Brookston Beer Bulletin

Jay R. Brooks on Beer

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Beer In Ads #5180: STEG-Maier Bock It’s Truly Brewed

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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.

Friday’s ad is for Stegmaier Bock Beer, which was published on January 23, 1959. This ad was for the Stegmaier Brewing Co. of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, which was originally founded in 1857.  This ad ran in The Times Leader, also of Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania.

Historic Beer Birthday: Ellis Wainwright Sr.

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Today is the birthday of Ellis Wainwright (January 23, 1809-May 16, 1949). He was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, the son of brewer Joseph Wainwright and the brother of brewer Samuel Wainwright. He and his brother both learned the trade from their father, and later moved to St. Louis to open a brewery together, which was known by various names, usually with their surname Wainwright in the title beginning in 1831.

Much later joining the St. Louis Brewing Association (Eighteen St. Louis breweries merge into the English syndicate called the St. Louis Brewing Association.).

Here’s a short history of Ellis, from Tavern Trove:

Ellis Wainwright was born in Pennsylvania. He was the son of the Prominent Pittsburgh brewer Joseph Wainwright. From a young age he and his brother Ellis apprenticed in his father’s Brewery where they learned the brewing of ale and beer in the English method. In 1831, at age 22, Ellis ventured westward with the intention of establishing one of the first breweries in St. Louis Missouri.

On or about 1840 his brother Samuel (younger by 13 years) joined him in the Fulton Street Brewery. Together they guided the brewery to become one of the largest in a city of many large breweries. Ellis Wainwright died in the cholera epidemic of 1849 on May 16th. He was just 40 years of age. Upon his brother’s death Samuel purchased his brother’s share from the estate and ran the brewery, expanding it even more until another generation of Wainwrights took it over in the 1870s.

This short biography is from the St. Louis, Missouri’s government website:

Ellis Wainwright was one of the City’s first brewers, establishing the Fulton Brewery in 1831. The brewery was tremendously successful, and Wainwright became on the wealthiest men in St. Louis in the mid-1800s. By the 1890s, the family businesses were run by his son, Ellis Jr., who commissioned Louis Sullivan to build the landmark Wainwright Building downtown.

The Wainwright Building, created by architect Louis Sullivan.

And while his Find-a-Grave page is nearly empty, his brother Samuel’s includes a biography and since they grew up in the same place with the same parents and started a business together, there’s undoubtedly several similarities to their life’s story:

Businessman, Brewmaster. Born in Pennsylvania, Samuel’s father was a well-known and wealthy brewer of ale and beer in England. Samuel served his apprenticeship to the brewer’s trade under his father’s directions, thoroughly mastering every detail of the art of manufacturing ale and beer in accordance with English methods. In 1846, Samuel purchased a small brewery in St. Louis which had previously been known as the Fulton Brewery. Along with his brother Ellis, he conducted the brewing business established under the firm name of Ellis & Samuel Wainwright until 1849 when Ellis died. For two years afterwards, the business was conducted under the old firm name, but after that Samuel purchased the interest of his brother’s estate and continued the business along until the formation of a new partnership with Charles A. Fritz. In 1857, he purchased George Busch’s interest in a malt-house and lager beer brewery and took the name of Fritz & Wainwright and engaged exclusively in the manufacture of lager beer. The business continued until 1870, when Fritz sold his interest and the business became known as Samuel Wainwright & Co.

Beer In Ads #5179: Nix Besser The First Sign Of Spring

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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.

Thursday’s ad is for Neuweiler Bock Beer, which was published on January 22, 1960. This ad was for the Neuweiler Brewing Co. of Allentown, Pennsylvania, which was originally founded in 1875 by Benedict Nuding. Nuding retired in 1900, and Neuweiler bought him out, but didn’t change the name until 1905. This ad ran in The Morning Call, of Allentown, Pennsylvania. In case you’re curious, “Nix Besser” is a Pennsylvania Dutch phrase I grew up with which means “none better.” It’s believed to have been derived from “nichts besser,” which means “nothing better” in German.

Beer In Ads #5178: I’m In Town Boys!

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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.

Wednesday’s ad is for Duqesne Bock Beer, which was published on January 21, 1941. This ad was for the Duquesne Brewing Co. of Baltimore, Pennsylvania, which was originally founded in 1899.  This ad ran in The Pittsburgh Post Gazette, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.

Beer In Ads #5174: Bock Is Back … And Sunny’s Got It!

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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.

Saturday’s ad is for Sunshine Premium Bock Beer, which was published on January 17, 1955. This ad was for the Sunshine Brewing Co. of Reading, Pennsylvania, which was originally founded in 1859 by Peter Barbey and Abraham Peltzer. This ad ran in The Standard Speaker, of Hazelton, Pennsylvania.

Beer In Ads #5172: Join The Bock Beer Festival!

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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.

Thursday’s ad is for Valley Forge Bock Beer, which was published on January 15, 1953. This ad was for the Valley Forge Brewing Co., which also the name of a brand sold by the C. Schmidt & Sons Brewing Co. of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which was originally founded in 1859 by Robert Courtenay. This ad ran in The Newsday Nassau Edition, of Long Island, New York.

Beer Birthday: Jaime Jurado

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Today is the birthday of Jaime Jurado, who for many years was the Director of Brewing Operations for the Gambrinus Company, which included several beer brands and breweries, such as Shiner, BridgePort, Pete’s Wicked and Trumer. A couple of years ago, he moved to Pennsylvania, where he was the brewmaster at Susquehanna Brewing Co. in Pittston, then moved back south, this time to Louisiana, where for five years he was the Director of Brewing Operations at Abita Brewing. After that, he struck out on his own, and was doing brewery consulting and for a time was Vice-President of two start-ups, Ennoble Beverages and JHH. These days, he’s the GM at the 49th State Brewing Co. in Anchorage, Alaska. Jaime’s an incredibly talented brewer. More importantly, Jaime is one of the nicest people I know in the business. Join me wishing Jaime a very happy birthday.

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A blushing Jamie at OBF in 2006.
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Jamie with Lars Larson, brewmaster of Trumer Brauerei, at the Celebrator 18th anniversary party.
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Jamie (far left) with some NBWA luminaries at the 2008 NBWA welcome reception. From left, Jamie, Lucy Saunders (the Beer Cook), Charlie Papazian (President of the Brewers Association), Kim Jordan (from New Belgium Brewing) and Tom Dalldorf (from the Celebrator Beer News).
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Jamie with Todd and Jason Alström, founder of Beer Advocate, at the 2008 GABF.

Beer In Ads #5171: By Far Philadelphia’s Largest-Selling Bock Beer

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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.

Wednesday’s ad is for Valley Forge Bock Beer, which was published on January 14, 1954. This ad was for the Valley Forge Brewing Co., which also the name of a brand sold by the C. Schmidt & Sons Brewing Co. of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, which was originally founded in 1859 by Robert Courtenay. This ad ran in The Courier Post, of Cherry Hill, New Jersey.

Beer In Ads #5168: Only F&S Has Sealed-Ageing*

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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.

Sunday’s ad is for F&S Bock Beer, which was published on January 11, 1957. This ad was for the Fuhrmann & Schmidt Brewing Co. of Shamokin, Pennsylvania, which was originally founded in 1906. This ad ran in The Shamokin News-Dispatch, also of Shamokin, Pennsylvania. I do love the “Sealed-Ageing*” copy: “Only F&S ‘Sealed-Ageing” can accurately control the quality and purity of the beer every step of the way to you. No light, no dust, no impurities can possibly endanger its uniform goodness.”

Beer In Ads #5162: I’m Back Again! Duquesne Bock Beer

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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.

Monday’s ad is for Duquesne Bock Beer, which was published on January 5, 1950. This ad was for the Duquesne Brewing Co. of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, which was originally founded in 1899. This ad ran in The Pittsburgh Sun Telegraph, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. I am curious how exactly it’s “The Real ‘One-Eyed’ Bock.”