Now, before people start going crazy thinking Yuengling? Really? I'll say - Yuengling holds a special place in my heart as it was my first really "good" beer that we drank in college. I'll never forget the excitement of paying the $5 for a party with a Yuengling keg at it. Being from PA and having roots in Scranton, PA also I've known Yuengling for a long time. I can't think of another beer, in Philly at least, that I could walk up to a bar, ask for a "lager" and get a Yuengling Lager. That's great branding right there, and huge brand equity. For those of you that don't know Yuengling is listed as the oldest brewery in North America. This was disputed for a while with Molson but they changes their tag line to say "America's Oldest Brewery" and all is good. The brewery in Pottsville, PA is a great visit for any beer enthusiast. It is small, cramped and fun to see how they made so much beer in such a tiny space. Also, I was amazed at how the trucks made it up the small alley-like streets of Pottsville for delivery. On our last visit they opened the old caves where they used to lager the beer. You can still see the portions of the walls the federal government built to block it during prohibition.
The tour at the original brewery is fun, winds all along the various stages and steps in brewing. The problem is, the brewery in Pottsville is no longer active. Kinda like the original St. James brewery of Guinness in Dublin, it has become a museum of sorts, which I found disappointing during my last visit. They have upgraded and built a state of the art facility near by as well as in Tampa, FL (how fitting.) I remember visiting 10 years ago, when they were still brewing there, and it was heaven. The smell of the hops and malt and grain permeated the place and I loved that. I think they should still brew for the tours and sell limited edition brewery batches. That would be fun.
The tour is filled with history and interesting stories of the Yuengling family and how they've passed the business down generation after generation. This is what in a dream world I'd love Mellody Brewing to become, a legacy. By putting my name on the beer and the company I stand behind it as the founder, and the growth of that legacy - its impact on the community, etc. is where I would like to see it go. Not only making good beer, but making a difference too. That's the dream part of this endeavor, it may take years and generations but how cool would that be?!
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