Beer In Ads #5145: Enjoy Big D, Drewrys Bock Beer

March 5, 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. With Spring approaching, there are so many great examples that I’m going to post two a day for a few months.

Thursday’s first ad is for Drewrys Genuine Bock Beer, which was published on March 5, 1960. This ad was for the Drewrys Brewing Co., of McHenry, Illinois, which was originally founded in 1877 by E.L. Drewry. This ad ran in The Seymour Daily Tribune of Seymour, Indiana.

Historic Beer Birthday: Joseph Metcalfe

February 28, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

Today is the birthday of Joseph Metcalfe (February 28, 1832-September 26, 1858). He was born in Yorkshire, England, but came to the U.S. with his family as an infant, settling in Louisville when he was still a child. He was a brewer who owned breweries in both Louisville, Kentucky and New Albany, Indiana, which is just across the Ohio River from Louisville. He was often referred to as Colonel Metcalfe, and he was a veteran of the Mexican War as well as the Civil War.

He’s mentioned, curiously, in Germans in Louisville, in the prehistory of the town, from a German perspective.

And again similarly in an Encyclopedia of Louisville:

Here’s the story from IndianaBeer.com:

Colonel Joseph Metcalfe started a brewery in New Albany in 1847 which he sold to William Grainger in 1856 who sold it to Paul Reising in 1857. Reising sold it to Martin Kaelin in 1861 who renamed it Main Street Brewery. This was a two-story building of 40×60 feet with two lagering cellars. It employed five men who made 3,600 bbls by 1868.

This little item ran in Louisville Courier on September 11, 1855:

And this is how he’s mentioned in Hoosier Beer: Tapping Into Indiana Brewing History:

Tavern Trove has a slightly different timeline for the brewery, as do a number of sources.

Joseph Metcalfe Brewery 1847-1857
William Grainger 1857-aft 1857
Paul Reising Aft. 1857-1861
Martin Kaelin, Main Street Brewery 1861-1882
Louis Schmidt, Main Street Brewery 1882-1883
Hornung and Atkins, Main Street Brewery 1883-1886
Jacob Hornung, Main Street Brewery 1886-1889
Indiana Brewing Co. 1889-1895
Pank-Weinmann Brewing Company. 1895-1899
Merged with the Southern Indiana Ice and Beverage Co. of New Albany, Indiana in 1899

paul-reising-brewery — This is Metcalfe’s brewery shortly after he had sold it to Paul Reising.

Reisling-brewers — The brewery crew when it was the Paul Riesing Brewery.

Historic Beer Birthday: Philip Zorn

February 21, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

ph-zorn
Today is the birthday of Philip Lewis Zorn (February 21, 1837-January 4, 1912). Zorn was born in Wűrzburg, Bavaria, and learned brewing from his father, how was a brewer in Germany. In 1855, when he was eighteen, he emigrated to the U.S., and initially settled in Illinois, where he worked in breweries in Blue Island, Illinois. In 1871, he moved to Michigan City, Indiana and opened the Philip Zorn Brewery. Twenty years later, he incorporated it as the Ph. Zorn Brewing Co. After prohibition, his sons Robert and Charles, who had worked for the brewery beginning as young men, reopened the brewery as the Zorn Brewing Co. Inc., but it in 1935 it became known as the Dunes Brewery, before closing for good in 1938. He was also a city councilman and a co-founder of Citizens Bank of Michigan City.

This account is from the Indiana Bicentennial:

Philip Zorn Jr. was the son of a brewer in Wűrzburg, Bavaria who immigrated at the age of 18. He worked at a brewery in Illinois from 1855 until he started his own in Michigan City. By 1880 he was making 3,000 bbls annually. He became a prosperous man, a city councilman and the founder of the Citizens Bank of Michigan City.
The company passed to Philip’s sons Robert and Charles who built a new brewhouse in 1903 and reached almost 15,000 bbls by the time of Prohibition. During the dry years they made the Zoro brand of soda pop. After Prohibition they changed the name to Dunes Brewing, possibly because of a court action against Zorn in 1935 for selling beer to unlicensed companies. They made Grain State, Golden Grain and Pilsenzorn brands.

Zorn beers.

And this excerpt is from “Hoosier Beer: Tapping into Indiana Brewing History,” by Bob Ostrander and Derrick Morris:

Beer In Ads #5213: Sterling Bock At Its Mellow Best

February 20, 2026 By Jay Brooks Leave a Comment

Friday’s second ad is for Sterling Bock Beer, which was published on February 20, 1956. This ad was for the Sterling Brewers, Inc. of Evansville, Indiana, which was originally founded in 1880. This ad ran in The Birmingham News of Birmingham, Indiana.

Beer In Ads #5153: Lithia Christmas Bock

December 27, 2025 By Jay Brooks

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.

Saturday’s holiday ad is for Lithia Bock Beer, which was published on December 27, 1935. This ad was for the West Bend Lithia Brewing Co. of West Bend, Wisconsin, which was originally founded in 1856 by Christopher Eckstein. It was known as the West Bend Lithuia Brewing Co. from 1911-1920, and then the West Bend Lithia Co. from 1920 until closing in 1972. This ad ran in The West Bend News, covering Northwest Ohio and Northeast Indiana.

Historic Beer Birthday: George K. Schmidt

December 18, 2025 By Jay Brooks

kg-schmidt
Today is the birthday of George K. Schmidt (December 18, 1869-January 1, 1939). He was the son of Kasper George Schmidt, who founded the K.G. Schmidt Brewery. He and his father also founded a bank and he opened a branch brewery in Logansport, Indiana.

gk-schmidt

Here’s a short biography from Find-a-Grave:

President of Chicago’s Prudential State Savings Bank, Vice-President of Chicago’s Board of Local Improvements, member of Chicago’s Board of Assessors, City Controller of Chicago.
Ran for Mayor of Chicago as the Republican candidate in 1931 against encumbent Mayor “Big Bill” Thompson.
Owned the K G Brewery in Chicago, and the K G Brewery in Logansport, IN which operated until 1951.
County Assessor and City Council Member for Logansport, IN.
A noted outdoorsman whose now famous, pristine duck decoy hunting rig produced by Charles Perdew, the Mason Decoy Factory and Robert Elliston is highly sought after by collectors.

gk-schmidt-brewery-logansport
The brewery Schmidt built in Indiana.

First-Premium-Lager-Beer-Labels-KG-Schmidt-Brewing-Company

KG-Schmidts-Lager-Beer--Labels-KG-Schmidt-Brewing-Company

Beer In Ads #5138: Our Alarm Is Set For March 17th

December 10, 2025 By Jay Brooks

Wednesday’s ad is for Old Crown Bock Beer, which was published on December 10, 1945. This ad was for the Centlivre Brewing Corp. of Fort Wayne, Indiana, which was originally founded as the French Brewery in 1862. This ad ran in The Chronicle Tribune, from Marion, Indiana.

Historic Beer Birthday: Eugene Hack

November 18, 2025 By Jay Brooks

Today is the birthday of Eugene Hack (November 18, 1840-June 12, 1916). He was born in Wurtenburg, Germany, but emigrated to Indiana and settled in Vincennes in 1868. In 1875, he and a partner, Anton Simon, bought a small brewery in Vincennes, Indiana from John Ebner, who had established in 1859. They continued to call it the Eagle Brewery, although it was also referred to as the Hack & Simon Eagle Brewery, though in 1918, its official name became the Hack & Simon Brewery, until closed by prohibition. The brewery briefly reopened after prohibition as the Old Vincennes Brewery Inc., but they appear to have never actually brewed any beer, before closing for good in 1934.

Here’s Hack’s obituary, from the Brewers Journal, Volume 47, published in 1916:

And this account is from “Vincennes in Picture and Story: History of the Old Town, Appearance of the New,” written by J.P. Hodge, and originally published in 1902.

Eagle-history-1
eagle-brewery-indiana
Eagle-history-2

In 1859 the Eagle Brewery was established by John Ebner on Indianapolis Avenue in Vincennes, Indiana. It operated under his management until 1875 when it was sold to Eugene Hack and Anton Simon. They kept the name and added an eagle logo identifying their flagship brand. Hack and Simon successfully operated the brewery for decades. They were producing 18,000 barrels of beer a year and maintained five wagons and twelve head of horses for their local trade. In time they established five refrigerated beer depots in towns in Indiana and Illinois. The brewery was shut down by Indiana prohibitionary laws in 1918 and apparently not reopened in 1934 after Repeal.

A brewery paperweight. hack-and-simon-poster

Historic Beer Birthday: Anton Simon

November 2, 2025 By Jay Brooks

Today is the birthday of Anton Simon (November 2, 1848-March 27, 1927). He was born in Alsace, France, but moved to Vincennes, Indiana when he was fourteen, in 1862. After working in a series of jobs, in 1875, he and a partner, Eugene Hack, bought a small brewery in Vincennes, Indiana from John Ebner, who had established in 1859. They continued to call it the Eagle Brewery, although it was also referred to as the Hack & Simon Eagle Brewery, though in 1918, its official name became the Hack & Simon Brewery, until closed by prohibition. The brewery briefly reopened after prohibition as the Old Vincennes Brewery Inc., but they appear to have never actually brewed any beer, before closing for good in 1934.

Here’s a biography of Simon from History of Knox and Daviess Counties, Indiana, by Goodspeed Brothers, published in 1886:

And this account is from “Vincennes in Picture and Story: History of the Old Town, Appearance of the New,” written by J.P. Hodge, and originally published in 1902. There’s a short biography of Simon in the final paragraphs.

Eagle-history-1
eagle-brewery-indiana
Eagle-history-2

A brewery paperweight. hack-and-simon-poster

Historic Beer Birthday: Paul Reising

October 7, 2025 By Jay Brooks

paul-reising
Today is the birthday of Paul Reising (October 7, 1819-January 30, 1879). He was born in Bavaria, Germany, but moved to the United States when he was 35, in 1854. In 1857, he bought the City Brewery of New Albany, Indiana, from Joseph Metcalfe, and renamed it the Paul Reising & Co. Brewery, and a few years later the Paul Reising Brewing Co. It kept going after his death in 1879, but the business declared bankruptcy in 1915, and was sold.

paul-reising-brewery

This account is from a History Forum:

Paul Reising was born in the village of Hoerstein, Bavaria in 1819. He married Susanna Stadtmueller, also a native of Hoerstein in 1842 and came to America on board the ship Juventa bound from Havre de Grace to New York in 1854 (for more information on him and his family see Paul Reising Family History).
He purchased the City Brewery in New Albany in 1861. When he purchased it, it was a mere 20×60 feet with a capacity of 1500 barrels of beer annually. In 1873 the Paul Reising Brewing Company was incorporated with a capital stock of $100,000. By 1891, the capacity had been increased to 12000 barrels. Fred Kistner, Reising’s son-in-law was to have inherited the brewery, but he predeceased Reising and the brewery was sold to John Meyer. By 1913 the president of the company was H. L. Meinhardt. In 1914 financial disaster overtook the company, when some apparently bad beer was distributed without quality control. The company was forced into bankruptcy in 1915.
After the bankruptcy the company was sold to Michael Schrick, and was eventually renamed the Southern Indiana Ice and Beverage Company during Prohibition. This company closed in 1935. The old brewery site was reopened as the Polar Ice Company. This was razed in 1969 when the Holiday Inn which occupies this location now was constructed. No Brewery buildings remain.

Reisling-brewers
Employees of the Paul Riesing Brewery.

This brief history of the brewery is from “100 Years of Brewing:”

Reising-rathskeller-brew

Reisings-Kaiser-Beer-Labels-Paul-Reising-Brewing-Co-Inc_31932-1