Landmark Pittsburgh Brewery Avoids Potential Closure With Sale

PITTSBURGH, PA — The city's oldest brewery is getting new owners.

Penn Brewery is being acquired by a team headed by John Graf. He is president and CEO of the Priory Hospitality Group, which owns and operates boutique hotels and catered event spaces in Pittsburgh, including The Priory on the North Side.

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The acquisition of the storied landmark brewery in the Deutschtown section of the North Side is subject to Pennsylvania Liquor Control Board approval.

The brewery filed for bankruptcy in March, casting doubt on its future. But a judge dismissed the bankruptcy proceedings last month because a potential purchaser had emerged.

One of the first craft breweries in the city, Penn Brewery celebrated its 40th anniversary earlier this year.

The brewery started out in 1986 brewing classic lagers and German beer styles, adhering to the strict quality standards of the 16th-century Bavarian Reinheitsgebot purity laws. The lineup has expanded in recent years to include IPAs and other contemporary styles like chocolate and pumpkin beers.

But the brewery's roots extend back to 1848, with the Eberhardt and Ober families, which operated three breweries on the site where Penn Brewery exists today. Those buildings are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

The sale announcement comes mere days before the brewery's annual Oktoberfest, scheduled for Sept. 18-19 and Sept. 25-26.