English
Greatness comes in unlikely forms. Take the origins of Radeberger Pilsner. On a cold January evening back in 1872, Gustav Philipp, Max Rumpelt, Florenz Julius Schone, Carl Hermann Rasche, and Heinrich Minckwitz gathered for a beer in their local tavern and hatched a plot to brew an entirely unique German Pilsner unlike anything known before. They came from different backgrounds: business, politics, and manufacturing. The fact that none of them knew anything about brewing beer was no deterrent to their mission. They were convinced that by pooling their ingenuity and money, they could create the best tasting German Pilsner of the day.
Enter Conrad Brüne. He elevated the passion of the original founders into an art form. As master brewer from 1886 to 1923, Brüne single-handedly masterminded a “Pilsner sensation”. His relentless quest for perfection, fueled by pioneering breakthroughs in brewing technology, cemented the fledgling company’s reputation as the finest purveyor of German Pilsner in the land.
Legend has it his train home was often held at the station with other passengers on board as he still labored over his brewing kettle, possessed by the belief that great taste lay hidden in the painstaking process of new invention. Happily, they were quick to forgive Brüne once they tasted the alluring fruits of his labor. For Brüne, perfecting his craft was everything and, despite the international accolades that soon followed, he was most at home lost in his own world, refining and fine-tuning the inimitable taste that earned him unrivaled renown. At a time when great taste was worth its weight in gold, Conrad Brüne acquired rock star status among the townsfolk of Saxony and beyond.
Today in Berlin when Germany hosts foreign dignitaries for state events, Radeberger Pilsner is the beer the German Chancellor raises to toast in special occasions. This has been our tradition for over a century and it’s pleasantly reassuring to know that the exceptional taste from Radeberg was shared by princes and kings alike. Prince Otto von Bismarck was so enamored by its seductive flavor that he named it the official “Chancellor’s Brew” in 1888. Not one to be outdone, King Frederick Augustus of Saxony followed suit by naming it the official beverage of preference for his court – and there followed an array of awards and honors from festivals around the world, distinguishing Radeberger Pilsner as the choice of discerning connoisseurs from then on until now.
Even the famed German playwright Bertold Brecht couldn’t resist our charms and requested our brewery supply him with two cases of Radeberger Pilsner each month. We gladly obliged, doing whatever we could to inspire so great a talent. How could we possibly refuse?
