West Bend, WI – In 1940, postcards were sent to neighbors around West Bend, Wi, announcing, “On Wednesday, December 11,1940, The Famous Lithia Christmas Brew will be ready for distribution. Best ever — try it — you will like it.” In the article below from 2007 is a list of taverns and liquormarts where Lithia was available in West Bend, Wi.
Different labels were designed for the seasonal beer. One paper label featured a green wreath with holly berries and a red bow. Inside the wreath was the familiar Lithia logo, underlined by the words “Christmas Beer” in thick German script.
Other designs featured the words “Holiday Brew” above a profile of Santa, who was bordered by pine branches.
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There was the red label special dark Christmas beer and the well-known Christmas label with six bearded elves each working to stoke the fire under the vat of beer, or pour hops, stir the mix, tap a pint and test the product.
Back in the 1940s neighbors around West Bend would receive a postcard in the mail announcing the ‘Famous Lithia Xmas Brew’ was ready for distribution.
The seasonal beer is fondly remembered by a lot of old timers around town including Herb Tennies. “It had a good flavor and gave you a lot of Christmas cheer,” said Tennies remembering some of the taverns that carried the local Lithia including Pat’s (Pault) Tavern located below the Bylow grocery store.
“That (Bylow’s grocery) used to be the Friday night stop for farmers that came to town,” said Tennies. “Their wives would do the shopping and the men would go to Pat’s and pick up supplies for the weekend.” Others who carried Christmas Lithia included Kuhn’s Liquor and Palashes Liquor in Barton.
Tennies said when the Lithia brewery was in town there was nothing like getting a freshly brewed beer right from the tap house.
“When I worked in construction with my dad and we worked putting additions on at the brewing company. They brought sausage from the butcher shop at 10 o’clock for your brunch break. And they brought fresh bread from the bakery and we’d go in the tap house and we’d have ice cold beer from the keg,” said Tennies recalling how they worked hard and we were happy working.
80-year-old Carl ‘Cracker’ Kircher of West Bend remembered Christmas Lithia. “It just had a darn good flavor and you didn’t get the headache you would with Old Timers,” said Kircher referencing one of Lithia’s other beers. “It wasn’t as heavy as their Old Timers. It was an in-between beer that was really flavorful.”
Kircher felt if the brewer had put out their specialty beer year round, the local brewery would still be operating. Lithia went out of business in West Bend in June, 1972. The brand names were sold to Walter Brewing of Eau Claire.
“We drank a lot of beer,” chuckled Kircher who now settles for Dos Equis, a Mexican beer.
In his heyday Kircher said he would buy his Christmas Lithia at several places around town including Kuhns Liquor, run by Jules Kuhns and Staehler’s Liquor which was next to Apple Barrel and is now Schalla Jewelers.
“Taverns sold Christmas Lithia in bottles,” said Ed German of West Bend who bought his stock from Kuhn’s Liquor which was located across from the old brewery, which was the old Kissinger Appliance building and the old Van Beek Harley Davidson, now Pruetts.
“Christmas Lithia was a little heavier beer and maybe a little darker,” said German who remembered paying $2 a case about 30 years ago and driving out of town to get the best bargain. “I used to go out to Schwai’s because he had a better price. I’d to buy five cases at a time and I think that would last me two to three weeks,” he said remembering how he’d carry the cases out one at a time and place them in the back of his station wagon.
“They came in 12 ounce bottles and you needed a bottle opener,” said German confirming twist-off tops hadn’t been invented yet.
Lithia’s Christmas beer was available nearly all year long. You could only buy Christmas beer in bottles, and you needed an opener to get the cap off. The beer didn’t come in cans, and it wasn’t on tap.
Lithia’s Christmas beer was sold by the case at liquor stores and at taverns within the West Bend area.
Berres Liquor Mart, Triangle Beverage Mart, The Oasis bar (by Gehl Company); Pat’s Tavern (owned by Pat Pault), Kuhn’s Liquor (Jules Kuhn), Palashes Liquor and Janz Liquormart in Barton were just some of the local distributors.