- Stevens Point Brewery
Infobox Brewery
name = Stevens Point Brewery
caption =
location =Stevens Point, Wisconsin United States
owner =
opened =
production =
active_beers = brewbox_beer|name=Cascade Pale Ale|style=Pale ale brewbox_beer|name=Honey Light|style=Light lager brewbox_beer|name=Point Amber|style=Märzen brewbox_beer|name=Point Special|style=American lager brewbox_beer|name=Point Light|style=Light Lager brewbox_beer|name=White Bier|style=Belgian brewbox_beer|name=Nude Beach Summer Wheat|style=Wheat brewbox_beer|name=Horizon Wheat|style=Wheat brewbox_beer|name=Augsburger Dark|style=American lager brewbox_beer|name=Augsburger Golden|style=Blonde ale brewbox_beer|name=Augsburger Oktoberfest|style=Amber ale brewbox_beer|name=James Page Iron Range Amber|style=Amber ale brewbox_beer|name=James Page Burly Brown|style=Brown ale brewbox_beer|name=James Page Voyageur Extra Pale Ale|style=Pale ale brewbox_beer|name=James Page White Ox Wheat Ale|style=Wheat ale
seasonal_beers =
other_beers =Stevens Point Brewery is a regional American
brewery located in Stevens Point,Wisconsin . The company claims that it's Point Specialbeer was one of the firstlager beers to be produced in America. The brewery is also known as the fifth-oldest privately-owned brewery in the nation. [http://www.biztimes.com/news/2002/3/15/point-beverage-sale-part-of-brand-strategy]Sales volume for the company's Point beer brands was about 40,000 barrels in 2007 which is the third-largest
craft brewer in the state behindJacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company , asubsidiary of MillerCoors LLC, with sales of 465,000 barrels, andNew Glarus Brewing Company , with sales of 65,000 barrels. [http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=769103]History
The company was founded in 1857 by George Ruder and Frank Wahle. In 1864, the company provided it's
beer to the troops during theCivil War . The brewery was subsequently sold to Andrew and Jacob Lutz in 1867. The Lutz family continued operations until it was sold to Gustav Kuenzel in 1897. The company was then organized as the Gustav Kuenzel Brewing Company in 1901. The following year, it was reorganized as the Stevens Point Brewing Company. Ludwig Korfman purchased a controlling interest in the company in 1924 and reorganized the company as the Stevens Point Beverage Company. The company faced local competition from the mid 1860's through the prohibition era of the 1920s.Prohibition helped to cause the remaining competition to go out of business. [http://www.pchswi.org/archives/communities/stevenspoint/breweries.html] During the 1950s, the brewery began using cans in production. In 1973, Point Special brand beer was rated the top American beer in a taste test as reported byMike Royko , a prominent columnist for theChicago Daily News . By the 1970s the company was owned by Felix and Ken Shibilski. In 1990, the company first began selling it's product outside the state of Wisconsin includingIllinois ,Indiana ,Michigan , andMinnesota . In 1992, the Shibilski's sold the company toChicago -basedBarton Beers Ltd. The new ownership was unique in that Point brands were the only domestic product lines with all of it's other offerings being imports. The company planned to tie sales with it'sMexican brandCorona but when that brand's sales exploded, the Point brand became a distraction. In 2002, the company was sold back to Wisconsin ownership byMilwaukee -basedreal estate developers Joe Martino and Jim Wiechmann. [http://www.biztimes.com/news/2002/3/15/point-beverage-sale-part-of-brand-strategy] That same year, the company introducedgourmet sodas to its beverage list. [http://www.pointbeer.com/history.php] In 2003, Point Special won the gold medal at theGreat American Beer Festival in the premiumlager category. Also that year, the company bought theAugsburger brand fromStroh Brewery Company . In 2005, the company bought four beer brands from theJames Page Brewing Company . In 2007, the company was listed in the top fifty craft brewers list by theBrewers Association . [http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=769103]Popular Media
In the 1988
Hollywood movie , The Great Outdoors, the lead characterJohn Candy drank some Point Beer. [http://www.biztimes.com/news/2002/3/15/point-beverage-sale-part-of-brand-strategy]Beer Brands
Current Production
*Point Special
*Point Honey Light
*Point Cascade Pale Ale
*Point White Biere
*Point Amber
*Point Horizon Wheat
*Point Oktoberfest
*Point Spring Bock
*Point Einbock
*Point Nude Beach Summer Wheat
*Point St. Benedict's Winter Ale
*Augsburger Dark
*Augsburger Golden
*Augsburger Oktoberfest
*James Page Iron Range Amber
*James Page Burly Brown
*James Page Voyageur Extra Pale Ale
*James Page White Ox Wheat Ale
*Karl Strauss Brewing Company brandsFormer Production
*Point Holiday Beer (1935-1940)
*Prize Beer (1935-1940)
*Big Charlie Beer (1937-1944)
*Amber Prize Beer (1939-1950) [http://www.taverntrove.com/breweries/1338.asp]Gourmet Sodas
*Point Premium Orange Cream Soda
*Point Premium Root Beer
*Point Premium Diet Root Beer
*Point Premium Vanilla Cream Soda
*Point Premium Black Cherry Cream SodaExternal links
* [http://www.pointbeer.com/ Stevens Point Brewery official site]
References
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