
The city of
Milwaukee
Milwaukee is the List of cities in Wisconsin, most populous city in the U.S. state of Wisconsin. Located on the western shore of Lake Michigan, it is the List of United States cities by population, 31st-most populous city in the United States ...
in the
U.S. state
In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its so ...
of
Wisconsin
Wisconsin ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Great Lakes region, Great Lakes region of the Upper Midwest of the United States. It borders Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake Michigan to the east, Michig ...
has been associated with
beer
Beer is an alcoholic beverage produced by the brewing and fermentation of starches from cereal grain—most commonly malted barley, although wheat, maize (corn), rice, and oats are also used. The grain is mashed to convert starch in the ...
throughout its history.
This heritage can be found in its
Major League Baseball
Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball league composed of 30 teams, divided equally between the National League (baseball), National League (NL) and the American League (AL), with 29 in the United States and 1 in Canada. MLB i ...
team, the
Milwaukee Brewers
The Milwaukee Brewers are an American professional baseball team based in Milwaukee. The Brewers compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (baseball), National League (NL) National League Central, Central Di ...
, and on beer brands such as
Old Milwaukee
Old Milwaukee is a brand of American dry lager owned by the Pabst Brewing Company. The brand currently consists of three different brews: Old Milwaukee Lager, Old Milwaukee Light, and Old Milwaukee Non-Alcoholic. Old Milwaukee is brewed througho ...
and
Milwaukee's Best
Milwaukee's Best is a 4.8% alcohol by volume, American-style pale lager brewed by Miller Brewing Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the United States. Its sibling beers are Milwaukee's Best Ice (5.9%) and Milwaukee's Best Light, which is 4.1%. I ...
.
The city's major brewers have included
Miller
A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents ...
,
Pabst, and
Schlitz.
MillerCoors, the city's largest brewery, produces 10 million barrels of beer a year.
History
Early brewers
Milwaukee's first brewery opened in 1840 by Welsh settlers who named it Milwaukee Brewery. After a similar independent brewery was opened by a German immigrant, it was renamed Lake Brewery—although some accounts refer to the brewery as Owens Brewery after the brewery's primary owner.
Other breweries established during this early period include Eagle Brewery,
Empire Brewery, and Gipfel Union Brewery.
[Charles Gipfel Milwaukee, Wis. Early Stoneware from Gipfels' Union Brewery](_blank)
/ref> Between 1840 and 1860, about 35 breweries were established in the Milwaukee area. The Milwaukee River
The Milwaukee River is a river in the state of Wisconsin. It is about long.U.S. Geological Survey. National Hydrography Dataset high-resolution flowline dataThe National Map, accessed May 19, 2011 Once a locus of industry, the river is now the ...
was an important waterway for these early thriving businesses as well as ice that helped maintain proper temperatures for lager
Lager (; ) is a Type of beer, style of beer brewed and Brewing#Conditioning, conditioned at low temperature. Lagers can be Pale lager, pale, Amber lager, amber, or Dark lager, dark. Pale lager is the most widely consumed and commercially availab ...
. By 1860, there were 30 breweries operating in the city of Milwaukee which had a population of 45,000 people.
Emergence of the Beer Barons
Milwaukee has been home to over 70 breweries and over 100 brewing companies throughout the course of its history. Of these, several major breweries grew during the 1850s. Many of those who ran these operations brought their knowledge from Germany
Germany, officially the Federal Republic of Germany, is a country in Central Europe. It lies between the Baltic Sea and the North Sea to the north and the Alps to the south. Its sixteen States of Germany, constituent states have a total popu ...
where they learned the industrialized brewing process. Due to the turmoil wrought by the revolution taking place in Germany, several beer giants emigrated to the United States including Jacob Best, Valentin Blatz, Franz Falk, and August Krug. The Jacob Obermann Brewery, opened in 1854, was the largest brewery in the city for 20 years. By 1860, the largest producer of beer was the C.T. Melms Brewery. After the Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago, Illinois during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left mor ...
of 1871 destroyed the Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
brewing industry, Milwaukee was in prime position to emerge as a growing force nationally. By 1885, the major brewing industry in the city consolidated down to nine (Best
Best or The Best may refer to:
People
* Best (surname), people with the surname Best
* Best (footballer, born 1968), retired Portuguese footballer
Companies and organizations
* Best & Co., an 1879–1971 clothing chain
* Best Lock Corporatio ...
, Blatz, Cream City
''Cream City'' is the debut album by American funk/soul band Aalon
Aalon is an American soul group from Los Angeles formed by lead singer and guitarist Aalon Butler.
Butler played guitar for Eric Burdon in the 1970s prior to forming the ban ...
, Falk, Gettelman, Jung
Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and psychologist who founded the school of analytical psychology. A prolific author of over 20 books, illustrator, and correspondent, Jung was a c ...
& Borchert, Miller
A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents ...
, Obermann, and Schlitz), although a smaller, tenth establishment, Gipfel Union Brewery, which opened in the early 1840s, remained in operation into the early 1890s.
Pabst Brewing Company
The first of the major Milwaukee brewing dynasties was founded by Jacob Best with Best and Company in 1844 along with his four sons Jacob Jr., Charles, Phillip, and Lorenz. The German immigrant family started with 300 barrels of beer in annual production. By 1859, Jacob's son Philip was the sole owner and he renamed the company (which by then was known as Empire Brewery) to Philip Best Brewing Company. By 1868, the company became the largest producer of beer in the city and remained in this position for the remainder of the 19th century. During this time period, the company was managed by Philip Best's sons-in-law Frederick Pabst and Emil Schandein. In 1869, the company purchased the then-third largest brewery in the city which had been owned by C. T. Melms. By 1874, the company was producing 100,000 barrels of beer annually and became the largest beer producer in the United States. The company's flagship brand Best's Select won awards in the 1870s (Gold Metals at Philadelphia's Centennial in 1876 and Paris' World's Fair in 1878). By 1882, the company started adding a blue ribbon to its beer brand at the beer competitions. After partner Emil Schandein's death in 1888, Frederick Pabst became sole owner of the company and renamed it Pabst Brewing Company
The Pabst Brewing Company () is an American company that dates its origins to a brewing company founded in 1844 by Jacob Best and was, by 1889, named after Frederick Pabst. It outsources the brewing of over two dozen brands of beer and ma ...
in 1889. After winning another gold medal at the Chicago World's Columbian Exposition in 1893, Best's Select was renamed Pabst Blue Ribbon
Pabst Blue Ribbon, commonly abbreviated PBR, is an American lager beer sold by Pabst Brewing Company, established in Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in 1844 and currently based in San Antonio, Texas. Originally called Best Select, and then Pabst Select, ...
in 1898. During this time, the brewer was producing over 1 million barrels of beer annually, thanks in large part to the acquisition of the then fourth-largest brewer in the city, Falk, Jung, and Borchert Brewery in 1892, made Pabst the largest brewer of lager in the world.
Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company
In 1849, August Krug founded a brewery in the Milwaukee area. In its first year of operations it produced 150 barrels of beer. A year later he hired Joseph Schlitz as his bookkeeper. When Krug died unexpectedly at the end of 1856, Schlitz took over the managing operations of the business and married Krug's widow in 1858. During this early period the brewery had a capacity of 2,000 barrels. In 1861, the brewery was renamed Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company. During the civil war
A civil war is a war between organized groups within the same Sovereign state, state (or country). The aim of one side may be to take control of the country or a region, to achieve independence for a region, or to change government policies.J ...
, demand rose for the company and business increased to 4,400 barrels annually. The Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago, Illinois during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left mor ...
of 1871 furthered opportunity for demand for the brewer when the brewing industry in Chicago was wiped out. In 1873, the company expanded by purchasing the Pfiefer Brewery that was located within the city. During this time period, Schlitz was the second-leading brewer (5,430 barrels) in the city behind Pabst (9,763 barrels). By 1875, the company was producing 74,000 barrels of beer annually. While traveling to Germany, the ship Schlitz was traveling on sank and he was presumed dead. Schlitz's nephews, the Uihlein's, took over the operations thereafter. By 1878, the company produced 102,538 barrels of beer, or stated another way, over two million bottles of beer. By 1879, production for the company doubled. During this time period, beer was shipped by the company throughout the United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, Central America
Central America is a subregion of North America. Its political boundaries are defined as bordering Mexico to the north, Colombia to the southeast, the Caribbean to the east, and the Pacific Ocean to the southwest. Central America is usually ...
, and Brazil
Brazil, officially the Federative Republic of Brazil, is the largest country in South America. It is the world's List of countries and dependencies by area, fifth-largest country by area and the List of countries and dependencies by population ...
. By 1886, the company was producing 500,000 barrels annually of which 1/6th was consumed locally. In 1893 the company introduced its successful advertising campaign "The Beer that Made Milwaukee Famous".
Valentin Blatz Brewing Company
Valentin Blatz opened his brewery in 1851 after having worked for John Braun of City Brewery (which had been in operation since 1846) for a couple years. Later that same year, after Braun died, he married his widow. In 1852 Blatz purchased Braun's brewery. He industrialized the brewery and by the 1860s was among the leading brewers in the city. In 1861, the company sold 8,000 barrels of beer. By 1867, Blatz was the largest producer of beer in the city. In 1871, they sold 34,000 barrels of beer. A fire destroyed the brewery in 1872, however Blatz rebuilt it with larger capacity and by 1875 sold 65,000 barrels of beer. Blatz was the first brewer to bottle its beer, and due to having several distribution centers throughout the United States, was probably the first brewer to have its bottled beer consumed by customers nationally. By the 1880s, the Blatz brewery produced 100,000 barrels of beer. In 1889, British investors attempted to purchase the breweries of Pabst, Schlitz, and Blatz. Although that takeover attempt failed, Blatz sold a significant portion of its business to the British investors in 1891, which called the company United States Brewing Company. Blatz remained with the company until his death in 1894. During this time, Blatz produced 365,000 of barrels of beer annually and was the third largest brewer (behind Pabst and Schlitz) in Milwaukee.
Falk Brewing Company
Frederick Goes and Franz Falk became partners in 1855 with the intent of becoming owners of a brewery. They purchased a malt house of the former Eagle Brewery and began operations in 1856 under the name Bavaria Brewery. Falk bought out Goes in 1866 and renamed the company Franz Falk and Company. During this time the company produced 5,468 barrels of beer. By 1874, Falk was the fourth-largest brewer in the city behind Pabst, Schlitz, and Blatz. In 1880, the company won awards in San Francisco
San Francisco, officially the City and County of San Francisco, is a commercial, Financial District, San Francisco, financial, and Culture of San Francisco, cultural center of Northern California. With a population of 827,526 residents as of ...
and Australia
Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country comprising mainland Australia, the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania and list of islands of Australia, numerous smaller isl ...
. In 1881, the company incorporated under the name Franz Falk Brewing Corporation. By 1882 the company was one of the leading breweries in the United States. By 1886 the company was shipping their beer throughout the United States
The United States of America (USA), also known as the United States (U.S.) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It is a federal republic of 50 U.S. state, states and a federal capital district, Washington, D.C. The 48 ...
, East Indies
The East Indies (or simply the Indies) is a term used in historical narratives of the Age of Discovery. The ''Indies'' broadly referred to various lands in Eastern world, the East or the Eastern Hemisphere, particularly the islands and mainl ...
, Sandwich Islands, Mexico
Mexico, officially the United Mexican States, is a country in North America. It is the northernmost country in Latin America, and borders the United States to the north, and Guatemala and Belize to the southeast; while having maritime boundar ...
, and South America
South America is a continent entirely in the Western Hemisphere and mostly in the Southern Hemisphere, with a considerably smaller portion in the Northern Hemisphere. It can also be described as the southern Subregion#Americas, subregion o ...
. During this time the company was producing 25,000 barrels of beer annually. In 1889, the corporation merged with one of the major brewers in the city (Jung and Borchert) and formed the Falk, Jung and Borchert Brewery Corporation. This gave the new company a brewing capacity of 200,000 barrels of beer annually which was enough to compete with Blatz for third position within the hierarchy of brewers in the city. Unfortunately, there was a fire at the brewery during the summer of 1889. Despite the setback, the brewery was back up for operations within a few months. By 1890, the brewery was producing 200,000 barrels of beer annually. Disaster struck again in 1892 when another fire broke out at the brewery. This time the company opted to sell the company to the leading brewer in the city, Pabst. One of the former owners, Philipp Jung, purchased the Jacob Obermann Brewery in 1896.
Miller Brewing Company
Frederick J. Miller's Plank Road Brewery was founded in 1855 after Frederick Miller purchased it from its previous owner Lorenz Best (the same person who helped co-found what would eventually become Pabst Brewing Company). At its inception, the brewery had a brewing capacity of 300 barrels of beer. Miller expanded his business to the nearby Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
area during the 1850s and 1860s. As the company grew and expanded its operations, the company changed its name to Menomonee Valley Brewery in 1873. In 1886, the brewery began pasteurizing their product and grew to become the city's fifth largest. By 1887, it had become the fourth largest and by 1888 (when the named changed to Frederick Miller Brewing Company), the brewery had a capacity of 80,000 barrels of beer. The company continued to expand and update its operations throughout the 1890s.
A. Gettelman Brewing Company
Two men by the names of Strohn and Reitzenstein began building a brewery in the Milwaukee area around 1852. Unfortunately, due to a cholera
Cholera () is an infection of the small intestine by some Strain (biology), strains of the Bacteria, bacterium ''Vibrio cholerae''. Symptoms may range from none, to mild, to severe. The classic symptom is large amounts of watery diarrhea last ...
outbreak, they both perished. Shortly thereafter, George Schweickhardt and his brother came from Buffalo, New York
Buffalo is a Administrative divisions of New York (state), city in the U.S. state of New York (state), New York and county seat of Erie County, New York, Erie County. It lies in Western New York at the eastern end of Lake Erie, at the head of ...
and completed construction of the site. The George Schweickhardt Menomonee Brewery was opened in 1856. In 1871, Schweickhardt added a partner by the name of Adam Gettelman. By 1876, Gettelman became sole owner of the company by buying out Schweickhardt's son-in-law Charles Schuckmann, who had bought his portion from the brewery's founder a few years prior. In 1877, the brewery suffered fire damage and caused a significant financial loss for the company as the insurance covered only about half of the loss due to the fire. The company was renamed A. Gettelman Brewing Company in 1887. The brewer kept its brewery relatively small so as to be able to manage the business for high quality product. The company established two flagship brands including "$1,000 Beer" in 1891 and Milwaukee's Best
Milwaukee's Best is a 4.8% alcohol by volume, American-style pale lager brewed by Miller Brewing Company of Milwaukee, Wisconsin, in the United States. Its sibling beers are Milwaukee's Best Ice (5.9%) and Milwaukee's Best Light, which is 4.1%. I ...
in 1895. The brewer became the smallest of the "big five" producers of beer in Milwaukee.
Beer Capital of the World
As the nineteenth century came to a close, Milwaukee was well known as a national leader in the production of beer. The city was famous for its beer production to the point that its two leading brewers used slogans referring to its Milwaukee heritage; Schlitz with "The Beer That Made Milwaukee Famous" and Pabst with "Milwaukee beer is famous: Pabst has made it so". By the end of the 19th century, Pabst's beer could be found in almost every major city in the United States. Several factors contributed to Milwaukee's brewing industry to become world renowned including its close proximity to Chicago
Chicago is the List of municipalities in Illinois, most populous city in the U.S. state of Illinois and in the Midwestern United States. With a population of 2,746,388, as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of Unite ...
in the wake of the Great Chicago Fire
The Great Chicago Fire was a conflagration that burned in the American city of Chicago, Illinois during October 8–10, 1871. The fire killed approximately 300 people, destroyed roughly of the city including over 17,000 structures, and left mor ...
, and the aggressive business styles of the beer barons that emerged during those formative years leading up to its worldwide status. The rise of Milwaukee's brewing industry continued into the 20th century. In 1900, Schlitz Brewery began bottling its own beer. In 1901, Independent Milwaukee Brewery, a mid-level sized brewer, opened in the city. By 1903, Schlitz surpassed Pabst as the world's best-selling beer. That same year, Miller introduced their flagship brand High Life. In 1912, Schlitz started using brown bottles in its bottling process which was the first time a brewer had done so. During this time period, Milwaukee was home to four of the largest breweries in the world (Schlitz, Pabst, Blatz, Miller).
Prohibition
Much of the success of the Milwaukee breweries was not only their successful production and distribution of beer, but also the establishment of beer gardens
A beer garden (German: ''Biergarten'') is an outdoor area in which beer and food are served, typically at shared tables shaded by trees.
Beer gardens originated in Bavaria, of which Munich is the capital city, in the 19th century, and remain co ...
and saloons. These establishments provided music, dancing, sports, and leisure and were found throughout the United States, but particularly so in Milwaukee. Unfortunately, due to these establishments, the Prohibition
Prohibition is the act or practice of forbidding something by law; more particularly the term refers to the banning of the manufacture, storage (whether in barrels or in bottles), transportation, sale, possession, and consumption of alcoholic b ...
movement was designed to confront the disreputable saloons where prostitution
Prostitution is a type of sex work that involves engaging in sexual activity in exchange for payment. The definition of "sexual activity" varies, and is often defined as an activity requiring physical contact (e.g., sexual intercourse, no ...
and gambling
Gambling (also known as betting or gaming) is the wagering of something of Value (economics), value ("the stakes") on a Event (probability theory), random event with the intent of winning something else of value, where instances of strategy (ga ...
were seen as major problems. Carrie Nation, a temperance movement
The temperance movement is a social movement promoting Temperance (virtue), temperance or total abstinence from consumption of alcoholic beverages. Participants in the movement typically criticize alcohol intoxication or promote teetotalism, and ...
leader, said "If there is any place that is hell on earth, it is Milwaukee." In 1917, the Food and Fuel Control Act shut down all distilleries and one year later a wartime prohibition amendment was passed by the United States Congress
The United States Congress is the legislature, legislative branch of the federal government of the United States. It is a Bicameralism, bicameral legislature, including a Lower house, lower body, the United States House of Representatives, ...
which effectively prevented the use of many products necessary in the production of beer. In 1919, the Eighteenth Amendment to the United States Constitution
The Eighteenth Amendment (Amendment XVIII) to the United States Constitution established the prohibition of alcohol in the United States. The amendment was proposed by Congress on December 18, 1917, and ratified by the requisite number of sta ...
was ratified by the states and became effective one year later. Nearly all of Milwaukee's 1,980 saloons were closed. In 1920, United States Brewing Company sold Blatz Brewery to Edward Landsberg. Milwaukee's major breweries (Schlitz, Pabst, Blatz, Miller) and some mid-level breweries (Gettelman, Cream City, Independent) were able to survive this period by brewing soda and near beer, as well as manufacturing cheese
Cheese is a type of dairy product produced in a range of flavors, textures, and forms by coagulation of the milk protein casein. It comprises proteins and fat from milk (usually the milk of cows, buffalo, goats or sheep). During prod ...
products. Others (such as Philipp Jung Brewing Company) ceased operations.
Effect of repeal of 18th Amendment
In 1934, after the eighteenth amendment was repealed, Schlitz retained its position as the top beer producer in the world. During this time, the brewer introduced its Old Milwaukee
Old Milwaukee is a brand of American dry lager owned by the Pabst Brewing Company. The brand currently consists of three different brews: Old Milwaukee Lager, Old Milwaukee Light, and Old Milwaukee Non-Alcoholic. Old Milwaukee is brewed througho ...
brand. Pabst fell to third behind St. Louis-based Anheuser-Busch Brewing Association. By the mid-1930s there were nine breweries operating in the city. The output from these breweries exceeded the pre-prohibition output value by 10 percent. During these years, Schlitz and Pabst began expanding their operations nationally by purchasing production facilities in other cities within the United States. In 1937, long-time mid-sized Milwaukee brewer Cream City Brewing Company went out of business. In 1947, Blatz was the ninth largest brewer in the United States. In 1948, Schlitz was producing 4 million barrels of beer annually, more than any brewer in the world. By 1950, Schlitz shipped more than five million barrels of beer and Pabst 3.4 million barrels of beer. In 1950, Schlitz was the number one brewer in the country with Pabst fourth, Miller eighth, and Blatz ninth. In 1952, Schlitz set a world record by producing 6.35 million barrels of beer in a single year which was more than the combined output from its first 44 years of existence. In 1953, the six breweries in the city ( Schlitz, Pabst, Miller
A miller is a person who operates a mill, a machine to grind a grain (for example corn or wheat) to make flour. Milling is among the oldest of human occupations. "Miller", "Milne" and other variants are common surnames, as are their equivalents ...
, Blatz, Gettelman, Independent
Independent or Independents may refer to:
Arts, entertainment, and media Artist groups
* Independents (artist group), a group of modernist painters based in Pennsylvania, United States
* Independentes (English: Independents), a Portuguese artist ...
) went on strike for 76 days. Due to the worker's strike at Schlitz, Anheuser-Busch over took Schlitz as the top brewing company in 1953. Although Schlitz re-took the top spot again from 1955 through 1956, they lost it again in 1957 and never regained it.
Consolidation
By the end of the 1950s Blatz declined nationally to a ranking of eighteenth as they were not able to compete nationally with other major brewers' expansion activities. Pabst, in an effort to compete with industry leaders Anheuser-Busch and Schlitz, purchased Blatz in 1958. Pabst closed the former Blatz Milwaukee brewery in 1959 but retained its brands. The purchase of Blatz catapulted Pabst back to the third-largest brewer in 1961 after having fallen outside the top five. Also in 1961, A. Gettelman Brewing Company sold to Miller Brewing Company. In 1962, Independent Milwaukee Brewery produced 133,000 barrels of beer. However, the brewer ceased operations after 63 years of business in 1964. In 1967, Schlitz changed its brewing process to accelerate fermentation which was not well received by the public due to perceived reduction in quality. In 1969, Pabst sold its investment in Blatz to G. Heileman Brewing Company after the federal government sued the company due to anti-trust issues. In 1970, Miller was purchased by Philip Morris. In 1972, Miller purchased Lite brand from Meister Brau Brewing of Chicago, then re-branded it as Lite Beer from Miller. In 1976, Schlitz suffered another blow to its image when its Memphis and Tampa
Tampa ( ) is a city on the Gulf Coast of the United States, Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. Tampa's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and t ...
plants made "flaky" or "hazy" beer due to production problems. By 1977, Miller Brewing Company jumped from the seventh-leading national brewer to number two behind Anheuser-Busch in a matter of eight years. By 1980, Milwaukee boasted the second (Miller), third (Pabst), and fourth (Schlitz) largest brewing companies in the United States and had the largest brewing capacity in the world. In 1981, the workers at Schlitz went on strike. When an agreement could not be reached, the brewer closed its Milwaukee plant. Pabst and Heileman both made bids to purchase beleaguered Schlitz, but ultimately sold to Stroh Brewing Company in 1982.
Craft brew era
In 1985, Randal Sprecher, former supervisor at Pabst Brewing Company, opened the first brewery in Milwaukee since the end of prohibition. In its first year of production, Sprecher Brewing Company made less than 1,000 barrels of beer. The company has since become a leader in Milwaukee's craft beer industry. That same year, Pabst sold to venture capitalist Paul Kalmanovitz. In 1986, Heileman built a brewery in the Milwaukee area so that Blatz beer production could resume in the city for the first time in seventeen years. In 1987, Lakefront Brewery opened a craft beer operation in Milwaukee. Heileman sold the Blatz plant to Miller after failed sales expectations, which went on to use the plant for its Leinenkugel beer production in 1995. In 1996, Pabst closed its Milwaukee brewery and moved its headquarters to Chicago. In 1997, Milwaukee Brewing Company began operations in Milwaukee. In 1998, Miller contracted with Pabst to begin brewing brands held by Pabst. In 1999, Pabst acquired Stroh Brewing Company which eventually brought famous Milwaukee brands Schlitz and Old Milwaukee back into Milwaukee production. In 2002, Miller sold to SABMiller. When Anheuser-Busch was combined with InBev
InBev () was a brewing company that resulted from the merger between Belgium-based company Interbrew and Brazilian brewer AmBev which took place in 2004. It existed independently until the acquisition of Anheuser-Busch in 2008, which formed Anheu ...
in 2008 as Anheuser-Busch InBev
Anheuser-Busch InBev SA/NV, known as AB InBev, is an American-Belgian Multinational corporation, multinational Drink industry, drink and brewing company, brewing company based in Leuven, Belgium. It is the largest brewer in the world, and in 20 ...
, Pabst Brewing Company became the largest United States owned brewing company in the nation. In 2016, ''Molson Coors Brewing Company'' purchased the Miller portfolio and created MillerCoors. Miller has the city's largest brewery and produces ten million barrels of beer annually. In 2017, Pabst opened a brewery in Milwaukee for the first time since closing their plant in 1996, although the new brewery would produce a fraction (4,000 barrels a year) of its previous plant's output. Lakefront Brewery production reached 46,000 barrels of beer by 2017. Since 2015, nearly two dozen craft brewing companies have been established in Milwaukee. In 2020, Molson Coors changed the name of their Milwaukee operations from MillerCoors to Molson Coors Beverage Company
Molson Coors Beverage Company is a Canadian-American Multinational corporation, multinational Drink industry, drink and brewing company, brewing company headquartered in Chicago, Illinois.
Molson Coors was formed in 2005 through the merger of Mo ...
.[Molson Coors Dropping Miller Name as it rebrands](_blank)
/ref> In late December 2020, Pabst closed its operations in Milwaukee after only three years re-establishing itself in the city. In 2022, Eagle Park Brewing acquired the beer brands of the 3rd oldest craft brewer in the city, Milwaukee Brewing Company, which is anticipated to increase their production to 14,000 barrels.[Eagle Park Brewing buys Milwaukee Brewing Co. brands](_blank)
/ref> Milwaukee Brewing Company's brewery was purchased by Pilot Project Brewing.[Pilot Project Brewing; Milwaukee's beer scene welcomes new player](_blank)
/ref>
Contraction of brewing operations
In 2024, Milwaukee saw a number of brewing operations cease operations. The Jacob Leinenkugel Brewing Company announced it would close its 10th Street brewery in Milwaukee. The production (along with the production of the Chippewa Falls location, would move to the main Molson-Coors brewery within the city. Furthermore, three craft brewers with production over several years (Company Brewing, Enlightened Brewing, and Mobcraft Brewing) announced they would cease operations. These closures left the city with 24 craft brewers remaining within the city limits.Milwaukee Will Lose Another Craft Brewery: Enlightened Brewing
/ref>
Brands
Molson Coors Beverage Company
;''Produced at Miller Brewery''
* Miller Lite
Miller Lite is a 4.2% ABV reduced calorie light American lager beer produced by Molson Coors. It was introduced in 1973 in limited markets by the Miller Brewing Company (then owned by Philip Morris, Inc.) and began being distributed nationa ...
* Miller High Life
The Miller Brewing Company is an American brewery and beer company in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It was founded in 1855 by Frederick Miller. Molson Coors acquired the full global brand portfolio of Miller Brewing Company in 2016, and operates the ...
* Miller Genuine Draft
* Miller64
* Coors Light
* Blue Moon
A blue moon refers either to the presence of a second full moon in a calendar month, to the third full moon in a season containing four, or to a moon that appears blue due to atmospheric effects.
The calendrical meaning of "blue moon" is unc ...
seasonal brews
* Redd's Apple Ale
;''Produced at Leinenkugel 10th Street Brewery''[Brewery Spelunking: Leinenkugel's 10th Street Brewery](_blank)
/ref>
* Leinenkugel's Shandy varieties
Sprecher Brewing Company
;''Produced at Sprecher Brewery''
* Sprecher Special Amber
* Sprecher Black Bavarian
* Sprecher Heff Weiss
* Sprecher Abbey Triple
* Sprecher India Pale Ale
Lakefront Brewing Company
;''Produced at Lakefront Brewery''
* Fixed Gear
* IPA
* Hazy Rabbit
* Clean Machine
* Riverwest Stein
* East Side Dark
* Lakefront Pils
* Lakefront Lager
Eagle Brewing Company
;''Produced at Milwaukee Ale House''
* Louie's Demise
* MKE IPA
* O-Gii
* Outboard
* Hop Happy
* Hop Freak
List of brewers
Current brewers
Former brewers
*Francis Neukirch Lake Brewery (1844–1848)
*City Brewery (1846-1851)
*Stoltz Union Brewery (1848–1874)[Trade Names for the brewery at 110/123 Odgen St, Milwaukee, WI](_blank)
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*Neukirch & Melms Brewery (1848–1853)
* Joseph Schlitz Brewing Company (1849–1982)
*Wisconsin Brewery (1850–1878)[Wisconsin Brewery](_blank)
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*Plank Road Brewery (1850–1855)
*William L. Hopkins and Company Brewery (1850–1855)[William L. Hopkins & Co. Brewery](_blank)
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* Valentin Blatz Brewing Company (1851–1959)
*Phoenix Brewery (1852–1868; 1871–1881)[Phoenix Brewery – WI 289e](_blank)
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* Cream City Brewing Company (1853–1937)
*C.T. Melms Brewery (1853–1869)
* Jacob Obermann Brewery (1854–1895)
* A. Gettelman Brewing Company (1856–1961)
* Falk Brewing Company (1856–1892)
* Northwestern Brewery (1856–1884)[History of Milwaukee 1881](_blank)
/ref>[Brewing in Milwaukee: Philip Altpeter](_blank)
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*Otto Zwietusch Brewing Company (1858–1864)[Otto Zwietusch by Peter Maas](_blank)
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*Prairie Street Brewery (1858–1863)[Trade Names for the Prairie Street Brewery of Milwaukee, Wisconsin](_blank)
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*Jacob Ziegler Brewery (1858–1860)[Trade Names for the John Ennes & Co. Brewery at Tamarack Street between 8th & 9th Streets, Milwaukee, WI](_blank)
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*John Ennes Brewery (1860–1879)
*Western Brewery (1860–1875)[Trade Names for the brewery at 7th & Cherry Streets, Milwaukee, Wisconsin](_blank)
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*Carl Knoblauch Brewery (1860–1868)[Trade Names for the Carl Knoblauch Brewery at 3rd Street near Williamsburg, Milwaukee, WI](_blank)
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*Simon J. Meister Brewery (1860–1868)
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*Weiss and Syphon Beer Brewery (1860–1868)[Weiss & Syphon Beer Brewery – WI 320](_blank)
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*Sand's Spring Brewery (1861–1867)
*Ludwig Mesow Brewery (1861–1863)[Ludwig Mesow Brewery](_blank)
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*Peter Gerstner Brewery (1861–1863)[Peter Gerstner Brewery](_blank)
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*Frederick Schwarz Brewery (1862–1864)[Frederick Schwarz Brewery](_blank)
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*John M. Davis and Company Brewery (1863–1866)[John M. Davis & Company Brewery](_blank)
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*M.W. Powell and Company Brewery (1864–1880)
*John Berg Brewery (1865–1881)[Trade Names for the John Berg Brewery at 917 Vliet Street, Milwaukee, Wisconsin](_blank)
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*Pfiefer Brewery (1866–1873)[Pfiefer Brewery](_blank)
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*Lemon Beer Brewery (1873–1879)[Lemon Beer Brewery](_blank)
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* F. Borchert and Son Brewing Company (1874–1879)
*Milwaukee Brewing Association (1875–1881)
*E.L. Husting Weiss Beer Brewery (1877–1920)[Ale Through The Ages: Wisconsin Weizen Ale](_blank)
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*South Side White Beer Brewery (1877–1884)[South Side White Beer Brewery](_blank)
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*Charles Goerke Brewery (1878–1888)[Trade Names for the Chas. Goerke & Co. Brewery at 1823 3rd & Burleigh Streets, Milwaukee, WI](_blank)
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*Grisbaum & Kehrein Brewery (1879–1890)[GRISBAUM & KEHREIN MILWAUKEE, WIS. BREWER/BOTTLER SALT GLAZE STONEWARE-POTTERY](_blank)
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*Jung
Carl Gustav Jung ( ; ; 26 July 1875 – 6 June 1961) was a Swiss psychiatrist, psychotherapist, and psychologist who founded the school of analytical psychology. A prolific author of over 20 books, illustrator, and correspondent, Jung was a c ...
& Borchert Brewing Company (1879–1888)
*Louis Werrbach Brewing Company (1880–1881; 1886–1909)[Early Louis Werrbach Beer Bottle From Milwaukee Wisconsin, C.v.g.co. 1881](_blank)
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*John Graf Brewery (1883–1920)
*C.H. Munzinger Brewery (1890–1901)[Bay View's own weissbier microbrewery](_blank)
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*Milwaukee Brewery Company (1893–1920)
*John Kohl Brewery (1893–1900)[John Kohl Brewery](_blank)
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* Philipp Jung Brewing Company (1896–1920)
* Gustav A. Obermann Brewing and Bottling Company (1897–1900)[Gustav A. Obermann Brewing and Bottling Co. – WI 328a](_blank)
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*Roedel Brewing Company (1897–1899)
*Badger Brewing Company (1899–1901)[Badger Brewing Company](_blank)
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* Independent Milwaukee Brewery (1901–1964)
*Ben Kornburger and Brothers Brewery (1901–1920)[Trade Names for the brewery at 578 23rd St. Milwaukee, WI](_blank)
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*George Zeiger Brewery (1901–1907)[Geoge Zeiger Brewery](_blank)
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*Mutual Brewing Company (1913–1916)
*Capital Brewing Company (1933–1948)[Capital Brewing Company Exterior](_blank)
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*Fischbach Brewing Company (1933–1936)
*Banner Brewing Company (1933–1935)
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*Old Lager Brewing Company (1934–1938)
* G. Heileman Brewing Company (1986–1995)
* Milwaukee Brewing Company (1997–2022)
*Stout Brothers Public House (2000–2003)[Stout Brothers Public House](_blank)
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*Onopa/Stonefly Brewing Company (2001–2014)
*St. Francis Brewing Company (2009–2019)[St. Francis Brewery appears closed for good](_blank)
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*Horny Goat Brewing Company (2009–2015)
*Big Bay Brewing Company (2010–2014)
*Brenner Brewing Company (2013–2017)
*District 14 Brewery and Pub (2014–2018)
*Like Minds Brewing (2016–2018)
See also
* List of breweries in the United States
* List of breweries in Wisconsin
* List of microbreweries
References
{{Beers of the world
Beer in Wisconsin
Economy of Milwaukee
Companies based in Milwaukee