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 Bock Beer, which was created probably in the mid-1800s. The title of the oil sketch is “Bockbierfestzug” or “Bock Beer Festival Parade.” The artist was Anton Muttenthaler, who was originally born in Höchstädt an der Donau (Höchstädt on the Danube) in 1820 and died in Leipzig in 1870. The work is in the Munich City Museum.