Issue link: http://digital.copcomm.com/i/113109
YEAR OF THE Artisan Brand ���Our long-term vision is to be a center of excellence,��� says Rusti Porter, Marketing Director at Anchor. ���In a few years, if we had ���ve or ten brands doing 10,000 to 40,000 cases, we'd be happy. If one of those was a 100,000-case brand, we'd obviously be okay with it, but it's not what we're going for.��� I t���s really against all odds that the historic Anchor Brewery building still stands in San Francisco. Because let���s face it: it would have been easy, and a way to make a quick buck, for Tony Foglio and Keith Greggor to move the Anchor brewery and distillery operations to, say, Chico, when they bought the irm in 2010. They could have thrown up nice fancy condos on Potrero Hill, which features some of the priciest real estate in the country, and they���d have made a nice chunk of change to inance their new operation. But they didn���t do that. Instead, they honored the past and took an enterprising look at the future and formed the Anchor Distilling Company, an umbrella irm that is helping small craft distillers reach wider audiences, under the guidance and expertise of savvy liquor-industry veterans. Anchor���s market is the sweet spot that falls between large-scale liquor distribution networks and the ine-wine category. Anchor is positioning itself to help mixologists and beverage directors take new approaches to their drink menus, and they have the knowledge, and the products, to help new restaurants augment their authentic and innovative food with well-matched cocktail offerings. Anchor Distilling now boasts a portfolio of 279 craft spirits from 32 suppliers, and while growth is always a goal, it���s not the main driver. Instead, through education and outreach, Anchor wants to bring ine liquids with deep heritage to the people who appreciate them most. On the supply side, they work with families who have been in the distilling business for generations. And on the demand side, Anchor works in a market thirsty for quality and authenticity. ���We inally feel like we���re in a place where we can build some brands,��� says Dennis Carr, Vice President of Sales. ���And we���ve hired people who are experienced but who are at a stage in their lives, where they want to build something, want to be part of something.��� Anchor puts a premium on backstory, and it has a rich one of its own. There���s the name, for starters: Anchor Distilling Company. When longtime San Franciscans and maybe others around the country hear the name, they immediately think of beer ���Anchor Steam Beer, the unique, authentically San Francisco beverage that���s been popular for decades. But Anchor Steam wasn���t always so beloved. Fritz Maytag, heir to an appliance fortune, bought the failing beer company in 1967 and kept it from going out of business. And in the process of breathing new life and quality into the product, he launched the craft beer movement itself. march 2013 / the tasting panel / 49