THE BEGINNINGS
- Of Bavarian Brewery
THE BEGINNINGS
- Of Bavarian Brewery
ADS - From Newspapers
MEMORIES
OF THE BAVARIAN BREWERY
And Bavarian's Beer
After Kenton County acquired the Bavarian Brewery in 2016 property they asked people to share their recollections and memories of the Bavarian Brewery with a link on their website. Several of these recollections can be viewed below. In addition, others have recently been willing to share their stories that are also provided below. Any memories will remain confidential, unless you specifically request your name to be shown. If you submit a story, or have submitted one, and would like to have your name attached, please let us know.
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PERSONAL REFLECTIONS
The Bavarian Brewery brewed and distributed beer. However, it also provided livelihoods and an extended family to many men and women who worked at the brewery. The children and even grandchildren of family and friends that were involved with the brewery had some meaningful memories of the brewery as well. Further, after the brewery property was renovated an used as Brew Works and Jillian's, there were also others that had gainful employment and had unique experiences. Please share your memories my submitting the form on the right.
Share A
Memory
If you have a memory you'd like to share about the Bavarian Brewery, Jillian's or Brew Works, please fill out the form below.
MEMORIES OF THE BAVARIAN BREWERY
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Cold Pretzels & Root Beer at the Bavarian Tap Room
One weekend while I was in grade school my father needed to go to work at the Bavarian Brewery and took me along. It was a real treat when he showed me the Bavarian Tap Room. I remember sitting down at a big table, and feeling like an adult. There was someone attending the room and I seem to recall them being hesitant with what to do with me. However, after they pondered for a moment, I was asked if I wanted something to eat and drink. In a refrigerator full of beer barrels and bottles, there was also some soda and stick pretzels. The cold pretzels were served to me in a small wood bowl and the root beer came in a frosty mug. It was an extremely enjoyable experience for me that I’ll never forget. It was my first beer in a bar! I don’t believe I’ve ever had refrigerated pretzels again, especially in wood bowl. But there was something very special about it at the time, and I thought they were great. It’s been many years since, but whenever I buy stick pretzels or see them served, I usually recall visiting the Bavarian Tap Room with my dad.
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Using A Bavarian Brewery Tunnel
My dad worked at Bavarian Brewery for 25 years. I remember going to work with him periodically and one time he took me thru a tunnel which brought us to a bar. He told me these tunnels were used for workers to get to the bar without getting hit by a car. I remember being amazed by the large vats and also the fact workers could drink on the job, there was a tap in one room. Times sure have changed.
Milkmen vs. Beer Men
Many evenings after work some of the Bavarian workers and the milkmen from the Hanneken Dairy next door would play horseshoes in the lot between the two buildings. Occasionally on a weekend they would meet and hold a tournament, pitting brewery workers against the milkmen. They would light up the grills and have a great time.
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Bavarian Brewery as a Second Family
My dad joined the brewery work crew in the late '40s or early '50s. He was fresh from the army and he needed a job to feed his several children. When he came to work at Bavarian's, he also gained a second family. My dad owed his re-entry to civilian life to Bavarian Brewery. His "work family" supported him all the way.
Singing Beer Drivers
My dad and his helper delivered bottled beer and they loved to sing while they were working. In many places where they delivered beer, especially bars, they were known as "the singers." They loved to harmonize and sometimes received requests to sing when they were making deliveries. There were many times when they were graciously rewarded by the bar patrons with beer for singing.
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The Smell Good Beer Taster
Before my father pasted away 1962. He was a master brewer at Bavarian Brewery. He had, what I thought in my teenage years, the best job you could possibly want. He had to sample the vats of beer to make sure they had the best tasting beer around. He was not a beer drinker as far as socially goes. But as a child I could always tell when dad was home from work. The aroma of beer filled the house.
Beer Shots
When I was growing up, there were always cases of Bavarian’s Beer in the garage and bottles in the refrigerator. My dad often drank beer and my grandparents would always have a Bavarian’s or two with dinner, and sometimes before going to bed. So, it was common for me to see beer bottles around the home at a very young age. A couple times a month my parents would drop me off at my grandparents to spend a night. When I was about six years old, I recall that my grandparents had a tray in the kitchen where they kept small sized glasses that they used to drink beer with dinner. Beside them was a shot glass - for me. When we sat down at dinner, they would serve beer for themselves in the glasses, and pour beer in a shot glass for me. We would then drink beer together during our meal. Apparently, my parents were unaware of this. Looking back, when my parents picked me up after spending the night, my grandparents always said I was well behaved and had a good night’s sleep. When I was a couple years older, and I thought I was becoming more of an adult, my grandparents let me use one of the small glasses (7 0z) like they used, but would only pour it half full for me. After one weekend stay, my mom eventually discovered I was drinking beer with my grandparents. That was the end of beer for me - until I was a good deal older. However, my fond memories of my grandparents and drinking Bavarian's beer with them as a child sometimes reemerge whenever I see a shot glass.
The Brewery Aroma in Willow Run Valley
My family lived in a small cottage on West 12th street in the mid 1950's. Aside from fond memories of witnessing the construction of I-75 through Park Hills and Covington and the good life with my family and neighbor children, I remember the yeasty sour odor that would periodically fill the Willow Run valley. I recall thinking the air stunk and complaining to Mom and Dad about it and being told the brewery had tapped its' tanks. The kind reader should not view this remembrance as being bad but rather nostalgic! The long-neck bottles of Covington’s own Bavarian beer could be seen in the refrigerators of my parents and grandparents.
Tonsils and Bavarian's Beer
…I had to have my tonsils removed at St. Elizabeth (Hospital)… I went to work with my father to wait until admitting time at the hospital. He worked in the canning room. I was amazed to see a conveyor coming from a doorway near the ceiling. where open cans were held to the conveyor by magnets and just before entering the filling machine the cans would be inverted to make sure there was nothing in the empty can. The can again inverted inside the filling machine. The filled cans came out without a lid before entering the next machine where the lid was affixed. One of my dad’s coworkers pulled a full can from the conveyor and handed it to me saying: “Here drink this and you will feel better after the operation." Many years later I dropped my daughter off at Jillian’s and was delighted to see that it was located in the canning room that I had visited decades before.
What's Behind the Big Blue Windows?
A lady vividly recalls her childhood fears walking home past the Bavarian Brewery when she was in the first grade. She was taunted by some older kids who scared her to think there was giant guy who lived behind a big house with blue windows who ate little girls. She continued to be scared of this place, until one day her father told her that this house only contained barrels of beer that were aged in darkness behind blue painted windows. (Please read the full story.)
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MEMORIES OF BREW WORKS & JILLIAN's
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Brew Works...Ahead of Its Time
I used to work at Brew Works back in 1997. I have a facebook page with over 350 members (https://www.facebook.com/groups/758505310872962 ). Brew Works was owned by Ken Lewis, who also owns The Party Source. He put over $22 million into that place. It was an amazing feat. It was way ahead of its time. Brew Works would have been an amazing success today, with all of the breweries popping up. I love that historic building…
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