Brew pub on tap for Yankton
By Tim Hynds Journal photo editor | Posted: Saturday, August 04, 2007
Commercial brewing will return to Yankton, S.D., after a 90-year absence, when Ben's Brewing Co. opens at 3 p.m. Tuesday.
Commercial brewing will return to Yankton, S.D., after a 90-year absence, when Ben's Brewing Co. opens at 3 p.m. Tuesday.
Owner Ben Hanten plans to open the tap on his White Whale Ale at his 10-barrel brewery in the renamed Hugh Glass Bar, 222 W. Third St. Yankton's last brewery was Schwenk-Barth Brewing Co., which closed in 1917.
White Whale Ale, a German-style hefeweizen that he compares to Paulaner Hefe-Weizen, will be the brewery's lone offering for the time being.
"It's my first big batch with the new (brewing) equipment," Hanten said, noting he brewed only six barrels for the opening. "I wanted to go a little smaller on this to make sure the quality matches (earlier smaller batches)."
Other beers are scheduled to join the company's lineup.
"In late September, I plan to make a brown ale or an Oktoberfest. (Oktoberfest) is my favorite style of beer, but that's more of a lager and the brewery is really set up for ales," Hanten said.
Future offerings may also include a red ale and a pale ale.
"I'd like to see four or five on tap at any one time," he said. "However, I don't see us as being exclusive. We have 12 tap lines, and I don't see us removing Guinness."
All of the beer is kegged in a kegging operation in the brew pub's basement.
"The nice thing about it is that Minerva's (restaurant) and others have sampled the beer and inquired about serving it," Hanten said. "The first priority is making the brew pub work, and the second is to get it into other outlets."
Although growlers -- 1-gallon bottle to go -- will be available, Hanten said there are no current plans to bottle his beer.
White Whale Ale, a name suggested by his girlfriend, is named after an abandoned Yankton party tradition that involved drinking and nudity, Hanten said.
"It was like a polar bear dive except that it was naked. Whoever could surface the best was the winner," he said. "The name is synonymous with a good time here."
An official ribbon cutting ceremony for the brewery is scheduled for 3 p.m. Thursday.
Commercial brewing will return to Yankton, S.D., after a 90-year absence, when Ben's Brewing Co. opens at 3 p.m. Tuesday.
Owner Ben Hanten plans to open the tap on his White Whale Ale at his 10-barrel brewery in the renamed Hugh Glass Bar, 222 W. Third St. Yankton's last brewery was Schwenk-Barth Brewing Co., which closed in 1917.
White Whale Ale, a German-style hefeweizen that he compares to Paulaner Hefe-Weizen, will be the brewery's lone offering for the time being.
"It's my first big batch with the new (brewing) equipment," Hanten said, noting he brewed only six barrels for the opening. "I wanted to go a little smaller on this to make sure the quality matches (earlier smaller batches)."
Other beers are scheduled to join the company's lineup.
"In late September, I plan to make a brown ale or an Oktoberfest. (Oktoberfest) is my favorite style of beer, but that's more of a lager and the brewery is really set up for ales," Hanten said.
Future offerings may also include a red ale and a pale ale.
"I'd like to see four or five on tap at any one time," he said. "However, I don't see us as being exclusive. We have 12 tap lines, and I don't see us removing Guinness."
All of the beer is kegged in a kegging operation in the brew pub's basement.
"The nice thing about it is that Minerva's (restaurant) and others have sampled the beer and inquired about serving it," Hanten said. "The first priority is making the brew pub work, and the second is to get it into other outlets."
Although growlers -- 1-gallon bottle to go -- will be available, Hanten said there are no current plans to bottle his beer.
White Whale Ale, a name suggested by his girlfriend, is named after an abandoned Yankton party tradition that involved drinking and nudity, Hanten said.
"It was like a polar bear dive except that it was naked. Whoever could surface the best was the winner," he said. "The name is synonymous with a good time here."
An official ribbon cutting ceremony for the brewery is scheduled for 3 p.m. Thursday.
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Annie wrote on Aug 7, 2007 4:36 PM: