Photo via visitcigarcitybrewing/Facebook
The energy was juxtaposed to the collective groan of Tampa Bay’s craft beer community, which has chattered about this week’s layoff at the iconic locally-based brewery.
Craft beer industry website Brewbound recently confirmed that 12 positions have been eliminated at Cigar City Brewing (CCB), as the recently-renamed Monster Brewing Company shifts the CCB “production hub to a cross-category innovation center.”
The Spruce Street taproom, along with CCB’s outposts at Amalie Arena and Tampa International Airport will all stay open, according to the site.
The layoffs at CCB come a month after its legendary brewer, Wayne Wambles, announced that his position had been eliminated.
Reps for Canarchy have yet to return emails to Creative Loafing Tampa Bay.
Last month, Wambles, who led the charge in creating iconic CCB beers like Jai Alai and Hunahpu, posted that his position had been eliminated and wished Monster Beverage Company, which purchased CCB’s then-parent Canarchy in 2022, as well.
“As I look back at my involvement with Cigar City Brewing, I feel proud. We accomplished a great deal as a company in short time,” Wambles wrote. “The best days were from 2009-20015. Those years allowed me to be incredibly creative without bounds. Today, I still have the same love and drive for brewing and will move forward intuitively. Thank you for your support!”
Without comment from CCB's parent company, it's hard to say which positions were eliminated, but remaining employees have the heavy burden of continuing the label's reputation for making some of the best beer in the country.
Tim Ogden, who spent six years at Cigar City where he developed the brand's famous Tocobaga Red Ale, told CL that what Wambles and CCB founder Joey Redner built was special.
"I'm proud to have had a hand to lend during its formidable years. I can't think of a better startup to fall into as a second brewing job. Many friendships and professional relationships were forged at CCB, and I'm sure I'm not alone in this feeling, but I wish the staff remaining in place the best of luck and hope they have all the support they need both in the community and internally," Ogden said, adding that if his year-old Ybor Heights brewery, Deviant Libation, was in a position to hire laid off workers, it would.
"I hope they're able to land on their feet quickly," Ogden said. "The spirit of creativity and collaboration that once drove the success of Cigar City will live on in the many former employees and leaders who have moved on over the years, for as long as the community supports their endeavors. I sincerely hope they find ways to continue to thrive."
Just before Wambles announced his departure, Monster Beverage Corporation’s Canarchy Craft Brewery Collective announced plans to operate as Monster Brewing Company.
Hilton Schlosberg, the billionaire Vice Chairman and Co-Chief Executive Officer of Monster Beverage Corporation, wrote that since 2022, his company has, “integrated CANarchy’s infrastructure to develop, introduce and market new products that are becoming leading brands in the flavored malt beverage space.”
Rodney Sacks, Monster Beverage Corporation’s Chairman and Co-Chief Executive Officer said, “We are particularly proud that The Beast Unleashed was the best-selling new beer brand in 2023,” alluding to the energy drink-flavored hard seltzer with Monster-esque flavors.
Last month, Monster reported 14.4% increased net sales in the fourth quarter of 2023, to $1.73 billion, from $1.51 billion in the comparable period last year.
Brewbound said that CCB beer will be produced at the Oskar Blues Brewery in Brevard, North Carolina while the Tampa location “transitions to an R&D hub for beer, flavored malt beverages (FMB) and spirits.”
Last November, Monster closed its 50,000 sq. ft. Oskar Blues brewery and taproom in Austin, Texas.
The layoffs also arrive after the Bay area celebrated another Tampa Bay Beer Week (TBBW). As whispers about the layoffs spread this week, TBBW wrote on social media that it does not have any more information than its followers. A post described the scene at CCB’s storied Hunahpu day as having “pre-2020 energy,” alluding to the pre-pandemic revelry of the legendary festival.
“Everyone we ran into that day working the tasting room was in good spirits. To hear of people being let go and changes coming to the production there saddens us. This brewery, and this event specifically, was a major lightning bolt that sparked our founding,” TBBW added. “There’s no question that our community wouldn’t be where it is without the history there, the brewers it cultivated and inspired. We will celebrate those who have gone on to create great things that continue to strengthen our community.”
This is a developing post.
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