Chilton is located 35 miles south of Green Bay and 90 miles north of Milwaukee, between Lake Winnebago and Lake Michigan. Population 3974.
Malt, which just happens to be one of our fav topics, is featured in the hot-off-the-press issue of Brew Your Own magazine. So, taking a cue from their Make Mine Malty! issue, we’re kicking off a series of blogs about the Briess Malthouses in Chilton and Waterloo, Wis.
Over the years these unique plants have been upgraded with modern systems and customized roasters. Our experienced, veteran staff operate the malthouses 24-7 to produce a huge variety of malts—from our lightest Pilsen to our darkest Midnight Wheat malts. We’re starting off this series with a few pix of the Briess Malthouse in Chilton, “then and now”. We’ll post another installment in several weeks, and hope you enjoy the journey. Cheers!
This is an artist’s drawing of the original Chilton Malthouse and elevator, which was completed in 1901. It was built as a place for local farmers to sell their barley and to provide local employment.
In the early 1900s, coal for the kilns was delivered via railcar. It was also sold to the local community. This promotional postcard was used to generate business…by giving a free fire shovel away with each purchase.
Customers even had their choice of coal!
Today, the outside of the Chilton Malthouse looks quite similar to the original structure.
But walk around to the north and you’ll see this modern equipment on the outside of the roasting operation.
Inside, the germination compartment and kilns are original equipment purchased from the Saladin Prinz Pneumatic Company. This is the original nameplate posted when the kilns were installed. Needless to say, they’re no longer fueled by coal.
