River City to the Rubicon: Sacramento's Early Years in Beer

The 1980s were perhaps the most important years in American Craft Beer. In 1979 there were 44 breweries in operation around the United States, and it was predicted by the 'experts' that America would soon have only FOUR breweries for the entire country. Around the nation a handful of places had opened shop throughout the 70s, but beer really started to take off in 1980 - coincidentally, the same year Sierra Nevada Brewing opened its doors in Chico. In Sacramento an adventurous chap named Jim Schlueter opened his first brewery in 1981. Jim moved out west from Wisconsin where he was a brewer at the large Joseph Schlitz Brewing, his departure was big news among the brewing world. With $350k Schlueter opened River City Brewing Company, Sacramento's first modern micro-brewery. For many reasons the venture did not work out and five years after brewing operations began, River City closed its doors*.

Schlueter wasn't done with brewing in Sacramento though and by the late 1980s he had opened Hogs Head Brewing in Old Sacramento. Hogs Head was a place of ill repute in terms of beer quality. Cleanliness apparently wasn't a strong suit. However, this small brewery of questionable quality made a name for itself and attracted visitors from across the nation who were in town on business, holidays or just passing through. Many of the 'old-timers' in Sacramento still have stories about their experiences with Hogs Head, most of them were more than happy to see something new show up in 1988.

Before we get too far ahead of ourselves, we must address one of the biggest keys to success in the Capital beer scene - the Gold Country Brewers Association, our longest-lasting homebrew club that was formed in 1982. This rag-tag group (in the early days, at least) was one of the earliest homebrew clubs in the country and while homebrewers in other parts of the land were just getting their ingredients together the GCBA was producing truly fantastic beer. As one amateur Sacramento beer historian put it, "if you wanted good beer in 1985, you drank homebrew" (Joe Goss, one of the original members of the GCBA). The Gold Country Brewers went on to win the prestigious "Anchor Award" for homebrew clubs, meaning they were voted best in the State of California three separate times. These members would go on to shape the local beer scene in ways they could not have imagined, and few appreciate today.

In 1987 a gentleman by the name of Ed Brown opened a small brewery on Capitol & 20th - Rubicon Brewing Company. Area homebrewers remember vividly their excitement as they saw the mash tun, kettle & fermentation tanks installed. From the sounds of it, this group bordered on annoying with their seemingly non-stop inquiries as to when Rubicon would be open and when they could buy beer. Open it did, with a bang heard across the region! It is hard to articulate how important Rubicon is on a national scene, many locals just don't believe their little watering hole is known outside our city. Believe it though, Rubicon was seen as one of the country's premier breweries in the late 80s and early 90s - and its influence on more-popular brands today is impressive.

In 1989 and 1990 Rubicon accomplished something at the Great American Beer Festival that would not be achieved again for 20 years - it won back-to-back gold medals for the American IPA category (currently the most popular category at the GABF). If you are unfamiliar with this style of beer, it is a highly hopped concoction that has an elevated bitterness and impressive nose that displays hints of citrus, pepper and floral qualities. It is a heavier ale than most common ales on the market, with a deep golden hue and a solid foundation of caramelly malt sweetness. The style was not invented in the United States, but when Anchor first released its Liberty Ale it turned the concept of an IPA (India Pale Ale) on its head. Since then this style has become a staple in craft brewing, especially on the west coast. In many ways, Rubicon set the standards for what people came to expect in their IPA.

Rubicon's original brewer was a man name Phil Moeller, an accomplished brewer to be certain. One day he was creating a wheat beer when he lost track of how much wheat he had added to the mash tun and accidentally doubled what the recipe called for. I'd venture a guess that says most brewers at that time would have used this mistake to create two different beers, diluted of course to make standard-strength ales. Being the adventurous type, however, Moeller opted to simply make one very potent beer - and he called it a "wheat wine". As it turned out, this was a wildly fantastic creation! What's more, it was the first beer of it kind. Mr. Moeller had just created a new style of beer, one that has become increasingly popular across the country. Again proving Rubicon's 'trend-setting' status in the beer industry (Wheat Wine became an official style at the GABF recently).

Phil Moeller left his post years ago, handing the reigns over to a young man and member of the before-mentioned GCBA, Scott Cramlet - who just celebrated his 20th year as Rubicon's brewmaster in November 2010. Cramlet carried on the winning ways of Moeller, fetching medals at the GABF, World Beer Cup and countless regional competitions over the years. He has helped instruct up-and-coming brewers that participated in the world-class brewing school at UC Davis, as well as the American Brewers Guild. Many know Cramlet as a quiet, reserved individual, but his influence in the region's beer scene is impressive.

Yes, the City of Saloons lost much of its luster just prior to, and especially following, the nation's years of Prohibition; but from the 1980s on we have seen a quiet, sometimes slow, sometimes blazingly fast rediscovery of our love of alcohol right here in the State Capital.

*Note: This business is not associated with River City Brewing currently open and located in the K Street Mall. 

Welcome to the City of Saloons

”I arrived in the City of Saloons this morning at 3 o'clock, in company with several other disreputable characters, on board the good steamer Antelope, Captain Poole, commander. I know I am departing from usage in calling Sacramento the City of Saloons instead of the City of the Plains, but I have my justification -- I have not found any plains, here, yet, but I have been in most of the saloons, and there are a good many of them. You can shut your eyes and march into the first door you come to and call for a drink, and the chances are that you will get it.” –Mark Twain February 25, 1866

"Cow Town." When I moved to Sacramento in 1999 that was without a doubt the most common nick-name I heard with regard to California's capitol. Ten years later I know the city is so much more. Hopefully you know that, too. If not, that's what we're here for.

This site has two primary goals. First, we hope to highlight the capitol's better bar scene - it does exist and people should know. We're not here to promote an irresponsible appreciation for our drinks scene, quite the opposite. In fact, part of promoting our better bars is to appreciate the community we have and not put small business owners at risk, let alone those on the roads and sidewalks. Still, we've found that it's easy, fun and appropriate to make a night out with friends - old and new. No, here we'll strive to fully support the businesses that truly deserve our support.

Which leads us to our second goal: to push for more better bars in our region. We don't want box store bars, clubs without souls that are happy to serve drinks without personality to an audience that may not know better (those who believe cold beers are best, that cocktails should be unoffensive and watery, served in glassware with more character than its contents). We are people of strong opinions and experienced palates, so from time to time we'll likely step on a few toes - but that really isn't our goal. Hopefully you'll stick with us as we journey through Sacramento, the City of Saloons, and together we can reclaim the nick-name penned for our city 140 years ago.

So, here begins our journey. We don't have a destination, nor do we have a starting point, just a smattering of ideas and desires for our town. If you know of a place, a barkeep or hole-in-the-wall bottle shop, please let us know - we'd love to check it out and let the world know. Hopefully, with your help, we all can be the voices for those who don't have the budgets to advertise, but serve up something worthy to be discovered.

- The Crew
City of Saloons