I can’t
believe the huge number of micro brewery’s that have developed over the past
decade or so. In the fifties we only had two breweries in the whole state,
Cremo and Hull’s. Cremo in New Britain
and Hulls, I believe in New Haven. I have a bit of a soft spot for both of them.
I delivered a great deal of Cremo when helping out at my uncle’s Beaver Package
store. If you had to make a pickup at the Cremo loading dock you saw something
that you would never see in today’s world. You had the opportunity to draw
yourself a free glass of beer right on the outside loading dock. Cremo waa a
popular beer and even became popular in New York when they came out with their
Diplomat brand in a clear glass bottle.
I don’t
remember too much about Hull’s, but In Scottie’s Restaurant, our family bar, I
pulled the handle and drew many glasses of Hull’s which was the bar’s signature
draft beer. My dad was so loyal to the
local Hulls beer that even though the taps showed many different beers, all the
lines were attached to kegs of Hulls in the cellar. Not legal but that was a
long time ago.
Now
back to today. I was very excited to
read an article about Cremo in the New Britain Herald and thought I would
reproduce it in part in case you haven’t had the opportunity to read it:
Raise a
glass to the rebirth of Cremo Beer
NEW
BRITAIN - Prepare to travel back in time Saturday at Alvarium Beer Co. with the
revival of Cremo Beer, the iconic local brew of the 1940s and 1950s. Alvarium
has teamed up with Avery’s Beverages to bring back the beer, known throughout
the state and the Northeast in its day as “Connecticut’s Best.” Avery’s
Beverages obtained the trademark for Cremo a few years ago. “When the guys from
Alvarium came along; I knew they would be the perfect partners to make Cremo a
reality,” said Rob Metz of Avery’s.
“Alvarium ended up locating their facility a couple blocks from where
the old Cremo factory was, and was further proof that the rebirth was meant to
be.”
“(Cremo)
was an important part of New Britain’s history,” said Chris DeGasero, head
brewer and co-owner at Alvarium. “Everyone we talked to always remembered back
when it was open. ... We wanted to bring that back in a big way.”
It all
started in 1905, when a New Britain Lithuanian, John Skirtusky, and a group of
investors reopened the failed Zunner Health Beer Co. - founded on Belden Street
in 1903 - as the Cremo Brewing Co. Unlike its predecessor, Cremo thrived until
the arrival of Prohibition in 1920. The brewery was able to stay open by making
a low-alcohol “near beer,” but in 1922 federal agents charged the company with
violating 13 provisions of the national Prohibition and Revenue Act, according
to Karen Hudkins, director of the New Britain Industrial Museum. Hudkins added
that, in that same year, hundreds of barrels of beer with 5 and 6 percent
alcohol content from Cremo were emptied into the sewers.
“The
plan was to sell the apparatus and lock the doors because … it is a losing
proposition to run a brewery in Prohibition land,” Hudkins said.
Once
Prohibition was repealed in 1933, Cremo opened its doors again with a new
brewmaster. The reopening brought over 5,000 people out to the brewery to
celebrate. The next 15 years marked the most successful period of Cremo’s
history. The plant was upgraded and a bottling line was added, followed by a
canning line in 1938. Cremo’s beer was distributed under a variety of brands,
with production of over 50,000 barrels per year.
By the
late 1940s, labor strife and increased pressure on the operation from rising
material and labor costs began to affect the business. The quality suffered and
competition increased, forcing the closing of the brewery in 1955. “We are
extremely excited that the famous Cremo Beer, which was a mainstay for
generations of New Britain residents, can be enjoyed once again. Cremo conjures
up a time period in our city when industry was in its golden era,” said Mayor
Erin Stewart. “It’s wonderful to see a long established business in our
community - Avery’s Beverages - team up with Alvarium to revive Cremo and
introduce it to a whole new generation of beer drinkers.”
For
those who were around during the days of Cremo, Saturday’s relaunched beverage
won’t taste exactly how you might have remembered it. DeGasero, who was tasked
with re-creating the Cremo brew, said rather than searching for one of the many
original recipes, he wanted to do things differently. “We found it more fun and
challenging to reimagine Cremo as a single beer; using ingredients that were
commonplace at that point in time while marrying it to modern brewing
practices,” DeGasero said.
I can’t
wait to try a glass or two….why not join me.
