A star resurrected

Eight years after its demise, Black Star golden lager is back on tap.

Originally crafted in 1994 at the Great Northern Brewery by Minott Wessinger — the great great grandson of Henry Weinhard — Black Star will again be available at the downtown brewery and other Central Avenue establishments starting Feb. 6.

It's a business move that is sure to please many of the beer's past fans.

"People were disappointed to see Black Star go away," Marcus Duffey, of the Black Star Draught House, said. "It was very popular in its day, and to see it come back is an exciting thing. People have wanted to see this brewery succeed, and Black Star is coming back at the right time for that to happen."

Great Northern Brewery recently approached Wessinger's business, McKenzie River Corporation — which kept the rights to the Black Star recipe when Wessinger sold the brewery in 2002 — about reintroducing the double-hopped lager. It happened that Wessinger had similar ambitions and was in midstride of bringing the beer back.

After negotiations, the brewery and Wessinger came to terms stating that Great Northern would be the exclusive brewer of Black Star in Montana.

"What that means is, all of the Black Star found within Montana will come from this brewery," Duffey said. "And it's going to have the old Black Star characteristics. It will be a full 28-day lager that is crisp."

McKenzie River Corporation might launch the label nationwide, too.

"It will be a slow roll out nationally," Ashley Garver, marketing director at McKenzie River, said. "We want to see it embraced in the Flathead Valley first, and then the Pacific Northwest."

Duffey is hopeful that the possibility of marketing the Black Star brand nationally will be a boon for the brewery locally. Since reopening their tasting room as the Black Star Draught House this past summer, Great Northern has been working toward building a stronger clientele base through expanding offerings, including live music and a lunch menu. Having Black Star on tap will, according to Duffey, further the appeal of the Draught House to locals and passersby.

"I think it will take a lot of our brands and put it on the national stage," Duffey said. "People will recognize that the brewery exists, and it will be a draw to bring tourists in (to the brewery). People coming from all over the country will recognize the (Black Star) brand. It will put a face to the name."

Beyond the impact of foot traffic to the Draught House, the brewery's contract to exclusively make Black Star in Montana could take the facility to maximum capacity.

The brewery can handle about 8,000 barrels at a time. Currently, they have two brewers on staff, Duffey said, but brewing at full power would necessitate upwards of five brewers to meet the demand.

While Black Star went through a myriad of prices for a six-pack before production ended in 2002 — sometimes as low at $3.99 — Duffey said the cost of the revamped beer will be priced somewhere between a micro brew and a domestic.

"Black Star originally started as a premium," Duffey said. "It met its demise when they did the price cutting, which really hurt the brand. So we are bringing it back to what it originally was."

There are currently no plans to bring back the Black Star dark lager.