s Ready Room taproom in East Memphis, which opened in 2023.
But Sadler’s goal with Original Brands is to take this new line of beers, led by the flagship Original Glory American Pilsner, nationwide, with a patriotic theme and a message of unity.
“We really want it to be more of a movement. It’s about the beer, obviously. It’s a really good beer, and we want to make sure that it stays delicious and that it appeals to beer drinkers. But the movement is about this message of patriotism and unity and hoping we can bring this country back together.”
To fund his ambitious goal, Sadler needs money, and he’s started a crowdfunding campaign for Original Brands on wefunder.com.
Backers can “reserve” their investment now. Once Form C paperwork is filed with the SEC, a live investment window will open, and investments can actually be collected.
The initial fundraising goal for the campaign is $800,000, which Sadler hopes to raise in just a couple of months.
“This initial fundraiser of $800,000 is really just to get the marketing started, get the production level going … that we need to get rolling,” Sadler said. “Once that is closed out, we’ll probably do another fundraise at the end of the year on a larger scale.”
Original Brands’ flagship Original Glory American Pilsner is a 4.5%-ABV crisp American pilsner with a sweet corn finish. The beer was brewed with Liberty hops.
The beer’s can is wrapped in the American flag and has the tagline: “Freedom is worth drinking to.”
Original Glory was actually introduced locally last year as “Old Glory American Pilsner,” but the name was changed amid some trademark concerns.
The first batch of Original Glory, with the new label, will be canned next month and will hit the Memphis market soon after.
A portion of Original Glory sales will go to Folds of Honor-Tennesse. Sadler said he’s looking to support other organizations as Original Brands expands its offerings and distribution footprint.
In addition to Original Glory, Original Brands will introduce a new light beer in the spring, followed by two “flavored” beers in the summer.
In 2023, Hook Point only brewed 280 barrels — or 8,680 gallons — of beer at its Colliverville brewery.
With the introduction of Original Brands, Sadler is hoping to take things to a whole new level.
By the end of the year, Sadler would like to be brewing 3,000 barrels per month.
That would make Original Brands even bigger than Memphis’ Wiseacre Brewing Co., which brewed close to 30,000 barrels in 2023 and sells its beers in 21 states.
With Hook Point’s small 10-barrel brewhouse in Collierville, Sadler said he thinks Hook Point can brew about 200 barrels a month, “if we schedule it properly.”
Still, that would only account for a fraction of what Original Brands is hoping to produce later this year, which has led Sadler to look for external help.
Sadler said he’s been in conversations with an out-of-state contract brewer who can handle the growth that’s planned for Original Brands.
“If we’re hitting the numbers that we think we’re going to hit, we’re going to have to contract out,” he said.
Eventually, Sadler would like to expand the Collierville facility or find additional space to brew.
Meanwhile, Sadler has also been talking to distributors in other states. Initially, Sadler wants to expand the reach of Original Brands into Mississippi, Georgia, Alabama, and possibly North Carolina.
“The idea is to start spreading into the southeast for now,” Sadler said, “and then we’ll grow it into a national brand.”