Drake’s Brewing’s Laura and John Martin and Bear Republic’s Rich Norgrove drink a toast. (Courtesy Rich Norgrove)
Work has been quietly underway behind the scenes for some time. Now it’s official: Bear Republic and Drake’s Brewing are merging.
Rich and Tami Norgrove, owners of Cloverdale’s Bear Republic Brewing, are joining forces with John Martin and Roy Kirkorian of Drake’s Brewing. They will be jointly announcing the sale and purchase of certain assets of Bear Republic to Artisan Brewers LLC — Drake’s business name — later today.
What that means in practical terms, the two companies said in a joint statement, is that “Racer 5 is shifting gears once again, beginning a new collaborative partnership with The Drake’s Brewing Co. The iconic West Coast IPA, once at the forefront of the California craft beer boom, is merging lanes…
