Industry | Brewing |
---|---|
Founded | 1878 in Seattle, WA |
Founder | Andrew Hemrich |
Defunct | 1999 |
Headquarters | Seattle, Washington |
Key people |
|
Products | Beer |
Owner | Pabst Brewing Company |
Website | www.rainierbeer.com |
The Rainier Brewing Company is an American owned beer brand, originally established in Seattle, Washington. Rainier Beer remains a popular brand in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. Although Rainier was founded in 1884, the Seattle site had been brewing beer since 1878. The beer is not currently brewed in Seattle, nor is the company owned locally, but remains American owned with a Seattle-based sales and marketing team. After a series of ownership transfers starting in the 1970s, the company was sold to Stroh's and then to Pabst Brewing Company by the late 1990s. The brewery was closed by Pabst in 1999 and sold, while Rainier beer continues to be sold by Pabst.
The brewery itself is a well-known fixture in the south end of town, adjacent to I-5 just north of the Spokane Street Viaduct. The plant was home to the Tully's Coffee headquarters, Bartholomew Winery, Red Soul Motorcycle Fabrications, as well as artist lofts, band practice spaces, and a recording studio. The trademark red neon "R" that sat atop the building was replaced with a green "T" built by local Seattle sign company Western Neon, when Tully's was using the plant to roast coffee. The neon "R" is now on display at Seattle's Museum of History and Industry which was also refurbished by Western Neon. The green "T" was removed on September 30, 2013 by Tully's, and a red neon replica "R", built by Western Neon, returned to the top of the brewery on October 24, 2013. [1] The Rainier brand is currently owned and operated by Pabst Brewing Company. In Canada, it is owned, brewed, and distributed by Sleeman Breweries as Rainier Lager.
The original brewery dates all the way back to 1854 when A.B. Rabbeson opened Washington Brewery, which was Seattle’s first commercial brewing company. [2] In 1872, Rabbeson renamed his brewery Seattle Brewery. They launched Rainier beer in 1878 [3] and would produce and distribute Rainier for the next decade. Concurrently, John Kopp and Andrew Hemrich founded the Bay View Brewing Company in 1883, with Kopp's interest soon being bought out by Hemrich's father John, who had previously operated a brewery in Alma, Wisconsin; the rest of the Hemrich clan would soon relocate to Seattle, either joining Andrew's brewery or starting new ones. [4] In 1888, Rabbeson sold his brewery, along with the Rainier brand, to Hemrich. In 1893 the Seattle Brewing & Malting Company would be formed by the merger of the Bay View brewery with the Claussen & Sweeney brewery at Georgetown and the Albert Braun Brewing Company located further south. Andrew Hemrich would become president of the new company and remain until his death in 1910; he would be succeeded by his brother Louis Hemrich. [5] The Georgetown brewery would become the headquarters of the new corporation and the brewery itself would undergo a major period of construction in the early 1900s making it one of the largest in the world.
The Hemrichs produced Rainier beer in Washington until 1916, when the state of Washington enacted its own prohibition, 4 years before the 18th amendment enacted the nationwide prohibition. [6] [7] During this time they opened a brewery in San Francisco where they brewed Rainier beer until 1920 when the 18th amendment was ratified. The company survived prohibition by producing a variety of different nonalcoholic products. [2] In Seattle they would maintain the Georgetown brewery as little more than a distribution center and would lease the Bay View branch out as a feed mill. [8]
Following the repeal of the Prohibition, the Bay View brewery was purchased by Lethbridge, Alberta brewers Fritz and Emil Sick, who then repurchased the Rainier brand and began brewing Rainier in 1935. The brewery went through several names, such as Sicks' Seattle Brewing and Malting and Sicks' Rainier Brewing Company, during the 1935–1977 period. [9] [10]
After Rainier Brewing Company resumed producing "Rainier Beer" after the end of Prohibition and its advertisements became ubiquitous in the Seattle-Tacoma area, a rumor began circulating that the brewery's owner, Emil Sick, had bribed a Washington state committee with free beer to name the local mountain "Rainier". This, however, is an urban legend and can still be heard today among Tacoma residents who preferred the alternate name of "Mount Tacoma". [11] Sick did, however, purchase the local baseball team and named them the Seattle Rainiers for this purpose. [12]
Sicks also brewed Rainier at a branch brewery in Spokane, which closed in 1962.
From 1952 to 1964, Rainier came packaged in a series of decorative beer cans known as the Rainier Jubilee Series. First in the series were a set of Christmas cans marketed in late 1952 and again in late 1953; these cans are rare and highly collectible today. The Christmas cans proved such a success that Rainier's use of decorative Jubilee Series cans continued for over a decade, with thousands of different designs. Most of these are not as rare and collectible as the Christmas cans, but the "reindeer" cans (which were sold only in Alaska), and the first pull tab Jubilee cans (made only in the last couple of years of the Jubilee Series) are also considered rare. [13]
Other brands of beer brewed by Sick's Rainier Brewing during this time included Rheinlander and Sick's Select. Later, the Rainier brewery would also take over brewing Heidelberg beer after its brewery in Tacoma, Washington, closed. Each of these brands (as well as rival Northwest brands Lucky Lager, Olympia, and Blitz-Weinhard) were once staples in the Pacific Northwest beer market, but starting in the 1960s and 1970s began losing market share to the major national brands.
During the 1970s, Rainier ran a number of memorable television ads in the Pacific Northwest, largely conceived by Seattle designer Terry Heckler, [14] assisted by several of his staff, especially Ed Leimbacher, writer/producer for Rainier print, radio and TV for a dozen years. Sound man Joe Hadlock of Bear Creek Studio joined the colleagues of Heckler Bowker for 14 years of creating noise and music for these advertisements.
Some of these surrealist advertisements noted by Seattle Magazine included the Running of the MFRs (Mountain Fresh Rainiers) (a parody of Running of the Bulls featuring bottles with legs), and frogs that croaked "Rainier Beer" (a motif appropriated many years later by Budweiser). Mickey Rooney appeared in several TV ads, most notably a parody of Nelson Eddy and Jeanette MacDonald's "Indian Love Call" from the 1936 MGM film Rose Marie . Mickey was dressed in a Mountie costume alongside his wife Jan as they sang. (Most airings of this commercial ended with Rooney pouring a bottle of Rainier into her proffered glass, but occasionally a version was aired in which he poured the beer into her cleavage.) A commercial ad featured a motorcycle that revved "Raiiiiiiiii-nieeeeeeeer-Beeeeeeeer" while zooming by along a mountain road was notable in the late 1970s and early 1980s. [15] [16] A version of this commercial that played on radio featured the sounds of different brands of motorcycles making the "Rainier Beer" revving sound.
Other ads featured a Lawrence Welk double (played by actor Pat Harrington, Jr.) leading his band in "The Wunnerful Rainier Waltz", complete with bubble machine and soloists blowing on beer bottles; and a performance of a parody of the song "You're the Tops" while thousands of Rainier bottle caps fell like dominoes in a giant "R" frame. (The whole commercial was reportedly shot on the first take, a great relief since it took all day to set up.) Rainier also produced humorous posters such as a "National Beergraphic" parody of a National Geographic Magazine cover depicting tourists encountering an MFR in the forest, and a Flash Gordon/Star Wars poster, "Fresh Wars", that recalled the bar scene in Star Wars: Episode 4. There were even costumed MFRs that made promotional appearances at supermarkets during this period.
Several commercials were parodies of movies, TV shows and famous spokespeople of the time. For example, a couple made references to popular Saturday Night Live skits: one with a Gilda Radner lookalike in her role as Roseanne Roseanneadanna in a Weekend Update skit for Rainier Lite commercial; another had characters called the R-Heads, which was a reference to the Coneheads, with Rainier 'R' logos on the top of their heads. Two commercials featured a Tarzan character where his yell is "Raaaiiinn-iiieeer!". A commercial featured a silhouette of Alfred Hitchcock who would morph into a beer bottle. Another commercial featured a John Houseman imitator when Houseman at the time was a spokesperson for Smith Barney. Another series of commercials featured a Lee Iacocca impersonator walking through stacks of beer cans. One final series of commercials was the Rambo like character called "R-bo", played by Dan Roland. The "R-bo" commercials were filmed in three parts; only two of those commercials aired, however. The third commercial was never seen, because Rainier Brewery was bought out by another brewing company which did not choose to continue the campaign [ citation needed ].
In 1977, the Rainier brewery was sold to G. Heileman Brewing Company, and passed through several more hands before finally winding up owned by Pabst, which closed it in 1999. The Rainier brand was sold to General Brewing Company, which moved production to the Olympia brewery in nearby Tumwater, Washington. The Olympia Brewing Company closed in 2003.[ relevant? ] Rainier Beer is now brewed by Pabst in Irwindale, California.
In 1999, Sleeman Breweries of Guelph, Ontario, a division of Sapporo Breweries, acquired Stroh Canada which owned the Canadian rights to a folio of brands, including Rainier. Sleeman then became the Canadian manufacturer and distributor. [17]
In 2023, Rainier is set to deliver more beer to retailers than any prior year since Pabst acquired Rainier in 1999.
In 1987, Rainier was awarded a silver medal by the Great American Beer Festival in the category of Best American Light Lager. The GABF recognized Rainier again in 1990, 1998, and 2000 with the gold medal for Best American-Style Lager as well as silver medals in the same category in 2003 and 2005. Both Rainier Light and Rainier Ice have received medals, in their respective categories, from the GABF.
The red Rainier "R" logo has become an icon of the Rainier Brewing Company, dating back to the 1900s. The logo has gone through a few redesigns, having adopted the current "R" logo since the 1950s. Before that, the logo contained baseball style word mark with the "R" logo, shown in early 1900s advertisements up until the 1950s. After that, the word mark changed to go with the revised "R" logo, and it is still being used today. In 1953, a large red neon "R" logo sign was created and placed atop the brewery. [18] After Tully's leased the brewery in 2000, they replaced the iconic "R" with a green neon Tully's "T" sign. [19] The original red "R" sign was sold to the Museum of History & Industry (MOHAI), in which it is now on display at its new location at South Lake Union, Seattle. [20] On September 18, 2013, Tully's (under new owners) decided to replace the green "T" with a replica of the red "R" sign. The green "T" sign was removed on September 30, 2013, and the new red "R" sign was installed on October 24, 2013. The replica "R" sign is different from the original "R" sign; along with the new "R" having lights on both sides, the new sign is made of lighter aluminium, and it has LED lights, requiring them to only replace the lights every five to seven years. [21]
P. Ballantine and Sons Brewing Company was an American brewery founded in 1840, making Ballantine one of the oldest brands of beer in the United States. At its peak, it was the 3rd largest brewer in the US. The brand is currently owned and operated by Pabst Brewing Company. Throughout history it is best known for its Ballantine XXX Ale; however, in August 2014 Ballantine IPA relaunched and has been received with mixed reviews. Ballantine is Pabst's foray into the craft beer market.
Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company is an American brewery based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, and was once the largest producer of beer in the United States. Its namesake beer, Schlitz, was known as "The beer that made Milwaukee famous" and was advertised with the slogan "When you're out of Schlitz, you're out of beer". Schlitz first became the largest beer producer in the US in 1902 and enjoyed that status at several points during the first half of the 20th century, exchanging the title with Anheuser-Busch multiple times during the 1950s.
Sleeman Breweries is a Japanese-owned Canadian brewery founded by John Warren Sleeman in 1988 in Guelph, Ontario. The company is the third-largest brewing company in Canada. Along with its own Sleeman brands, the company produces under licence the Stroh's family of brands, Maclays Ale and Sapporo Premium beers for sale in Canada. The company's parent Sapporo owns 4.2 per cent of Ontario's primary beer retailer The Beer Store.
Sapporo Breweries Ltd. is a Japanese beer brewing company founded in 1876. Sapporo is the oldest brand of beer in Japan. It was first brewed in Sapporo, Hokkaido, Japan, in 1876 by brewer Seibei Nakagawa. The world headquarters of Sapporo Breweries is in Ebisu, Shibuya, Tokyo. The company purchased the Canadian company Sleeman Breweries in 2006.
The Stroh Brewery Company was a beer brewery in Detroit, Michigan. In addition to its own Stroh's brand, the company produced or bought the rights to several other brands including Goebel, Schaefer, Schlitz, Augsburger, Erlanger, Old Style, Lone Star, Old Milwaukee, Red River, and Signature, as well as manufacturing Stroh's Ice Cream. The company was taken over and broken up in 2000, but some of its brands continued to be made by the new owners. The Stroh's brand is currently owned and marketed by Pabst Brewing Company, except in Canada where the Stroh brands are owned by Sleeman Breweries.
The Pabst Brewing Company is an American company that dates its origins to a brewing company founded in 1844 by Jacob Best and was, by 1889, named after Frederick Pabst. It is currently a holding company which contracts the brewing of over two dozen brands of beer and malt liquor: these include its own flagship Pabst Blue Ribbon, as well as brands from many now-defunct breweries.
Grain Belt is a brand of beer brewed in the American state of Minnesota, by the August Schell Brewing Company. The beer has been produced in a number of varieties. Grain Belt Golden was the original style introduced in 1893. The current offerings are: Grain Belt Premium, first introduced in 1947; Grain Belt Premium Light; Grain Belt Nordeast, introduced on April 7, 2010; and the newest offering, Grain Belt Lock & Dam, introduced in 2016. It was originally produced by the Minneapolis Brewing Company which formed with the merger of four smaller brewers in 1891. Soon after introduction, Grain Belt became the company's flagship product. It was brewed at the original Grain Belt brewery in Minneapolis, Minnesota until 1976. A series of other owners followed, and Schell took over the product line in 2002.
Old Milwaukee is a brand of American dry lager owned by the Pabst Brewing Company. The brand currently consists of three different brews: Old Milwaukee Lager, Old Milwaukee Light, and Old Milwaukee Non-Alcoholic. Old Milwaukee is brewed throughout the United States and various packages are currently distributed in all 50 U.S. states, many Canadian provinces, and in select international markets.
The Olympia Brewing Company was a brewery in the northwest United States, located in Tumwater, Washington, near Olympia. Founded in 1896 by Leopold Friederich Schmidt, it was bought by G. Heileman Brewing Company in 1983. Through a series of consolidations, it was acquired by Pabst Brewing Company in 1999; the Tumwater brewery was closed in 2003.
Lucky Lager is an American lager with U.S. brewing and distribution rights held by the Pabst Brewing Company. Originally launched in 1934 by San Francisco-based General Brewing Company, Lucky Lager grew to be one of the prominent beers of the Western United States during the 1950s and 1960s. In 2019, Pabst announced that the beer brand would be revived and would be brewed by 21st Amendment Brewery, based in San Leandro.
National Bohemian Beer, colloquially Natty Boh, is an American lager originating from Baltimore, Maryland. It was first brewed in 1885 by the National Brewing Company, but was eventually purchased by Pabst Brewing Company.
Colt 45 is an American brand of lager or malt liquor made and primarily marketed in the United States and Canada, originally introduced by National Brewing Company in the spring of 1963. Through a series of mergers and acquisitions, the National Brewing Company and its brands are today owned by the Pabst Brewing Company.
F.X. Matt Brewing Company is a family-owned brewery in Utica, New York. It is the fourth oldest family-owned brewery in the United States, having brewed beer since 1888. Its most popular product is the Saranac line of beers. It also sells soft drinks such as root beer and ginger beer.
The G. Heileman Brewing Company of La Crosse, Wisconsin, United States, was a brewer that operated from 1858 to 1996. It was ultimately acquired by Stroh's. From 1872 until its acquisition, the brewery bore the family name of its co-founder and brewer Gottlieb Heileman.
The Pearl Brewing Company was an American brewery established in 1883 in downtown San Antonio, Texas, United States. In 1985, Pearl's parent company purchased the Pabst Brewing Company and assumed the Pabst name.
The Valentin Blatz Brewing Company was an American brewery based in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It produced Blatz Beer from 1851 until 1959, when the label was sold to Pabst Brewing Company.
Red White & Blue Beer was a brand of American beer, originally produced by the Pabst Brewing Company and later produced by G. Heileman Brewery of La Crosse, WI. Pre-Prohibition advertisements lauded its "mellow" taste and drinkability. Returning after Prohibition, the brand's name alone would have been a selling point, during the patriotic American sensibilities of World War II and after.
The Falstaff Brewing Corporation was an American brewery located in St. Louis, Missouri. With roots in the 1838 Lemp Brewery of St. Louis, the company was renamed after the Shakespearean character Sir John Falstaff in 1903. Production peaked in 1965 with 7,010,218 barrels brewed and then dropped 70 percent in the next 10 years. While its smaller labels linger on today, its main label Falstaff Beer went out of production in 2005. The rights to the brand are owned by Pabst Brewing Company.
Primo Brewing Company is a Honolulu-based beer brewing company. The company claims the title "Hawai’i’s original beer". The brand is currently owned and operated by Pabst Brewing Company.
The Lone Star Brewery, built in 1884, was the first large mechanized brewery in Texas. Adolphus Busch, of Anheuser-Busch, founded it along with a group of San Antonio businessmen. The castle-like building which was once its brewery now houses the San Antonio Museum of Art. Lone Star beer was the company's main brand. The beer is still marketed as "The National Beer of Texas." The Lone Star name is now owned by Pabst Brewing Company. Production of Lone Star is currently contracted out to Miller Brewing Company in Fort Worth. The Lone Star name is used in the Philippines under license to Asia Brewery for a brand of light beer.
The latest commercial being broadcast in the Bellingham area is of a motorcycle traveling along a country road which leads to a snowcapped mountain. The noise made by the motorcycle has been adjusted to a subliminal "R-r-r-Rainier-r-".. . leaving the viewer wondering if he is hearing things.
Sleeman purchased the Stroh Brewing Co. portfolio of discount beers in 1999 for $39-million. With brands including Old Milwaukee, Pabst Blue Ribbon, the deal helped Sleeman double the company's volumes but in a category with lower margins than premium beer