Redhook Ale Brewery added to Northwest 50 Index

Business Wire, August 28, 1995

SEATTLE--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Aug. 28, 1995--Redhook Ale Brewery Inc. (NASDAQ:HOOK) of Seattle, which had an initial public offering of 2 million shares on Aug. 16, has been added to the Northwest 50 Index.

Redhook replaces Pacific Telecom (NASDAQ:PCTM) of Vancouver, Wash., which is being eliminated from the index because Pacificorp is acquiring the 20 percent of the company that it does not already own.

A leading brewer of craft beers, Redhook has seen its sales grow very rapidly over the past five years and further growth is expected because of a significant capacity expansion now under way. Redhook is 25 percent owned by Anheuser Busch (NYSE:BUD) and is capitalizing on the established Anheuser Busch distribution system.

"We anticipate strong performance from Redhook over the long term," said David Simpson, portfolio manager of the Composite Northwest 50 Fund which is tied to the Northwest 50 Index.

"Redhook shares some characteristics with Starbucks in that it is taking a high-quality specialty product to a regional, then national, scale," Simpson said. "The brewing industry is `barbelled' as the coffee industry was a few years ago. There are few very large players with relatively undifferentiated products at one end and a number of small specialty players at the other end. Redhook's concept of taking a consistent specialty product to a much larger scale is a tremendous opportunity."

Redhook shares were priced at $17 in the initial public offering, but the first trades were at $26, a reflection of investors' enthusiasm for the company. Since then, the stock has continued to rise, closing at $33 today (Monday). The Northwest 50 Index reflects a broadly diversified group of 50 common stocks of companies based in or doing significant business in Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, and Alaska. Companies in the Index represent six industry sectors, with each sector weighted on the personal income derived from that sector. Stocks within each sector are also weighted on the basis of their market capitalization.

Composite Research and Management, a subsidiary of Washington Mutual Inc. (NASDAQ: WAMU) maintains the Northwest 50 Index and manages the Composite Northwest 50 mutual fund.

CONTACT: Composite Research & Management Co., Seattle

Charles Averill, 206/461-2394

Dave Simpson, 206/461-3800