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 Special beer was one of the first lager 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 behind Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company, a subsidiary of MillerCoors LLC, with sales of 465,000 barrels, and New 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 the Civil 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 by Mike Royko, a prominent columnist for the Chicago 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 including Illinois, Indiana, Michigan, and Minnesota. In 1992, the Shibilski's sold the company to Chicago-based Barton 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's Mexican brand Corona but when that brand's sales exploded, the Point brand became a distraction. In 2002, the company was sold back to Wisconsin ownership by Milwaukee-based real 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 introduced gourmet sodas to its beverage list. [http://www.pointbeer.com/history.php] In 2003, Point Special won the gold medal at the Great American Beer Festival in the premium lager category. Also that year, the company bought the Augsburger brand from Stroh Brewery Company. In 2005, the company bought four beer brands from the James Page Brewing Company. In 2007, the company was listed in the top fifty craft brewers list by the Brewers Association. [http://www.jsonline.com/story/index.aspx?id=769103]

Popular Media

In the 1988 Hollywood movie, The Great Outdoors, the lead character John 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 brands

Former 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 Soda

External links

* [http://www.pointbeer.com/ Stevens Point Brewery official site]

References