Pioneer Brewing Company - Groovy Brew Kolsch

Groovy Brew is brewed with a combination of Briess two-row pale, munich and caramel malts. Bret hops it with Perle up front for their bittering contributions and with Spalt hops for aroma. Note a subtle floral hop nose and hint of pale maltiness in the nose of this golden colored, filtered lager. We found it slightly dry, a bit winey and offering a subtly sweet flowery palate. Kolsch beers are typically light-bodied, fine and delicate beers that are well attenuated. Maturation is typically 2 - 6 weeks. And we found Pioneer's Kolsch to be true to style. It's clean, crisp and would pair nicely with anything you could toss on a barbeque. Look for a dry, slightly bitter finish. Overall, a great representation of a style not often attempted by U.S. micros.

One day back in the Fall of 1996, brothers Jim and David Hellman were in their offices having a meeting. Both were Criminal Defense attorneys at Hellman Law Office, the firm bearing their name. During their discussion, it became clear to each that the other was looking to do something different. With their family having been in the beer wholesaling business for the past 25 years, beer seemed an obvious choice. After deciding against opening a brewpub, the brothers talked about opening a small brewery instead. It seemed crazy to walk away from a successful law practice, but after researching the idea of a brewery, the two were ready to go.

With their friends in the legal profession stunned, Jim and David started closing down their practice and began looking for a building to house a brewery. The two started talking about a building in Black River Falls that they had seen several years prior. The building was a very old, yet impressive three-story building, some 17,000 square-feet in size, with a heavy-duty service elevator, loading docks and large insulated "cold rooms" in the basement. If this sounds like the perfect setting for a brewery, it should. The building at 320 Pierce Street in Black River Falls that eventually turned into the brothers' Pioneer Brewing Company is the original site of the Oderbolz Brewery that operated from 1856 until Prohibition.

Although Jim and David were responsible for getting the brewery up and running, they did not have a lot of brewing experience. To solve that problem, they brought in Todd Krueger from Port Washington Brewing Company. Their choice for brewmaster paid off well as Krueger has produced several award winning beers for Pioneer. Joining Todd at Pioneer is Bret Campion, formerly of New Belgium Brewing and Left Hand Brewing, both in Colorado. Together they produce some of the best beers in Wisconsin!