Industry Alcoholic beverage Production output 1,200,000 hl Founded 1834 | Products Beer Owner Sapporo Brewery Founder John H. Sleeman Parent organization Sapporo Breweries Ltd. | |
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John H. Sleeman originally began brewing beer in Canada in 1834 and passed on the legacy to his sons and grandsons. The Sleeman family's brewery empire remained in business until 1933 and was restarted in 1988 by John W. Sleeman, the great-great grandson of John H. Sleeman. The new operation subsequently acquired other, smaller breweries and was itself purchased by a multi-national corporation.
Contents
- 178 sleeman breweries maclays thistle brewery traditional pale ale
- History
- Revival of the company
- Expanding Sleeman with acquisitions
- Timeline
- Operations
- Marketing
- References
Sleeman Breweries was purchased by Sapporo Brewery in 2006 for $400 million. The company owns 2 percent of Ontario's primary beer retailer The Beer Store. John W. Sleeman remained as CEO until 2010 when he relinquished that role and was made chairman of the Canadian company. The company is a significant player in beer in Canada.
The original Sleeman family brewery was forced to close in 1933 when their license was revoked for bootlegging, specifically, for smuggling beer into Detroit, Michigan, and for tax evasion. The company's current products are based on the family's original recipes, and recipes from Unibroue, a company that Sleeman had previously purchased.
The annual Canadian Brewing Awards recognizes the best beers in Canada using blind taste tests. Most of the 2015 winners were craft beers. However, one of the winners was Sleeman Cream Ale, taking a Gold in the Cream Ale category.
178 sleeman breweries maclays thistle brewery traditional pale ale
History
John H. Sleeman was born in Cornwall, England in 1805 and came to Ontario in 1834, first settling in St. David's, Ontario (Niagara-on-the-Lake) where he founded the Stamford Spring Brewery in 1836. He and his family moved to Guelph, Ontario in 1847 where they operated a series of breweries including the Hodgert’s Brewery, and the Silver Creek Brewery, which he opened in 1851. His son George Sleeman joined the company in 1859 as general manager and was named a partner in 1865. John H. died in 1893.
By 1890, George Sleeman had achieved great success with Silver Creek Brewery which had sales in Ontario and Quebec. He incorporated it into the Sleeman Brewing and Malting Company Limited with members of his immediate family. Due to excessive investments in his Guelph Street Railway Company, he lost the businesses to the banks in 1905; he then opened the Springbank Brewery. A year later the banks sold the brewery back to Sleeman. The family subsequently operated breweries in Guelph, often with success, until 1933.
Prohibition in Canada had an effect on the business. In Ontario, prohibition started in 1916 with the passing of The Temperance Act. While that eliminated the domestic market, the law allowed for brewing for export, so the Sleemans continued to do so, shipping their products to the US. This was perfectly legal until 1919 when the Volstead Act led to Prohibition in the United States as well. The Sleeman family (including younger members) subsequently worked with bootleggers to export their beer to Michigan, paying no taxes on the illegally gained profits. Some sources (including John W. Sleeman) hint that the family was involved with Al Capone but after considerable research, historian Micheal Matchett suggests that the contact in the US was actually Rocco Perri, often called the "Al Capone of Canada" according to the book Rocco Perri: The Story of Canada's Most Notorious Bootlegger. Perri had documented connections with Guelph's large Italian population.
In April 1927, the family claimed to a Federal government special committee that the business' books had been lost. Eventually, the smuggling was uncovered; it was allowed to continue however, on the agreement that taxes would be paid. Since the business refused to pay, charges were laid for smuggling and for non-payment of taxes later in 1933. On conviction, the family's license to brew beer was suspended, effectively ending their entire enterprise. The brewing operation was sold to the Jockey Club Brewery Ltd.
Revival of the company
Five decades later, in 1984, John W. Sleeman of Oakville, Ontario, great-great grandson of John H. Sleeman, acquired the book of family beer recipes from his aunt Florian. He incorporated the new Sleeman Brewing and Malting Co. Ltd. in Guelph and began producing beer in 1988 with backing from Stroh Brewery Company for much of the $3-million he needed, a loan from a Detroit bank, and about $500,000 of his own money. The company flourished.
In 2006, Sleeman Breweries was purchased by Sapporo Breweries for $400 million and continued operations with John W. Sleeman as president, with great success. In 2012, for example, the company produced 1,157,420 hL (30,576,000 US gal) of beverages, an increase of approximately 40,000 hL (1,100,000 US gal) over the previous year.
Expanding Sleeman with acquisitions
Over the years, Sleeman either acquired other breweries or purchased the rights to distribute, and/or manufacture and distribute, various brands of beer.
Timeline
Sleeman's breweries date back to 1836 when John H., a malter and brewer, founded Stamford Springs Brewery.
Operations
The brewery currently produces a line of beers under the Sleeman name, including:
Aside from its own brands, the company brews Pabst products for the Canadian market, including Old Milwaukee, Stroh's, Schlitz and Pabst Blue Ribbon. Other brands brewed under licence include Maclays Pale Ale for Maclays Brewery, Red Bull Beer and Sapporo Premium for Sapporo Brewery, their parent company.
Sleeman also continues to brew Upper Canada Lager and Upper Canada Dark Ale, two beers that were formerly produced by the Upper Canada Brewing Company before it acquired the company. Additional beers under the Upper Canada brand including Rebellion Lager, Wheat and Maple Brown Ale have since been discontinued.
Sleeman owns a 2% stake in The Beer Store (previously Brewers Retail), the operator of the primary retail outlet for beer in Ontario.
Many Sleeman brands are distributed in clear bottles, which are less expensive and give them a distinctive look, but can result in the liquids becoming more susceptible to light damage. Concerned this would affect the beer's taste, Sleeman compensates for this in a majority of their brews by using hops that are processed to be less light sensitive.
Marketing
The brewery entered into a $1.2 million sponsorship deal with the City of Guelph in 2007 that gives Sleeman exclusive naming rights to the Guelph Sports and Entertainment Centre until 2020.
In 2010, the company began an advertising campaign drawing attention to their bootlegging past. This theme has continued. In July 2016, one of these ads - "Every bottle of Sleeman has a past - A shady past" - won the Best Alcohol Ad of the Month from AdForum, an online showcase for advertising agencies.