The Abita Brewing Company is a

brewery A brewery or brewing company is a business that makes and sells beer. The place at which beer is commercially made is either called a brewery or a beerhouse, where distinct sets of brewing equipment are called plant. The commercial brewing of b ...

Covington, Louisiana Covington is a city in and the parish seat of St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 11,564 at the 2020 United States census. It is located at a fork of the Bogue Falaya and the Tchefuncte River. Covington is part ...

, United States, 43 miles (69 km) north of

New Orleans New Orleans (commonly known as NOLA or The Big Easy among other nicknames) is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city-parish located along the Mississippi River in the U.S. state of Louisiana. With a population of 383,997 at the 2020 ...

. Abita was founded by Jim Patton and Rush Cumming in 1986, in downtown

Abita Springs, Louisiana Abita Springs is a town in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana, United States. The population was 2,365 at the 2010 census, up from 1,957 in 2000. It is part of the New Orleans– Metairie– Kenner metropolitan statistical area. History Ab ...

. The original location in downtown Abita Springs is now the Abita Brew Pub.

Brewery

The company brews its beer with water from artesian wells. In August 2005, ''

Stuff Magazine ''Stuff'' is a British consumer electronics magazine published by Kelsey Media. History ''Stuff'' was first published in Britain in November 1996 by Dennis Publishing. A bimonthly title, it followed the success of magazines such as '' FHM'' ...

'' called Abita's Turbodog Ale the best beer made in America. Abita Bock was listed among the Top 10 Spring Beers by Fox News in 2012.

Production

In 1986, the company produced 1,500 barrels of beer. In 2011, Abita brewed over 130,000 barrels of beer and 5,000 barrels of

root beer Root beer is a North American soft drink traditionally made using the root bark of the sassafras tree '' Sassafras albidum'' or the vine of '' Smilax ornata'' (known as sarsaparilla; also used to make a soft drink called sarsaparilla) as the ...

. In August 2013, the company announced it would add another 200 barrel brewing system to its existing 100 barrel system, increasing its capacity from 150 bottles per minute to 400 per minute. The Abita Brewing Company produces seventeen year-round flagship brews (Andy Gator, Strawgator, Abita Amber, Alphagator Golden, Light, Turbodog, Purple Haze, Jockamo I.P.A. and Restoration Pale Ale), five

seasonal beer A seasonal beer is a beer that is typically brewed during or for a particular season, holiday or festival period. Many breweries produce seasonal beers. Seasonal beers may be produced when fresh ingredients are available during various seasons, p ...

s, three Harvest brews, four Big Beers, and others a draft-only series of Select beers and a root beer all from a state-of-the-art brewing complex.

Non-Alcoholic Beverages

The company also produces Abita

, which differs from many others in that it is made with Louisiana

sugarcane Sugarcane or sugar cane is a species of tall, Perennial plant, perennial grass (in the genus ''Saccharum'', tribe Andropogoneae) that is used for sugar Sugar industry, production. The plants are 2–6 m (6–20 ft) tall with stout, jointed, fib ...

rather than

high-fructose corn syrup High-fructose corn syrup (HFCS), also known as glucose–fructose, isoglucose, and glucose–fructose syrup, is a sweetener made from corn starch. As in the production of conventional corn syrup, the starch is broken down into glucose by enzy ...

Distribution

Abita's flagship beers are sold in 46 US states and

Puerto Rico ; abbreviated PR), officially the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, is a Government of Puerto Rico, self-governing Caribbean Geography of Puerto Rico, archipelago and island organized as an Territories of the United States, unincorporated territo ...

. Abita Brewing Company was the 15th largest Craft Brewery and the 24th largest brewery of any category in the United States ranked by volume sold in 2010. In February 2012, the company began distribution of three of its flagship brews in cans: Amber, Purple Haze and Jockamo I.P.A.

Abita Brew Pub

The Abita Brew Pub, under independent ownership, is located at the original brewery location in Abita Springs and features Abita beers, with some brews exclusive to the brew pub, under a close partnership with the brewery.

References

External links

* {{coord, 30.4824087, -90.056605, type:landmark_globe:earth_region:US-LA, display=title Beer brewing companies based in Louisiana Buildings and structures in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana Tourist attractions in St. Tammany Parish, Louisiana American companies established in 1986 Food and drink companies established in 1986 1986 establishments in Louisiana Root beer Abita Springs, Louisiana Covington, Louisiana