Latrobe brewer tees up for new product named for golf legend

City Brewing Co.'s brewery in Latrobe is ramping up production and recalling laid-off workers, thanks in part to an iced tea named after hometown golfing legend Arnold Palmer, a brewery official said Monday.

Arizona Iced Tea's non-alcoholic Arnold Palmer Lite Half and Half is going to be made at the plant beginning next week, said spokesman Zack Mazzoni, who is controller at the facility.

The brewery is scheduled to make 150,000 cases per month in May, June and July of Arizona Iced Tea products — the Arnold Palmer-label iced tea and five other flavors, Mazzoni said. It will take one week per month to produce that amount of iced tea at the brewery, Mazzoni said.

Arizona Iced Tea has been brewing an Arnold Palmer label tea since 2002, and the product has been successful, said Cori Britt, vice president of Arnold Palmer Enterprises. The other Arizona Tea Arnold Palmer flavors — pomegranate, green tea and zero calories — will continue to be made at other locations.

The addition of the Arizona iced tea products has resulted in City Brewing recalling all of the remaining workers on a list of former Latrobe Brewing Co. workers, who produced Rolling Rock beer before the label was sold to Anheuser-Busch Co. in July 2006, Mazzoni said.

The brewery has added a second and third shift and expanded employment to about 48 bottlers and 35 brewers, from about 25 bottlers, Mazzoni said. City Brewing, based in LaCrosse, Wis., has hired a half-dozen workers in the brewing department, he said.

It's been 11 months since Iron City Brewing Co. announced the closing of its brewery in Lawrenceville and moved production to City Brewing's more modern plant in Latrobe. City Brewing installed a canning line last year to increase production.

City Brewing purchased the plant in March 2007 and landed a contract with Boston Beer Co. to make the Samuel Adams brand. But it lost that contract in November 2008 and had to lay off 70 bottlers and brewers when Boston Beer moved production to a plant it purchased near Allentown.

"Iron City gave us the opportunity to open the doors, but it was not enough to turn a profit. When the canning line was completed, it opened the door" to production of more brands, Mazzoni said.