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Press Release
“We can’t believe our good fortune that we’re still here after 20 years,” said Geoff Larson. “We had a five-year plan when we started. We couldn’t fathom thinking ahead 20 years, but here we are.” The Larsons said they came up with the idea of a special anniversary packaging of Alaskan Amber as a way to honor Alaskan Brewing’s 20-year history, their loyal volunteers and dedicated Brew Crew. “The giveaway in the special cases is a way to include our fans in our anniversary celebration,” Larson said. The commemorative packaging run ran far smoother than the original one, according to Marcy Larson. “That first run took 12 people packaging by hand for 12 hours. Between the 1960s soda bottling machine and our inexperience, half the bottles were unusable,” she said. “Thanks to newer equipment and a well-trained crew, we now have a capacity of 300 bottles a minute.” The last 10 of the 253 special anniversary cases were packed by hand like they were 20 years ago. “I’m sure glad we didn’t have to pack and stack all of them by hand this time,” said Win Germain. “Packing the entire run by hand would feel really different now than it did when I was 20 years younger.”
The nine members of the original packaging crew who attended the commemorative bottling run were: Win and Maggie Germain, Dayton Canaday, George Reifenstein, Larry Bussone, Marc Scholten, Vickie McMillan and Geoff and Marcy Larson. When Alaskan Brewing Co. opened in 1986 it was the only operating brewery in Alaska and only the 67th in the nation. “When the brewery started up we all wanted it to be a success,” said Vickie McMillan. “We just never imagined how successful it would become.” Alaskan Brewing Co. is in the Top 10 out of 1,378 craft breweries nationwide, and it is the most award-winning craft brewery in the history of the Great American Beer Festival. In 1986 George Reifenstein was a homebrewer who loved great beer. He said he volunteered in the early days of Alaskan Brewing, because he wanted to help make the first brewery in Alaska since Prohibition successful. Now the General Manager of Goldbelt Mount Roberts Tramway, Reifenstein said all of the Alaskan beers are sold at the Tramway and are very popular with guests. “It’s wonderful to see how the brewery has grown,” he said. The day’s event was capped off with the original volunteer packagers and the current Brew Crew toasting 20 years of Alaskan Amber with none other than a bottle of the celebrated ale. “Cheers to 20 years!”
Alaskan Brewing Co. Timeline 1986-With the backing of 80 investors and numerous volunteers, Alaskan Brewing Co. opens its doors, packaging the first cases of Alaskan Amber in late December. 1988-Distribution expands throughout Alaska; Alaskan Pale is introduced as second year-round offering; Alaskan Smoked Porter is introduced as a seasonal release. 1990-Alaskan Brewing enters the Seattle market. 1991-What is now known as Alaskan ESB is introduced as Alaskan Autumn Ale. 1994-First bottling run with automatic casepacker (all cases had been packed by hand). 1995-Installation of 100-barrel brewhouse and Alaskan Brewing is first craft brewer to install a grain dryer. 1996-Distribution expands throughout Washington, Idaho, Montana and Oregon. 1997-Installation of new kegging system; distribution expands to include California. 1998-Alaskan Brewing is first craft brewery in U.S. to install a CO2 collection plant; Alaskan Stout is introduced as a year-round offering. 2000-Alaskan Winter Ale is introduced as a seasonal release. 2001-Installation of a state-of-the-art bottling line. 2002-Alaskan Summer Ale is introduced. 2003-Alaskan Big Nugget Barleywine is introduced. 2005-In November, Alaskan Brewing celebrates reaching 100,000 barrels (3.1 million gallons) in a single year for the first time. 2006-Alaskan Brewing brings home its 34th medal from the Great American Beer Festival; Juneau brewery celebrates 20th anniversary of Alaskan Amber with commemorative packaging run. Then (December 1986) • Only operating brewery in Alaska • 67th craft brewery in the United States • Brewhouse was 2,000 square feet • Only three employees, including Co-founders Geoff and Marcy Larson • Produced 18 barrels • It took 12 people about 12 hours to package 253 cases of beer • Distributed only in Juneau • Only one brand: Alaskan Amber Now (December 2006) • The most award-winning craft brewery in the history of the Great American Beer Festival; ninth largest craft brewer out of 1,378 nationwide • Brewhouse is 35,000 square feet • 67 full-time employees • Produced 106,500 barrels • Packages about 6,000 cases a day • Distributed throughout Alaska, as well as Washington, Oregon, California, Idaho, Montana, Nevada, Wyoming and Arizona • Seven brands: Amber, ESB, Pale, Stout, Winter Ale, Summer Ale and Smoked Porter ### Contact: Amy Woods: 907-780-5866, awoods@alaskanbeer.com High-resolution photos available: http://amy.juneaumedia.com/brewphotos.zip (Please be patient; compressed file may take up to 4 minutes to download) © Copyright 1997 - 2003 by the Alaskan Brewing Company |
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Alaskan
Brewing Company 5429 Shaune Dr., Juneau, Alaska 99801-9540 p (907) 780.5866 E-Mail info@alaskanbeer.com |
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