Without intent, I have collected well over 1,000 beer bottles since the early 70s. When something finally had to be done about the cheap paneling in this old modular, I had a choice. Tear down the walls while, oh, so carefully, replacing the often rotted 1X3s. Or: cover them with… The Bottle Collection.
Written by Ken Carman
This is a bottle from my collection I have used for this column before. I do have more information, though I really don’t remember much, except I think it was brewed, in this case, by a brewery just south of Cincinnati. I didn’t have a lot of respect for them because once touring it I was told when a customer: essentially someone who wanted them to brew their commercial beer, gave them a recipe for a beer they don’t brew, “We give them whatever we have that is closest.”
No way to run a contract brewery, in my opinion. Best to just refuse the contract. I found it odd that their representative actual seemed proud of this “pawn whatever off on them.”
But since I’m not sure, and can’t remember how it was, I’ll reserve the rest of my commentary.
Here’s what Wiki says…
Hudepohl Brewing Company was a brewery established in Cincinnati, Ohio in 1885 by founder Ludwig Hudepohl II. Hudepohl was the son of Bavarian immigrants and had worked in the surgical tool business before starting his brewery. Hudepohl combined with Schoenling Brewing Company in 1986. Today, the Hudepohl-Schoenling Brewing Company is a wholly owned subsidiary of Christian Moerlein Brewing Co..
When Hudepohl went out Boston Brewing started selling the beer. Here’s something I do know: for a while that brewery: barely in Kentucky, was contract brewing for Boston, like Matt’s in Utica. Then the Hudepohl brand was bought out by Royal Brewing, whose main executive had been and exec at Heileman. The Kentucky brewery also vended out for Heilman for a while.
Seems very likely somewhere in this 90s, early 70s, time frame this bottle was filled: most likely in kentucky. Why? Because this brand had been in flux for all that time and the execs who had anything to do with the Hudepohl name also had connections with this contract brewery. The original brewery shut down, production shifted elsewhere at time and the 90s and 2000s were pretty bad for them. At last report the recipes were sold, and the original brewery being deconstructed.