Wisconsin Breweries History: Northern Brewing Company
The Northern Brewiug Company was founded in 1890 by Louis
Rueping and John A. Klinkert as the KIinkert Brewing Company. Both
Klinkert and Rueping had worked many years in the brewing business
before setting up this brewery in West Superior, Wisconsin.
After Klinkert's partnership ended in 1898, Louis Rueping renamed the
original brewery the L. Rueping Company. In the following months, he
reorganized and incorporated the Northern Brewing Company. Northern
eventually grew to become one of Superior's most prosperous industries.
At one time, Northern beer outsold the combined sales of all other
brands in the city.
Superior, Spooner and Rice Lake were Northern's biggest accounts
in Wisconsin, but the brewery regularly sent two semi-truckloads of beer
to the Milwaukee area. When the brewery was using a Circuit brewmaster,
a bad batch of Northern beer left the brewery. Beer was returned to the
brewery by the truck load. The mistake was costly to the brewery. Many
long-time accounts never called on the Northern brewery again.
After five years of declining sales, the officers of the Northern
Brewing Company announced on February 13, 1967, that the brewery would cease
operations at the end of the week. The announcement was anti-climactic,
since no beer had been brewed since the previous December. The Northern beer
label and its distribution network were sold to the Cold Spring Brewing
Company of Minnesota. Cold Spring brewed Northern beer, but could not
overcome - or benefit ftom - its past reputation. The brand was
discontinued in 1995.
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