Goat Island Brewing will reach a milestone this week when it begins canning its signature beer, Richter’s Pilsner.

The canning process will be an all-day affair Thursday, with 207,000 cans of Richter’s slated for fill-up, said John Dean, one of the brewing company’s owners.

“This is the big step that you have to work toward,” Dean said. “This will put our product in grocery stores, convenience stores and package stores all over the state, from Cullman to the coast.”

Richter’s won a bronze medal at the 2016 Alabama Craft Beer Championship. It is influenced by German and American traditions, much like the German immigrants that founded Cullman in the late 1800’s. A local merchant found a handwritten beer recipe in the attic of an old downtown building in Cullman. The recipe was found with other personal items of William Frederick Richter, who owned Richter’s Saloon in the late 1800s.

Dean the canning will begin at 7:30 a.m. take about 12 hours to complete. Toucan Mobile Canning has been contracted to perform the work.

“We’re excited that what has been our most popular product is shipping out across the state and carrying an interesting part of Cullman’s history with it,” Dean said. “We tell the story about the recipe and how far it dates back in Cullman’s history and people love it.”

Goat Island is also planning to announce a celebration event Friday for the public to commemorate the first canning of its product.

Other beers brewed at Goat Island include Big Bridge IPA, Sipsey River Red, The Colonel’s Fest Bier, Peace, Love, & Hippieweizen., Son of a Bridge Jumper, and Thrill Hill Vanilla Porter.

Goat Island has been sold across the state on tap and will continue in that capacity as well, Dean said.

 

David Palmer may be contacted at 256-734-2131, ext. 116.