NEW GLARUS - Dan and Deb Carey invited a few hundred friends to visit the Hilltop Brewery Saturday.
The $20 million brewery, located on Wisconsin 69 just south of New Glarus, has brewed beer for about a year and a half, but hasn't been open to the public.
Until now.
The Careys want people to feel at home in the brewery, whether they're on a tour of the facilities or at the gift shop. That's because even after running the business for 16 years they still view it as a local, small-town business.
"I think we're still a mom-and-pop business," Dan Carey said.
It's that kind of thinking that has helped the company continue to grow since it began in 1993.
There are 50 workers at New Glarus Brewery, who help to make more than 50 different kinds of beer. Carey said the brewery uses local ingredients to brew its beer.
According to the brewery's Web site, the Hilltop Brewery added 100,000 barrels to the 30,000 barrels produced at the original brewery. The company anticipates sales of more than 80,000 barrels in 2009.
Sales are only one part of the economic equation.
Carey said he hopes the brewery will benefit the economy by giving visitors another place to stop in New Glarus and Green County. It's hard to estimate how many people will visit the brewery every year but Carey expects the number to be anywhere from 50,000 to 100,000, he said.
Visitors will be able to tour the brewery every day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; the gift shop, which sells everything from books to shirts, will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visitors can also visit the tasting room from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.
The $20 million brewery, located on Wisconsin 69 just south of New Glarus, has brewed beer for about a year and a half, but hasn't been open to the public.
Until now.
The Careys want people to feel at home in the brewery, whether they're on a tour of the facilities or at the gift shop. That's because even after running the business for 16 years they still view it as a local, small-town business.
"I think we're still a mom-and-pop business," Dan Carey said.
It's that kind of thinking that has helped the company continue to grow since it began in 1993.
There are 50 workers at New Glarus Brewery, who help to make more than 50 different kinds of beer. Carey said the brewery uses local ingredients to brew its beer.
According to the brewery's Web site, the Hilltop Brewery added 100,000 barrels to the 30,000 barrels produced at the original brewery. The company anticipates sales of more than 80,000 barrels in 2009.
Sales are only one part of the economic equation.
Carey said he hopes the brewery will benefit the economy by giving visitors another place to stop in New Glarus and Green County. It's hard to estimate how many people will visit the brewery every year but Carey expects the number to be anywhere from 50,000 to 100,000, he said.
Visitors will be able to tour the brewery every day from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.; the gift shop, which sells everything from books to shirts, will be open from 10 a.m. to 5 p.m. Visitors can also visit the tasting room from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m.