North Coast Brewing Co. resumes making Brother Thelonious Belgian abbey ale

Beer lovers can celebrate that one of the region’s beloved brews - Brother Thelonious - returns to store shelves after almost eight months away.

North Coast Brewing Co. of Fort Bragg has resumed production of the Belgian-style abbey ale after settling a trademark dispute in November with the estate of the late jazz pianist Thelonious Monk. Specific financial terms of the deal between the parties remain confidential. In a separate action, North Coast will devote a portion of sales of the beer to jazz education programs connected to the Monterey Jazz Festival.

“The outpouring has been great in the last week since we reintroduced the beer,” said Doug Moody, senior vice president for North Coast Brewing.

North Coast, one of the pioneers of the regional craft beer sector, was sued in September 2017 by Monk’s son, Thelonious Monk Jr., over the use of the musical icon’s image.

The 2005 beer label featured a drawing of Monk with sunglasses and facial hair though he was dressed as a Trappist monk, like those who created the late 18th-century beer style.

The son previously had agreed to allow North Coast to use Monk’s name and image for the dark-and-sweet beer with 9.4 percent alcohol content, but raised objections in January 2016 over his father’s depiction on 17 other North Coast items ranging from hoodies to mouse pads.

In January 2018, Judge Haywood Gilliam rejected a request by North Coast to dismiss the lawsuit and decided it was “more than plausible” that Monk Jr. had the right to control his father’s persona.

The Mendocino County brewery had stopped production of the Brother Thelonious beer on June 28, 2018, Moody said. The beer was still sold on a limited basis after that because some retailers had stocked up given its popularity and the beer style has a long shelf life. Monk Jr. could not be reached Monday to comment on his settlement with North Coast.

“The beer doesn’t lose any of its flavor (when aged),” Moody said.

The reintroduced beer does have a new label designed by artist Eric Grbich, who also did the pin-up girl label for North Coast’s Acme California pale ale.

The new label features Monk playing a piano in a monastery with a beer on top of the instrument.

The wife of the original label designer, the late Eduardo Smissen, separately had sued North Coast for more money as a result of the popularity of Brother Thelonious beer. A judge threw out that suit last September.

Despite the legal wrangling, Moody said Monday no changes are being made to the beer’s recipe. The Belgian abbey ale carries a “very good” rating on the Beeradvocate.com website.

North Coast anticipates boosting production of Brother Thelonious to meet pent-up demand for the beer, especially since the brewery distributes in 48 states.

The company also has had a strong new seller with its seasonal Berliner weisse fruity tart beers, even though it’s had sourcing challenges for ingredients such as passion fruit from Ecuador and cherries from Michigan, Moody said.

Overall, the brewery has permission to make up to 90,000 barrels of beer annually. It’s making around 70,000 right now.

“We are looking at our next steps ... should we be blessed with continued growth,” Moody said.

The company has explored a move to the old Georgia-Pacific lumber mill space near the scenic California Coastal Trail as part of a major development plan for Fort Bragg. Owners of the Skunk Train are leading the project, but the proposal must clear several permitting and environmental hurdles.

Editor’s note: The story has been updated to reflect that donations to education programs with the Monterey Jazz Festival was not tied to the settlement.