CORPORATE SPOTLIGHT MOLSON COORS “The cream-brick Old Brewhouse on State Street is the oldest surviving building on the Miller campus” in Milwaukee, says Idstein. “Completed in 1888, it is the only brewery building standing today that was constructed under the direction of Frederick J. Miller.”
“In conjunction with the Milwaukee Brewers, we sponsor the Brewers Tavern of the Game, where, at each game, we award 40 Brewers tickets to TLW members.” — Dan Idstein, Molson Coors
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olson Coors’ Miller Brewery in Milwaukee has a long and storied history of brewing beer, which began with a brewer’s apprentice named Frederick J. Miller in southwestern Germany. At just 12 years old, he embarked on a career that eventually would take him all the way to the United States. In 1854, after reaching master brewer status, Miller immigrated and found his home in Milwaukee. He purchased the existing Plank Road Brewery, but renamed it the Menomonee Valley Brewery in 1873. Today, the brewery is full of unique features, one of the most significant being the Miller Caves. The caves are 62 feet underground and were dug by hand in 1850 using a traditional Belgian method of tunneling. Miller later expanded the caves until they reached a total length of about 600 feet. “The caves were constructed for fermentation, aging and storage of lager beer,” explains Dan Idstein, general manager of sales at Molson Coors. “The Miller Caves were kept cool with ice cut from local ponds and lakes during the winter. In the summer, sawdust and hay were used to insulate the ice.” Mechanical refrigeration was introduced some time between 1887 and 1892, but Miller didn’t cease using the caves for beer storage until 1906. In 1953, Miller Brewing Company restored portions of the caves as a museum and dining hall. Since that time, the Miller Caves and other parts of the brewery campus have undergone periodic restorations and renovations, and remain a part of the popular brewery tour.
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Portions of the Miller brewery campus were also designed or renovated by Brooks Stevens, an American industrial designer responsible for creating the Oscar Mayer Wienermobile, the 1949 Harley-Davidson Hydra-Glide motorcycle and the Jeep Wagoneer. Stevens also designed the Soft Cross, which remains the primary logo for the Miller Brewing Company today. Though the brewery tour is on hold for now, Idstein looks forward to a safer time when the public can once again interact with the historical brewery. “What we love about Milwaukee is the people, and how they have supported our company and brands for the last 160-plus years,” he says. “We’ve tried to return that favor through our local investments. In just the last few years, we have had a $50 million expansion of the [Leinenkugel’s] Tenth Street Brewery near downtown Milwaukee and more than $65 million going to the main Milwaukee brewery.” Molson Coors continues to be a leading sponsor of the city’s sports and entertainment initiatives as well — from Summerfest and the Wisconsin Center District, to the Milwaukee Brewers and the Milwaukee Bucks. The brewing company is also one of the largest employers in the area. As longtime members of the TLW, Molson Coors plans to continue the relationship in an effort to support bars and taverns in the Milwaukee community and throughout the state. “In conjunction with the Milwaukee Brewers, we sponsor the Brewers Tavern of the Game, where, at each game, we award 40 Brewers tickets to TLW members,” says Idstein. “We also partner with our distributor network across the state to provide resources to Tavern League members to responsibly promote beer sales in their establishments.” As the temperatures steadily get warmer, Idstein looks forward to the refreshing taste of Leinenkugel’s Summer Shandy and recommends checking for updated tour information at millerbrewerytour.com for a quick summer getaway and beverage. TLW
MOLSON COORS (800) 645-5376 molsoncoors.com MAY/JUNE 2021
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