Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Beer In Ads #4904: It’s Here! The Genuine Bock Beer!

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Last year I decided to concentrate on Bock ads. Bock, of course, 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 if for Rheingold Genuine Bock Beer and was published March 9, 1959. The ad was created for Liebmann Breweries, founded in 1837. The lithograph was created in 1880.  The ad is signed but I’ll be damned if I can read the signature. Best I can make out is something like … well, no, I looked again and I can’t make heads or tales of it. I do love the stenciling on the keg and the goat peeking out from behind it, but especially the letter from Dr. Ringelmann, Secretary of State, about the Original Gravity.

Beer In Ads #4902: Have One With Me Bock

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Last year I decided to concentrate on Bock ads. Bock, of course, 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.

Friday’s ad for Bock Beer depicts a woman sitting on a wall, with a stein in one hand and a glass of beer raised up in the other. A goat is at her feet. The Library of Congress indicates that this poster is considered number 179 and is titled “Have One With Me,” but there’s nothing on the poster itself to indicate this is the case. The chromolithograph was created in 1893.  The lithographer was H. Schile & Co. of 18 Division St. in New York City. Henry Jerome Schile was born in Germany, and emigrated to the U.S. in 1851, settling in Manhattan, which is where he opened his own print company.

Historic Beer Birthday: Leonhard Eppig

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Today is the birthday of Leonhard Eppig (March 4, 1839-April 9, 1893). He was born in Großwallstadt, Bavaria, and at age fifteen, in 1854, he came to New York on the S.S. Rotterdam and settled in Brooklyn. He learned to brew working for a Brooklyn brewer, Michael Seitz. In 1866, he and a partner formed the Hubert Fischer & Leonhard Eppig Brewery. Ten years later, he bought out his partner and it became simply the Leonard Eppig Brewing Co., but traded under the name Germania Brewery. From what I can tell Eppig’s name was spelled Leonhard, but it was often anglicized to Leonard, even on advertising. When Eppig died, his sons continued running the brewery until it was closed down by prohibition in 1920. They reopened the brewery after repeal, but in 1935 sold it to George Ehret Brewery.

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

Leonhard was born in Bavaria, Germany. He married Margarehta about 1854 and had at least 10 children, Anna, Euginia, John, Henry, Franz, Barbara, Theresa, Mary, Margaret and Regina, some of which are entombed in his mausoleum. Leonhard owned the Eppig Germania Brewery Company, which was located in Brooklyn.

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And here’s his obituary from the Brooklyn Daily Eagle:

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This lengthy story is from “A History of Long Island: From Its Earliest Settlement to the Present Time, Volume 3,” by Peter Ross and William Smith Pelletreau, published in 1905:

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Busts of Eppig and his wife on the family mausoleum.

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Last year, a descendant of the Eppig family opened a craft brewery in San Diego, which they named Eppig Brewing, and included this infographic in their website:

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Historic Beer Birthday: Jacob Ruppert Sr.

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Today is the birthday of Jacob Ruppert, Sr. (March 4, 1842-May 25, 1915). Although his son Jacob Ruppert, Jr. was more well-known, in politics and in baseball, his father made that possible when he founded the Jacob Ruppert Brewing Company in 1867.

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Here’s a biography from Find a Grave:

Founder of the Jacob Ruppert Brewing Company. Jacob Ruppert, Sr. was one of the first and most noted brewers in the US. He was born in NYC and was a son of Franz and Wilhelmina Zindel-Ruppert of Bavaria. Under he expert guidance of his father, Jacob learned the brewing trade thoroughly. At ten he began working for his father’s Turtle Bay Brewery in Midtown Manhattan which was then only two years old. Work was hard for him and his father, as machinery was scarce during the Civil War. In 1867 he opened the Jacob Ruppert Brewing Co. on Manhattan’s then-forested Upper East Side. With a 50 foot square brick building, he opened what was to be the first of many breweries. The Jacob Ruppert Brewery steadily became one of the largest and best-equipped breweries in the world. He eventually broadened his entrepreneurial interests to include real estate which became the biggest money maker for the Rupperts helping them to survive (along with Jacob Jr’s interest in baseball) the coming war, Prohibition and Great Depression. Jacob Jr. eventually took over the brewing business and brought it and the Ruppert name to greater fame and glory. Jacob Ruppert, Sr. was a forceful, single-purposed man with a great capacity for work. His charities were numerous but unostentatious.He married Anna Gillig, daughter of brewer George Gillig, and had six children: Cornelia, Jacob, Frank, Anna, George and Amanda, all interred with their father in our family’s mausoleum. Jacob died of cirrhosis at the age of 74, an illness brought on by the years of testing the very brew he sold.

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The Jacob Ruppert Brewery around 1932.
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Beer In Ads #4898: Schaefer Beyond Bock Beer

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Last year I decided to concentrate on Bock ads. Bock, of course, 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 ad is is for Schaefer Bock Beer, and is not from 1940, but is undoubtedly is a fake someone made over the last few decades based on the Dr. Seuss’ book, “On Beyond Zebra!,” which was published in 1955. But keeping in the spirit of Theodor Geisel‘s birthday yesterday, I thought why not. It’s pretty well done.vThe brewery was the F. & M. Schaefer Brewing Co. originally of New York, New York, which was founded in 1842. Today is the birthday of Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. Before he started writing popular children’s books, he worked for a number of years doing illustrations and art for various company advertising campaigns, including for a couple of beer companies, like the one I shared yesterday for Schaefer.

Beer In Ads #4897: Schaefer Bock Beer

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Last year I decided to concentrate on Bock ads. Bock, of course, 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 is for Schaefer Bock Beer, and is from 1940. The brewery was the F. & M. Schaefer Brewing Co. originally of New York, New York, which was founded in 1842. Today is the birthday of Theodore Geisel, better known as Dr. Seuss. Before he started writing popular children’s books, he worked for a number of years doing illustrations and art for various company advertising campaigns, including for a couple of beer companies, like this one for Schaefer.

Beer In Ads #4894: Piel’s Light Bock

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Last year I decided to concentrate on Bock ads. Bock, of course, 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.

Thursday’s ad is is for Piel’s Light Bock Beer, and is from March of 1949. While I’m aware of lighter colored bocks not being uncommon, this is the first time I’ve seen one advertised as a “light bock.” Piel’s Brewing was founded in 1883 in Brooklyn, but by the 1960s they started closing breweries and by 1973 they were all shut down, and the brand sold to another conglomerate. The brand tried to restart in 2018, but it must not have lasted long because of their new social channels ar dormant. I do quite love the gnomes with the goats.

Historic Beer Birthday: William Henry Beadleston

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Today is the birthday of William Henry Beadleston (February 27, 1840-October 24, 1895). He was born in New York, and according to his very short biography was a “director and trustee in various corporations; in brewing business.” He was president of the Beadleston & Woerz Empire Brewery in New York City. “Under William’s leadership the brewery his father founded grew to be a large player supplying beer to many locations east of the Mississippi.” Known by a few different names before 1877, Beadleston was always one of the names list in the brewery name from it’s founding in 1846 until its final name, Beadleston & Woerz Empire Brewery, which it traded under until 1920, when it closed for good.

Here is his obituary from the New Your Tribune on October 25, 1895.

Beer In Ads #4883: Bock Bier In Color

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Last year I decided to concentrate on Bock ads. Bock, of course, 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 for “Bock” depicts what looks like a blind goat holding a large mug of beer while leaning over a wooden cask with “Bock Bier” carved into it. The hand-colored lithograph was created in 1880.  The lithographer was H. Schile & Co. of 18 Division St. in New York City. Henry Jerome Schile was born in Germany, and emigrated to the U.S. in 1851, settling in Manhattan, which is where he opened his own print company.

Beer In Ads #4880: Centennial Bock Bier

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Last year I decided to concentrate on Bock ads. Bock, of course, 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.

Thursday’s ad for “Bock” depicts a well-dressed goat raising a toast to America’s centennial, with the title: “Centennial Bock Bier. The Best, Can Be Had Here.” The lithograph was created in 1876. The lithographer was the famous Currier & Ives, located at 125 Nassau St., New York. They were a “printmaking business operating from 1835 to 1907. Founded by Nathaniel Currier, the company designed and sold inexpensive hand-painted lithographic works based on news events, views of popular culture and Americana. Advertising itself as “the Grand Central Depot for Cheap and Popular Prints,” the corporate name was changed in 1857 to “Currier and Ives” with the addition of James Merritt Ives.”