Brewing up history in Southern Minnesota: the stories of Fleckenstein, Schell’s and Bierbauer breweries

By JANE TURPIN MOORE Guest Contributor

Pour a cold one and pull up a chair; it’s a hoppy time to recall the brewing traditions that put Minnesota beer on the map more than 150 years ago.

While at least one of the area’s oldest beermaking traditions is still in play and has found new life in recent decades (namely Schell’s Brewery of New Ulm), others are preserved primarily in old timers’ memories or in the quiet galleries of local historical societies.

The good news for southern Minnesota beer drinkers? A host of contemporary brewing companies currently dot the landscape, from Montgomery to Mankato to Northfield to Owatonna and points in between. Any wagers on which of those hot spots will still be thriving in 2173?

Fleckenstein Brewing, Faribault (1872-1964)

The way Faribault history buff Brian Schmidt sees it, Fleck’s Beer is as significant a part of Faribault’s legacy as the Tilt-aWhirl and Treasure Cave Blue Cheese. “There are multiple things that Faribault is famous for, and Fleck’s Beer is something this area will continually appreciate and honor,” asserted Schmidt. “It’s a name that’s as good as Hamm’s or Grain Belt.”

A fan and follower of Fleckenstein Brewing’s history since moving to Faribault as a young boy in 1971, Schmidt, 60, was a key coordinator of Fleck’sTravaganza Weekend in August the Fleckenstein family and the brewery was a thrill.”

Fleckenstein Brewing has been a gift that’s kept on giving for Schmidt, Fleckenstein descendant Al Fleckenstein (a Portland, Ore., resident) and local banker John Carlander, among Fleck’s Beer aficionados.

Consider: a Fleckenstein Brewing delivery truck — a 1946 GMC two-ton model — was found “rotting in the woods” until the owner was convinced to donate it to the Rice County Historical Society. The restored truck is now situated at Fleckenstein Bluff Park. And though Schmidt believes Fleck’s Beer can never be replicated, Minnesota’s own Spring Grove Soda Pop, Inc., produced 70 cases of pop in commemorative Fleck’s bottles, which were sold for $5 a pop at Fleck’sTravaganza, with proceeds benefiting the Rice County Historical Society.

“State Bank of Faribault donated the money for the pop, and [bank president] John Carlander has an awesome display of the largest Fleck’s collection in the state at the bank,” said Schmidt.

The Fleck’s exhibit has everything from bottle caps to shirts to a Fleck’s parade wagon yoked to a taxidermied goat. There’s even a short video of footage from the Fleckenstein Brewery’s earlier days available for viewing.

Fleckenstein Brewing traces its origins to 1854, when brothers Ernst, Gottfried, Paul and Joseph emigrated to the United States from Bavaria. Initially, they started a 15-barrel brewery in St. Paul, but Ernst and Gottfried relocated to Faribault in 1857. In 1872, Ernst established his own brewing business just a few hundred yards down the east side of the Straight River from his older brother’s operation.

It was the Fleckenstein brothers who had the caves dug to allow for a chillier beer fermentation process; those same caves later served the Treasure Cave Blue Cheese company in crafting its products.

Although Ernst died in October 1901, his Ernst Fleckenstein Brewing Companies lived on until 1964, having survived Prohibition with the introduction of several sodas (All Star Kola, Grapefruit Drink, Lithiated Lemon, Root Beer and Ginger Ale all lasted until the brewery closed for good in 1964).

A long-time Fleck’s employee who has since passed shared recollections of the brewery at one point with Schmidt. The employee even produced a well-worn pocket notebook containing the pop recipes his brewmaster brother had used and held onto for decades. A priceless find, needless to say.

But even 60 years after its demise, Fleck’s Beer has staying power due to its distinctive redcircle logo (“Once you see it, you’ll never forget it,” said Schmidt), the many other promotional items Fleck’s had made over time and, perhaps most importantly, the community goodwill the brewery served up as freely as its beer.

Fleckenstein Brewing was known as a goto for sports team sponsorships and local charitable causes. And the founder’s descendant Al Fleckenstein continues that tradition with his presentation of an annual scholarship to a Faribault High School senior.

“They gave back to the community over all those years,” said Schmidt. “It was a community brewery and they were community people, so Fleck’s is still a vibrant name.”

For more information or to view exhibits featuring Fleckenstein Brewing, visit the Rice County Historical Society/museum at 1814 2nd Ave. NW, Faribault (rchistory.org) or State Bank of Faribault, 428 Central Ave. N, Faribault (tsbf. com).

Bierbauer Brewing Company/Kato Brewery/Mankato Brewing Company (1850s-1967)

Ja, German beer-lovers had viele to do with establishing southern Minnesota’s beer-making. As in Faribault, Mankato’s brewing tradition began with two German brothers — in this case, William and Jacob Bierbauer — whose Mankato brewery is believed to be the first built west of St. Paul. They, too, dug caves into river bluffs (along what is now North Rock Street in Mankato) to allow for lagering storage. The Bierbauer brothers were among Mankato’s founding residents, and they wasted little time to begin quenching the thirst of their neighbors.

According to the Blue Earth County Historical Society, Bierbauer Brewing Company bought the Standard Brewing Company in 1908, which had previously merged the Haas & Schmidt Brewery with the George Lieferman Brewery.

The Prohibition Amendment of 1919 essentially spelled the end of Bierbauer Brewing, as the business opted to shut down instead of making a mostly unappealing, unpopular nearbeer

When Prohibition ended in 1933, Bierbauer was sold to Minneapolis millionaire G.R. Martin and renamed Kato Brewery. Later known as the

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Bierbauer Brewing Company started in 1908 and was forced to stop by 1919, because of Prohibition.

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Mankato Brewing Company (not associated with the 2012- founded Mankato Brewery located on North Mankato’s Center Street), the ill- fated brewery met its ultimate end in 1967 due to financial difficulties. The brewery site was sold at public auction for $7,300 in December 1970, and part of the deal was that its buildings must be razed.

All that remains to note the Bierbauers’ onceproud spot are two stone pillars that mark the original entrance at 628 Rock St. It was a sad ending to a 100-plus-year brewing history, but, fortunately, contemporary Mankatoans have stepped in over the past decade to revive the Key City’s brewing legacy.

A 2019 informational document produced by Blue Earth County Historical Society staff is the primary source for these details. For more information about Mankato’s brewing history, visit blueearthcountyhistory.com.

August Schell Brewing Company, New Ulm (1860-present)

More commonly known as Schell’s Brewery, the August Schell Brewing Company got its start (with German immigrant August Schell) in 1860 and is stronger than ever today.

Consider: with its on-site Bierhalle, Museum of Brewing, gift shop and tour option, Schell’s hosts over 30,000 annual visitors, produces in excess of 30,000 barrels of beer each year, logs more than 450,000 ratings on Untapped and has tens of thousands of followers on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.

In short, Schell’s is very much a going concern in the 2020s — yet, as the second oldest family-owned brewery in the U.S., its roots are exceedingly deep.

To accommodate the understandable interest in its historical past, Schell’s Brewery has placed an accessible decade-by-decade narrative on its website ( schellsbrewery.com/our-story ).

August Schell arrived in New Ulm with his bride Theresa in 1856, and in his first year of operation (along with Jacob Bernhardt, a former Mankato brewmaster) on the banks of the Cottonwood River, they made 200 barrels of beer.

The 1862 Dakota Conflict imperiled Schell’s, but according to the Schell’s history narrative, the brewery may have been spared in part because of Theresa’s previous kindness and generous food distribution to the area’s Dakota people.

By 1878, arthritis was affecting August Schell’s ability to work (he died at age 63 in 1891), so in 1883 the Schells’ oldest son, Adolph, stepped in to run the brewery; Otto, the youngest Schell son, served as bookkeeper.

The famous Schell mansion, constructed in 1885 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places, is surrounded by formal gardens and a deer park.

Following Adolph Schell’s move to California, Otto took the company reins. Under Otto’s direction, Schell’s produced 9,000 barrels of beer annually by 1892. Otto’s sister Emma Marti and her husband George joined the business in 1898, and Marti descendants have been involved with Schell’s operations ever since. Schell’s is currently on its sixth generation, with Jace Marti having become a brewmaster in 2010.

Notably, Schell’s bought its former Minnesota rival, Grain Belt Beer, in 2002—an acquisition that made Schell’s Minnesota’s largest brewery in terms of production.

Between Prohibition and the subsequent slump of the 1960s and ‘70s that sunk other area breweries (see above), Schell’s has not escaped adversity. But by building on its family and brewing traditions and innovating when necessary, it’s found a recipe for brewing success that seems to have Schell’s well on its path to a bicentennial anniversary in 2060.

“Our Story” at schellsbrewery.com was the primary source for these details. For more information, visit schellsbrewery.com.  Freelance writer/collaborative pianist Jane Turpin Moore grew up in the Mankato area and is now based in Northfield. She blogs at timeformoore566445504. wordpress.com and fields emails at jturpinmoore@gmail. com.