# John Dantzler

> John Dantzler is the co-founder of Torch & Crown Brewing Company and CFO of Driven Collective, the independent beverage platform formed by the 2025 merger of Torch & Crown and Aslin Beer Co. A former finance professional, he spent a decade turning a teenage homebrewing pact with childhood friend Joe Correia into a New York brewery, restaurant, distribution operation and pair of public gathering places.

- **Role:** CFO at Driven Collective; co-founder of Torch & Crown Brewing Company
- **Organizations:** Driven Collective, Torch & Crown Brewing Company, Torch Distribution, Barclays Investment Bank, Goldman Sachs, Deutsche Bank, Amherst College
- **Education:** BA in Computer Science and Economics, Amherst College
- **Known for:** Co-founded Torch & Crown Brewing Company with Joe Correia., Opened a 9,000-square-foot brewery and full-service restaurant in SoHo in October 2020., Helped build direct-to-consumer beer delivery in New York during 2020 restrictions.

## Career timeline

- **2008** — Dantzler and childhood friend Joe Correia began planning a future brewery after years of teenage homebrewing.
- **2009-2012** — Studied computer science and economics at Amherst College and played varsity football.
- **2012-2017** — Worked in finance, with publicly documented roles or experience at Deutsche Bank, Goldman Sachs and Barclays Investment Bank.
- **2017** — Left finance and began working full-time with Correia to make Torch & Crown a Manhattan brewery.
- **2018** — Acquired the assets and lease of the former Chelsea Craft Brewing facility in the Bronx through a bankruptcy auction.
- **2019** — Torch & Crown beer entered commerce while the founders developed their SoHo brewery and restaurant.
- **2020** — Built a direct beer-delivery operation during pandemic restrictions and opened the 9,000-square-foot SoHo brewery and restaurant in October.
- **2023** — Expanded hospitality with the seasonal Union Square beer garden and a summer pop-up near Montauk.
- **2025** — Torch & Crown merged with Aslin Beer Co. to launch Driven Collective; Dantzler became CFO of the combined platform.

## Achievements

- Co-founded Torch & Crown Brewing Company with Joe Correia.
- Opened a 9,000-square-foot brewery and full-service restaurant in SoHo in October 2020.
- Helped build direct-to-consumer beer delivery in New York during 2020 restrictions.
- Developed a business spanning brewing, hospitality, contract production and direct distribution.
- Expanded Torch & Crown into the Union Square Pavilion in 2023.
- Helped combine Torch & Crown and Aslin Beer Co. into Driven Collective in 2025 and became its CFO.

## Latest updates

- **2025-10** — Appeared on AG Craft Beer Cast to discuss his new CFO role, the merger and the broader beer business.
- **2025-09** — Torch & Crown and Aslin Beer Co. announced their merger and the launch of Driven Collective; Dantzler became CFO.
- **2025-06** — Torch & Crown brought back Rainbows Everywhere, its annual Pride IPA, with sales supporting the Ali Forney Center.
- **2023-12** — Discussed Torch & Crown’s own-premise expansion and multi-part operating model in Brewbound’s 2023 Rising Stars program.
- **2023-05** — Torch & Crown opened its seasonal beer garden in the Union Square Pavilion.

## Links

- Website: https://torchandcrown.com
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/john-dantzler
- Twitter/X: https://twitter.com/TorchandCrown
- Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/torchandcrown/
- Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/torchandcrown

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/john-dantzler
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-08-26