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Molson Coors Will Shut Down Leinenkugel’s Legacy Chippewa Falls Brewery

Nov. 6, 2024

After more than 157 years, the Leinenkugel’s facility will close in January, as will a smaller brewery in Milwaukee.

The Leinenkugel brewery in Chippewa Falls, Wis., will be closed by Molson Coors, according to an announcement from the company carried in local news reports, ending production there after more than 157 years.

Molson Coors chief supply chain officer Brian Erhardt said in a statement that an ongoing canning line investment project at the company’s Milwaukee brewery and the end of a large contract brewing agreement let to the company’s decision to close the Chippewa Falls brewery as well as another smaller brewery in Wisconsin (reportedly the Leinenkugel brewery on 10^th Street in Milwaukee, the news outlet said).

Erhardt said that Leinenkugel’s will continue to play a role in the company’s premiumization plans, and that the Leinie Lodge and adjacent pilot brewery in Chippewa Falls would remain open year-round. Miller Brewing acquired Leinenkugel’s in 1988.

Dick Leinenkugel, former president of the Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Co., told the news outlet that Molson Coors leadership doesn’t take decisions like these lightly, and that none of the Leinenkugel family members were consulted or made aware of the plan.

Molson Coors plans to close the facility Jan. 17, 2025. The Chippewa Falls brewery employs about 120 workers and produces approximately 185,000 barrels of beer per year, the report said, citing the Molson Coors web site.

About the Author

Andy Hanacek | Senior Editor

Andy Hanacek has covered meat, poultry, bakery and snack foods as a B2B editor for nearly 20 years, and has toured hundreds of processing plants and food companies, sharing stories of innovation and technological advancement throughout the food supply chain. In 2018, he won a Folio:Eddie Award for his unique "From the Editor's Desk" video blogs, and he has brought home additional awards from Folio and ASBPE over the years. In addition, Hanacek led the Meat Industry Hall of Fame for several years and was vice president of communications for We R Food Safety, a food safety software and consulting company.