Fist City: a monumental beer

Move over PBR, there’s a new beer for 1893 World’s Fair enthusiasts.

Fist City did not win a blue ribbon at the Columbian Exposition (hey, neither did Pabst!), because Revolution Brewing first released their pale ale in 2014. Initially offered only on tap at Big Star—a self-described “bourbon and beer-focused, taco-slinging, late-night honky-tonk in the heart of Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood”—Fist City’s popularity encouraged Revolution to offer this brew year-round, starting in April 2015, as six packs of 12-ounce cans at many liquor and grocery stores.

We rarely purchase a six-pack of beer, but Fist City caught our attention and—after a double take and then a triple take—ended up in our shopping cart. The beverage is tasty, but we really just wanted the can, which features golden images of The Statue of the Republic, centerpiece of the Grand Basin at the Columbian Exposition.

Revolution’s design depicts not the original 65-foot “Big Mary” statue by Daniel Chester French from 1893, but instead the smaller, 24-foot-high replica erected in Jackson Park in 1918 and which stand there today. The clue is her left hand, which most definitely belongs to the newer “Golden Lady.” Revolution Brewing confirms as much on their website: “The Statue of the Republic, found in Jackson Park, Chicago, is featured on this can. It is a smaller replica of the original Statue of the Republic, which was constructed for the 1893 World’s Columbian Exposition in Chicago.”

Have you ever noticed the difference between these statues? In the 1893 original, a “cap of knowledge” (a.k.a. the “Phrygian cap” or “liberty cap”) rests atop the staff held in her left hand. In the 1918 replica, the cap is replaced by a plaque with the words “liberty” adorned with a laurel wreath. Occasionally, graphic designers use images of the replica to represent the original sculpture without noticing this important difference. (Hint: A striking example of this mistake will be on display at Chicago’s Auditorium Theater this December.)

We’ll revisit other aspects of the Statue of the Republic in some upcoming blogs and also take a look at least one other adult beverage line that employs labels honoring this statue and the Columbian Exposition. It’s too bad that Revolution did not come up with a name that complemented the 1893 fair imagery (“Big Mary” could have worked!). Fist City allegedly is named after a feisty Loretta Lynn tune, featuring the closing line “I’m here to tell you gal to lay off of my man if you don’t wanna go to Fist City.” I don’t.

[can wrapper image from https://www.guysdrinkingbeer.com/revolution-brewing-expansion]