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. With Spring approaching, there are so many great examples that I’m going to post two a day for a few months.

Friday’s ad is for Centilvre Bock Beer, which was published on April 24, 1886. This ad was for the C.L. Centlivre Brewing Co. of Fort Wayne, Indiana, which was founded in 1862 by Charles l. Centlivre. It went through several name changes until 1970, when it closed, however it was recently relaunched by the Centlivre family as Centlivre Beer. This ad ran in The Fort Wayne News and Sentinel, also of Fort Wayne, Indiana.