28 Mar Falls City Beer Completes its Rise in Louisville
by Mark E. Lasbury for Indiana On Tap
On Friday, March 30, Falls City Beer opens its taproom and beer garden in downtown Louisville (901 E. Liberty St.). It’s been a long time coming, but twelve taps of Falls City Beer in their own taproom is a welcome sight for their many fans, both old and new. The question now is – will they serve Billy Beer?
Before a revival of Falls City Beer brand in 2010 and the subsequent sale of the company to Neace Ventures of Louisville, Falls City beer had a long and interesting story. The company, as first formed in 1905 by some grocers and tavern owners, was a stick in the eye to the larger brewing companies of Louisville after they formed an alliance to try and control all beer flow in the city.
By 1907 Falls City had a 75,000 bbl capacity brewery on the west side, just a few blocks from where Shawnee Park is today. Just a year later they added a bottling plant and were serving about a half dozen beers across town both in bottle and on draft. By 1912 the brewery was profitable and grew at an amazing rate right up until Prohibition shut down alcohol production and sales in 1919.
Falls City Beer is returning to Louisville in total. photo credit: Flick River
Surviving with soft drink production during the dark years, Falls City came back with a vengeance in the 1930s and briefly became the official beer of the Indianapolis 500 during that decade. They brewed over 750,000 gallons of beer by the early 1950s and distributed to five states outside Kentucky; things were looking good. In 1951, Lille Madden was elected president of the company, a bold move for the times, and led Falls City through the difficult times of brewery consolidation of the 60s.
The number of breweries nationwide shrunk disastrously during this period, and Falls City had problems as did most other independent breweries. Sales and distribution waned in the late 60s and 70s as national brands led and local loyalty declined. Then a light bulb (read last ditch effort) turned on and Falls City tried two different ideas to stay afloat. One was the Sta-Tab, a new pop top developed at Reynolds Metals (the aluminum foil people) which was first used for the first time anywhere on Falls City’s beer cans.
There was a period of consumer education involved in allowing the pull tab to remain on the can, and they did reduced litter – but they didn’t help sales much. The second idea was a bigger success, but only for a short period of time. In 1977 Falls City got Billy Carter, brother of the president, to endorse a specialty beer brewed by Falls City – Billy Beer.
photo credit: SMC electronics
The ploy almost worked. Billy Beer sold fairly well, if only for the novelty of it, but the blizzard of ’78 (we remember that here in Indiana) shut down production and distribution. The company shut down completely late in that same year, but some brands just refuse to die. In 2010, David Easterling purchased the rights to the Falls City name and started brewing and bottling a pale ale. The Falls City English Pale is still a flagship beer for the company and is based on the original 1905 recipe.
The company was acquired by Louisville-based Neace Ventures soon after revival and production and distribution increased. The majority of their beer was being contract brewed in Nashville, TN by Blackstone Brewing, but the plan was always to bring Falls City back to Louisville. The acquisition of Tin Man Brewing in Evansville brought some of the production closer to the home city and the company was housed in the Over the 9/Old 502 Winery complex on 10th st., but it wasn’t until 2017 that the plan to bring Falls City back completely was put into action.
The first location, in the Heine Coffee headquarters across from Falls of the Ohio didn’t work out, but the brewery and taproom is now ready to open on the NuLu/Phoenix Hill neighborhood border. The 4500 bbl or so production in 2017 will be significantly increased in 2018 using this new 7-bbl brewhouse, including beers for the core line up, rotating seasonals, and different series of specialty beers.
photo credit: Falls City Beer
The building at 901 E. Liberty is nearly 100 years old, but has been significantly renovated under the design plans of the Falls City company staff. There is 5100 sq. ft. space for the brewing and packaging, with room for expanding the brewhouse to 30 bbl as early as 2019). There is a full 4000 sq. ft. in the taproom and another 3100 in the beer garden. A bar, communal tables, and both high and low tops tables will accommodate patrons, as will a lounge with cushy chairs and couches.
The taproom and garden are dog-friendly and will have games, while growler fills, package sales, and merchandise will be available at the bar. The beer garden has picnic tables and a mural declaring, “Stand Up and Drink Good Beer.” A private events space called “Ben’s Beer Hall” will be good for parties up to about 50 (in near future), and is named for Falls City’s founder, Ben Schrader.
Falls City’s current president, Shane Uttich said on Falls City Beer’s blog, “We’re extremely excited to finally offer a public-facing taproom and brewery to serve as our home base.” He added, “It’s been a long process, but our team selflessly and collectively created an experience to show what the Falls City brand represents.” Mayor of Louisville Greg Fisher also commented in a prepared statement, “The addition of Falls City’s new taproom and brewery in the NuLu/Phoenix Hill neighborhood makes it even easier for residents and visitors alike to experience this iconic Louisville brand. Falls City continues to make investments in our city, and we raise a pint in celebration.”
The opening weekend event will feature many special tappings, but the core four lineup of the Pale Ale, Hipster Repellent IPA, Streetlamp Porter and Kentucky Common (my favorite), and a number of seasonals (12 taps total) will be available during all open hours (Tuesday to Sunday). Theirs is a three-way license, so wine and cocktails will be for sale in addition to the beer. Look for live music and other events in the near future, but for now, let’s just celebrate the phoenix that is Falls City Beer in Louisville.
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