Historic Beer Birthday: Frank Senn

February 2, 2026 By Jay Brooks 5 Comments

Today is the birthday of Frank Senn (February 2, 1838-November 8, 1913) who was born in Mechtersheim, Germany, which today is known as Römerberg, but settled in St. Louis, Missouri with his parents in 1853. In Louisville, Kentucky, he opened the Frank Seen Brewery in 1874, but later sold it to his two brothers. In 1877, he took with a partner, Philip Ackermann, he opened a new brewery, the Frank Senn & Philip Ackermann Brewery. In 1892, they shortened it to the Senn & Ackermann Brewing Co., which it remained until being closed by prohibition.

Here’s a short bio, from his obituary, printed in the Western Brewer and Journal for July to December 1913.

Here’s a short history of the brewery, from the Encyclopedia of Louisville:

And another one from Germans in Louisville: A History:

After prohibition began, the building was abandoned, eventually becoming a scrapyard.

And this obituary is from the Courier Journal:

Beer Birthday: Jamie Floyd

February 2, 2026 By Jay Brooks 5 Comments

Today is the 54th birthday of Jamie Floyd, co-owner/brewer of Ninkasi Brewing in Eugene, Oregon. Jamie has been a fixture in the Oregon brewing scene for many years, having brewed at Steelhead Brewing, also in Eugene, before opening Ninkasi with Nikos Ridge in 2006. Join me in wishing Jamie a very happy birthday.

Jamie at Magnolia for SF Beer Week in 2011.

Jamie with a group of brewers at GABF in 2004.

Jamie, with John Maier, from Rogue Brewing, and Nikos Ridge, also from Ninkasi, at the Sasquatch Brew Fest in 2007.

Jamie Floyd, from Ninkasi Brewing — Jamie at GABF in 2011.

Justin Crossley (Brewing Network) & Jamie Floyd (Ninkasi) — Justin Crossley, of the Brewing Network, with Jamie at the Opening Gala for the 2010 SF Beer Week.

Beer In Ads #5189: The Bock Of The Town

February 1, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

Two years ago I decided to concentrate on Bock ads for awhile. Bock, of course, may have originated in Germany, in the town of Einbeck. Because many 19th century American breweries were founded by German immigrants, they offered a bock at certain times of the year, be it Spring, Easter, Lent, Christmas, or what have you. In a sense they were some of the first seasonal beers. “The style was later adopted in Bavaria by Munich brewers in the 17th century. Due to their Bavarian accent, citizens of Munich pronounced ‘Einbeck’ as ‘ein Bock’ (a billy goat), and thus the beer became known as ‘Bock.’ A goat often appears on bottle labels.” And presumably because they were special releases, many breweries went all out promoting them with beautiful artwork on posters and other advertising.

Sunday’s ad is for Iron City Bock Beer, which was published on February 1, 1939. This one was for Iron City Brewing Co., which was located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and was founded by Edward Frauenheim in 1861. This ad ran in The Pittsburgh Press , also of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Historic Beer Birthday: Leo Van Munching Sr.

February 1, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

Today is the birthday of Leo van Munching (February 1, 1901-April 3, 1990). He was born in Harderwijk, Gelderland, in The Netherlands. He started importing Heineken beer under the name “Van Munching & Co., and he and his son, Leo van Munching, Jr., built it into a powerhouse imported beer brand. Sales Agents UK has an overview of their business strategy in a short piece entitled Leo Van Munching – The Story of the US Heineken Mogul.

Here’s his obituary from April 4, 1990’s New York Times

The Van Munching headquarters in New York, in 1948.

Historic Beer Birthday: John Thomas

February 1, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

Today is the birthday of John Thomas (February 1, 1847-January 4, 1899). In 1884, his later business parter founded a brewery in Philadelphia, the following year Thomas joined the business, and they called in Welde & Thomas, later adding “Brewing Company” to the name. In 1904, it was consolidated with several other breweries into the Consumers Brewers Co., which remained in business until closed by prohibition in 1920. The brewery reopened after repeal in 1933 as the Trainer Brewing Co., but only lasted one year.

Here’s Thomas’ obituary from the American Brewers Review in 1899:

This biography was printed in the “The Columbian Exposition and World’s Fair Illustrated,” from 1893:

In a biography of his partner John Welde, Thomas naturally gets more than a mention:

In 1884, John Welde, a German immigrant, established a brewery in Philadelphia on the corner of Broad and Christian Streets. A year later, he formed a partnership with John Thomas, a Philadelphia native, who had been a partner in another brewery. Together they created Welde and Thomas, a brewing firm that was later reorganized into the Welde and Thomas Brewing Company. They moved to a new location and modernized the facility with innovative equipment, growing the brewing capacity of the plant to 50,000 barrels per year. In March 1897, Welde and Thomas, along with five other breweries were consolidated under the title of the Consumer’s Brewing Company. The combined breweries were able to produce approximately 300,000 barrels a year.

This description is from an Advertising Print for Welde and Thomas Brewing Co., created around 1895, and now in the collection of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History.

This colorful framed print, an ad for the Welde and Thomas Brewing Company, of Philadelphia, also commemorates the 1895 America’s Cup race between the American yacht Defender and the British Valkyrie III. Imagery of the yacht race dominates the print and the American vessel, the ultimate victor in the match, holds primacy of place. Defender’s full sails provide a dramatic canvas for the names of two of the company’s products: Penn and Sanitas Beers. These brands, along with Quaker, were among those brewed by Welde and Thomas.
Three detailed insets border the print. One shows “Penn’s Brewery of 1682” in Pennsbury, Buck’s County; another shows the Welde and Thomas buildings at Juniper and Fitzwater Streets in Philadelphia; and the third is an image of William Penn holding a bottle of beer. The ad deftly aligns Welde and Thomas beer to icons of American success: the very founding of Philadelphia and its early embrace of brewing as well as an American yacht’s triumphant defense of the America’s Cup.
German immigrant John Welde established a brewery in Philadelphia in 1884, forming a partnership with Philadelphia businessman John Thomas the following year. In 1886, they moved to the Juniper and Fitzwater Streets location and invested in new equipment, increasing their capacity dramatically. In 1897, Welde and Thomas consolidated operations with five other breweries, organizing under the name Consumer’s Brewing Company. Thomas died in 1899 and Welde in 1901.

Historic Beer Birthday: Johann Schiff

February 1, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

Today is the birthday of Johann Schiff (February 1, 1813-February 9, 1878). Schiff was born in Rohrbach, Germany, but appears to have emigrated to Ohio by at least 1850, but probably earlier.

He was a co-owner on the Eagle Brewery in Cincinnati, Ohio, which was known by various names names, such as the Schaller & Schiff Brewery and later the Schaller-Gerke Brewery and finally the Gerke Brewing Co. Accounts seem to vary about his involvement, and especially with the names of the brewery as they changed, but here’s the timeline from the Queen City Chapter’s page, entitled Cincinnati Brewing History-Preprohibition 1811-1919.

1829: William Lofthouse and William Attee operate THE EAGLE BREWERY located on Fourth Street from 1829 until 1843. William Lofthouse becomes the sole proprietor of the brewery after William Attee dies in 1843 and he operates the brewery until his own death in 1850. His widow leases the brewery to Joseph Schaller and Johann Schiff who continue to use the EAGLE BREWERY name and operate the facility from 1850 to 1857.
1854: Joseph Schaller and Johann Schiff purchased land on the Miami-Erie Canal near Plum Street and construct a new brewery which they operate from 1854 to 1866. They continued to use the EAGLE BREWERY name. In 1866 Schaller buys out Schiff and he becomes a partner with John Gerke. The brewery name becomes SCHALLER & GERKE, EAGLE BREWERY. They continue in business together until 1882.
1861: Joseph Schaller buys out his partner, Johann Schiff, and continues to operate THE EAGLE BREWERY. In 1866, John Gerke becomes a partner in the business and the brewery operates until 1882.
1882: After John Gerke‘s death, his son, George, takes his place in the brewery and the business is incorporated as THE GERKE BREWING CO. In 1904, a new building is erected but is soon sold to the French-Bauer Dairy and the Gerke Brewing Co. is out of business by 1912.

I have been unable to find any portraits of Johann Schiff, or indeed much biographical information of any kind. There’s a bit more about the fate of the brewery after Schiff was bought out, and it became known as the Gerke Brewing Co. For example, Lagering Cellar 1861 has some Gerke Brewery History.

Joseph Schaller came to America as a young man. Working as a laborer in Cincinnati and on the Erie Canal, he saved his money to start a vinegar works. He purchased the old Lofthouse Brewery (located on 4th Street) with Johann Schiff in 1850. While not trained as a brewer, he hired well. They quickly grew the business and built the Eagle Brewery at the corner of Plum and Canal in 1854.
The brewery was located at the Plum Street bend of the Miami & Erie Canal, and had large arched windows unique to Cincinnati breweries0 These windows are duplicated in the doors to the elevator room you came through. Partnering with John Gerke, he grew the brewery to be one of the largest and most modern in the city, producing about 140,000 barrels of beer a year. Before retiring, he helped his three sons start the Schaller Brothers Main Street Brewery. Gerke continued brewing until 1912. Brewery was replaced with the French Bauer Ice Cream Factory in 1917, which still exists as the Court Street Center building today.
Gerke continued brewing until 1912.
Schaller & Schiff, Eagle Brewery (4th Street) 1850 – 1857
Schaller & Schiff, Eagle Brewery 1854 – 1866
Schaller & Gerke, Eagle Brewery 1866 – 1882
Gerke Brewing Company 1882 – 1912

The first brewery on this corner was the Eagle Brewery from 1854 to 1866, owned by Joseph Schaller and Johann Schiff. In 1866, Schiff left the company and John Gerke joined in. The name was changed to Schaller & Gerke, Eagle Brewery and they continued together until 1882. The Schallers left the business then to purchase the Main Street Brewery and after the death of his father John, George Gerke continued the business at Canal and Plum Streets.

Founded in 1854 as the Eagle Brewery closer to the Ohio River, Joseph Schaller and John Gerke built a new brewery at the bend of the Miami and Erie Canal in 1866. Beer was brewed there until 1910.

The brewery equipment was sold at auction October 15, 1913.

Beer In Ads #5188: Aged Bock Beer Is Always In Season

January 31, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

Saturday’s ad is for Bruton Bock Beer, which was published on January 31, 1939. This ad was for the Bruton Brewing Co. of Baltimore, Maryland, which was originally founded in 1855 by George Neisendorfer. Over the years it had several owners and a variety of names, and for it’s last five years in business, from 1935-1940, it was known as the Bruton Brewing Co. This ad ran in The Evening Sun , also of Baltimore, Maryland.

Historic Beer Birthday: William Hoffmeister

January 31, 2026 By Jay Brooks 2 Comments

Today is the birthday of William Hoffmeister (January 31, 1827-1902), who was born in Germany, but emigrated to the U.S. in 1847, settling in Cincinnati, Ohio. There in 1856 he founded the William Hoffmeister Brewery, but it was only in production until 1873, when he closed it and opened a saloon. Being open for a mere seventeen years, there’s precious little information about either the brewery or William Hoffmeister, and I was unable to find any picture of him, his beer or his brewery, though this may be his coat of arms.

This is about all I could find on William Hoffmeister, from the Cincinnati Turner Societies: The Cradle of an American Movement, by Dann Woellert, published in 2012.

Hoffmeister-cincinnati-test

Beer Saints: St. Veronus

January 31, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

Today is the feast day of St. Veronus. He is the patron saint of Lambeek & Belgian brewers. He was also known as Veronus van Lembeek, and he was a professor or a farmhand (accounts differ) who lived in Belgium in the 9th century.

This short account of his life is from his Dutch Wikipedia page, translated by Google:

The life of Veronus is known from a hagiography written by Olbert van Gembloers around 1015-1020.
According to legend, Veronus was a great-grandson of Charlemagne. He left the parental home at the age of 15, because he did not want to get married, and ended up in Lembeek. Here he settled and served as a servant on a farmyard.
Once when he hammered a stick into the ground, water immediately bubbled from the ground. He told his twin sister, Saint Verona, where he would be buried after his death. A fallen tree would show her the way. After his death it happened as he had foreseen.
Woodcut of Veronus dressed as a pilgrim and holding a staff standing outside a farmhouse, where a woman is pouring liquid from a churn, from c.1516-8.

And this account is from Heiligen, a German website devoted to saints, also translated by Google.

Veronus was of fairly high descent. He is said to have been a cousin of Charles the Bald († 877). He left his parental home because he did not agree with the plans of his parents who liked to see him married and with an appropriate party. He himself walked around desiring to devote himself entirely to the service of God, and thus not to marry. On his departure, he informed his sister Verona (9th century; feast day, August 29) that in due time a sign would indicate the time and place of his death: a storm would arise and the trees would blow over and fall in towards the place where he is said to have died. After some wanderings, he ended up on a court farm in Lembeek. There he hired himself out as a farmhand. He lived a life of simplicity and service.
Legend tells how he drilled a well when he once planted his stick in the ground near the church. After all, according to the chronicles, he died “loved by God and by men.”
Indeed, his death was accompanied by the signs he had announced to his sister at the time. So she left in the indicated direction and ended up in Brabant. The horses stopped in Berchem. There she was told that she had to continue to Lembeek. She found her brother’s grave in the local church. The moment she entered the body emitted a wonderful scent. The tomb was opened and the dead was found completely intact.
Over the centuries, the memory of Veronus faded. He is said to have appeared to a priest on the spot to remind him of his memory. The priest began to work for the restoration of the worship of Veronus, and the latter expressed his agreement by delighting many pilgrims with answers to prayers and other miracles.

Modern Usages

There’s a St. Veronus Cafe and Tap Room located in Peterborough, Ontario, Canada. They bill themselves as a Belgian restaurant and beer bar.

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