Pete's Brewing Company was founded by homebrewer Pete Slosberg in 1986. Its major product line is Pete's Wicked Ale, an American Brown Ale that is 5.3% alcohol by volume. The company was acquired by the Gambrinus Company in 1998, a corporation that primarily imports beers such as Corona from Mexico and Moosehead from Canada. In 2004, Pete's Brewing Company was number 42 in America for sales by volume.
Slosberg was one of the pioneers of the craft beer movement in America, along with others such as Jim Koch of Samuel Adams and Larry Bell of the Kalamazoo Brewing Company, now Bell's Brewery Inc. These upstart brewers committed to using all-malt recipes, and to highlighting the hoppy flavors in their beers. Their approach stands in contrast to the larger U.S. breweries, which commonly use adjuncts such as corn and rice and downplay the role of hop flavor and bitterness in their products.
The signature product has been largely responsible for establishing the American Brown Ale as a commercially viable beer style and category for beer competitions. (Full article...)