Aztec Brewing Company
Aztec Brewing Company is a historic brewery brand founded in Mexicali in 1921, relocated to San Diego after Prohibition, closed in 1953, and revived as a craft brewery in Vista in 2011.
Last updated November 4, 2026
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Overview
Aztec Brewing Company, also known as Aztec Brewery, is a historic beer brand with roots in Mexicali, Mexico, and San Diego, California. It was established in 1921 by San Diego businessmen Edward P. Baker and Herbert Jaffe together with brewing engineer William H. Strouse. Because American Prohibition prohibited the manufacture, sale, and transportation of alcoholic beverages in the United States, the founders opened Cervecera Azteca, S.A., in Mexicali, the capital of Baja California. The company served a cross-border market that included Americans traveling to Tijuana and other Baja California destinations to purchase alcohol legally. The brewery’s principal product was Famous A.B.C. Beer, a pale lager. It also made a dark beer, and its A.B.C. product received a gold medal at the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in Seville, Spain. The award helped establish the use of “Famous” in the brand name. A fire destroyed the Mexicali brewery in 1927, but the facility was rebuilt at the same location. During the 1920s, Aztec competed with Cerveceria Mexicali for sales in Baja California, particularly in the Tijuana area. After Prohibition ended in 1933, Aztec moved its entire operation to San Diego. The company converted the former Savage Tire Company plant at 2301 Main Street in Barrio Logan into a brewery, investing approximately $450,000 in the property and its remodeling. The facility had an annual capacity of about 100,000 barrels, a refrigerated cellar for approximately 4,000 barrels, and a large bottling operation capable of processing roughly 100 bottles per minute. The company grew rapidly and reportedly moved from seventeenth to third place among breweries selling west of the Rocky Mountains within three months of the San Diego operation opening. The San Diego brewery retained the A.B.C. name, but brewmaster A. Bud Daniels reformulated the beer and added “Supreme” to the label. Aztec introduced canned beer in 1936 and distributed its products across Southern California and parts of Arizona, while also reaching markets in New Mexico, Nevada, Oregon, and Hawaii. In addition to A.B.C. Beer, surviving labels document a broad range of products, including bock, old ale, stout, pale ale, and several customer-specific or regional brands. The company accepted relatively small custom-label orders, making its historical product range difficult to reconstruct completely. The San Diego brewery was known for an elaborately decorated tasting room called the rathskeller. Its murals, painted by Spanish artist Jose Moya del Piño, depicted Aztec-themed scenes and formed part of an ornate interior that included carved furnishings, stained glass, tiled cabinets, chandeliers, and a large replica of the Aztec calendar. Although the brewery building was later demolished, portions of the rathskeller artwork and associated decorative material were preserved for community and historical purposes. Aztec was acquired by Detroit’s Altes Brewing Company in 1948. Altes did not continue brewing the A.B.C. brand as part of its main portfolio; the Famous ABC Beer brand was instead acquired by Los Angeles’s Maier Brewing Company and continued there for at least part of the 1950s. After Altes was acquired by National Brewing Company, the San Diego brewery closed in 1953. The original building later housed other industrial businesses before being demolished by the City of San Diego in 1989 because of seismic-safety concerns. The brand was revived in the early twenty-first century. John Webster encountered Aztec while researching historic California beer brands for a T-shirt project. He subsequently secured United States trademark rights and worked with Claudia Faulk and their son Tristan Faulk-Webster to reestablish the name as a modern craft brewery. Robert Esposito joined the venture in 2010, and the revived brewery opened on August 29, 2011, in Vista Business Park. Paul Naylor joined as brewer in 2012, while Esposito departed in 2014. The revived company operates as a small production brewery with a tasting room, reconnecting a contemporary San Diego-area brewing business with a brand whose original commercial history spanned Mexico and the United States.
History
Aztec Brewing Company began in 1921 as Cervecera Azteca, S.A., in Mexicali, Baja California. Its founders were Edward P. Baker and Herbert Jaffe, San Diego businessmen, and William H. Strouse, a brewing engineer. The location was strategically important because Prohibition prevented American breweries from legally making, selling, or transporting beer. Mexicali and nearby Tijuana therefore attracted American visitors seeking legal alcohol. The company’s best-known early product was Famous A.B.C. Beer, a pale lager, supplemented by a dark beer. A.B.C. won a gold medal at the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in Seville. The accolade helped shape the product’s “Famous” designation. A 1927 fire destroyed the Mexicali plant, but the company rebuilt it on the original site. During the decade, Aztec competed with Cerveceria Mexicali for the Baja California market. The end of Prohibition in 1933 changed the company’s geographic strategy. Aztec built and opened a San Diego brewery in the former Savage Tire Company facility at 2301 Main Street in Barrio Logan, then transferred its operation from Mexico to the United States. This cross-border relocation is notable in the company’s historical identity. The converted plant had reported capacity of approximately 100,000 barrels annually, refrigerated storage for around 4,000 barrels, and a high-speed bottling system. Aztec expanded quickly in western markets, and the A.B.C. brand became associated with San Diego, Los Angeles, Long Beach, Arizona, and several additional western states and territories. In San Diego, brewmaster A. Bud Daniels reformulated A.B.C. Beer and added “Supreme” to the label. The company began canning beer in 1936. Its product catalog was unusually broad because Aztec accepted orders for custom labels in quantities of roughly 500 cases. Documented brands include A.B.C., A.B.C. Bock, A.B.C. Old Ale, A.B.C. Old Stout, A.B.C. Pale Ale, Associated, Aztec, Black Eagle, Bulldog, Casa Mia, Del Mar Pale Ale, Dutch Lunch, Excel, Great Seal, Majestic, Old Coin, Old Dutch Ale, Red Spot, and Spotlight. The brewery also operated an ornate tasting room called the rathskeller. Spanish artist Jose Moya del Piño created murals and supervised the room’s decoration. The interior used Aztec imagery, carved and painted furniture, stained glass, chandeliers, tiled cabinetry, decorative beams, and a large replica of the Aztec calendar. The brewery building survived beyond the company’s closure but was eventually demolished in 1989 after being judged unsafe under earthquake standards. Community efforts preserved murals and decorative elements for later display and historical interpretation. Altes Brewing Company purchased Aztec in 1948. Altes emphasized its own brands rather than continuing the San Diego company’s A.B.C. Beer. Maier Brewing Company of Los Angeles acquired the Famous ABC Beer brand and brewed it into at least the late 1950s. National Brewing Company later acquired Altes, and the San Diego brewery closed in 1953. The site subsequently served other industrial uses before demolition. The Aztec name returned in the early 2000s. John Webster found the brand while researching historic California beer names for a clothing project. He secured United States trademark rights and collaborated with Claudia Faulk and Tristan Faulk-Webster to develop a modern revival. Robert Esposito joined the project in 2010. On August 29, 2011, the revived company opened a small production brewery and tasting room in Vista Business Park. Paul Naylor joined as brewer in 2012, and Esposito left in 2014. The revived operation links contemporary craft brewing with the company’s historic Mexican and San Diego heritage.
- 2011
Revived brewery opens in Vista
[1]The revived Aztec Brewing Company opens a production brewery and tasting room in Vista Business Park.
- 1989
Historic brewery building demolished
[1]The former San Diego brewery building is demolished after being considered unsafe under earthquake standards.
- 1953
Original San Diego brewery closes
[1]National Brewing Company, which acquired Altes, closes the San Diego brewery.
- 1948
Acquired by Altes Brewing Company
[1]Altes Brewing Company of Detroit purchases Aztec.
- 1936
Canned beer introduced
[1]Aztec begins producing beer in cans.
- 1933
Operations move to San Diego
[1]After Prohibition ends, Aztec transfers production to a converted Savage Tire Company plant in Barrio Logan.
- 1929
A.B.C. Beer wins gold medal
[1]The company’s flagship beer receives a gold medal at the Ibero-American Exposition in Seville.
- 1927
Brewery rebuilt after fire
[1]A fire destroys the Mexicali plant, which is rebuilt at its original location.
- 1921
Company founded in Mexicali
[1]Edward P. Baker, Herbert Jaffe, and William H. Strouse establish Cervecera Azteca, S.A., in Mexicali, Baja California.
Products and positioning
A heritage San Diego-area brewery brand built around cross-border Prohibition-era history, historic beer labels, and a revived craft-brewery identity.
Pale lager · 1921
Famous A.B.C. Beer
Aztec’s signature historical beer was a pale lager first associated with the Mexicali brewery. It gained the “Famous” designation after receiving a gold medal at the 1929 Ibero-American Exposition in Seville. The recipe was later reformulated for the San Diego operation, where the label also used the word “Supreme.” The brand was eventually acquired by Maier Brewing Company after Altes purchased Aztec.
Bock beer
A.B.C. Bock
A documented variant of the A.B.C. brand family. It formed part of the broad range of labels produced by the historical San Diego brewery, although detailed recipe and production information is not available in the supplied sources.
Old ale
A.B.C. Old Ale
A historical ale label associated with Aztec Brewing Company. It illustrates the brewery’s range beyond pale lager, but surviving reference material does not provide a complete specification or production chronology.
Stout
A.B.C. Old Stout
A documented stout label from the company’s historical portfolio. The brand accepted relatively small custom-label orders, so the precise duration and scale of this product are not established in the supplied material.
Pale ale
A.B.C. Pale Ale
A historical pale ale carrying the A.B.C. identity. It was one of several beer styles documented among surviving Aztec labels.
Craft beer · 2011
Revived craft beers
The post-2011 brewery operates as a small production craft brewery with a tasting room in Vista. The supplied reference does not provide a sufficiently complete current beer list to identify individual contemporary recipes or claim specific flagship releases.
Brand decisions
2008
Revive the historic Aztec brandStrategyBackground
John Webster identified the historic name while researching California beer brands for a T-shirt project and saw potential in its San Diego associations.
Action taken
Webster secured United States trademark rights and partnered with Claudia Faulk and Tristan Faulk-Webster to reestablish the company as a craft brewery.
Aftermath
The revived brewery opened in Vista in 2011 and continues the brand’s connection to the San Diego brewing market.
1948
Sell the company to Altes Brewing CompanyM&ABackground
Aztec was acquired during a period of consolidation in the American brewing industry.
Action taken
Altes Brewing Company of Detroit purchased Aztec, while Edward P. Baker remained a director of the acquiring company.
Aftermath
Altes did not continue the A.B.C. Beer brand as a central product. Maier Brewing Company later acquired and brewed the Famous ABC Beer name, while the San Diego brewery ultimately closed in 1953.
1936
Introduce canned beerProduct launchBackground
The San Diego brewery had developed substantial production and bottling capacity and expanded its packaged-beer distribution.
Action taken
Aztec began producing beer in cans, including early conetop formats.
Aftermath
The cans later became notable collectibles among beer-can and breweriana collectors.
1933
Move production from Mexicali to San DiegoStrategyBackground
The end of United States Prohibition removed the legal necessity of producing beer in Mexico, while San Diego offered a direct base for the company’s established American market.
Action taken
Aztec constructed a brewery in a converted former tire plant in Barrio Logan and transferred its entire brewing operation from Mexicali.
Aftermath
The San Diego facility expanded rapidly, reached substantial western distribution, and became the company’s principal historical production site.
Sources2 sources
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