"The brewery that kicked started the craft beer movement in the U.S....Anchor Brewing"

Anchor Brewing can be traced all the way back to the California gold rush, when a German brewer, Gottlieb Brekle arrived in San Francisco with his family.  In 1871, Gottlieb purchased an old beer and billiards saloon on Pacific Street near Russian Hill for $3500.  Then in 1896, German brewer Ernst F. Baruth and his son-in-law, Otto Schinkel, Jr., bought the old brewery on Pacific (the first of six Anchor locations around the City over the years) and named it Anchor.

In 1906, the duo suffered some uncanny misfortune.  Co-owner Ernst Baruth died suddenly in February.  Two months later, the devastating fire following the San Francisco great earthquake consumed the Anchor Brewery.  In January 1907, just as Anchor Brewery was opening at its new location south of Market Street, Otto Schinkel, Jr. was run over by a streetcar.  Fortunately, German brewers Joseph Kraus and August Meyer, along with liquor store owner Henry Tietjen, were able to keep Anchor going...that was until Prohibition.  The brewery was subsequently shut down in 1920.

After prohibition ended, owner Joe Kraus began operating Anchor Brewery again.  As luck would have it, his newly reopened brewery went up in smoke the following February.  He reopened Anchor in an old brick building with a new partner, Joe Allen, just a few blocks from where the historic brewery is today.  The brewery ran until 1959 when the only partner living at the time, Joe (now 71) decided to close the doors.

Just a year later, in 1960. Lawrence Steese bought and re-opened Anchor at yet another nearby location.  He had a difficult time convincing loyal Bay Area establishments to continue serving Anchor Steam beer.  By 1965, Steese was ready to shut Anchor down again.  So begun the Maytag era...

Fritz Maytag, heir to the Appliance Empire, was attending Stanford and had become very fond of the local brew.  Once he learned of the eminent closing of this local brewery he rushed in to save it from bankruptcy.  100 years after Gottlieb Brekle founded the historic American Brewery, Fritz began bottling their name sake Anchor Steam beer.

So what exactly is a Steam Beer?  In the early days Gottlieb, Ernst and Otto, there was no refrigeration or deep dark caves to lager the beer, but there was the cool breeze blowing off the San Francisco Bay.  Huge metal vessels were built on the top of buildings and steam could be seen rising from the tops of these building as the hot wart was being cooled off.  These new ales became known as "steam beer".

*These are the new vessels built in a controlled environment inside the brewery

*Anchor trademarked the term "Steam Beer" so any other beer made in this style is a "California Common"

By 1977, Anchor had outgrown its most recent brewery on 8th Street and Fritz had found a wonderful old coffee roastery, built in 1937 on nearby Potrero Hill.  On August 13, 1979, Anchor brewed its first Steam Beer at its new Mariposa Street home, which is the site posted here from my visit last month.

*The lineup for our tasting

*There are tons of interesting little pieces spread around the brewery

*Danny caught this and we both had a good laugh...true story!

Anchor has lead the way in introducing new and exciting beers since it's first Steam Beers rolled out.  Anchor Porter, Liberty Ale, Old Foghorn Barleywine Ale and the first annual Christmas Ale.  Look for these crafty beers and spirits too!  Yes Anchor produces some fine crafted distilled spirits!

Cheers to Fritz and his team for producing some distinctive California brews and spirits!

http://www.anchorbrewing.com/