Last year 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.
Monday’s poster is for an Star Model Bock Beer, which was published sometime after 1933, but before 1966. This one was for the Star Union Products Co. of Peru, Illinois, which was originally founded in 1856 as the Fred Kaiser Brewery. By 1877 it was the Union Beer Co. and after 1880, Star Union. The poster is signed with what looks like “Roesler,” but I couldn’t find out any additional information about the artist.
