Killebrew Root Beer

Last updated
Killebrew Root Beer
TypeRoot Beer
ManufacturerCold Spring Brewing Company
DistributorRJM Distributing
Introduced1996
Ingredients carbonated water, high fructose corn syrup, honey, caramel color, natural & artificial colors, citric acid
Killebrew Root Beer and Cream Soda in tallboy cans Killebrew beverages.jpg
Killebrew Root Beer and Cream Soda in tallboy cans

Killebrew Root Beer is a root beer beverage produced with the endorsement of former Minnesota Twins baseball player Harmon Killebrew and currently sold by RJM Distributing. [1] The product is sold in 12 fl-oz glass bottles and tallboy 16 fl-oz cans covered in flat retro branding featuring a baseball diamond, a reproduction of Killebrew's signature, his retired number 3, a vertical stripe pattern reminiscent of Twins uniforms during his time playing, "Old-Fashioned" branding, [2] and the slogan, "With the Hall of Fame Taste", alluding to Killebrew's 1984 induction into the National Baseball Hall of Fame. [3] The company also sells a cream soda under similar branding. [1]

Contents

Killebrew Root Beer is advertised as being sweetened with Minnesota honey. [3] [4] The beverages are sold at concessions stands and by roving vendors in the Twins' Target Field, [4] [5] [6] at Hammond Stadium, the Twins' spring training home in Fort Myers, Florida, [7] and at CHS Field, the home of the St. Paul Saints. [7] [8] At Target Field, Killebrew Root Beer is also used in root beer floats at Townball Tavern. [4] [9] In addition, it is sold in several restaurants, grocers, department stores, and convenience stores in Minnesota and the wider Midwest, notably Target, Hy-Vee, Lunds & Byerly's, and Cub Foods. [10]

History

Killebrew has been in production since at least 1996 by Cold Spring Brewing Company in Cold Spring, Minnesota. [11] [12] In 2003, a website was launched for Killebrew Beverages, a company based in Burnsville, Minnesota that offered three flavors: 'Rootbeer' [sic], 'Honey Cream', and 'Honey Lemon'. [13]

According to the 2003 site, the idea of launching a root beer brand can be traced back to 1984, when Harmon Killebrew supposedly received a "commemorative soda can" for being entered into the Baseball Hall of Fame. His son, Ken Killebrew, then "heard him joke, 'We ought to put a brew in this and sell it!'". The old website also claims that Ken started producing the beverage in 1993 based on "an old family recipe for root beer". [13]

Later, Killebrew Root Beer was absorbed into RJM Distributing, based in Ramsey, Minnesota. [3] Cold Spring Brewing Company was sold to a private equity firm in 2017 called Brynwood Partners. [14] The branding relationship with RJM is handled by Ken Killebrew, [15] especially now after his father's death in 2011. [2] [6]

In 2015, RJM Distributing ran a contest campaign to cross-promote the creation of a Harmon Killebrew US postage stamp by offering a free year of root beer. [7]

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Minnesota Twins</span> Major League Baseball franchise in Minneapolis, Minnesota

The Minnesota Twins are an American professional baseball team based in Minneapolis. The Twins compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the American League (AL) Central Division. The team is named after the Twin Cities moniker for the two adjacent cities of Minneapolis and Saint Paul.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Root beer</span> North American carbonated beverage

Root beer is a sweet North American soft drink traditionally made using the root bark of the sassafras tree Sassafras albidum or the vine of Smilax ornata as the primary flavor. Root beer is typically, but not exclusively, non-alcoholic, caffeine-free, sweet, and carbonated. Like cola, it usually has a thick and foamy head. A common use is to add vanilla ice cream to make a root beer float.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Metropolitan Stadium</span> Baseball stadium in Minnesota, US

Metropolitan Stadium was an outdoor sports stadium in the north central United States, located in Bloomington, Minnesota, a suburb of Minneapolis.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Harmon Killebrew</span> American baseball player (1936-2011)

Harmon Clayton Killebrew Jr., nicknamed "the Killer" and "Hammerin' Harmon", was an American professional baseball first baseman, third baseman, and left fielder. He spent most of his 22-year career in Major League Baseball (MLB) with the Minnesota Twins. A prolific power hitter, Killebrew had the fifth-most home runs in major league history at the time of his retirement. He was second only to Babe Ruth in American League (AL) home runs, and was the AL career leader in home runs by a right-handed batter. Killebrew was inducted into the National Baseball Hall of Fame in 1984.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Tony Oliva</span> Cuban baseball player (born 1938)

Tony Pedro Oliva is a Cuban former professional baseball player and coach. He played his entire career in Major League Baseball as a right fielder and designated hitter for the Minnesota Twins from 1962 to 1976. An eight-time All-Star player, Oliva was an integral member of the Twins teams that won the 1965 American League pennant and two consecutive American League Western Division titles in 1969 and 1970.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Stevens Point Brewery</span> Regional brewery in Stevens Point, Wisconsin

Stevens Point Brewery is a regional American brewery located in Stevens Point, Wisconsin. The brewery is the fifth-oldest continuously operating brewery and the third-oldest privately owned brewery in the nation.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Homer Hanky</span> American handkerchief

The Official Star Tribune Homer Hanky is a handkerchief-like rally towel printed for the Minnesota Twins. It was first introduced during the 1987 pennant race by the Minneapolis Star Tribune as a promotional item when the Twins won the American League Western division. Homer Hankies have been reprinted with different designs over the years to commemorate various occasions, including division titles, the inaugural opening day at Target Field, and the 2014 All Star Game. The Homer Hanky has been manufactured by several companies over the years, including Bensussen, Deutsch & Associates LLC and Winona, Minnesota based company, WinCraft Inc.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">IBC Root Beer</span> American soda brand

IBC Root Beer is an American brand of root beer now owned by Keurig Dr Pepper. It was originally owned by IBC until it went out of business.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">A&W Root Beer</span> Root beer brand

A&W Root Beer is an American brand of root beer that was founded in 1919 by Roy W. Allen and primarily available in the United States and Canada. Allen partnered with Frank Wright in 1922, creating the A&W brand and inspiring a chain of A&W Restaurants founded that year. Originally, A&W Root Beer sold for five cents.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sprecher Brewery</span> Craft brewery in Wisconsin, U.S.

Sprecher Brewery is a brewery in Glendale, Wisconsin, U.S. It was founded in 1985 in Milwaukee by Randal Sprecher, and is Milwaukee's first craft brewery since Prohibition. Sprecher produces an assortment of beers, flavored malt beverages, and craft sodas, and it is famous for its root beer.

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Genesee Brewing Company</span> Brewery in Rochester, New York, U.S.

Genesee Brewing Company is an American brewery located along the Genesee River in Rochester, New York. From 2000 to 2009, the company was known as the High Falls Brewing Company. In 2009, High Falls was acquired by the capital investment firm KPS Capital. Together with newly acquired Labatt USA, KPS merged the two companies as North American Breweries. Along with this change, High Falls Brewery changed its name back to the original "Genesee Brewing Company" operating under the North American Breweries name. In October 2012, North American Breweries was purchased by FIFCO.

Ray Eugene Scott was an American sportscaster, best known for his broadcasts for the Green Bay Packers of the National Football League (NFL). His brother Hal Scott was also a sportscaster.

Halsey Lewis Hall was a sports reporter and announcer in the Minneapolis–Saint Paul area from 1919 until the 1970s.

The 1971 Minnesota Twins finished 74–86, fifth in the American League West. 940,858 fans attended Twins games, the fifth-highest total in the American League, the first time the Twins failed to attract over one million fans since moving to Minnesota.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Danny Thompson (baseball)</span> American baseball player (1947-1976)

Danny Leon Thompson was an American college and professional baseball player, a major league shortstop from 1970 to 1976. Diagnosed with leukemia in early 1973 at age 26, he played four more seasons in the majors and died ten weeks after his final game.

The 1965 Major League Baseball All-Star Game was the 36th midseason exhibition between the all-stars of the American League (AL) and the National League (NL), the two leagues comprising Major League Baseball. The game was played on July 13, 1965, at Metropolitan Stadium in Bloomington, Minnesota, home of the Minnesota Twins of the American League. The game resulted in a 6–5 victory for the NL.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">2015 Minnesota Twins season</span> Major League Baseball team season

The 2015 Minnesota Twins season was the 55th season for the franchise in the Twin Cities of Minnesota, their sixth season at Target Field and the 115th overall in the American League. The team finished second in the American League Central with an 83–79 record, their best overall result since the 2010 season, which was the last year they made the playoffs. The team remained in the running for a wild card berth in the American League playoffs until losing Game 161. They would eventually win a wild card berth two years later, in 2017. In between, however, the team lost 103 games.

References

  1. 1 2 RJM Distributing, Inc. (April 26, 2010). "Hall of Famer Harmon Killebrew Signs Agreement With RJM Distributing to Officially Endorse Killebrew Beverages". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2024-02-08.
  2. 1 2 Rushin, Steve (May 17, 2011). "Grace and humility defined the great slugger Harmon Killebrew". Sports Illustrated . Archived from the original on 2011-05-20.
  3. 1 2 3 "Killebrew Root Beer | The Killebrew Story" . Retrieved 2024-02-08.
  4. 1 2 3 North, Delaware (2010-04-01). "Target Field Touches All Bases with Food and Beverage". Delaware North Newsroom. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
  5. ↑ "Twins Hall Of Famer Killebrew Dies At Age 74 - CBS Minnesota". WCCO-TV, CBS News . 2011-05-17. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  6. 1 2 "Hall of Famer Killebrew dies of cancer at age 74". ESPN . 2011-05-17. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
  7. 1 2 3 Cole, Howard (July 26, 2015). "Sign the Petition For A Harmon Killebrew Postage Stamp And You Could Win Free Root Beer For A Year". Forbes. Retrieved 2024-02-08.
  8. ↑ Tribune, Star. "Hits and misses, food- and drink-wise, at St. Paul's dazzling new CHS Field". Star Tribune. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  9. ↑ "A Taste Of Target Field". WCCO-TV, CBS News . 2011-02-07. Retrieved 2024-02-11.
  10. ↑ "Killebrew Root Beer | Find Killebrew Near You" . Retrieved 2024-02-08.
  11. ↑ Kuss, Duane. "The Past, The Crash, The Future!". City of Cold Spring Government Office. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
  12. ↑ "Baseball Name Selling Root Beer". Tulsa World. 1993-06-12. Retrieved 2024-02-08.
  13. 1 2 "Welcome to the Killebrew Beverages official website!". Killebrew Beverages. 2003. Archived from the original on 2003-08-05.
  14. ↑ "USA: 143-year-old Cold Spring Brewing Co. sold to private equity firm". www.inside.beer. 2017-08-07. Retrieved 2024-02-08.
  15. ↑ McCall, William (1995-11-03). "Brewers Sense Root Beer War Ahead : Markets: Sale of Barq's to Coca-Cola gives each of Big Three at least one brand. And regional firms expand to meet demand for frothy concoction". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved 2024-02-09.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.