Stag Beer

Lore & Background

Stag Beer was produced by the Griesedieck Western Brewery Co., founded by Henry L. Griesedieck, a nephew of Anton Griesedieck who had emigrated from Germany to St. Louis around 1866. The Griesedieck family had brewed beer in Germany since 1766, and Anton's sons and nephew established multiple breweries in the St. Louis area. The Griesedieck Western Brewery Co. in Belleville, Illinois, was one of three family-owned breweries, alongside Griesedieck Brothers Brewery and the Falstaff Brewing Corporation. Stag Beer thus shares a common heritage with the other Griesedieck family brands, rooted in a multi-generational brewing tradition that spanned from Germany to the American Midwest.

Reader's Guide

Stag Beer's significance lies in its place within the broader Griesedieck family brewing legacy, which included three St. Louis-area breweries: Griesedieck Brothers Brewery, Griesedieck Western Brewery Co. (producer of Stag Beer), and the Falstaff Brewing Corporation. The Griesedieck family had brewed beer in Germany since 1766, and Anton Griesedieck brought that tradition to St. Louis around 1866. His sons and nephew later established separate breweries, with Henry L. Griesedieck founding the Griesedieck Western Brewery Co. in Belleville, Illinois. Stag Beer thus represents a branch of this family enterprise, which also saw the Griesedieck Brothers brand revived in 2002 by descendant Raymond A. Griesedieck. The brand's legacy is intertwined with the family's history of brewing through Prohibition, post-Prohibition competition with Anheuser-Busch, and eventual consolidation under Falstaff and later Pabst. Stag Beer remains a testament to the Griesedieck family's enduring influence on Midwestern brewing.

Did You Know?

• The Griesedieck family had brewed beer in Germany since 1766 before Anton Griesedieck emigrated to St. Louis around 1866.
• The Griesedieck family once owned three St. Louis-area breweries: Griesedieck Brothers Brewery, Griesedieck Western Brewery Co., and the Falstaff Brewing Corporation.
• Henry L. Griesedieck, nephew of Anton Griesedieck, founded the Griesedieck Western Brewery Co. that produced Stag Beer.