4 days ago
The history behind Iron City Beer
From U.S Steel and Heinz to the Clark Bar and Iron City Beer, Pittsburgh has many world-famous brands and inventions.
Southwestern Pennsylvanians are often extremely dedicated to their branding heritages.
Take Iron City Beer, which has been one of those long-time survivors of Pittsburgh brands.
It's been doing your thirst a favor since 1861. That's the start of the Civil War, and how long Iron City Beer has been part of the proud fabric of Pittsburgh.
"Wherever you're from, if there's an institution or business that's been around for that long, you wear it on your sleeve. You're proud of it. You say, 'Oh, I'm from Pittsburgh, that's where Iron City is made,'" said Rachel Gill, Pittsburgh Brewing Company's marketing director.
Created, bottled and shipped out from here, about 20 minutes from Downtown, going up Route 28.
It's moved several times and been through several owners.
The latest owner, No. 6 to be exact, bought the full brand seven years ago and is serious about keeping its long-lived, well-loved heritage.
"In 2018, back track a little bit, that's when Cliff Forrest came in. He's a local man, owns a coal mining business, that is his start-up, but he came in a purchased Pittsburgh Brewing Company because he wanted Pittsburgh to have its brewery back," Gill recounted.
Chuck Puckett is the company historian. He's shown all types of memorabilia from the past, a past rich in the type of person who made Iron City famous then and now.
"It really appeals to the work ethic that is prevalent to the Pittsburgh area," Puckett said. "All the way back to the 1800s, you had to have a good beer to quench the thirst of a working man, whether he be a miner, a steel worker, or laborer."
To bring us to the current day, just last week, workers started brewing their Block House Pumpkin Ale. Scheduled to be released next month, it is the No. 1 selling pumpkin ale in western Pennsylvania.
