USA, WI: Rhinelander Brewing Company purchases building for new brewery

The return of active commercial beer brewing in Rhinelander took a giant leap forward on November 8 when the president and CEO of Rhinelander Brewing Company announced the company had purchased an 8,000-square foot building on Brown Street, the Rhinelander Daily News reported.

The company has purchased the former home of Forest TV and Appliance at 43 S. Brown, Rhinelander Brewing's Jyoti Auluck announced in a press release.

The new location will house a taproom, brewery and expanded gift shop by the end of February, she said.

Rhinelander Beer is currently brewed under contract by Minhas Brewery in Monroe. Auluck purchased the brand and all of its assets in 2009, and reintroduced the iconic 7-ounce Rhinelander Shorty in 2011. In a previous interview with the River News, she said returning at least some of the brewing and bottling operations to Rhinelander has been her goal since she made the purchase.

Local brewer and craft beer enthusiast Al Ewan will be the new brewmaster and Brenda O'Rourke will serve as the manager of the taproom, retail store and bottle shop.

The press release announcing the purchase says it took Auluck two years to bring the Rhinelander Shorty back, including a sizable capital investment including creating brand new molds for the Shorty style bottle, creating a retro label design, equipping the brewery to package the unusually shaped Shorty bottle and diligently perfecting the recipe and creating the taste of the original product.

According to Auluck, the new building will be the headquarters of the company. It will feature a taproom with 10 of its tastiest craft beers as well as offer tours and tastings to the public. In addition to the gift shop and retail shop, a historic brewery memorabilia museum is planned.

Auluck is seeking donations of Rhinelander Brewing Company items from local collectors to be housed in the museum.

Auluck says the new location will start with a craft brew system and brew pub, and will try new, limited run recipes and seasonal brews.

"We want to play around with our brews here, do a little bit of seasonal. We'll have our lagers, and we can play up with the summer light beers or flavored beers. We can do something more hoppier for Oktoberfest," Auluck said. "We will have a little bit more room to play around with."

Rhinelander Beer has a long and storied history here, but hasn't actually been brewed here since 1967.

Founded in 1882 by Otto Hilgermann and Henry Danner, the company survived a fire in 1897 and closure during prohibition before it reopened in 1933.

At its peak popularity, the brewery rolled out 40,000 barrels annually. When financial concerns led to the Rhinelander brewery closing in 1967, its assets were sold to the Joseph Huber Brewing Company, which was later purchased by Minhas. It has been brewed in Monroe ever since.

The company website notes that Auluck is a brewmaster and has created the recipes the company produces. She also judges at beer tasting competitions on a regular basis.

Since she acquired the company, Auluck has expanded its offerings to include Rhinelander Lager and Rhinelander Light 12oz, Craft Beers Thumper American IPA, Imperial Jack Double IPA, Chocolate Bunny Stout and Mystical Jack Traditional Ale as well as seasonal Rhinelander Oktoberfest.

In early 2016, she launched her Rhinelander Hard Root Beer soon followed with Over the Barrel branded hard sodas in five flavors, Rootbeer, Blueberry, Cream Soda, Black Cherry and Grape.

"Rhinelander Brewing Company now produces and sells over 1 million pints of beers per year throughout the Midwest, making it one of the largest breweries in Wisconsin," the press release states.

Auluck has repeatedly stressed that while customers will be able to purchase various Rhinelander Brewing offerings to take home at the new location, she will not offer anything available at local retail outlets.

She said she is doing this as a way to thank those businesses for helping her succeed in the seven years since she bought the brand.

14 November, 2017