Just in time for the 35th anniversary of the World’s Fair in Knoxville, World’s Fair Beer is once again on tap.
The beer sold for six months in 1982 to celebrate the event that put Knoxville in the spotlight.
The team relaunching the product includes Rick Kuhlman, the brains behind the beer 35 years ago. But this time, the beer will have a different taste – something likely to cheer all those who remember the original product.
In 1982, the beer was esteemed more for its novelty than its taste. “Pretty can but the taste could be compared with the bottom of a bird cage,” recalled one critic writing on a discussion board at Roadfood.com.
On their website, the beer makers say the new and improved product “has a deep orange color like a sunset over the Smoky Mountains. The aroma is bright like the reflection of the Sunsphere in the summertime. The flavor is bustling with tropical and piney hops. This beer greets you with a fruity aroma and finishes with a restrained bitterness, balanced with a crisp flavor.”
The beer is currently on tap at 20 bars and cafes in Knoxville and one in Sevierville and more may be added. The draft beer will be on sale this month through October, matching the May through October run of the 1982 World’s Fair. Every tap handle is handmade using original beer cans from 35 years ago.
Twenty percent of profits are going to Knoxville organizations to show support for the city.
Beer marketer Harrison Collins told The Tennessee Star that plans are in the works to sell the beer in cans at grocery stores and gas stations across the state starting in June.
