Falstaff Beer: Where To Buy And Enjoy It

Falstaff Beer was once one of the largest-selling beer brands in America. Named after the Shakespearean character, Sir John Falstaff, the beer was originally introduced by the Lemp Brewery in St. Louis, Missouri. The Falstaff Brewing Corporation was, at one time, the third-largest brewer in America, with several plants nationwide. However, after a series of acquisitions and closures, the last Falstaff brewery closed in 1990, and the brand went out of production in 2005. While Falstaff Beer is no longer available, there have been rumours and discussions of its potential return, with the brand currently owned by Pabst Brewing Company. So, while you can't currently buy Falstaff Beer, there is a possibility that it may become available again in the future.

Falstaff beer is no longer in production

The Rise and Fall of Falstaff Beer

Falstaff Beer was introduced in 1903 by the Lemp Brewery, which was founded in 1840 in St. Louis by German immigrant Johann Adam Lemp. The brand was named after the Shakespearean character, Sir John Falstaff, known for his reputation as a jolly, fun-loving knight.

Falstaff Beer grew in popularity, and by the 1960s, the Falstaff Brewing Corporation was the third-largest brewer in America, with several plants nationwide. However, fortunes began to decline in the 1970s as consolidation swept the beer industry. The company was bought in 1975 by the S&P Company, and its original St. Louis plant was closed that same year.

The Final Years

Over the next two decades, Falstaff breweries continued to close, including the final plant in St. Louis in 1977. The last Falstaff brewery, located in Fort Wayne, closed its doors in 1990, and the brand name became a licensed property of Pabst. Pabst continued to produce Falstaff Beer through other breweries, but the sales continued to decline.

In 2004, Pabst sold only 1,468 barrels of Falstaff Beer nationwide, and the decision was made to discontinue the brand. The last batch of Falstaff Beer was brewed in May 2005, marking the end of an era for this once-popular beer brand.

Pabst owns the rights to the Falstaff brand

The Falstaff Brewing Corporation was an American brewery located in St. Louis, Missouri. The company was renamed after the Shakespearean character Sir John Falstaff in 1903. While its smaller labels linger on today, its main label, Falstaff Beer, went out of production in 2005. Pabst Brewing Company owns the rights to the Falstaff brand and has discontinued selling Falstaff beer due to dwindling sales.

Falstaff Brewing Corporation has its roots in the 1838 Lemp Brewery of St. Louis, founded in 1840 by German immigrant Johann Adam Lemp. Over the next 80 years, the Lemp family built a beer empire over the caves of St. Louis. The Lemp Brewery adopted its famous "Blue Ribbon" moniker, which it quickly defended in an 1898 trial when it took the Storz Brewing Company of Omaha to court for tying blue ribbons on its bottles and won.

The Lemp Brewery closed in 1921, selling its Falstaff brand to the Griesedieck Beverage Company, which renamed itself the Falstaff Corporation. Falstaff survived Prohibition by selling near beer, soft drinks, and cured hams under the Falstaff name. When Prohibition was repealed in 1933, the first two cases of beer made by the brewery were airlifted to the governors of Illinois and Missouri. After Prohibition, the company expanded greatly, acquiring several other breweries and becoming the third-largest brewer in America by the 1960s.

However, Falstaff's fortunes declined throughout the 1970s as consolidation swept the beer industry. The company was bought in April 1975 by the S&P Company, owned by Paul Kalmanovitz, who also owned Pabst, among other breweries. Falstaff's last St. Louis brewery closed in 1977, and its final plant closed in 1990. The brand name became a licensed property of Pabst, which continued to produce Falstaff beer through other breweries until 2005, when Pabst discontinued the brand due to low sales.

Pabst Brewing Company is an American company founded in 1844 by Jacob Best. By 1889, the company was named after Frederick Pabst. Pabst outsources the brewing of over two dozen brands of beer and malt liquor, including its flagship Pabst Blue Ribbon. Pabst is headquartered in San Antonio, Texas, and does not own any breweries, instead contracting other brewers to make its products. Pabst was acquired by Blue Ribbon Partners, an investment platform led by American beer and beverage entrepreneur Eugene Kashper, in 2021.

Falstaff was once the third-largest brewer in America

Falstaff Brewing Corporation was once the third-largest brewer in America, with several plants across the country. The company was formed in 1903 when the Lemp Brewery, founded in 1840 in St. Louis by German immigrant Johann Adam Lemp, was renamed after the Shakespearean character Sir John Falstaff.

Falstaff's rise to prominence was largely due to the efforts of the Griesedieck family, who took over the company in 1920 after the original Lemp brewery was forced to close due to Prohibition. Joseph Griesedieck purchased the Falstaff name and changed his company's name to Falstaff Corp., which was eventually renamed Falstaff Brewing. The family had a long history in the brewing industry, dating back to the 18th century in Stromberg, Germany.

Falstaff Brewing survived Prohibition by selling near beer, soft drinks, and cured hams under the Falstaff name. The company was publicly traded on the New York Stock Exchange, a rarity in an industry where families closely guarded their ownership. When Prohibition was repealed in 1933, Falstaff's first two cases of beer were airlifted to the governors of Illinois and Missouri.

The company then began a period of expansion, acquiring several other breweries across the country. By the 1960s, Falstaff was the third-largest brewer in America, but its fortunes began to decline after a disastrous acquisition of the Narragansett Brewing Company of Rhode Island, which led to an antitrust case pursued by the state government. Falstaff won the case in the Supreme Court in 1973, but the company never recovered.

Consolidation in the beer industry in the 1970s further hurt Falstaff's business, and in 1975, the company was bought by the S&P Company, owned by Paul Kalmanovitz. Falstaff's original plant in St. Louis closed in 1977, and the brand changed hands several times before ending up with Pabst, which discontinued production of Falstaff beer in 2005.

The Lemp Brewery closed due to Prohibition

The Lemp Brewery, established in 1840 in St. Louis, Missouri, was a thriving beer business for many decades. However, its fate was sealed with the implementation of Prohibition in the United States in 1919. The brewery was forced to halt its core operations of brewing and selling alcoholic beverages.

During Prohibition, the Lemp Brewery attempted to stay afloat by producing a "near beer" product called Cerva. However, this alternative beverage proved unprofitable, and the company's financial situation began to deteriorate. With no viable alternative revenue stream, the Lemp Brewery was left with no choice but to sell its factory complex and brands to rival beer companies in 1920.

The impact of Prohibition on the Lemp Brewery was exacerbated by personal tragedies within the Lemp family. William J. Lemp Jr., who took over the family business in 1904, faced a highly publicised and contentious divorce in 1908. This led to a loss of interest in the business, and the Lemp family began to withdraw from the public eye.

In 1920, just before Prohibition went into effect, Billy Lemp, the owner at the time, sold the rights to the Falstaff name, one of their popular beer brands, to the Griesedieck Beverage Company for $25,000. Soon after, he auctioned off the brewery buildings to the International Shoe Company for a fraction of their pre-Prohibition value. The sale of the brewery complex marked the end of the Lemp Brewery as a functioning beer producer, and it closed its doors, unable to recover from the combined impact of Prohibition and personal turmoil within its owning family.

The legacy of the Lemp Brewery lives on, however, as the Falstaff brand, which changed hands several times, continued to be produced and sold until 2005. The former Lemp Brewery complex in St. Louis still stands, now housing various tenants for light industrial, commercial, and artistic endeavours.

The Griesedieck family sold the last Falstaff brewery in 1990

The Griesedieck family has a long history in the brewing industry, dating back to the 18th century in Stromberg, Germany. In the mid-19th century, Anton Griesedieck brought his family's brewing traditions to St. Louis, Missouri, where he and his sons worked for various breweries. The family operated several breweries, including the one on Gravois that would become Falstaff Plant No. 10.

The Griesediecks' involvement with the Falstaff brand began in 1920 when Joseph Griesedieck purchased the Falstaff name from the William J. Lemp Brewing Co. of St. Louis, which had been forced to close due to Prohibition. Joseph Griesedieck changed his company's name to Falstaff Corp., and it later became the Falstaff Brewing Corporation.

The Falstaff Brewing Corporation thrived and became the third-largest brewer in America by the 1960s. However, its fortunes declined in the 1970s, and in April 1975, the company was bought by the S&P Company, owned by Paul Kalmanovitz. The original St. Louis plant was closed that year, and the last remaining St. Louis brewery was closed in 1977.

The Falstaff brand changed hands several times through mergers and acquisitions, eventually coming under the ownership of Pabst Brewing Co. In 1983, Pabst continued to produce Falstaff beer through other breweries, but dwindling sales led to the decision to discontinue the brand in 2005. The last Falstaff brewery in Fort Wayne closed in 1990, marking the end of an era for the once-prominent beer brand.

Today, while Falstaff Beer is no longer in production, the Griesedieck family's legacy in the brewing industry continues. In 1992, a descendant of the original Griesedieck brothers, Raymond A. Griesedieck, incorporated the new Griesedieck Brothers Brewery Company, and by 2002, Griesedieck Brothers Beer had re-emerged in the St. Louis beer market.

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