Sprecher Brewing Closes Taproom

Local craft beer aficionados and Walker’s Point residents recently received some sad news: Sprecher Brewing Company closed its taproom at 706 S. 5th St. over the weekend.

The brewery has its roots in the Milwaukee neighborhood. Randy Sprecher, a former Pabst third shift supervisor of Brewing Operations with a passion for homebrewing beer, opened Sprecher’s original location (and the first craft brewery in Milwaukee) in a three-story building at 730 W. Oregon St. in 1985. The company relocated to Glendale, 701 W. Glendale Ave., in 1993.

“It is with a heavy heart that I have to say that this weekend will be our last at the Walker’s Point location as the building we are in has been sold,” Sprecher Taproom posted on its Facebook page Friday. “It’s been a crazy year and a half and we want to thank all of the people who have come to enjoy our products here. We really appreciate your support.” The brewery had been leasing the S. 5th St. space for about a year and a half before before building owner South Fifth Properties, LLC. initiated a purchase contract with an unknown buyer.

Sprecher opened the taproom in a space formerly occupied by Brenner Brewing, owned by Mike Brenner, in February 2018. In 2017, Brenner closed the brewery, leaving behind his 24 tap lines, which Sprecher later used to operate its taproom.

“We are allowed to operate one offsite location. We have been operating our 5th St. location on a month to month lease,” Jeff Hamilton, president of Sprecher Brewing Company, told the Journal Sentinel. “The building now has an offer on it. We are pushing for a more stable situation for our offsite location.”

Although the taproom has closed, Sprecher fans can still enjoy more than 14 beers on tap at the Glendale brewery, including Abbey Triple, Milwaukee Pils, Hefe Weiss, Mai Bock, and Mango Radler. In addition, the brewery offers 11 varieties of sodas, including its well-known Root Beer, as well as Puma Kola, Red Apple, Orange Dream, and Strawberry, hard sodas and ciders. Visitors can purchase snacks, beverages, glassware, apparel and memorabilia at the brewery’s gift shop. To schedule a Sprecher brewery tour, visit www.sprecherbrewery.com.

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