Red Lodge Ales Brewing

What Red Lodge Ales Brewing does

Red Lodge Ales Brewing Company is a craft brewery founded by Sam Hoffmann in Red Lodge, Montana (circa 2003, based on the 20-year anniversary celebrated in 2023). The company produces a portfolio of year-round and seasonal craft beers alongside specialty ciders from its sister company, Last Chance Cider Mill, in Billings, MT. Its core beer line includes Bent Nail IPA, Czechmate Pilsner, Glacier Amber Ale, Helio Hefeweizen, Beartooth Pale Ale, Jack's 90 Scottish Ale, Dually Double IPA, and Enjoy The Ride Hazy IPA, with rotating seasonal offerings. Cider SKUs number 12 or more, including barrel-aged and single-variety products made from hand-picked fruit sourced in Montana, Michigan, and Oregon.

The brewery's technology is traditional craft brewing distinguished by its Montana terroir: soft glacial water, Montana-grown and malted barley, water heated via a solar thermal array, and beer naturally cooled by Beartooth Mountain air. Production is modest in scale, supported by a 1–10 person team, and has earned multiple regional and national medals (Gold at the 2021 North American Beer Awards for Glacier Amber Ale; Bronze at the 2021 Great American Beer Festival for Helio Hefeweizen; Bronze at the 2022 and 2023 NABA for Glacier Amber Ale).

Red Lodge Ales operates a diversified, multi-channel revenue model. Direct-to-consumer revenue is generated through Sam's Tap Room & Kitchen, a 7-day restaurant attached to the brewery, plus $25/person brewery tours and a 200-guest Beer Garden Event Space rented out June through September. Wholesale revenue comes from 1/2 barrel and 1/6 barrel keg sales to on- and off-premise accounts, supported by a dedicated Red Lodge warehouse, and from packaged 6-packs, 12-packs, and 19.2oz cans distributed to retail partners across Montana and surrounding areas. The company is bootstrapped, founder-owned, and serves a mix of local residents, tourists, event hosts, local nonprofits (via its 11-year-old Community Pint Nights program), and off-premise retail consumers.

Name

Red Lodge Ales Brewing

Legal name

Red Lodge Ales Brewing Company

Website

https://redlodgeales.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2003

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

Red Lodge Ales Brewing is a founder-owned craft brewery in Red Lodge, Montana producing year-round and seasonal beers and a sister-company cider line, distributed through its on-site taproom, regional retail, keg wholesale, event venue, and brewery tours across Montana.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Craft Beer / Microbrewery

NAICS

Breweries (31212), Drinking Places (Alcoholic Beverages) (7224)

SIC

Malt Beverages (2082)

akta.pro primary industry

Packaging & Production Breweries (Limited/No On-site Service) (THAFALAB)

akta.pro secondary industries

Brewpubs & Taprooms (On-site Beer Service) (THAFALAA), Craft Beer Bars & Taprooms (THAFAEAG), Beer, Brewery & Craft Beverage Tastings (THAJAGAE)

Keywords

• Craft beer brewing
• Montana craft brewery
• Tap room restaurant
• Keg wholesale distribution
• Craft beer products

Headquarters

HQ city

Red Lodge

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices2 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Hardware or Manufacturing

Cost components

Supply Chain, Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Marketing or Sales

Revenue model

1. Tap Room Food & Beverage Sales: Sam's Tap Room & Kitchen generates revenue from food service and draft beer/cider sales to dine-in customers. Restaurant open 7 days a week 11AM-9PM with casual dining atmosphere.
2. Keg Sales: Wholesale keg sales to on-premises and off-premises customers. Keg sizes include 1/2 barrel (15.5 gallons) and 1/6 barrel (5.16 gallons). Weekday pickup at warehouse, weekend pickup at brewery.
3. Packaged Beer Sales: Year-round and seasonal beers sold in 6-packs, 12-packs, and 19.2oz cans at retail locations throughout the region. Distribution through 'Find our Beer' retail partners.
4. Event Space Rental: Beer Garden Event Space rental for weddings, rehearsal dinners, corporate events, and family reunions from June to September. Venue includes tent, tables, chairs for up to 200 guests, private bathrooms, bar access, and optional dance floor.
5. Brewery Tours: Guided brewery tours offered on select Summer Saturdays. Tours include pint glass and beer token. $25/person, approximately 1 hour duration.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels6 records

Core offering

Red Lodge Ales Brewing Company produces and sells craft beer through three main channels: direct-to-consumer food and draft sales at Sam's Tap Room & Kitchen; wholesale kegs (1/2 BBL and 1/6 BBL) to restaurants, bars, and events; and packaged beer (6-packs, 12-packs, 19.2oz cans) at retail locations across Montana. The company also rents the Beer Garden Event Space for private events and offers guided brewery tours, with sister brand Last Chance Cider Mill ciders sold alongside its own beer portfolio.

Product overview

Red Lodge Ales Brewing Company is a craft brewery in Red Lodge, Montana producing a portfolio of year-round and seasonal beers. The core product line consists of seven flagship beers: Bent Nail IPA, Czechmate Pilsner, Glacier Amber Ale, Helio Hefeweizen, Beartooth Pale Ale, Jack's 90 Scottish Ale, Dually Double IPA, and Enjoy The Ride Hazy IPA. Seasonal offerings include Mystery Machine Brut IPA, Montandy Shandy, Summer Daze Mandarin Wheat, and Oktoberfest German Lager. The company also operates Sam's Tap Room & Kitchen as its retail restaurant, and distributes through a keg sales program. A sister brand, Last Chance Cider Mill in Billings, MT, produces hand-crafted ciders sold alongside the beers. Additional services include brewery tours and an outdoor Beer Garden Event Space for private events.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Bent Nail IPA Year-round flagship India Pale Ale brewed with American Cascade hops for intense grapefruit and citrus aroma and flavor, ABV 6.3% and IBU 55, named as a tribute to local contractors in Red Lodge. Sold on draft at Sam's Tap Room and in packaged formats at retail locations across Montana.
• Czechmate Pilsner Year-round flagship Czech-style pilsner with straw-gold color and soft biscuit-like malt flavor, cold-aged for eight weeks, ABV 5.1% and IBU 26. Sold on draft at Sam's Tap Room and in packaged formats at retail.
• Glacier Amber Ale Year-round flagship German Altbier-style amber ale with caramel malt flavor balanced by moderate hop bitterness, ABV 5.4% and IBU 27. Award-winning recipe (Gold 2021 North American Beer Awards; Bronze 2022 and 2023). Sold on draft at Sam's Tap Room and in packaged formats at retail.
• Helio Hefeweizen Year-round flagship golden unfiltered wheat beer with citrus-like flavor from wheat malt, low hop bitterness, and bread-like character from yeast, ABV 5.5% and IBU 17. Bronze medal winner at the 2021 Great American Beer Festival.
• Beartooth Pale Ale Year-round flagship copper-colored pale ale named after the nearby Beartooth Pass, with nutty malt flavor and moderate hop bitterness with grapefruit rind notes, ABV 5.5% and IBU 43.
• Jack's 90 Scottish Ale Year-round flagship Scottish-style ale brewed with English malts, soft water, cool fermentation, and proper aging, producing an amber/brown ale with rich malty taste, ABV 6.0% and IBU 24.
• Dually Double IPA Year-round flagship Imperial IPA with a firm malt backbone generously hopped with nectarine and citrus hop aromatics, ABV 8.5% and IBU 75.
• Enjoy The Ride Hazy IPA New England-style Hazy IPA released to celebrate the brewery's 20-year anniversary in 2023, super hazy and juicy with a heavy creamy mouthfeel and grapefruit finish, ABV 6.5% and IBU 40.
• Seasonal Beers Rotating selection of seasonal craft beers sold on draft at Sam's Tap Room and in packaged formats at retail, including Mystery Machine Brut IPA, Montandy Shandy, Summer Daze Mandarin Wheat, Oktoberfest German Lager, Harvest IPA, and previously retired brews like Easy Sippah Session IPA, Rocking Horse Black IPA, Dog Pull Porter, and Bruno's Montana IPA.
• Sam's Tap Room & Kitchen Brewery-attached bar and restaurant offering casual dining with bold flavors, fresh salads, and BBQ alongside draft beer and cider service, with an outdoor patio, sampling trays, and complimentary WiFi by the fireplace. Open 7 days a week, 11AM-9PM.
• Keg Sales Wholesale distribution of Red Lodge Ales beer in keg format (1/2 BBL = 15.5 gallons, yielding 124 16oz pints or 165 12oz cans; 1/6 BBL = 5.16 gallons, yielding 41 16oz pints or 55 12oz cans) to on-premise and off-premise accounts. Weekday pickup at the new Red Lodge warehouse (10AM-4PM), weekend pickup at the brewery (10AM-2PM).
• Beer Garden Event Space Outdoor private event venue rental at the brewery for weddings, rehearsal dinners, receptions, corporate events, and family reunions from June to September. Includes a 40'x60' tent, tables and chairs for up to 200 guests, private bathrooms, bar access, stage, and optional dance floor.
• Brewery Tours Guided interactive tours of the Red Lodge Ales brewing facilities where visitors learn how beer is made from hops, malt, and water. Offered on select Summer Saturdays at 3 PM at $25 per person (approximately one-hour duration), including a pint glass and a beer token.
• Last Chance Cider Sister-brand hand-crafted ciders produced in Billings, Montana by Last Chance Cider Mill using hand-picked fruit sourced from Montana, Michigan, and Oregon. Product lineup includes Flathead Cherry, Orchard Run, Pearfection, Sweet Honeycrisp, Full Montana, Jonathan, Hopopotamus, Chardonnay Barrel-Aged, Bourbon Barrel-Aged, Newtown Pippin, Karmijn de Sonnaville, and Pub Cider. Sold at Sam's Tap Room and distributed alongside Red Lodge Ales beers.

Quantifiable outcome

• Over $27,000 donated to local charities through Community Pint Nights over 11 years

Segments4 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature3 records

Partnerships

One partnership is on record.

• Last Chance Cider MillcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerLast Chance Cider Mill is a sister company of Red Lodge Ales, located in Billings, MT on the 22nd block of Historic Montana Avenue. They produce hand-crafted ciders using ripe, hand-picked fruit sourced from Montana, Michigan, and Oregon. The rear of the facility houses the cider production mill. Red Lodge Ales serves Last Chance ciders at Sam's Tap Room and markets them alongside their own beers. The companies share ownership (Sam is owner of both) and have coordinated branding and cross-promotion.

Scale indicators3 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Outlaw Brewing: Bozeman, MT craft brewery operating a taproom and selling packaged beer regionally. Comparable as a Montana craft peer with overlapping distribution footprint.
• KettleHouse Brewing Co. Missoula-based Montana craft brewery with strong taproom presence and regional packaged distribution. Comparable as a same-state craft peer operating taprooms plus wholesale.
• Snake River Brewing: Jackson, WY craft brewery and brewpub serving a mountain tourist town similar to Red Lodge. Comparable as a destination-driven craft brewery with on-premise and packaged beer.
• Bridger Brewing: Bozeman, MT craft brewery operating a brewpub-style taproom with food service and packaged beer distribution. Highly comparable as a Montana taproom-plus-distribution craft competitor.
• Bayern Brewing: Missoula craft brewery producing a mix of traditional German-style beers and seasonal releases with taproom service. Comparable Montana craft competitor with similar size and German-style positioning.
• Lewis & Clark Brewing: Helena, MT craft brewery with taproom and regional distribution. Comparable as another Montana craft peer competing for similar on-premise and retail accounts.
• Roadhouse Brewing Co. Jackson Hole, WY craft brewery with taproom and distribution. Comparable as a regional craft competitor in a tourist mountain market adjacent to Montana.
• Madison River Brewing: Belgrade, MT craft brewer with on-premise taproom and regional packaged distribution. Comparable as a Montana peer with comparable scale and diversified taproom/wholesale model.
• Big Sky Brewing Company: Largest Montana craft brewery, also distributed regionally with packaged and keg sales. Directly comparable as a Montana-headquartered craft brewer competing for similar on-premise and retail accounts.

Broad incumbents

• New Belgium Brewing: Fort Collins, CO craft brewery now part of a major beverage company; far larger scale but relevant as a broader craft incumbent that competes for the same regional craft drinkers and retail shelf space across the Mountain West.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Facebookfacebook.com/redlodgeales
• Instagraminstagram.com/redlodgeales
• Xx.com/RedLodgeAles
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/red-lodge-ales-brewing-company

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles8 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Red Lodge Ales Brewing