As soon as you drive into the village of New Glarus, WI you will notice two things - they are proud of their Swiss Heritage and they are proud of their hometown brewery.The history of the town itself is interesting. It was founded in 1845 by two gentlemen, Nicolas Duerst and Fridolin Streiff, who were sent by Swiss magistrates from Glarus, Switzerland. At that time, the town of Glarus was struggling. Poverty and agricultural turmoil was forcing residents to either endure the suffering or take a loan from the Glarus Emigration Society and take their chances on moving to America to start their lives again. With the promise of free/cheap land, many took the offer and headed to the shores of America. Their travels took them to America and through the Midwest (including Indiana) and finally up to Wisconsin where they found the suitable, though not ideal accommodations, set up by Duerst and Streiff.
Today, the Village of New Glarus boasts Swiss culture and benefits from several tourist destinations, including the New Glarus Brewing Company The original brewing facility opened in 1993, making Deborah Carey the first female in the country to own and operate a brewery. She and her husband, Dan, grew the facility until they broke ground on a new hilltop facility in 2004. The $20-some million dollar facility finally opened in June of 2009 and offers a brewing capacity of 90,000 barrels. Perhaps the most remarkable thing about those 90,000 barrels is that it is ONLY distributed in Wisconsin. Just to put that into perspective, Indiana's second largest brewery is Upland and they are on track to do about 8000 barrels this year (with distribution to three states). In addition to all of that, nearly half of those 90,000 barrels are of their flagship beer, Spotted Cow.
If there was anywhere apart from the Great Taste we had to visit while in Wisconsin, it was New Glarus Brewing. While New Glarus isn't all that far from Indy, the beer is just as desired in our house as anything else we can't easily get our hands on. We've been lucky to know a few folks who were willing to bring some back for us here and there, but we were long overdue to see the place for ourselves.
Entering New Glarus from the north, we thought we had immediately stumbled onto the brewery - a collection of old buildings on the side of the road, and a sign labeled "New Glarus Brewing Company". It looked like a little craft brewery along the lines of those we already know. But after looking around we realized that we were at the wrong end of town.
On the south end of New Glarus, up on a hill, sits a beautiful new facility. This wasn't a craft brewery like we knew it - more so a Utopian vision of craft brewing at its best. The brewery is a collection of buildings, with a self-guided tour that revealed that the inside of New Glarus Brewing Co. looks a lot more like Budweiser than Bee Creek. That's not a bad thing, by any means - the proof is in the product, and New Glarus' lineup is hard to beat.
We all settled in for a round of samples, checked out the extensive giftshop, took the brewery tour, and then made our way downstairs to buy a trunk full of beer for ourselves and those who had been so generous with their New Glarus hauls before.
If you find yourself in Madison - don't miss New Glarus.
http://www.newglarusbrewing.com/
http://www.swisstown.com/
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/New_Glarus,_Wisconsin
I've been to the original brewery. Can't wait to go back and tour the new one. You know my appreciation for New Glarus.
ReplyDeleteWhen we were at New Glarus the folks at the information counter told us the capacity was 150,000 barrels but they were currently only doing about 80,000 barrels. What a fabulous brewery! Truly a place to worship shiny stainless steel.
ReplyDeleteThey told us they could do around 180,000 barrels between the new brewery and the old brewery location. That is an insane amount of beer for just one state.
ReplyDeleteThey brew more beer than DogFishHead, and are close on the heels of Brooklyn, Stone, and Bell's. All for just one state!
New Glarus is one of my top 5 favorite breweries. I'd consider moving to Wisconsin just so I could buy NG beer anytime I want!
ReplyDeleteYeah I think it was a maximum of 100,000 barrels at the new facility (currently at 90,000) and 80,000 at the old facility. Although I was drinking New Glarus R&D Golden Ale at the time so I wouldn't quote that.
ReplyDeleteIt was also the cleanest and most organized brewery I have ever seen in my life.
So "hoppy" to find your blog! New Glarus is a great beer. I love the pictures that you posted. Look forward to seeing more updates. :)
ReplyDeleteGlad you stopped by, ampm!
ReplyDeleteIs there a reason you can't branch out to other states? I have a case of Spotted Cow in my closet, which is in Denver, CO... We like it here too, and it still tastes good!
ReplyDeleteThey don't distribute outside of WI not because they can't, but because they don't want to.....and clearly don't need to.
ReplyDeleteI heard a statistic on the radio not long ago that the amount of beer currently consumed in Wisconsin averages out to over 8 gallons PER WEEK for every man, woman, and child in this state. That's higher than Germany and Romania combined. So you can imagine how much some individuals must be sucking down to keep up our reputation! So there's your 80,000 barrels.
ReplyDeleteI'm sorry, anon, but that's impossible.
ReplyDelete8 gal = 1024 oz = 85.33 x 12oz servings
85.33 servings per week is 12.2 beers beer day, so you're saying that, on average, EVERYONE in Wisconsin is drinking a 12 pack a day? Right.....
Watch out for Math Guy and his cheese arms, Anon.
ReplyDeleteI thought I relly liked Spotted Cow but Totally Naked is even better. Try the Belgian Red! Woo Tart!
ReplyDeleteDefinitely worth the trip, and they have a sweet retail store full of case after case of tasty items. However, be aware that those items can be bought cheaper - in some cases, MUCH cheaper - in a grocery store than at the brewery itself. They won't undersell their distributors.
ReplyDeletegood point, anon - we bought from the store on brewery premises and then found the same beer at cheaper prices at the bar we ate lunch at. of course that bar didn't have the same selection...
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