Mohrenbrauerei
Vorarlberg's oldest brewery and market leader since 1834.
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The Mohrenbrauerei Vertriebs KG, located in Dornbirn, Vorarlberg, is the oldest brewery in the Austrian state. In 2013, it held a 47.2 percent share of the gastronomy and retail markets, making it the market leader among Vorarlberg’s four breweries.
History
The brewery traces its origins to an inn and brewery called "Zum Mohren," whose owner, Josef Mohr, held the license. The earliest known record of the name "Mohrenwirt" dates to 1784. In 1834, Franz Anton Huber, a trader and locksmith from Dornbirn-Markt, purchased the inn, estate, and brewery from a farmer in Hohenems. The business has remained in the Huber family ever since.
Around the turn of the century, under East Silesian master brewer Anton Decker, annual production reached 30,000 hectoliters. After World War II, falling demand forced a halt in production, and the brewery was temporarily used as barracks for Moroccan soldiers. It did not recover until around 1951. In 2012, beverage output was 222,911 hectoliters, dropping to 180,000 hectoliters by 2019.
Name and logo
The brewery’s name and logo have sparked controversy. The logo, a heraldic Moor’s head depicting an African with bulging lips and curly hair, has been criticized for perpetuating racist stereotypes. "Mohr" is an outdated term for people of African descent; Germany’s Duden dictionary labels it archaic and discriminatory by modern standards. The company’s communications have been described as constructing its own myth around the term, disregarding its racial implications. The Huber family took over the Mohr from the crest of founder Josef Mohr, who used a literal depiction of his surname—an African—in the logo.
The brewery argues it has used the logo for nearly 200 years and claims the crest is based on early depictions of Saint Maurice. In 2020, heightened awareness of racism revived the debate. Over 6,000 people signed a petition to keep the African depiction, with the brewery citing tradition and a lack of racist intent.
Mohren Biererlebniswelt
The Mohren Biererlebniswelt, a museum about the brewery’s history and brewing, opened on October 22, 2016, at the brewery’s headquarters in Dornbirn. It displays around 10,000 exhibits, ranging from beer coasters to a replica of the former "Zum Mohren" inn’s facade and a 19th-century brewery.
Lore & Background
The brewery's origin lies in the inn 'Zum Mohren', licensed to Josef Mohr. The oldest documentation of the name 'Mohrenwirt' dates to 1784. In 1834, Franz Anton Huber, a trader and locksmith, bought the inn, estate and brewery from a farmer from Hohenems, and the brewery has remained family-owned since. At the turn of the century, under East Silesian master brewer Anton Decker, annual production reached 30,000 hl.
After World War II, declining demand forced a halt in production; the brewery was temporarily converted into barracks and hosted Moroccan soldiers, recovering only around 1951. The name and logo are controversial: the logo depicts a heraldic Moor's head with bulging lips and curly hair, and 'Mohr' is an outdated, discriminatory term. The brewery argues it has used the logo for nearly 200 years, that it derives from the crest of founder Josef Mohr, and that it is based on early depictions of Saint Maurice. In 2020, a petition to keep the logo gathered over 6,000 signatures.
Reader's Guide
The Mohrenbrauerei holds a significant place in Vorarlberg's brewing history as its oldest brewery and long-time market leader. Its uninterrupted family ownership since 1834 and its survival through post-war hardship—including conversion into barracks—underscore its resilience. The brewery's production fluctuated from 30,000 hl at the turn of the century to over 222,000 hl in 2012, before declining to 180,000 hl in 2019.
The Mohren Biererlebniswelt, a museum opened in 2016 at the brewery's headquarters, displays about 10,000 exhibits on brewing history. The brewery's name and logo have sparked ongoing public debate, particularly in 2020, with critics citing racist stereotypes and the brewery defending the imagery as tradition without racist intent. This controversy has made the brewery a focal point in discussions about heritage and racial sensitivity in branding.
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Sources
Compiled from Wikipedia and the sources listed below. Text from Wikipedia is available under CC BY-SA 4.0; this entry is adapted from it.
- Wikipedia: Mohrenbrauerei (CC BY-SA 4.0).
- Currency conversion: European Central Bank euro reference rates, rates of 1 October 2026.
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