Magic City Brewery
The Magic City Brewery was a microbrewery located in the Weldon Martin Rubber building at 420 21st Street South between 1995 and 2000.
Magic City Brewery was the first brewpub to open in Birmingham after the passage of the Brewpub Act of 1992, which allowed such businesses to operate in historic buildings. It trailed only the Port City Brewery in Mobile which opened in 1993. The Magic City Brewery was owned by Sam Casto and Michael Wajciechowski. Brad Fournier served as brewmaster and Todd Shock was bar manager.
History
The idea of opening a brewpub in Birmingham was initially evaluated by The Mill in 1991, but was subsequently abandoned.
On August 23, 1994, the Birmingham City Council approved the 1920 Weldon Martin Rubber building, a contributing structure to Birmingham's Historic Automotive District, as the location of the city's first brewpub.
Originally slated for a November 1994 opening, permitting delays from the federal Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms and Alabama's Alcoholic Beverage Control Board pushed its opening to March 10, 1995.
The brewery featured eleven 500-gallon tanks to store the beers made on-site. The actual brewing facility was located in a glass-enclosed area surrounded by an 80-foot wooden bar in the center of the restaurant. Additionally, its location was symbolic as it was adjacent to the former Birmingham Brewery and Philipp Schillinger Brewing Company which closed in the wake of prohibition.
After some early success, increased competition and a failure to adequately market the operation led the brewery to close its doors in June 2000.
| Preceded by: Tom Williams Dodge showroom |
Weldon Martin Rubber building 1995–2000 |
Succeeded by: Tiki Bob's Cantina |
Beers
- Electra Light - a light-colored ale brewed with rice and Saaz hops (named for the Electra statue)
- Schillinger's Star Pure Gold - a golden ale brewed with noble hops (named for Philip Schillinger).
- Sloss Steamer - a dark amber, heavily-malted ale brewed with Washington hops (named for Sloss Furnaces)
- Old Oxmoor Stout - a rich full-flavored ale with chocolate and licorice malts (named for Oxmoor Furnace)
- Pale Ale - a seasonal pale ale offered in 1995.
References
- Nabbefeld, Joe (August 24, 1994) "Birmingham building prepared for brewpub." The Birmingham News
- Normington, Mick (December 29, 1994) "Preparing to jump into suds." The Birmingham News
- Carlton, Bob (March 9, 1995) "Drawing a cold one: City welcomes first brew pub." The Birmingham News
- Harvey, Fletcher (April 20, 1995) "Much more on tap than beer at Magic City Brewery." The Birmingham News
- Goynes, Aminta (April 22, 1997) "Brewery offers food, fun." Kaleidoscope Vol. 68, No. 5, p. 8
- Staff Reports (June 20, 2000) "Magic City Brewery tapped out." The Birmingham News
External links
- Birmingham Beverage Company (n. d.) "The History of Brewing in Alabama" - accessed May 7, 2008