City Brewing Company

City Brewing Company, also known as City Brewery, is an American brewing and beverage-manufacturing company headquartered in La Crosse, Wisconsin. The company was established in 1999 when a group of investors acquired the former G. Heileman brewery buildings in La Crosse. Although the new company was created under the City Brewing name, its principal facility carried a much older brewing legacy: German immigrants John Gund and Gottlieb Heileman had established the G. Heileman Brewing Company in La Crosse in the nineteenth century. City Brewing therefore combined a modern ownership structure with one of the region’s most historically important brewing sites. The La Crosse plant has been the company’s flagship operation. It occupies the former Heileman complex and is described as having annual brewing capacity of up to approximately seven million barrels. Its twin-stream brewhouse can handle as many as 16 separate brews at the same time, with reported output of roughly 1,100 barrels per day. The facility’s importance is not limited to beer production: it represents the company’s original operating base and supports the contract and branded manufacturing work associated with City Brewing’s business. City Brewing expanded beyond Wisconsin during the 2000s and early 2010s. In 2006 it agreed to acquire the Latrobe Brewery in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, the historic home of Rolling Rock production. The plant reopened under City Brewing in 2007 and initially produced Samuel Adams beer for Boston Beer Company. That arrangement was disrupted when Boston Beer moved production elsewhere after a temporary shutdown and workforce reduction at Latrobe in late 2008. City Brewing subsequently restored activity at the site through agreements with Iron City Brewing and other customers. The Latrobe facility later added canning capabilities, including lines for 12-ounce, 16-ounce, and later 24-ounce packages, and has produced brands such as Iron City, Stoney’s, Stoney’s Light, and selected Southampton products. In March 2011, City Brewing acquired a Memphis, Tennessee, brewery originally built by Schlitz in 1971 and later associated with Coors. The company has also been identified with facilities in Irwindale, California, and La Crosse, giving it a geographically distributed production footprint within the United States. Its business model is primarily manufacturing-oriented: it operates brewing and packaging facilities that can produce beer for brand owners, retailers, and other brewing companies, rather than functioning solely as a consumer-facing proprietary beer brand. City Brewing’s product activity has included both contract production and company-associated labels. In addition to traditional beer brewing, its facilities support packaging in bottles, cans, and kegs, depending on the site and customer requirements. The company has produced established regional and national beers, seasonal and specialty offerings, and more recent products such as Real American Beer, which it has produced since 2024. The available reference material does not identify a single permanent flagship consumer brand owned across the entire company. The company remains an active United States brewing enterprise. Its historical significance comes from the continuity of the La Crosse brewing site, while its commercial identity is based on multi-site production, contract brewing, packaging, and the operation or acquisition of established brewery properties.

City Brewing Company was founded in 1999 after a group of investors acquired the former G. Heileman brewery buildings in La Crosse, Wisconsin. The acquisition restored brewing activity at the site under a new corporate identity, although the location’s history reached back to the nineteenth century, when John Gund and Gottlieb Heileman, German immigrants, established the G. Heileman Brewing Company in La Crosse. The former Heileman complex became City Brewing’s flagship facility and remains central to the company’s identity and production capacity. The La Crosse operation developed into a large-scale brewing and packaging site. Reference material describes capacity of up to seven million barrels annually, while its twin-stream brewhouse can manage 16 separate brews simultaneously and produce approximately 1,100 barrels per day. These capabilities supported the company’s development as a manufacturer for multiple beer brands rather than as a business dependent on one proprietary label. City Brewing’s first major expansion outside Wisconsin came with its agreement in September 2006 to acquire the Latrobe Brewery in Latrobe, Pennsylvania. The plant was historically associated with Rolling Rock, but Anheuser-Busch had moved Rolling Rock production to New Jersey. City Brewing completed the purchase, and the brewery reopened in March 2007. Boston Beer Company committed between three and seven million dollars toward plant improvements, and the site began making Samuel Adams beer that spring. Production was expected to reach approximately 200,000 to 250,000 barrels during the remainder of 2007. The Latrobe operation encountered difficulties in 2008. City Brewing-Latrobe laid off about 70 employees in late October, temporarily shut down, and stopped brewing at the plant in November. Boston Beer moved its production to a former Schaefer brewery in Pennsylvania’s Lehigh Valley. In May 2009, Iron City Brewing signed an agreement with City Brewing to restart production at Latrobe. Brewing was planned for June, while bottling and kegging resumed in July. Southampton products, including Double White, IPA, Altbier, Pumpkin, and Imperial Porter, were also transferred to Latrobe from Lion Brewing in 2009. The plant added a canning line for 12-ounce and 16-ounce containers and later introduced a 24-ounce format. Latrobe has also been associated with production of Iron City, Stoney’s, and Stoney’s Light. In March 2011, City Brewing purchased a brewery in Memphis, Tennessee. The facility had originally been constructed by Schlitz in 1971 and was later owned by Coors. The acquisition broadened City Brewing’s geographic reach and added another established industrial brewing site to its network. The company has also been described as operating locations in Irwindale, California, in addition to La Crosse, Latrobe, and Memphis. City Brewing’s operating model centers on brewing, packaging, and related manufacturing services. Its facilities can produce beer for external brand owners and brewing companies, as illustrated by the Samuel Adams relationship and the later Iron City arrangement. The company’s activity has included beer in bottles, cans, and kegs, as well as seasonal and specialty products. Since 2024, it has produced Real American Beer. The name City Brewery also appears in the histories of unrelated earlier brewing businesses, including a Wisconsin company founded by Johann Braun in 1846 and a Dunkirk, New York, company founded by George Dotterweich in 1855. Those historical entities are distinct from the modern City Brewing Company covered here.

• 2024

  Real American Beer production

  [1]City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org

  City Brewing began producing Real American Beer, according to the cited reference material.

• 2011

  Memphis brewery acquisition

  [1]City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org

  City Brewing purchased a Memphis brewery built by Schlitz in 1971 and later owned by Coors.

• 2009

  Latrobe production resumes through new customer agreements

  [1]City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org

  Iron City Brewing contracted with City Brewing to restart production at Latrobe, while additional Southampton products were transferred to the plant.

• 2009

  Latrobe expands canning formats

  [1]City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The Latrobe site installed canning equipment for 12-ounce and 16-ounce packages and later added 24-ounce packaging.

• 2008

  Latrobe production interruption

  [1]City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org

  A workforce reduction and temporary shutdown interrupted brewing at Latrobe, after which Boston Beer moved its production elsewhere.

• 2007

  Latrobe plant reopens

  [1]City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org

  The Latrobe brewery reopened under City Brewing and began producing Samuel Adams beer for Boston Beer Company.

• 2006

  Latrobe Brewery acquisition agreement

  [1]City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org

  City Brewing agreed to acquire the historic Latrobe Brewery in Pennsylvania after Rolling Rock production left the site.

• 1999

  City Brewing Company is established in La Crosse

  [1]City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org

  A group of investors acquired the former G. Heileman brewery buildings and established City Brewing Company.

A multi-site American brewing and beverage manufacturing platform focused on contract production, packaging, brewery operations, and the preservation or reuse of established brewing facilities.

• Beer manufacturing service

  Contract-brewed beer

  A central part of City Brewing’s business is the production and packaging of beer for outside brand owners and brewing companies. The company’s multi-site network allows customers to use established industrial breweries for brewing, bottling, canning, and kegging. Samuel Adams production for Boston Beer Company and later Iron City production at Latrobe illustrate this contract-manufacturing role.

• Beer · 2007

  Samuel Adams

  City Brewing produced Samuel Adams beer at the Latrobe Brewery for Boston Beer Company beginning in 2007. The arrangement followed the reopening of the Latrobe facility, which received investment commitments for plant upgrades. Boston Beer later transferred its production to another Pennsylvania facility after the Latrobe plant’s 2008 interruption.

• Beer · 2009

  Iron City Beer

  Iron City Brewing entered into an agreement with City Brewing in 2009 to use the Latrobe brewery. Production, bottling, and kegging were scheduled to restart in stages, making Iron City one of the principal products associated with the plant after Samuel Adams production moved away.

• Beer

  Stoney’s and Stoney’s Light

  City Brewing has produced Stoney’s and Stoney’s Light at the Latrobe facility. The reference material identifies these as products made at the plant, but does not provide additional information about ownership, distribution, or current production status.

• Specialty and seasonal beer · 2009

  Southampton beer line

  Several Southampton products, including Double White, IPA, Altbier, Pumpkin, and Imperial Porter, were moved to Latrobe from Lion Brewing in 2009. These products expanded the range of specialty and seasonal beers produced at the Pennsylvania site.

• Beer · 2024

  Real American Beer

  City Brewing has produced Real American Beer since 2024. The available material identifies the production relationship but does not specify which City Brewing facility makes the product or describe the commercial terms.

• 2011

  Purchase the Memphis breweryM&A

  Background

  City Brewing sought to expand its geographically distributed brewing network beyond Wisconsin and Pennsylvania.

  Action taken

  The company bought a Memphis brewery originally built by Schlitz in 1971 and later owned by Coors.

  Aftermath

  The acquisition added a Tennessee production site to City Brewing’s multi-location United States manufacturing platform.

  Source

• 2006

  Acquire and reactivate the Latrobe BreweryM&A

  Background

  The historic Latrobe plant had lost Rolling Rock production after Anheuser-Busch moved it to New Jersey, creating uncertainty about the future of the Pennsylvania facility.

  Action taken

  City Brewing agreed to purchase the brewery and reopened it in 2007, initially using the site to produce Samuel Adams for Boston Beer Company.

  Aftermath

  The plant experienced a production interruption in 2008, but later resumed activity through Iron City and other customer agreements and added canning capacity.

  Source

1. 1City Brewing Companyen.wikipedia.org
2. 2City Brewing Company official websitecitybrewery.com