10 Things You Should Know About New Glarus, the Beloved Beer That’s Only Available in Wisconsin

Tucked away in a small Wisconsin town home to approximately 2,000 people, one will find the New Glarus Brewing Company, a local brewery with a big reputation. Established in 1993 by Deborah Carey, who purchased the original brewing site as a gift for her brewmaster husband, Daniel, New Glarus is one of the few large-scale brewing operations to actually remain truly local. While other craft breweries have expanded distribution to other states in their regions, or even nationwide, New Glarus beers are only available in one state: Wisconsin.

Most famous for its naturally cloudy ale Spotted Cow, New Glarus has acquired a cult-like following, with beer lovers willing to cross state borders to get their hands on a 6-pack. But while the Spotted Cow might be the brewery’s most popular offering, it’s their one-offs and limited-edition brews that keep drinkers coming back for more. It’s a strategy that paid off big time: Despite its local-only approach to brewing and distribution, the New Glarus Brewing Company has consistently been identified as one of the top 50 largest brewing companies in the U.S. by the Brewers Association (BA).

From its start in a converted warehouse in the early ‘90s to a $55 million expansion renovation that’s currently underway, here are 10 things you should know about the New Glarus Brewing Company.

Daniel Carey started working in the brewing industry when he was only 20 years old.

Dan Carey might have become the brewmaster of New Glarus in 1993, but by that point, he had worked in the beer industry for over a decade. After completing his studies in food science with an emphasis in malting and brewing at the University of California, Davis, Dan took a job at a small brewery in Helena, Mont., where he gained practical knowledge of the brewing process. A few years later, he relocated to Germany, where he completed an apprenticeship at the Ayinger brewery just outside Munich. In 1987, he graduated from the Siebel Institute Course in Brewing Technology in Chicago, and three years later, he passed the Institute of Brewing and Distilling Diploma Examination. One year before the establishment of his own brewery, Dan became the first American in 14 years to pass the Master Brewer’s Exam at the Institute of Brewing and Distilling, now known as the Chartered Institute of Brewers and Distillers. Just before starting New Glarus, he served as the production supervisor for Anheuser-Busch, and his exhaustion with the corporate lifestyle is what prompted the couple to start a brewery of their own.

The original New Glarus brewing facility was established in an abandoned warehouse.

Unfulfilled by his corporate role at Anheuser-Busch, Dan knew it was time for him to make a change, but he was unsure of exactly what that change would be. Deb, who was working as an entrepreneur importing German furniture while taking care of their two daughters, was similarly ready for a change. That’s when she proposed the idea of starting their own brewery, with Daniel serving as the brewmaster. Soon thereafter, Deborah got to work raising funds, amassing $40,000 in seed money, though she still needed more to get the brewery off the ground. So the couple sold their home and advertised their brewery concept in the local newspaper, which raised approximately $200,000 from investors. Eventually, Deb had enough funds to purchase an abandoned warehouse in New Glarus from businessman Rudy Roehner, the company’s first investor. The couple quickly got to work flipping the warehouse into a brew house and, in November 1993, the first beers rolled off the line at the original Riverside brewery location.

In 1997, New Glarus’s most iconic beer came to life.

Four years after New Glarus was established, Deb and Dan entered their Belgian Red in a beer competition in England. While on their visit, the couple took a drive through the English countryside, admiring the multitude of fuzzy sheep as they passed. As the story goes, Deb mused, “I bet when people visit Wisconsin, they must feel the same way about the cows.” When the two returned from the U.K., Deb persuaded Dan to start crafting the Spotted Cow, a farmhouse ale that is now the brewery’s signature offering and a Wisconsin staple. The beer is crafted in accordance with Reinheitsgebot purity laws, made with only yeast, hops, water, and malted barley, with the yeast remaining in the bottle to enhance flavors. Naturally cloudy in appearance, the beer is fruity, tart, and crisp, delivering notes of apricot and peach.

After 13 years, New Glarus outgrew its original brewery.

Despite the single-state distribution of New Glarus, the brewery quickly outgrew its original 10,000-square-foot Riverside brewery location, despite undergoing three separate expansions. Deb and Dan knew they would need a new facility to keep up with demand, so they invested $20 million into a project to develop a second brewing location. In 2006, the new, 100-acre Hilltop brewery was completed, allowing New Glarus to produce approximately 230,000 barrels of beer per year. The new brewery also provided an opportunity for New Glarus to infiltrate another industry: tourism. While designing the facility, Dan understood that it couldn’t just be a “beer factory,” it also had to be visually appealing and visitor-friendly if they were to convince people that New Glarus was worth it. He sourced inspiration from historic German breweries and Bavarian villages and decided to design the Hilltop brewery in a similar fashion to immerse visitors in the beer drinking experience. New Glarus’s Hilltop brewing campus is home to an energy-efficient brewery, tasting room, beer garden, hop garden, water reclamation system, an apple orchard, and hiking trails. Every year, roughly 250,000 to 300,000 people visit the brewery, with upwards of 12,000 beer lovers passing through its doors on a busy weekend. While no longer the primary site, the Riverside brewery still produces some of New Glarus’s specialty releases like the Thumbprint, R&D, and Splash collections.

The brewery takes its slogan “Only in Wisconsin” very seriously.

While New Glarus is currently only available in Wisconsin, there was once a time when fans could purchase its beers in Illinois. From 1998 to 2003, New Glarus beers were available in the Prairie State, though distribution was pulled after the five-year period when Deb and Dan found they could not produce enough to fulfill demand in both states. The couple pulled back production, leading to the introduction of their “Only in Wisconsin” slogan. But beyond distribution staying local, the team at New Glarus also takes extensive measures to ensure almost every step of the production process remains in Wisconsin. The brand’s aluminium cans are made in Jefferson, its glass bottles are produced in Berlin, labels are shipped from LaCrosse, and supplemental packaging is sourced from a manufacturer in Wausau. And locals simply can’t get enough; according to Deb, 97 percent of hospitality establishments in Wisconsin have a license to sell at least one of New Glarus’s beers.

The New Glarus Brewing Company is entirely employee-owned.

Since its founding, New Glarus has prioritized employee well-being, often preaching that “profits are sanity; volume is vanity.” In 2015, the company officially transitioned to an Employee Stock Ownership Plan (ESOP), meaning that each employee at the brewing company is also a part-owner. In addition to participating in New Glarus’s ESOP, all employees are also provided with full health insurance coverage and 401(k) benefits.

The brewery produces six year-round beers and a rotating selection of specialty brews.

In addition to offering the Spotted Cow as a part of its permanent lineup, New Glarus also brews its Belgian Red, Moon Man Pale Ale, and Pilsner for all-year enjoyment. Also included in the forever collection are Two Women Lager — a collaboration beer with Weyermann Malting, another women-led company — and Raspberry Tart, a framboise made from Oregon raspberries. The brewery also produces a selection of seasonal beers that typically turns over every quarter. Current offerings include Totally Naked, a Wisconsin lager, Tailwagger Amber, a Nut Brown Ale dubbed Fat Squirrel, and the beloved doppelbock Gyrator.

New Glarus is one of America’s largest craft brewing companies.

Despite distribution being limited to one Midwestern state, New Glarus has solidified its place on the Brewers Association’s list of the top craft brewing companies in the U.S. The annual list ranks both craft brewing companies and overall brewing companies (including conglomerates) in terms of sales volume. In 2024, the New Glarus Brewing Company ranked 12 out of 50 on the top craft brewing companies list and nabbed the No. 23 spot on the overall production list.

New Glarus is expanding its Hilltop Brewery.

In October 2024, New Glarus announced its plans to undergo a massive project that will expand the size of the Hilltop brewery by 65,000 feet. The project will also see the entire brewing facility renovated, with the new brewing area set to include eight large copper kettles that will double the brewery’s production capacity. Also included in the plans are a beer garden expansion, the construction of a bike trail, geothermal heating and cooling capabilities, a grass roof, and an improved facility for water reclamation. The $55 million renovation project is expected to wrap up sometime in the fall of 2026, at which point the Hilltop brewery will reopen its doors. Until then, those looking to visit New Glarus still have the opportunity to stop into the Riverside brewery, which will serve as the interim tasting room.

The brewery could start distilling sometime in the future.

In addition to new brewing equipment, New Glarus’s current remodeling project will also include distillation equipment at the improved production facility. While any spirits lineup remains unconfirmed, the team at New Glarus has played around with distillation in the past, including gin, vodka, and whiskey production. Unfortunately, the brewery was previously prohibited from selling any distilled products as an old Wisconsin law prohibited distributors from owning distilleries. As New Glarus would have to disclose its ownership group, which includes liquor distributors, it was not legally able to market any products. However, a new law, effective May 1, 2024, pulled back some of these restrictions, paving the way for New Glarus to move forth with distilled spirits production, should the brand elect to do so.

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