Cedar Crest Ice Cream celebrates 50 years of family tradition

The Kohlwey brothers carry a heavy load – a family tradition that dates back to 1918, when their grandfather, Otto Kohlway Sr., established a dairy route near Cedarburg.

“Our parents, Alfred and June Kohlwey, guided the dairy operation that eventually became Cedarburg Dairy and then we launched Cedar Crest Ice Cream in 1976,” said Ken Kohlwey, president and manager of the Cedar Crest plant in Manitowoc.

Ken works alongside his brothers, Bill Kohlwey, who serves as corporate secretary, Tim Kohlwey, vice president of distribution and Robert, vice president of sales.

The family-owned business will celebrate its 50th anniversary this year, which speaks volumes about the success the company has achieved over the years.

The Wisconsin State Farmer sat down with the Kohlweys this month to talk about how they’ve kept and grown this regional favorite.

Cedar Crest evolved through hand-me-down recipes and strong community spirit

In 1976, Cedarburg Dairy was renamed Cedar Crest Specialties, which allowed the company the capacity to distribute different kinds of products along with ice cream. Located on the east side of Milwaukee, it started as a distributor running of two ice cream routes in southwest Wisconsin for Oak Brand Ice Cream, which came from a plant in Freeport, Illinois.

The following year, Oak Brand Ice Cream decided to retire its business. With a few of Oak Brand’s ice cream recipes (including the Blue Moon ice cream recipe) that were passed down to the Kohlweys in-hand, the family decided to purchase Smith Ice Cream, a small plant in Oshkosh, and make their own ice cream.

Kohlwey says they grew out of their Milwaukee office and relocated to Cedarburg. They purchased property in 1979 and built their own distribution and warehouse center. The company brand, Cedar Crest reflects the association with their hometown.

In 1987, the Lake to Lake manufacturing plant in Manitowoc came up for sale and the Kohlweys decided to move their ice cream-making plant west.

“As for the plant, it was more practical to purchase used than to build new and by the time we were ready to grow, Lake to Lake was ready to sell,” Kohlwey said. “The plant also came with Bernice, the iconic giant Gurnsey who still stands tall outside the plant.”

Since moving into the Manitowoc facility, Cedar Crest added a spiral freezer and dry storage area in 1994, and to the delight of customers, opened the ice cream parlor in 1998, and expanded freezer space in Cedarburg, which now holds up to 2,400 pallets of ice cream.

What does Cedar Crest Ice Cream sell, and where can you get it?

There’s a lot that happens in the small plant located near Lake Michigan. Employees are busy making ice cream, sherbet and sorbet, which is packed in 3-gallon tubs for its Parlor Partners. Multiple varieties of ice cream are packed in 48-ounce “squrounds” – rectangular ice cream containers with rounded corners. Ice cream, custard, sherbet and sorbet are packed into 16-ounce pints. Sherbet is sold in 32-ounce containers. Some varieties of ice cream and sherbet are also sold in individual cups.

Frozen products are then distributed all across the Midwest: all of Wisconsin, Minnesota, Upper Michigan, northern Illinois, Iowa and Missouri. The company also has a third-party distributor that provides Cedar Crest to North Dakota and Texas.

Cedar Crest is known for its variety of flavors, but options extend beyond taste

Poring over the Cedar Crest website, customers are amazed by the variety of ice cream, sherbet, custard, sorbet, and cake flavors churned out at the plant over the last half century. This also includes non-fat/sugar-free and lactose-free options.

Creativity is certainly a key ingredient in turning out a customer favorite, says marketing manager Shannon Simon.

“We receive tons of flavor suggestions from our team and customers. We also receive flavor samples from our suppliers who may have a new ingredient available,” Simon said. “(If the suggestion) is practical, we’ll stir up a few small samples and distribute them to the team. As long as the flavor idea is within range of cost and receives positive feedback, we’ll introduce it to our Featured Flavors. If it’s a crowd pleaser, we’ll consider adding it to our retail line-up.”

Two flavors of ice cream concocted by two past winners of the Cedar Crest 4-H Flavor Contest are slated to join the regular lineup this year, Smith said. Those include Demo Derby created by the Sunnyside Climbers 4-H Club of Portage County in 2025, and Paul Bunyan by the Pesobic Pathfinders of Lincoln County. Those two flavors will join past grand prize 4-H contest winners that include WI Campfire S’mores, Big Muddy and Jumping Jersey Cow.

The 4-H Flavor Contest was established in 2013 in partnership with the 4-H Foundation. The entries are judged by all four Kohlwey brothers – Ken, Robert, Tim and Bill along with several members of the Cedar Crest team.

“The best part of the contest is the great participation we get fromall the 4-H Clubs across the state and the thoughtfulness they put into their entries,” Kohlwey said.

Cedar Crest Ice Cream Parlor is a landmark destination in Manitowoc

Since it was built 37 years ago, the Cedar Crest Ice Cream Parlor has been attracting customers from near and far to enjoy its factory-fresh ice cream served up in cones, sundaes, shakes and malts. A variety of hand-dipped ice cream flavors gives visitors the perfect opportunity to try to find their favorite flavor throughout our season.

“We were so busy making ice cream and distributing it, it took us some time to realize that we should also have a store,” said Kohlwey. “It’s a small space but it attracts a huge crowd from all over Wisconsin and visitors from Michigan arriving on the S.S. Badger ferry.”

Although there’s little indoor seating, picnic tables are scattered across the lawn. And most guests are happy to wander up to the towering Guernsey named Bernice for a photo or two.

According to the Manitowoc Historical Society, the 14-foot fiberglass Guernsey was brought to Manitowoc from Sparta, Wisconsin, in the 1960s by Rolland and Raleigh Sorge, owners of the building that currently houses Cedar Crest Ice Cream. The Sorges built the original plant in 1948 and operated Sorge Dairy out of the plant until it was sold to Lake to Lake in 1965.

Business brings challenges and many rewards

While the Kohlwey family has marked many successes over the past 50 years under the Cedar Crest banner, Ken admits the company has faced some challenges due to its size.

“Our suppliers continue to force us to buy some ingredients in larger quantities These amounts get to be so large that either we take the larger quantities and throw a fair amount away, or we just don’t buy the ingredients,” Kohlwey said. “That in turn forces us to either eliminate some flavors or not come out with some really good flavors. We have had some amazing flavors over the years, but we may have to limit the number of flavors due to the minimum order requirements on ingredients.”

While Kohlwey and his brothers can only imagine the number of people who enjoy their award-winning ice cream, they are able to see the smiles of customers coming through the doors of the ice cream parlor.

“It is very gratifying to see firsthand all the people we make happy who enjoy our ice cream,” he said. “Our ice cream really sells itself. With so many flavors, it’s hard not to find a flavor you would like.”

Smith says Cedar Crest plans to host an event at the ice cream parlor to invite guests to celebrate the milestone anniversary with them.

“There is also a Sweepstakes via social media still in the works that we’re excited to spread the word about!”

This article originally appeared on Wisconsin State Farmer: Cedar Crest Ice Cream celebrates 50 years of family tradition

Reporting by Colleen Kottke, Wisconsin State Farmer / Wisconsin State Farmer

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