Beer Me

Digging Up L.A.’s Forgotten Brewing History

Zolbein's Eastside Beer
Zolbein’s Eastside Beer Photo: Retro Beer Items]

As new breweries like The Dudes and Mulholland Brewing Co. continue to emerge and make a stake for L.A. in the nation’s improving beer scene, the Digest blog takes a look at one label L.A. has lost. German-style Eastside beer hit the city in 1907 and eventually became one of the town’s most successful beer brands, brewed in a range from Pilsner to Bock by George Zobelein, the immigrant son of a German master brewer who eventually turned his success into a purchase of the Los Angeles Brewing Company.

Though the beer survived Prohibition by reducing its ABV to a weak, watery 0.5%, it met its eventual extinction after Pabst bought the brewery and eventually shelved the brand, following its reinvention as

In more news of forgotten beers, Eating L.A. blogger Pat Saperstein unearthed a few clunky old cans of beer of her own when restoring a Silver Lake kitchen, revealing long-gone labels like Seattle’s Rainier Old Stock Ale and San Francisco’s Burgermeister.

CityDig: Los Angeles’ Forgotten Beer History [Digest]
Earlier: L.A. Brewery Was the Toast of Its Times [LAT]
From Eastside Lager to Maier’s Select Malt Tonic: A Brief History of L.A. Beer [KCET]

Digging Up L.A.’s Forgotten Brewing History