Early growth Frederick Brewing Company was founded in either 1992 or 1993 In 1995 the founders raised money through an
initial public offering for the company. They used the money to purchase land with enough space to build a 100,000 barrel brewery and expensive modern brewing equipment. The company created the Blue Ridge brand of beer which did well at first, but eventually began "gathering dust on store shelves throughout the Mid-Atlantic". To raise sales the company purchased Wild
Goose Brewing Co. and
Brimstone Brewing Co. and also created
Hempen Ale. The Hempen Ale brand was popular for a short time.
Early financial issues Early on in its life Frederick Brewing Company faced financial difficulties. In January 1997 the brewery was in
default on a $976,000 bank loan (though by June this was resolved). In order to cut costs in 1998 Frederick Brewing Company eliminated 6 management positions and reduced the salaries of their executives. In February 1998 the stock prices of Frederick Brewing Company went below
NASDAQ's required minimum price for listed stocks. NASDAQ threatened to delist the stock unless it went above $1 for 10 days by December 14, 1998. At the close of December 16, 1998 the stock traded on NASDAQ for 37.5 cents a
share. On August 26, 1999 it was announced that Snyder International Brewing Group (SIBG) had taken over Frederick Brewing Company for a price of $2.4 million. The Ohio courts appointed a receiver to manage the company. At the time Frederick Brewing Company owed more than $1 million in
back-taxes. That year Frederick County attempted to include Frederick Brewing Company in the county's annual
tax sale, this did not go through with the county stating that "it fell through the cracks." Frederick Brewing Company was renamed Wild Goose Brewery and was made the "East Coast hub" for Flying Dog. Flying Dog planned to use the brewery to double their production to 35,000 barrels a year. In 2008 they moved all of their production to Frederick as the brewery in Frederick was able to produce beer twice as fast as their facilities in Denver were able to. In November 2010, because of high demand for Flying Dog beer, Frederick Brewing Company no longer had the capacity to produce Wild Goose beer. By December 2010 Logan Shaw had agreed to purchase the Wild Goose brand of beer and the brand changed ownership in February 2011. ==Notable brands==