From Vol. 7, No. 6, October 2023
Because this is fresh hop season — you can call them “wet” if you want, but I prefer saying “unkilned” — it is fun to look back at Tempo, a “fresh hop” beer that Blatz first brewed in the 1950s. When Blatz president Frank Verbest announced the brewery would be testing the beer he said that mildness and freedom from bitterness were what set Tempo apart.
Tempo was not actually brewed with fresh hops, but instead an extract made from fresh hops. Perhaps it was similar to the Hopzoil that Glacier Hops Ranch sells now, although probably not as sophisticated.
Verbest said the brewery spent two years and hundreds of thousands of dollars coming up with the process, partnering with companies outside the brewing industry. He likened it to distilling crude oil into gasoline and other derivatives. The efforts resulted in an extract which proved suitable for brewing beer without the bitterness common to hops, he said.
The Milwaukee Journal went into detail why Blatz pursued the project.
“The brewing industry, during the greatest boom in the country’s history, is a sick business, Verbest declared.
“Maybe Blatz has come up with the answer. This is the way we reason. Beer reached its peak in popularity during the period of unrestricted immigration just before World War I. Since the date the people have changed and their tastes have changed.
“For instance, the trend has been from bitter to sweet chocolate, from strong Turkish cigarettes to mild Virginia ones, from strong cheeses to mild processed ones, from salty to mild butter.
“But while tastes have been changing, beer has remained the same. There has been a trend to use less hops, which give the sharper bitter taste to beer, but otherwise the change has been packaging.”
It is not clear how long Tempo remained on the market. In 1958, a Milwaukee man sued Blatz, claiming they had not honored a 1954 deal in which he turned over his secret process for extracting the fresh hops. And in 1959, Pabst Brewing bought the Blatz label, along with Tempo and the rights to the process by which it was made. That deal was voided in 1969 because of anti-trust measures and G. Heileman Brewing acquired the Blatz brand. The Tempo name, related formulas, Tempo extract remaining in Pabst plants and Tempo bottles were all listed as assets.
It seems Tempo survived into the 1970s. However, there turned out to be a better idea for fresh hopped beers.