Brewery Profile

Lewistown Brewing Co

In a small central Montana city, the Lewistown Brewing Co name carries a beer history that reaches back to 1894, when Frank Hass and Philip Laux established a brewery built from locally quarried sandstone. For visitors, its place in Lewistown’s beer scene is tied to that older industrial story as much as to whatever is on tap today. The original operation was designed around a two-story stone building, large fermentation vessels, and a boiler-and-engine system, with beer supplied mainly in kegs to nearby communities such as Gilt Edge. Anyone walking in should expect the taproom, staff, or posted beer list to be the best source for current pours and the degree to which the present operation interprets that earlier brewery history.

Travelers passing through central Montana often look for stops that connect local flavor with the region’s ranching, grain-growing, and mining-era past. Lewistown Brewing Co fits that kind of itinerary because its documented history includes the use of locally grown barley for malt production and a customer base that extended beyond town during the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. The brewery also reflects the instability of early beer businesses in the West: ownership changed several times, with Bernard McDonnell and later Gustav Hodel among the notable figures associated with it. Hodel, who became president in 1912, brought experience from Butte’s Centennial Brewing Company, linking Lewistown’s beer story to a broader Montana brewing network.

Practical details should be confirmed directly before visiting, since specific amenities, food options, hours, patio availability, and package sales are not established here. The taproom is the place to confirm the day’s pours, serving formats, and whether any historical interpretation is available on site. Visitors interested in the older brewery should know that traditional beer production ended after Prohibition arrived in 1918; the company shifted to near-beer manufacturing in an effort to continue operating, then ultimately closed as Prohibition restrictions intensified. That background makes the name meaningful even for travelers who are simply stopping for a beer: it points to a Lewistown industry shaped by local stone, local barley, changing ownership, and the national disruption of Prohibition.

Established in 1894 by Frank Hass and Philip Laux, the Lewistown Brewing Company was constructed using locally quarried sandstone in Lewistown, Montana. The facility was designed with a production capacity of ten barrels per day, featuring a two-story stone building equipped with several large fermentation vessels powered by a boiler and engine system. The brewery emphasized the use of locally grown barley for malt production and initially supplied beer primarily in kegs to nearby towns such as Gilt Edge. Ownership changed hands multiple times, with notable figures including Bernard McDonnell and later Gustav Hodel, who became president in 1912 and brought brewing expertise from Butte's Centennial Brewing Company. The brewery ceased traditional beer production following the advent of Prohibition in 1918, shifting to near-beer manufacturing to maintain operations, before ultimately closing after Prohibition intensified.

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Lewistown, Montana, 59457-8659

Phone: 4063500170

Website: https://www.brewerygems.com/lewistown.htm