Henninger Brewery

Background

Henninger's story begins in 1655 with Eberhard Stein's brew house in Frankfurt. In 1873, Heinrich Christian Henninger from Erlangen/Bavaria entered the brewery, and by 1881 it became a stock company named "Frankfurter Bierbrauer-Gesellschaft - vormals Henninger und Söhne." After several expansions and acquisitions, the company changed its name in 1935 to Henninger-Bräu AG. Following World War II, Henninger was the first German brewery to use beer cans, fueling rapid growth.

By 1966, under majority shareholder Bruno H. Schubert, Henninger ranked number three in Germany by sales and expanded globally, with subsidiaries or licensing in Argentina, Italy, Spain, Greece, and the U.S. In 1980, tobacco and cigarette producer Reemtsma bought the brewery but failed to develop the brand. The company was sold in 1987 to meat producer Gebrüder März AG, Rosenheim, which helped it recover from heavy losses. The main brand "Kaiser Pilsner Privat" was re-introduced after being replaced earlier by "Christian Henninger."

On May 1, 1994, to celebrate the 33rd anniversary of the road cycle race "Around the Henninger Tower," Henninger launched "Henninger Radler," a beer-lemonade mix that became the first nationwide drink of its category. However, the parent company went bankrupt in 1996. In 1998, the intact brewery was sold to private investors around Dietmar Hopp, who divested the Henninger brand and distribution rights in 2001 to local rival Binding Brauerei AG (now Radeberger Group).

The last brew at the old site was on December 20, 2001, and the buildings were demolished for a residential development called "Stadtgärten Henninger Turm."