Heinrich Beck (brewer)
Heinrich Beck | |
|---|---|
| Born | 21 December 1832 |
| Died | 10 June 1881 (aged 48) |
| Occupation | Brewer |
| Known for | Co-founder of the brewery later known as Brauerei Beck & Co. (Beck's) |
Heinrich Beck (21 December 1832 – 10 June 1881) was a German brewer and co-founder of the Kaiser-Brauerei Beck & May brewery, later known as Brauerei Beck & Co. (Beck's), founded in Bremen on 27 June 1873.[1][2]
Early life
Beck was born in Großeislingen (today Eislingen/Fils) in the Kingdom of Württemberg, the son of a butcher; he learned brewing at the Gasthof und Brauerei Zum Adler.[3] He emigrated to the United States as a brewer and returned to Germany in 1864 before settling in Bremen.[4] He married there Christine Düring in 1865, with whom he had four children.[3]
Career
On 27 June 1873 Beck co-founded the Kaiser-Brauerei Beck & May o.H.G. in the Neustadt district of Bremen with Lüder Rutenberg and Thomas May.[1][2][5]
In 1874 Beck received a gold medal at the international agricultural exhibition in Bremen, presented by the future Emperor Friedrich III.[1][2][5] In 1876 the brewery's Kaiserbier exhibited at the Philadelphia Centennial Exhibition and obtained again a gold medal for the "best continental beer".[1][2][6]
Thomas May had left the partnership in October 1875; after that the firm traded as Kaiser-Brauerei Beck & Co.[7] Rutenberg and Beck complemented each other with Rutenberg as entrepreneur - company builder,[8] and Beck as brewmaster, and shaped the export oriented brewery.[9][10]
Beck died in Bremen on June 10, 1881.[3]
Legacy
Beck's name remained attached to the company as it evolved into Brauerei Beck & Co.; both gold medals (Bremen 1874 and Philadelphia 1876) are still depicted on the Beck's beer label.[2]
References
- ^ a b c d "Beck's: Ein Bremer Traditionsunternehmen [Beck's: A Bremen tradition company]". Frankfurter Allgemeine Zeitung (in German). 19 July 2001. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ a b c d e "Beck's Bier: Von der Neustadt in die ganze Welt [Beck's beer: from Bremen's Neustadt to the whole world]". WK Geschichte (Weser Kurier History) (in German). 27 June 2018. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ a b c "Heinrich Beck" (PDF). Kulturkaufhaus (Schriftenreihe) (in German): 55–57. 2015. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ "Landesbildstelle teilt mit: Braumeister Beck und die Pilsener Brauart [State film office notes: Brewmaster Beck and the Pilsener style]". Pressestelle des Senats der Freien Hansestadt Bremen (in German). 27 September 1999. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ a b "1873 FOUNDATION OF KAISER-BRAUEREI BECK & MAY O.H.G". Beck's (official history timeline). Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ "Ein Pils für Weltenbummler [A pilsner for globetrotters]". Kreiszeitung (Bremen) (in German). 17 August 2016. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ "Beck's". Brandslex Markenlexikon (in German). Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ Weisser, Michael (2023). Lüder Rutenberg: der Baumeister und Gründer der Kaiserbrauerei Beck & Co. in Bremen: Quellensammlung zur Stadtgestaltung und Baukunst sowie zur Entwicklung des Bremer-Hauses im 19. Jahrhundert [Lüder Rutenberg: The master builder and founder of the Kaiser-Brauerei Beck & Co. in Bremen: Source collection on urban design and architecture as well as on the development of the Bremen house in the 19th century] (in German). Isensee Verlag. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ "Giganten der Biergeschichte: Lüder Rutenberg und Heinrich Beck [Giants of brewing history: Lüder Rutenberg and Heinrich Beck]". Brauwelt (in German). 6 November 2023. Retrieved 7 November 2025.
- ^ "Vom Baumeister zum Braumeister [From master builder to brewmaster]". taz. die tageszeitung (in German). 21 February 2002. Retrieved 7 November 2025.