Solemn Oath Brewery will launch its craft beer in Wisconsin through an exclusive partnership with Hartland-based Wirtz Beverage Wisconsin.
With the agreement, it will be the first craft beer brand for the leading wholesale distributor and the first market expansion for the emerging Illinois-based craft brewery. To start, beers will be available in Milwaukee and Madison on draft.
“Wisconsin is our first market outside of Illinois, and there’s a reason for that,” said John Barley, president of Solemn Oath Brewery. “My brother Joe and I grew up in Wisconsin and our parents still live there, so it’s exciting to return with our beer. We love the world-famous heritage of brewing in the state and look forward to working with Wirtz Beverage to add our voice to that conversation.”
Wirtz Beverage Wisconsin is a member of Wirtz Beverage Group, one of the country’s leading wholesalers of wine, spirits and beer brands. Statewide affiliates also include operations in Illinois, Nevada, Minnesota, Missouri and Iowa. Wirtz Beverage Group is a division of Wirtz Corp. whose diversified holdings also include banking, real estate, insurance and the Chicago Blackhawk Hockey Team.
While its founders hail from Wisconsin, Solemn Oath is based in Naperville, Ill., and began in 2012. The company is driven by a passion for Belgian-inspired and wood-aged beers.
“We’re thrilled to have Solemn Oath as our first craft beer partner,” said Nate Phippen, vice president of sales at Solemn Oath. “They’re a quality beer company through and through and we like that they’re constantly switching things up and challenging themselves to create the very best beers. It’s an important partnership for both of us, so a lot of planning is underway to support the endeavor for the long-term. We think we can add real value to the category and our customers.”
“We’ve experienced great success in craft beer in many of our business units like Illinois, Minnesota and Nevada,” added James Wirtz, Craft Beer Specialist for Wirtz Beverage. “Launching our craft beer platform in Wisconsin is just a natural progression.”
