Last call put off for Pittsburgh Brewing
Hearing postponement could let in other industry veterans
Wednesday, November 08, 2006 By Len Boselovic, Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
Bankrupt Pittsburgh Brewing dodged another bullet yesterday when what was anticipated to be a do-or-die court hearing on the fate of the
145-year-old Lawrenceville brewery was postponed.Instead, Pittsburgh Brewing co-owner and President Joseph R. Piccirilli, his attorney and creditors' attorneys attended a closed door meeting with U.S. Bankruptcy Court Chief Judge M. Bruce McCullough, who two weeks ago declared Mr. Piccirilli's plan for saving the brewery dead on arrival.
The conference occurred after the judge held a hearing on the brewery's unpaid federal excise taxes.
An attorney representing the U.S. Alcohol & Tobacco Tax & Trade Bureau told Judge McCullough the federal agency won't shut down the brewery as long as it complies with the judge's Oct. 24 order requiring timely payment of its excise tax obligations. The brewery is delinquent in payment and has been unable to obtain a bond ensuring payment of the taxes, normally cause for the federal agency to insist either on daily payments or closing the brewery.
"We are not here to force the bond issue today," assistant U.S. Attorney Paul E. Skirtich said.
Mr. Skirtich said Pittsburgh Brewing is the largest brewer in the country not in compliance with the regulations.
A spokeswoman for Mr. Piccirilli declined comment on the meeting with the judge, saying participants agreed to keep the discussion confidential.
The latest delay came exactly 11 months after Pittsburgh Brewing sought bankruptcy protection. The filing was sparked by the Pittsburgh Water & Sewer Authority's threat to terminate service over more than $2 million in unpaid bills.
Meanwhile, creditors and other industry officials say efforts to find someone other than Mr. Piccirilli to rescue the brewery are focused on two high-profile beer industry figures: David Fuhrer, son of South Side beer wholesaler Frank B. Fuhrer Jr., and former Pittsburgh Brewing President Jack Isherwood. The sources said both are considering taking over the Iron City and IC Light brands if they can convince Pittsburgh Brewing's creditors to back their plan instead of Mr. Piccirilli's.
Neither Mr. Fuhrer nor Mr. Isherwood returned calls yesterday seeking comment.
Tracy Taylor Perles, Mr. Piccirilli's spokeswoman, said talk of Mr. Fuhrer's involvement is only speculation.
"Joe Piccirilli's intent is to pull the company out of bankruptcy and operate it himself," she said.
The hearing postponed yesterday was on the brewery's request for $500,000 in interim financing from Craig Newbold, an East Liverpool, Ohio, financier. The loan must be approved by the judge. Creditors object to the conditions of the financing, saying it will put them even farther back in the lengthy line of people and businesses who are owed money by Pittsburgh Brewing.
The $500,000 loan would tide the cash-strapped company over until the brewery raises $7 million in equity and debt from unnamed investors. The brewery plan's lack of detail infuriated Judge McCullough at a hearing two weeks ago.
"The plan you've got ain't gonna work. That plan doesn't fly," he said at the time.