Le Moyne College has entered into an agreement with Meier’s Creek Brewing Company, under which the Cazenovia-based brewery will develop a Le Moyne-themed beer that will be available for sale beginning in the first quarter of 2024. Under the agreement, the College will receive 20 percent of all sales, which will go to the Le Moyne College Fund and specifically target the College’s wellness initiatives and student scholarship to help offset the cost of attendance.
Announced initially at Le Moyne’s Founders’ Day Gala on Oct. 20, work to bring the new beverage to market will take place over the next several months, with a goal of premiering the brew through a series of alumni and donor-focused events, including Le Moyne in New York, a gala event scheduled to take place in New York City in March 2024.
“I’m excited about this partnership and the many ways it will benefit both Le Moyne College and Meier’s Creek Brewing,” said Jim Joseph ’83, Le Moyne’s vice president for advancement and innovation and dean of the Madden College of Business and Economics. “Several Le Moyne alumni serving in leadership roles at the company and there is a strong alignment of values and innovation between the two organizations that will only grow as we continue to collaborate.”
“We are excited to work with such a prestigious institution on this venture,” said Crystal Paolelli, director of marketing at Meier’s Creek Brewing Company. “The unique approach we developed together will include not only the main stakeholders, but students as we move through the various stages to provide hands-on experience and alumni involvement with the product development.”
Over the next several months, Le Moyne student members of Heights Global Marketing, the in-house student marketing firm for the Madden College of Business and Economics, will lead a number of focus groups to explore options for type (IPA, lager, etc.) and name of the beer, labeling, packaging and pricing. Members of the Le Moyne community and the general public will have a chance to suggest a name for the new beer.
All research initiatives will be conducted in the context of the latest craft beer industry trends, informed by Meier’s Creek’s extensive experience in that retail space.
Meier’s Creek Brewing was established in 2019, when its parent company, Feldmeier Equipment Co., purchased the Empire Farm Brewery in Cazenovia. The Meier’s Creek taproom on Route 13 in Cazenovia opened in 2020 and has since significantly upgraded the outdoor and indoor space at that location. In 2021, the company announced a second location, at the Inner Harbor in Syracuse, with that space opening in January 2022. Meier’s Creek was just voted the Best Brewery in Central New York in the 2023 Advance Media Reader’s Choice Awards.