Boulevard Brewing Company

Boulevard Brewing Company, founded in 1989 by John McDonald on Southwest Boulevard in the Westside, is Kansas City’s flagship craft brewery — as of 2023, the fourth-largest craft brewer in the United States. Its Unfiltered Wheat Beer and Pale Ale together account for more than 60% of sales. In 2013, the Belgian brewery Duvel Moortgat acquired Boulevard for a price industry sources put at more than $100 million.¹

Overview

Founded	1989, by John McDonald1
Original site	Turn-of-the-century brick building on Southwest Boulevard, Kansas City, MO1
Founding brewhouse	A vintage Bavarian brewhouse sourced from a closed German brewery1
Acquired by	Duvel Moortgat (Belgium), 2013; industry-estimated sale price >$100 million1
Industry rank	4th largest U.S. craft brewery (2023)1
Flagships	Unfiltered Wheat Beer, Pale Ale (>60% of sales)1
Notable brands	Tank 7 (Saison / Smokestack Series); KC Pils (rebranded from Boulevard Pilsner 2013); Space Camper Cosmic IPA; Single-Wide I.P.A.1

History

John McDonald founded Boulevard Brewing in 1989 in a turn-of-the-century brick building on Southwest Boulevard, using a vintage Bavarian brewhouse he sourced from a closed German brewery. The company grew into Kansas City’s dominant craft brand across the 1990s and 2000s.¹

Expansions

• 2006 — $20 million expansion project.¹
• 2011 — $3 million brewhouse expansion, adding 35,000 barrels of annual capacity.¹

Duvel Moortgat acquisition (2013)

In 2013, Belgian brewery Duvel Moortgat — makers of Duvel and owners of Ommegang — acquired Boulevard, with industry sources putting the sale price at more than $100 million. The transaction made Boulevard part of an international specialty-beer group while operations remained in Kansas City.¹

Portfolio

Beyond the flagship Unfiltered Wheat and Pale Ale, Boulevard’s Smokestack Series — anchored by Tank 7, a Saison — brought the brewery national craft-beer reputation. Boulevard rebranded Boulevard Pilsner as KC Pils in 2013; more recent additions include Space Camper Cosmic IPA and Single-Wide I.P.A.¹

Leadership

Following a 2021 harassment scandal that led to president Jeff Krum’s resignation, founder John McDonald returned to run the company “to make things right.”¹

Visitor operations

Boulevard offers daily brewery tours; visitors can sample beers on-site.¹

Sources

See also

• westside-kc
• southwest-boulevard
• kansas-city-mo
• Wiki

Footnotes

1. Wikipedia — “Boulevard Brewing Company.” — asserts: founding in 1989 by John McDonald on Southwest Boulevard, Kansas City, MO; vintage Bavarian brewhouse sourced from a closed German brewery; Unfiltered Wheat and Pale Ale >60% of sales; Tank 7 Saison in Smokestack Series; KC Pils rebranded from Boulevard Pilsner in 2013; Space Camper Cosmic IPA and Single-Wide I.P.A.; 2013 acquisition by Belgian Duvel Moortgat with industry-estimated price >$100M; 4th largest U.S. craft brewery as of 2023; 2006 $20M expansion; 2011 $3M brewhouse expansion adding 35,000 bbl capacity; 2021 harassment scandal, Jeff Krum resignation, McDonald’s return; daily brewery tours with tastings. ↩ ↩² ↩³ ↩⁴ ↩⁵ ↩⁶ ↩⁷ ↩⁸ ↩⁹ ↩¹⁰ ↩¹¹ ↩¹² ↩¹³ ↩¹⁴ ↩¹⁵