Wasatch Beers (Schirf Brewing Company) was formed when Greg Schirf found his way to Utah from Milwaukee, America’s beer capital, only to discover that his newly adopted home state did not have a brewery of its own. Recognizing a need and an opportunity, he committed to rectify this situation. In 1986, Schirf opened the first brewery in the resort town of Park City and named his beers after the majestic Wasatch Mountains that rise just east of Salt Lake City. In July 1989, Schirf Brewing opened its new company headquarters and the first brew pub in Utah at the top of historic Main Street in Park City.
In fact, it was Schirf who proposed the bill to the Utah Legislature in 1988 that would make brew pubs legal in Utah. There are now more than 12 thriving brew pubs in the state thanks to Schirf and the bill's sponsor, Senator Mike Demeitrick of Price, Utah.
Squatters (Salt Lake Brewing Company) was founded by Peter Cole and Jeff Polychronis. As friends and business associates since the late 1970s, Cole and Polychronis undertook a yearlong pub crawl in the 1980s, visiting more than 40 brew pubs throughout the West. With a swill and a swallow and after many nights tasting good beer, they decided it was time that Salt Lake City had a microbrewery of its own, and Squatters Pub Brewery was born in the shadow of downtown in 1989.
Over the next several years, Squatters and Wasatch found themselves in a friendly rivalry, competing for the title of Utah’s best brewery. In 2000, these rivals from Wasatch and Squatters, sensing a rapidly growing market and opportunity, created a partnership to increase their share of Utah beer sales and to compete better with national brewing giants. They now share a brewery located in Salt Lake City at 1763 South 300 West. The combining of brewing operations has cut costs, improved buying power, and enabled both companies to take advantage of increased distribution in and outside of Utah.
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