Storz Brewing Company
Company type | Private |
---|---|
Industry | Beverages |
Founded | 1876-1972, 2013-2015 |
Headquarters | Omaha, Nebraska, United States |
Key people | Gottlieb Storz (founder), Adolph Storz, Robert Storz |
Products | Beers, lagers, malt beverages |
Website | storzbrewing |
The Storz Brewing Company was located at 1807 North 16th Street in
History
Richard Siemon founded an ale brewery called Saratoga Brewery in the town of
According to the Omaha World-Herald, "The Storz brewery pumped out 43 million gallons of beer a year and produced one-third of all the beer sold in Nebraska in 1960. Arthur C. Storz Sr. sold the company in 1966. It went out of business in 1972."[5]
Building
The original Storz Brewery building was located at 1807 North 16th Street on the corner of 16th and Clark Streets. Built for $500,000 in 1893, it was a six-story building constructed from brick, stone and cement that was over 200 feet long. It had red tiled floors and walls with burnished stainless steel and copper fixtures. Storz installed new equipment throughout the building, as well as an ice plant, cold storage, a bottling shop, machine shop and a restaurant.[6] Eventually, the entire facility occupied more than 15 buildings. The original Storz Brewery included a hospitality room patterned after a brew house called "The Frontier Room" and a hunting lodge-style banquet room adorned with the stuffed heads of big game called "The Trophy Room."
Operations
Storz and later, his son
.Storz faced ongoing political and social pressures against alcohol consumption by religious and moral organizations across Nebraska, and throughout the
The Storz Brewery started to suffer in 1920, forcing the company to
Storz went back to business making beer in 1934, and was making up to 150,000 barrels a year by 1935. After avoiding an industry-wide strike that year, Storz's business took off. Gottlieb Storz died in 1939 of a heart attack and his son Adolph became brewery president. Just before World War II Storz became Nebraska's highest seller.[7]
Labels
The main brands of Storz Brewing Company were Storz Beer, Storz Gold Label, Storz Premium, Storz All Grain and Storz Tap Beer, and were sold in
In the first part of the 20th century the brewer manufactured Storz Blue Ribbon. In the 1950s the company manufactured "Storz-ette" beer, which came in an 8-ounce can that had an orchid on the label and a tagline that read "calorie controlled"; they were sold as four-can packages called "Princess Packs."Awards
The Storz Brewery won medals in international competition at the Trans-Mississippi Exposition in Omaha in 1898, at the Lewis and Clark Centennial Exposition in Portland in 1905, and in Paris in 1912.[9]
Closure
Reopening
The Storz Brewing Company reopened on August 8, 2013, in Omaha by Thomas Markel and his cousin John Markel. Storz has 5 major beers dating back to the founding of the brewery with Storz Triumph as its flagship lager, Storz Gold Crest Amber Ale, Storz Wood Duck Wheat, Storz Mugs Pale Ale (named after Mugs a Chesapeake Spaniel born Aug 28, 1936) and Storz Dancing Monks Dopplebock. Seasonal beers include famous historic Storz beer names: Winterbre Porter and Old Saxon Stout. Failure for the brewery to pay its rent and property taxes forced the permanent closure in 2015.
Ownership history
Legal owners[13] | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Name | Location | Era | |||
Ebenezer Dallow (Saratoga Brewery) | Omaha
|
1863–1865 | |||
Joseph Baumann (Columbia Brewery) | Omaha | 1865–1876 | |||
Mrs. W. Baumann (Columbia) | Omaha | 1876–1884 | |||
Storz & Iler (Columbia) | Omaha | 1884–1891 | |||
Omaha Brewing Association | Omaha | 1891–1901 | |||
Storz Brewing Company | Omaha | 1901–1917 | |||
Storz Beverage & Ice Company | Omaha | 1917–1933 | |||
Storz Brewing Company | Omaha | 1933–1967 | |||
Grain Belt Breweries, Inc. | Omaha | 1967–1972 | |||
Storz Brewing Company | Omaha | 2013 - 2015 |
See also
- History of Omaha
- List of defunct consumer brands
References
- ^ Larsen, L.C. and Cotrell, B.J. (1997) The Gate City: A History of Omaha. University of Nebraska Press. p 144.
- ^ "History of Omaha," Andreas' History of Nebraska - Douglas County. Retrieved 9/8/07.
- ^ (1888) "City of Omaha." Andreas' History of Nebraska. Retrieved 9/3/07.
- ^ "Breweries."[usurped] Nebraska State Historical Society. Retrieved 9/7/07.
- ^ Burbach, C. (2009) "Arthur C. Storz Jr. dead at 89", Omaha World-Herald. Retrieved 11/14/10.
- ^ "Storz Brewery" Archived 2007-07-08 at the Wayback Machine. Omaha Public Library. Retrieved 9/7/07.
- ^ "Storz: Can of the month." Retrieved 9/7/07.
- ^ Barnhart, T.F. (1952) Weekly Newspaper Management. Appleton-Century-Crofts. p 190.
- ^ "Storz: Can of the month." Retrieved 9/7/07.
- ^ Bednarek , J.R.D. (2002) The Changing Image of the City: Planning for Downtown Omaha, 1945-1973. University of Nebraska Press. p 123.
- ^ Albers, H.H. (1974) Principles of Management: A Modern Approach. Wiley Publishers. p 366.
- ^ Gausephol, D. (2001) "Your Dad’s Beer: Sipping a Generation," Beer Magazine. 22(3). Retrieved 9/7/07.
- ^ "Trays by Brewery". Retrieved 9/8/07.
External links
- Period postcard of the Storz Brewery.
- 1909 advertisement
- Storz Brewing Company Website