Warsteiner

Warsteiner Beer and Brewery
Location	Warstein, Soest (district), Germany
Opened	1753
Key people	Eva-Catharina Cramer (CEO)
Annual production volume	2.34 million hectolitres (1,990,000 US bbl) in 2015
Owned by	Catharina Cramer
Active beers
Name	Type
Warsteiner Premium Verum	Pilsener
Warsteiner Premium Dunkel	Dunkles Lager
Warsteiner Premium Fresh	Non-Alcoholic
Konig Ludwig Weiss- Royal Bavarian Hefeweizen	Hefeweizen

Warsteiner (German pronunciation: [ˈvaːɐ̯ʃtaɪnɐ, ˈvaʁ-]) beer is brewed in the Arnsberg Forest Nature Park outside of Warstein, North Rhine-Westphalia, Germany. Warsteiner has been owned by the Cramer family since 1753. Warsteiner is Germany's largest privately owned brewery; its best selling beer is Warsteiner Premium Verum.^[2]

Warsteiner ranks fifth among Germany's best selling breweries.

History

According to Inc Magazine, "In 1753, the farmer Antonius Cramer from the town of Warstein, Germany [laid] the foundation for a German beer dynasty.^[3]"

The earliest mention of the brewing company is a tax record from 1753, when Antonius Cramer paid 1 thaler, 19 guilders on beer he brewed and sold himself.^{[citation needed]}

His son Johannes Vitus followed in his footsteps and brought the selling of home-brewed beer into his house, in the heart of Warstein. His company benefited from its central location. However, in 1802 a devastating fire left Warstein in ruins and ashes - the business of the Cramers fell victim to the flames.^{[citation needed]}

At the same time, they rebuilt their house as a guest accommodation and became through the establishment of the St. Pancras Church the centre of the town.^{[citation needed]}

The headquarters of the Warsteiner Brewery, the Domschänke, still stands today in the historic core of Warstein.^{[citation needed]}

Breweries in the Rhine valley were bombed during World War II, and the Warstein brewery sustained some damage.^{[citation needed]}

Beers

All beers are brewed in strict accordance with the Bavarian Purity Law of 1516.^{[citation needed]}

Warsteiner Premium Verum

Premium Verum, a pilsener style beer, is Warsteiner's flagship beer, and is exported to over 60 countries. The alcohol content is 4.8%.^{[citation needed]}

Warsteiner Premium Dunkel

Premium Dunkel is Warsteiner's second most popular beer. Dunkel is a traditional style, dark beer with an alcohol content of 4.8%.^{[citation needed]}

Warsteiner Premium Fresh

Warsteiner's only non-alcoholic beer, brewed exactly like the Premium Verum and then having the alcohol extracted. The beer contains 80 calories per 12 oz. bottle.^{[citation needed]}

König Ludwig Weissbier - Royal Bavarian Hefeweizen

Royal Bavarian is a golden hefeweizen style beer. It is brewed with natural yeast and Bavarian ingredients, and has an alcohol content of 5.5%.^{[citation needed]}

Export and licensing

Warsteiner has been exporting its beers internationally since the 1980s. Furthermore, Warsteiner founded and acquired shares in other international breweries like Isenbeck brewery in Argentina and breweries in Africa.^[4]

All North American Warsteiner products are brewed, bottled, kegged and canned at the brewery in Warstein, Germany.^{[citation needed]}

In some international markets, Warsteiner and Koenig Ludwig beers are license brewed by Mahou-San Miguel Group.^[5]

In the UK the beer is imported by James Clay & Sons.^{[citation needed]}