Pete Coors on tap: beer baron speaks his mind on politics, parenthood and the Molson merger.

• Author: Schwab, Robert
• Position: Interview

Pete Coors, with his November run for senator over and the merger of his family's Coors Brewing Co. with Molson Inc. of Canada complete, has become the patrician pillar of Colorado's most enduring, most powerful and most popular business family.

In an exclusive interview with ColoradoBiz, Coors said he discovered how many friends he has as he traveled the length and breadth of the state during his campaign.

He also said he would consider a future political campaign if the time and the office were right for him. But for now, he said, he wants to get back to the business of making beer.

Because he remains Colorado's best-known business figure, ColoradoBiz asked Coors to sit down with us to talk about the merger and any political options that remain open to him.

The interview was conducted March 22 in an oak-paneled conference room on the grounds of the Golden brewery's historic Clear Creek complex. Coors was relaxed, relieved--it seemed--that both major events in his life are now behind him.

And he was looking forward to helping to run an international brewing company. An edited transcript of his interview--minimally rearranged for readability--follows:

Q CB: WHAT'S NEXT FOR THE MERGED BEER COMPANIES?

Coors: We've hired Frits van Paaschen (president of Molson Coors Brewing Co.'s U.S. operations). It will be his responsibility whether he decides to re-organize and how. We have time. We're not going to be in any rush. We did announce the closing of Memphis (a Coors brewery there), and that is something we have been working on for some time. The corporate center will move downtown. We really should have done that probably a couple of years ago--because we've operated as a corporate staff on a global perspective for quite some time.

Q CB: WHAT WILL YOUR ROLE BE?

Coors: I will continue to keep my current job, basically, which is chairman of the (Coors Brewing) company.

I will be the liaison between our family ownership in the company and the company at the corporate level. In fact, we just filmed four more commercials. Do you believe that! They still want me to do that!

So I'll continue to be pitchman, I'll continue to work with our distributors and our retailers throughout Coors in the U.S. I'll probably begin to spend a little bit more time in Canada. I don't know much about how that business is structured other than the relationship that we've had for a number of years with Coors Light up there, and we'll have to see what happens to Brazil...