In the fall of 1991, Andy Frahm, then nurturing a healthy interest in home brewing himself, got into the picture when he asked Roger for help getting started. As with any new project, there were a few mishaps here and there. Although WHB now prides itself in using only the standard ingredients of any good beer (water, malts, hops, and yeast), this wasn't always how things turned out in those early years. Anyone sampling the Frahm/Glaser Maple Stout today might detect a bit of Wisconsin Earwig beneath that wonderful hoppy flavor.

For the next few years, the two brewed on and off at each other's homes. Ken Lamping, a friend of both, was a consistent patron, helping out here and there and planning his own batch to brew as he learned more about the whole process, thus becoming the third member of WHB. It eventually became apparent, however, that a different and more stable brewing location was necessary when, at the Frahm household, a boil over of such magnitude took place that the kitchen floor sounded like velcro for weeks.

Enter Jay Brown. He had the interest but, more importantly, he had the basement. Blessed with landlords that lived elsewhere, the four set up the brewing area in his home. Thus began Washington Heights Brewery, named for the neighborhood of its origin.

Finally, Kathy Glaser, sister of Roger and now wife of Jay, added a much-needed feminine touch when she joined in late 1994. Two years later, WHB relocated to Jay and Kathy's house where members began an ongoing crusade to improve their brewery by converting to a three-level, gravity feed, all-grain system. This year's ventures include perfecting the anchored grain mill, improving the kegging process, and getting the most recent member, Dave Gross, to come over and transfer his beer.

WHB now brews at least twenty-five batches of beer throughout the brewing season (late Fall to early Spring), covering a wide range of tastes. Between them all, they boast over 90 prize-winning beers from various competitions since 1994.

WHB has collected many fans along the way, many of whom regularly drop by for brewing sessions, often bringing their own offering of premium beer. It wouldn't have been possible to obtain the equipment we did if it weren't for the help and dedication of our friends who have attended our annual parties, purchased our raffle tickets and t-shirts, donated beer paraphernalia or just flipped us a couple bucks here and there. While everyone deserves a hearty thanks along with a few WHB home brews, those listed below have earned special recognition:

Charlie Papazian (we're not worthy!) without whose help and guidance we'd be floundering in a sea of insensibility.

Michael Jackson (the one with two gloves) for the same.

Martin Peife for just being his omnipresent and omniscient self.

Dennis Veraghen for using valuable studio time to record Andy opening beers.

Bruce "Stop me before I start to wob and beave" Campbell for his continued support and for selling the first t-shirt overseas.

Scott "Black and Tan" Hill who, despite constant efforts, can't make a decent Black and Tan with anything but Harp beer. Thanks for the noose as well as your many other contributions, too.

Kurt "No, really, I gotta go" Belke for stuff we just aren't at liberty to mention, though he knows what we mean.

Dave Ruehl, our most dedicated fan, for the frequent monetary donations and his artistic talents.

Dave Kurtz for his company on brewing days.

Roger Glaser for the homegrown hops, the retelling of the earwig story and introducing us to this fine diversion.

Andy Frahm for the logo, the exhaustive works on our labels and this excellent web site.

Kath and Jay for sharing their home so that we might have a place to brew.

Kathy Glaser-Brown for the writing of this history.

Russ Klisch and Jim Klisch (and Mom!) from Lakefront Brewery for being so great to talk to as well as supportive.

Mark Iverson from Pete's Wicked for the same.

Brett at RWS Brewery

Tom at Sprecher Brewery

So thanks for stopping by our humble web site. You may want to grab a home brew of your own and check out the rest of it, so we at WHB leave you with one of our favorite quotes.

"And so it happened that I had one beer after another..."