Kentucky is known worldwide for its horse racing, bourbon, and basketball. But many people may not be aware that Central Kentucky is the birthplace of a cheese spread that goes back 84 years.
Beer cheese is mostly made by mom-and-pop small businesses that keep their exact recipe a secret. The Beer Cheese Book by Garin Pirnia credits the Allman family of Kentucky with creating beer cheese in 1939.
Johnnie Allman had a restaurant along the Kentucky River in Clark County and gave customers a complimentary plate of beer cheese. His grandson, Ian Allman, says Johnnie thought the beer cheese would make his customers thirsty, and they’d buy more beer.
Today Ian Allman makes and sells Allman’s Beer Cheese with the old family recipe.
He says it’s his way of remembering life on the Kentucky River back in the 1940s thru the 70s. “It’s just keeping a little bit of that river spirit alive. I meet people all the time who have great memories of the restaurant and spending time on the river.”
Johnnie Allman has passed on, and little is left of his restaurant which was across from Hall’s On The River. But his legacy lives on in different recipes for beer cheese.
The Bailey family of Winchester has made and sold beer cheese for 15 years. In 2008, Jenny Bailey closed her restaurant in Winchester and was looking for another small business to start.
She and her husband, H.R., came up with their own recipe that includes sharp cheddar cheese, garlic, cayenne pepper, and beer.
The exact mixture of spices and beer is a family secret. H.R. laughs when he says, “I don’t want to discuss how that came about alright? It’s a cold pack of cheddar, garlic, cayenne, and beer. I mean everybody knows that. So that’s my own version of that, is a good way to put it.”
It's no secret that beer cheese makers use different beers in their concoctions. The Baileys use Budweiser.
Jenny says people often ask if they’ll get drunk from eating beer cheese. “I always say no you get a belly ache before you get drunk.”
The Baileys spent tens of thousands of dollars building a 600-foot commercial kitchen that met all the requirements of local, state, and federal food inspectors.
They began selling their beer cheese at farmer’s markets, liquor stores, and small grocery stores. It took years Jenny says to get their beer cheese on the shelves of the big retailers. Bailey's Beer Cheese is now sold in 65 Walmart stores in Central Kentucky and some Save-A-Lot stores.
The Baileys say they now make 30,000 pounds of beer cheese a year. Jenny says the best part of their small business is their hours are flexible, and it provides income for their 28-year-old daughter Hannah.
Their commercial kitchen also serves as a small business incubator for other cooks who make beer cheese, hot sauce, and CBD oil.
How does it feel to make and sell something that many people enjoy eating? Jenny says, “Well, we get pictures all the time and we’ll have people message us and say I had your beer cheese. It’s the best beer cheese I’ve had.”
They sell online too so people across the country have ordered the Central Kentucky product. “I love that whenever it happens, we get pictures of people on camping trips out West in the desert, eating their beer cheese. I love that.”
In 2013, the Kentucky legislature designated Clark County as the birthplace of beer cheese. Every June Winchester hosts a beer cheese festival.
84 years later, Johnnie Allman’s beer cheese, along with various versions of it, is a tasty treat for many people.
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