Matt Brewing Company
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Matt Brewing Company is an American family-owned brewery at the foothills of the Adirondack Mountains in Utica, New York. It is the third oldest family-owned brewery in in the United States, after D. G. Yuengling & Son and August Schell Brewing Company. Its most popular product is the Saranac line of beers, although soft drinks are also produced by the company.
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[edit] History
After working at the Duke of Baden Brewery of the Black Forest region in Baden, Germany, Francis Xavier Matt I immigrated to the United States in 1885. This German brewer worked at the Charles Bierbauer Brewery as lead salesman and brewmaster in Utica for a few years before reorganizing it into The West End Brewing Company in 1888.
During Prohibition the company stayed afloat by producing soft drinks under the label Utica Club. After the end of Prohibition, Utica Club became the name of the brewery's flagship beer, promoted during the 1950s and 1960s by two puppet characters, Schultz and Dooley, voiced by Jonathan Winters.
The brewery, later renamed Matt Brewing Company, became popular throughout the Northeast based on Utica Club and its current flagship beer, Saranac. The company is in its fourth generation of family ownership and is led by Nick Matt (president) and Fred Matt (vice president). The brewery is served by the New York, Susquehanna and Western Railway (NYS&W) from their line next to the brewery which runs down the middle of Schuyler Street. The NYS&W delivers covered hoppers carrying the grain products needed for brewing. Insulated boxcars carrying the finished product out of the brewery are also brought out daily by NYS&W. Gondolas carrying glass for recycling are also seen in the consist of NYS&W locals serving the brewery.
On May 29, 2008 a section of the packaging (bottling and canning) area of the plant caught fire. The extent of the damage is not yet known, although brewery President Nick Matt said the brewing, aging and racking (where beer is put in kegs) areas were undamaged. [1]
[edit] Products
Beers produced by Matt Brewing Company include Adirondack Lager (German amber lager), Black & Tan (stout/amber lager blend), Pale Ale (English pale ale), Black Forest (Bavarian Schwarzbier), India Pale Ale, Lager (traditional American lager), and a seasonal Belgian White (white beer).
In addition to beers sold in traditional packaging, Saranac sells assorted beers in twelve packs as its Adirondack Trail Mix and seasonally as the Twelve Beers of Winter (called the Twelve Beers of Christmas until the 2006-2007 season). A number of family brands such as Kaltenberg, Black Cola, Two Dogs, and X.O. Premium Bland are all recognized products of the brewery.
In the late 1970s, Matt Brewery was one of the four breweries that produced Billy Beer. In the mid-80s at the dawn of the craft-brewing movement, Matt contract-brewed many of the East Coast's most successful brands: New Amsterdam Amber Beer, Pete's Wicked, Brooklyn Lager, Newman's Albany Amber, Dock Street Amber and Olde Heurich.
In addition to beer, Matt Brewery also distributes popular soft drinks, notably the Saranac Root Beer. Other drinks include diet Root Beer, Shirley Temple, Orange Cream, Ginger Beer, and Sparkling Lemonade.
