Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau

Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau is a German brewery based in Löbau, Saxony. Its origins trace back to 1846, when the foundation stone of a new brewery and malthouse was laid on Löbauer Theaterplatz. Over the following decades the operation passed through transformations, liquidations and changes of ownership. By around 1900 it was brewing approximately 43,000 hectolitres of beer per year, a level that remained broadly stable until the beginning of the Second World War. The brewery building and its inventory survived the Second World War relatively intact, and production resumed soon afterwards. In 1958 it was converted into a semi-public company, Bergquell-Brauerei KG, producing 65,000 hectolitres of beer and 10,800 hectolitres of non-alcoholic beverages. In 1972 it was transferred to public ownership as VEB Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau, with production of 82,500 hectolitres of beer and 10,600 hectolitres of non-alcoholic drinks; its range included Kristall, German Pilsner, Bockbier and Doppelkaramel-Malzbier. From 1979 the brewery belonged to the Getränkekombinat Dresden, and in 1980 it brewed 107,610 hectolitres of beer. With renovation measures beginning, brewing ceased in October 1989 and the brewery soon came under the control of the Treuhandanstalt, at which time it employed 140 people. Facing accumulated debts, the Treuhandanstalt appointed two liquidators in 1991; reconstruction began in August under the name W & Partner Brautgesellschaft mbH. In 1996 the first buildings of the new brewery were constructed in the Löbau-West industrial area. In August 1999 the brewery became independent again under new owner and managing director Steffen Dittmar, and the first bottling plant at the new site entered service in December with a capacity of 7,000 bottles per hour. Further investment followed. In 2003 a new storage and logistics hall was built, and the bottling system was replaced after five years with a new system handling 15,000 bottles per hour. More investment continued until 2011, including a bottle sorting system and another new filling system (33,000 bottles per hour) installed in the former storage and logistics halls, plus two new halls for storage and logistics allowing loading and unloading of road trains regardless of weather. EquiTherm was installed as a pilot project, saving around 250,000 kWh of thermal energy per year; in 2013 the brewery received the German Energy Agency's Best Practice Energy Efficiency award. The brewery's best-known product is Lausitzer Porter, produced at Bergquell since 1999. Because it uses sugar and additional carbon dioxide, the maker does not refer to the German purity law and describes the product as a black beer specialty. Variants based on Lausitzer Porter include Porter+Punsch (2001, autumn/winter season), Kirsch-Porter (2006) and Strawberry-Porter (2007), along with a strong beer version called Strong Porter. Other productions include Bergquell 1846 Hell, Bergquell Gold, Bergquell Festbier (autumn/winter), Goldener Reiter, Keller-Urtyp naturtrüb, Kräuter Radlerin, Lausitzer Bergbock (autumn/winter), Lausitzer Mumme (Classic and Kräuter) and Lausitzer Radler-in.

The history of Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau begins in 1846, when the foundation stone of a new brewery and malthouse was laid on Löbauer Theaterplatz. The following years were marked by transformations, liquidations and changes of ownership. By around 1900, approximately 43,000 hectolitres of beer were brewed annually, and production remained stable around that level until the beginning of the Second World War. The building and inventory emerged from the Second World War relatively undamaged, and the Bergquell brewery was able to resume production shortly afterwards. In 1958 it was converted into a semi-public company, Bergquell-Brauerei KG, producing 65,000 hectolitres of beer and 10,800 hectolitres of non-alcoholic beverages. In 1972 the semi-state brewery was transferred to public ownership under the new name VEB Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau. Production then stood at 82,500 hectolitres of beer and 10,600 hectolitres of non-alcoholic beverages, and the range included Kristall, German Pilsner, Bockbier and Doppelkaramel-Malzbier. From 1979 the brewery belonged to the Getränkekombinat Dresden, and in 1980 it brewed 107,610 hectolitres of beer. Because renovation measures began, the brewery ceased brewing in October 1989 and was placed shortly afterwards under the control of the Treuhandanstalt. At that time 140 employees worked at Bergquell, and the technological gap was 50 years. In view of accumulated debts, the Treuhandanstalt appointed two liquidators for the Bergquell brewery in 1991. Reconstruction began in August under the name W & Partner Brautgesellschaft mbH. In 1996 the first buildings of the new brewery were constructed in the Löbau-West industrial area. In August 1999 the Bergquell brewery became independent again under the leadership of new owner and managing director Steffen Dittmar. The first bottling plant at the new site entered service in December, with a capacity of 7,000 bottles per hour. In 2003 a new storage and logistics hall was built. The bottling system had to be replaced after five years of operation; the new system handled 15,000 bottles per hour. Further investments followed until 2011. A bottle sorting system and another new bottle filling system (33,000 bottles per hour) were installed in the former storage and logistics halls. Two new halls were built for storage and logistics, allowing loading and unloading of road trains regardless of weather. EquiTherm was installed in the brewery as a pilot project, through which around 250,000 kWh of thermal energy can be saved per year at the Bergquell Löbau brewery. In 2013 the Bergquell brewery received the Best Practice Energy Efficiency award for the project from the German Energy Agency. On the production side, Lausitzer Porter has been produced at the Bergquell-Brauerei since 1999. Because of the use of sugar and additional carbon dioxide, the manufacturer refrains from referring to the German purity law and describes its product as a black beer specialty. Based on Lausitzer Porter, mixed variants Porter+Punsch (2001, autumn/winter season), Kirsch-Porter (2006) and Strawberry-Porter (2007) were created. There is also a strong beer version called Strong Porter. Other productions include Bergquell 1846 Hell, Bergquell Gold, Bergquell Festbier (autumn/winter season), Goldener Reiter, Keller-Urtyp naturtrüb, Kräuter Radlerin, Lausitzer Bergbock (autumn/winter season), Lausitzer Mumme (Classic and Kräuter) and Lausitzer Radler-in.

• 2013

  Received Best Practice Energy Efficiency award from the German Energy Agency.

• 2011

  Further investments completed, including bottle sorting system, new filling system (33,000 bottles/hour), two new storage/logistics halls, and EquiTherm pilot project.

• 2007

  Strawberry-Porter variant introduced.

• 2006

  Kirsch-Porter variant introduced.

• 2003

  New storage and logistics hall built; bottling system replaced with one handling 15,000 bottles/hour.

• 2001

  Porter+Punsch variant introduced (autumn/winter season).

• 1999

  Brewery became independent again under Steffen Dittmar; first bottling plant at new site entered service in December (7,000 bottles/hour); Lausitzer Porter production began.

• 1996

  First buildings of the new brewery constructed in Löbau-West industrial area.

• 1991

  Two liquidators appointed; reconstruction began in August as W & Partner Brautgesellschaft mbH.

• 1989

  Brewing ceased in October; brewery placed under Treuhandanstalt control.

• 1980

  107,610 hectolitres of beer brewed.

• 1979

  Brewery became part of Getränkekombinat Dresden.

• 1972

  Transferred to public ownership as VEB Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau; production of 82,500 hl beer and 10,600 hl non-alcoholic beverages.

• 1958

  Converted into semi-public company Bergquell-Brauerei KG; production of 65,000 hl beer and 10,800 hl non-alcoholic beverages.

• 1900

  Approximately 43,000 hectolitres of beer brewed annually.

• 1846

  Foundation stone of a new brewery and malthouse laid on Löbauer Theaterplatz.

Regional Saxon brewery specializing in a black beer specialty, Lausitzer Porter, and a range of traditional German beer styles.

• Lausitzer Porter

  Black beer specialty produced since 1999; uses sugar and additional carbon dioxide, so the maker does not refer to the German purity law.

• Porter+Punsch

  Mixed variant based on Lausitzer Porter, introduced 2001, autumn/winter season.

• Kirsch-Porter

  Cherry Porter variant introduced 2006.

• Strawberry-Porter

  Strawberry Porter variant introduced 2007.

• Strong Porter

  Strong beer version of the Porter.

• Bergquell 1846 Hell

  Light beer.

• Bergquell Gold

  Beer.

• Bergquell Festbier

  Festival beer, autumn/winter season.

• Goldener Reiter

  Beer.

• Keller-Urtyp naturtrüb

  Unfiltered cellar beer.

• Kräuter Radlerin

  Herbal radler.

• Lausitzer Bergbock

  Bock beer, autumn/winter season.

• Lausitzer Mumme

  Mumme in Classic and Kräuter versions.

• Lausitzer Radler-in

  Radler.

1. 1Die Heimat des Lausitzer Porter - Bergquell Brauerei Löbaubergquell-porter.de
2. 2Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau - Wikidatawikidata.org
3. 3Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau - Wikipedia (French)fr.wikipedia.org