Breweries of Wisconsin

14. Leinenkugel: Small, Quality Conscious

14 THE PURE WATER USED IN LEINEN KUGEL BEER HAS NEVER REQUIRED TREATMENT. Leinenkugel: Small, Quality Conscious IN the northern Wisconsin tourist town of Chippewa Falls, tucked against the side of a hill at the end of town, stands the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewery. There is no fanfare or hoopla here; on the side of the building there is simply the Leinenkugel logo of an Indian's head on a sign that reads, "Since 1867, Home of Leinenkugel 's Beer, Made with Spring Water." 1. William Leinenkugel, past president and now vice-chairman of the brewery's board of directors, and Paul Mayer, president , are both great-grandsons of Jacob Leinenkugel, who founded the brewery. Jacob's father, Matthias Leinenkugel, his wife, and their five sons immigrated to this country from Germany in 1845, initially settling in Sauk City. Matthias opened a brewery there which was later operated by his eldest son, Henry. The second-eldest son, Joseph, moved to Eau Claire, where he also established a brewery. The next son, Jacob, along with his friend John Miller from Sauk City, moved to Chippewa Falls and also became a brewer, building what was then called the Spring Brewery. The Perfeet Water Jacob located his brewery near the Big Eddy Springs, from which poured nonacidic, nonalkaline water that the brewery uses without treatment to this day. Jacob's move proved to be a stroke of good fortune. Water is the key to the brewing process, and most brewers have to treat their water in one way or another in order to make it suitable for brewing. Jacob never seemed to have this problem, and the brewery's water is still of high quality today. In 1977 a Chicago Tribune writer, noting that Leinenkugel's beer was gaining strength in the Chicago area, wrote, "He [Leinenkugel ] doesn't resort to additives; he carbonates his beer nat142 THE LEINENKUGEL BREWERY. CHIPPEWA FALLS. ESTABLISHED 1867. AS IT LOOKED AT THE TURN OF THE CENTURY. (COURTESY OF THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF WISCONSIN. A. A. BISH COLLECTION.) urally. What's more, he lets his brew age three to five weeks longer than most breweries.... He brews with Chippewa water drawn from Big Eddy Springs. He calls the water 'purest in the world.' "1 From the very beginning, the brewery has been extremely quality conscious, always striving for its name to be synonymous with purity; its success is something the family remains proud of. The Miller Buyout In 1883 the brewery's name became the Jacob Leinenkugel's Spring Brewery; it was later changed to the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company, its name today. Jacob headed the company until his death in 1899, and the firm remained under family control until 1988, when the Miller Brewing Company bought out the family. The firm continues as a wholly owned subsidiary of Miller Brewing Company. Even so, with Leinenkugel descendants 1. William Leinenkugel, Paul Mayer, and Thomas Leinenkugel continuing to manage the plant, the family touch remains. As early as 1880, the brewery was producing about eighteen hundred barrels a year. Although its capacity has grown considerably over the years, the company has always felt that its first obligation is to serve the local area around Chippewa Falls. In recent years it not only made good on this promise, but also served the entire state of Wisconsin as well as parts ofMinnesota , Upper Michigan, and Illinois. Shortly after the buyout was Leinenkugel 143 DESPITE THE MILLER BUYOUT. THE LEINENKUGEL FAMILY STILL MANAGES THE BREWERY. 144 Part Three: In the Time orGiants THE LEINENKUGEL BREWERY IN WINTER. (COURTESY OF THE STATE HISTORICAL SOCIETY OF WISCONSIN. A. A. BISH COLLECTION.) complete, Miller representatives announced their goals: to increase Leinenkugel's to full capacity, which is about one hundred thousand barrels a year, and to expand the marketing area considerably . Plans were immediately set to strengthen Leinenkugel's distribution in the Midwest, where the beer has been most popular. Miller has also talked of expanding the Leinenkugel market beyond the Midwest. One possibility is switching Leinenkugel to a high or super premium beer, and marketing it as the Huber Brewing Company once marketed its highly successful Augsburger label. Leinenkugel has worked hard over the years to modernize its equipment. Among the brewery's improvements are two new additions to the bottling house, a new brew kettle, a new boiler and cooler room, new refrigeration units for the stock cellar, an evaporator...