Material Type

Artifact

Other Name

LETHBRIDGE BEER 6 PACK BOX

Date Range From

1970

Date Range To

1985

Materials

CARDBOARD, INK

No. Pieces

1

Height

23.4

Length

33.4

Width

0.5

Description

FLATTENED CARDBOARD BOX. CAPACITY TO HOLD 6 BOTTLES OF LETHBRIDGE BEER. GOLD, GREEN, AND RED WRITING ON WHITE BOX. UNFOLDED, EACH SIDE WOULD SAY, "LETHBRIDGE BEER, PREMIUM LAGER". ONE END SAYS, "PLEASE RETURN EMPTIES FOR REFUND, LETHBRIDGE BEER, LAGER BEER, 6-341 ML 12 FL OZ BOTTLES 5% ALC./VOL., UNION MADE, SICKS’ LETHBRIDGE BREWERY LTD., LETHBRIDGE ALBERTA". OTHER END SAYS, “PLEASE RETURN EMPTIES FOR REFUND, LETHBRIDGE BEER, BIERE LAGER, 6 BOUTEILLES DE 341 ML 12 FL OZ BOTTLES 5% ALC./VOL., UNION MADE, SICKS’ LETHBRIDGE BREWERY LTD., LETHBRIDGE ALBERTA”. ONE TOP SIDE FLAP SAYS, "…ALBERTA’S PRIDE, LETHBRIDGE BEER, +902247”; OTHER TOP SIDE FLAP SAYS, “‘BRIDGE’ +902247”. BOTTOM FLAPS ARE FOLDED UP INSIDE FLATTENED BOX. PERFORATIONS FOR HANDLES ARE UNUSED.

Subjects

CONTAINER

Historical Association

INDUSTRY

BUSINESS

History

DONOR GÜNTER HORN CAME INTO POSSESSION OF THE DONATED OBJECTS WHEN THE LETHBRIDGE BREWERY SHUT DOWN IN 1990. AT THE TIME OF DONATION HORN SAID, “I WAS ONE OF TWO PEOPLE SELECTED BY MOLSON’S TO GET RID OF THE ASSETS, TO DEAL WITH CONTRACTORS AND COMMITTEES, YOU KNOW, DISPOSE OF THE ITEMS. THERE WAS A THIRD PERSON AND HE WAS LOCATED IN SASKATOON, ALSO WORKING FOR MOLSON’S. THAT WAS BASICALLY THE ROLE. I WAS, PRIOR TO THAT, I WAS A BREW MASTER, THE BREWING MANAGER. I WAS FAMILIAR WITH THE PLANT LAYOUT AND EQUIPMENT THAT WAS AVAILABLE; SOME THAT WAS SENT TO OTHER MOLSON’S PLANTS LIKE CALGARY, EDMONTON, BARRIE, REGINA TO GET ENOUGH ITEMS. AND WHAT WAS NOT REQUIRED OR REQUESTED BY MOLSON’S BREWERIES, LIKE OTHER PLANTS, IT WAS MADE AVAILABLE FOR SALE TO PROSPECTIVE BUYERS FOR TANKS AND SOME OF THE MACHINERY. THAT IS BASICALLY IT - THE TEAM OF CONTRACTORS WITH POTENTIAL BUYERS GO TO THE PLANT, SEE WHAT EQUIPMENT THEY WERE INTERESTED IN, OR ALSO WHAT WAS AVAILABLE, AND WE HAD, IN CONJUNCTION WITH A THIRD PERSON IN SASKATOON, PRICES THAT WERE SET FOR DIFFERENT ITEMS AND WE HAD TO MAKE SURE THAT THE RIGHT EQUIPMENT WAS TAKEN OUT AND ALSO THAT THEY ARE PAYING THE SAME QUANTITY FOR THE PRICE THAT WAS SET BY MOLSON’S. WE DIDN’T SET ANY - IT WAS NOT MY FUNCTION TO SET PRICES. THAT WAS MOST LIKELY IN GENERAL WITH THE MEN FROM OTHER PLANTS CLOSURES.” AT THE TIME OF DONATION, HORN SAID, “IN ’74, WHEN I CAME TO LETHBRIDGE, WE MADE 3 BRANDS….PILSNER, BRIDGE, AND WE MADE A STOUT. LATER ON WE BROUGHT IN CANADIAN, COORS….. BRIDGE WAS SUCCESSFUL IN LETHBRIDGE. IT HAD A GOOD MARKET SHARE; PEOPLE WERE LOYAL; IT WAS A GOOD PRODUCT. BUT LATER ON, WE HAD VERY LITTLE MARKET SHARE IN CALGARY AND EDMONTON, SO WHEN IT CAME TO BRAND MANAGERS, THEY HAD TO PROMOTE THE BRANDS THAT HAD POTENTIAL AND WERE DOING WELL. IF YOU HAD 50% IN LETHBRIDGE, THAT WAS PRETTY GOOD, BUT YOU DON’T HAVE 50% IN CALGARY AND EDMONTON…YOU HAVE MAYBE 1%, SO THEY LOOK AT IT. WHAT IS FEASIBLE? WHAT DO WE WANT TO MARKET, WHAT HAS POTENTIAL? SO, BRIDGE GOT VERY LITTLE EXPOSURE, AND, AGAIN, I DON’T KNOW WHEN WE ELIMINATED IT. YES, I WOULD SAY IT WOULD BE MID-80’S. IN ’90 WHEN WE SHUT DOWN, WE BREWED PILSNER AND COORS…. THERE WAS NO MORE BRIDGE. IN ’90, WE BREWED; WE DIDN’T BOTTLE ANYMORE; IT WAS SHIPPED TO EDMONTON BY TRUCK. PRIOR TO THAT THE BOTTLING PLANT WAS SHUT DOWN. IT WAS PHASING IT OUT. THEY WERE BOTH (PILSNER AND BRIDGE) QUALITY PRODUCTS. BRIDGE HAD A VERY GOOD NAME. THE INGREDIENTS WERE THE SAME. MOST LIKELY THERE WOULD BE SLIGHTLY LESS HOPS/ALCOHOL, BECAUSE YOU HAD TO HAVE SOME DIFFERENCES BETWEEN BRANDS. OTHERWISE, YOU WOULD HAVE ONE BIG POT. THIS GOES BACK QUITE A BIT OF TIME. I COULD MOST LIKELY LOOK AT SOME SPECIFICATION SHEETS; I STILL HAVE SOMEPLACE, BUT THOSE WOULD BE SOME OF THE THINGS….ALCOHOL AND HOPS. AND, ALSO, WHEN I FIRST CAME HERE, WE WERE STILL USING MALT AND ADJUNCT WAS RICE, CAME FROM VANCOUVER BY TRUCK. AND WE HAD DIFFICULTY GETTING TRUCKS THROUGH IN THE WINTER SO WE DID TRIALS WITH CORN, AND THE TRIALS WERE MADE WITH PILSNER AND BRIDGE, AND, AGAIN, MOST LIKELY WE WOULD HAVE DIFFERENT RATIOS OF CORN AND MALT IN PILSNER AND BRIDGE. BUT, THEN AFTER THE TRIALS AND TASTE???? , YOU DON’T CHANGE OVERNIGHT. WHEN YOU GO FROM RICE TO CORN, IT’S A LENGTHY PROCESS BECAUSE YOU DON’T WANT TO UPSET THE APPLE CART, SO THOSE WOULD BE, BASICALLY, THOSE WOULD BE SOME OF THE CHANGES.” FOR MORE INFORMATION, PLEASE SEE PERMANENT FILE.

Catalogue Number

P20100013003

Acquisition Date

2010-03

Collection

Museum

Less detail