Blue Hen Brewery
The Blue Hen Brewing Co. was founded in 1987 by Jeff Johnson with the
mission to develop and introduce craft brewed beers into the Delaware Valley.
The Blue Hen flagship product, Blue Hen Beer, a Munich Helles lager, was introduced
in May of 1990.
The Blue Hen name comes from local folk lore recorded by Delaware
historians which relates to a certain leisurely activity known to have occurred
by one of the state’s Revolutionary War regiments. It’s told that during the early
days of the war, the men of Captian Jonathan Caldwell’s company took with them
gamecocks noted for their fighting ability. These particular fowl were of a brood
possessing blue features. The regiment fought at Long Island, White Plains,
Trenton, and Princeton and when not engaged with the enemy, amused themselves
by fighting the Blue Hens. The fame of the fights spread throughout the army
and soon the bravery in battle displayed by the regiment coupled with the
colorful gamecocks they carried with them earned the militia the name, "The
Fighting Blue Hens".
The rights to the Blue Hen brands were pruchased by Philadelphia's
Independence Brewing in 1998. Some of the award winning beers purchased include
the Blue Hen Lager, the Blue Hen Chocolate Porter and Blue Hen Black & Tan.
The Independance Brewing Company says that this purchase was to expand its
line of beers and help out sales in the Delaware location.
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