Coors to Expand--From the Rockies to the Tennessee Hills

Coors Brewing Co. is buying its first brewery outside the Rocky Mountains, a Memphis, Tenn., facility owned by Stroh Brewery Co. that will greatly expand Coors’ production, both companies said today.

Coors and Stroh said they hoped to complete the transaction, for an undisclosed price, by July 3, but Stroh said it will operate the 500-employee brewery until Sept. 1.

Coors then will assume Stroh’s collective bargaining agreement with the plant’s hourly employees. Salaried employees will be notified later about employment opportunities with Coors, Stroh said.

Coors brews all its beers at its facilities in Golden, Colo., producing about 17.7 million barrels a year. About 2.5 million barrels a year of brewed beer is shipped to an Elkton, Va., packaging facility to be canned and bottled for the eastern market, Coors spokeswoman Cary Baird said.

The Memphis brewery can produce 5.5 million barrels a year, which will increase Coors’ capacity by nearly a third.