Mashing-In News: Top Rung Deep Dive, Washington Breweries Update
GOOD MORNING, SOUTH PUGET SOUND!
Monday, Feb. 2, 2026 — Christie Brinkley turns 72 today!
Today’s craft beer news pours out as a study in community and change — podcasts digging into local roots, beloved breweries marking survival milestones, ownership and distribution shifts reshaping the map, and innovation bubbling up everywhere from Lunar New Year releases to homebrew leadership and industry research.
Grit & Grain Episode 175: How Top Rung Became Lacey’s Beer Community Hub
Grit & Grain Podcast Episode 175 features Top Rung Brewing owner and veteran firefighter Casey Sobol, exploring how Lacey’s lone brewery grew from a homebrew competition win into a community-centered taproom with award-winning beers and a fiercely loyal local following. (Grit & Grain Podcast)
New Owners, New Energy: Washington Breweries Enter Their Next Chapter
A wave of Washington breweries—from Orcas Island to Tacoma—are changing hands or reopening under new ownership, bringing fresh energy, revised visions, and renewed community focus to familiar taprooms without erasing the foundations that made them local fixtures. (Washington Beer Blog)
Columbia–Point Blank Deal Sparks Fears of Consolidation Across Oregon Craft
Columbia Distributing’s planned acquisition of Point Blank Distributing has rattled Oregon’s craft beverage world, raising major concerns about wholesaler consolidation, supplier leverage, service quality, and widespread job losses, even as Columbia promises continuity through a dedicated craft division and brand-by-brand transition talks. (The New School)
Fair Isle Brewing Celebrates Six Years with a Full Week of Anniversary Events
Seattle’s Fair Isle Brewing is marking its sixth anniversary with a full week of community-focused celebrations from February 2–8, featuring special beer releases, food pop-ups, live music, karaoke, and small joys like free cake—an earned milestone for a brewery that opened just before the pandemic and kept going anyway. (Washington Beer Blog)
Jellyfish Brewing Partners with River Barrel to Expand Western Washington Distribution
Seattle’s Jellyfish Brewing has partnered with River Barrel Distributing to expand distribution across Western Washington, bringing wider retail and tap access to favorites like Hydra Pils, Smack IPA, Planktonic NW Red, and more. (Washington Beer Blog)
Lucky Envelope Unveils Lunar New Year Collab and New Beer Releases
Lucky Envelope Brewing is rolling out a fresh slate of releases, including a Lunar New Year–featured West Coast IPA collaboration with The Hall Group alongside an Ube Coconut Pineapple Sour, plus newly released Italian Pilsner and a nostalgic Beardless Brewer Red Ale celebrating the brewery’s 10th anniversary. (Washington Beer Blog)
National Homebrew Competition Names New Leadership for 2026
The American Homebrewers Association has named longtime competition leaders Charlie Harr as chair and Jen Pereira as deputy chair of the National Homebrew Competition, ushering in new leadership as entries for the 2026 NHC open February 3. (Homebrewers Association)
Brewers’ Research and Education Fund Opens 2026/27 Grant Applications
The Brewers’ Research and Education Fund has opened applications for its 2026/27 round, inviting innovative research and education projects that strengthen sustainability, resilience, and long-term progress across the UK brewing and pub industry. (Brewers Journal)
Trillium’s Iconic Greenway Beer Garden Won’t Return This Summer
After nearly a decade as a summer fixture, Trillium Brewing’s beer garden will not return to Boston’s Rose Kennedy Greenway following a competitive RFP process, as the Conservancy selects a new vendor while Trillium shifts focus to other locations, including a new indoor winter beer garden downtown. (Boston.com)
LINK: Peaks & Pints beer and cider cooler inventory
