Does anybody know the history of this tray? Ornamental good sight for beer history info? Thanks
Don't know anything, but it's cool. Happy picking Scott.
The brewery survived Prohibition by manufacturing soda syrups and "near beer." When the booze ban ended in 1933, the brewery blasted onto the scene once again, the first brewery in the Northwestern United States to resume bottling.
After Prohibition, the Kalispell brewery produced a number of beers, including Glacier Special Beer, Topper Beer, Topper Deluxe and Glacier Bock.
Gus' Topper Beer was another favorite, named after Gustav Bischoff Jr., who with other members of his family bought the Kalispell brewery in 1935. It featured the cone-top can.
"They chose the high profile cone-top over the flat-top cans because they could be filled in the existing bottling equipment with some very minor modifications," Lozar explained.
Gus' Topper was brewed starting in 1952 in an effort to boost sagging beer sales. By that time competition from national brands and Missoula and Great Falls breweries was cutting into the Kalispell brewery's bottom line.
Bischoff's daughter, Helen Bischoff Jernberg, a longtime bookkeeper at the brewery, operated the business for many years with her husband, Arthur, until it closed in the mid-1950s. The Jernbergs continued to distribute Rainier and Hamm's beer through the 1970s, Lozar said.
When Kalispell Malting and Brewing Co. closed, it was the city's oldest business, a testament to the importance of beer in Kalispell's formative years.
Look's like I'm going to have to stop by.
Yes you should Richard. Thanks for the info.