The “Pirate King” of craft beer and founder of Maritime Pacific Brewing has passed
We learned the news yesterday when one of George’s friends posted it on Facebook. George Hancock, who with his wife, Jane, founded Maritime Pacific Brewing in Ballard, has died. Hancock was a pioneer of Seattle craft brewing. He and Jane were living on a sailboat in Shilshole Bay when they opened Maritime Pacific in 1990 on Leary Way in Ballard. It was only the 13th brewery license issued by Washington State. Today the state is home to more than 400 breweries.
Join Rooftop Brewing at the Jolly Roger this Friday Nov 6 for the 2026 release of Jolly Roger! The event will feature:
– Jolly Roger Bierstacheln (Hot Poke) from 5-7:30.
– Jolly Vintage Flight with 2011, 2016, 2019, 2025, 2026 and barrel-aged vintages.
– Special “Jolly” food pairings, with a specials menu inspired (and made with) Jolly Roger.
– Maybe a Pirate or two!!
Famously, he said, “I wanted to make beers I wanted to drink and didn’t care about anyone else.” Sorry George, but everyone else wanted to drink your beer, too. My first encounter, which I still remember fondly, was a pint of Maritime Flagship Red Alt at the Crocodile Cafe. That was sometime back in the early grunge years.
George named most, if not all, of his beers after maritime terms, and Flagship Red Alt was the first ship in his fleet. Jolly Roger Christmas Ale soon became the brewery’s best-loved beer and it is still a holiday tradition around Seattle. That’s also the name they put on the Maritime Pacific Taproom. Last year, Rooftop Brewing took over operations of the brewery and taproom, but it is still called, and always will be called, The Jolly Roger.
Don’t be confused. Two George Hancocks are legends of the local beer industry. The other George Hancock, of Pyramid Brewing, passed a decade ago.
Maritime Pacific outlasted many breweries that popped up in that early era. After 20 years in its original Ballard location, it moved to 1111 NW Ballard Ave in 2010. Today, Ballard has more breweries than any other neighborhood in Seattle. Maybe the highest density of breweries of any place on the planet. It’s the crest of a wave the George and Jane launched.
George liked to call himself a “curmudgeon of beer.” I think we all know what he meant by that. It was a self-effacing way of acknowledging that the craft beer industry, which he helped pioneer in Seattle, swelled into a tidal wave none of us could have imagined back in 1990. And then, to a certain degree, the modern craft beer industry lost sight of the people and businesses who built the foundation upon which it was built. Kids these days!
George and Jane Hancock retired in 2025 after 35 years and turned the keys over to Rooftop Brewing. At the retirement party, patrons packed the brewery to toast their legacy, and George closed the evening by leading the crowd in a rousing “Arrrghh!”
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