Bushwick Beer
William Calabrese
Bushwick is a land of necessity; there are little frills, and beer is the drink of the people. Neither beer nor Bushwick are desperately barren, empty vessels rapt in ascetic existence. Try to be Billy Corgan in a darkened studio, head bent down over a microphone chanting poetry that you wrote in an ecstatic fit prompted by witnessing Werner Herzog's character in Julien Donkey-Boy (he reminded you too much of the father you never had, and the father you wished you had just so you could resent him); once your hairless body moves towards the fridge for a taste of a cold beer, the shell of self mockery softens slightly. Little has actually changed, and yet you appear an individual transformed, grounded.. And, how often is Bush's electoral success lazily attributed to the accepted belief that "he's the kind of guy I would want to have a beer with"? As Brooklyn Brewery founder Steve Hindy puts it "Brooklyn has such a strong identity--a blue collar rough and ready self-image that just seems to fit with beer." Brooklyn's only remaining brewery (and it is a good one) may lie in the next-door neighborhood, but historically the brewing center of gravity is right here in Bushwick.
From about 1890 until the late 1940s, Bushwick was considered one of the country's brewing capitals, being home to small basement operations and heavy hitters alike. The heart of Brooklyn brewing was an impressive 12-block stretch that housed 11 breweries between Bushwick Avenue and Lorimer Street known as Brewer's Row. Yet Brewer's Row was not even the full extent of it. Breweries were scattered over the map of northern Brooklyn. At its height, this neighborhood was pumping out roughly 10% of all beer consumed in the United States. How many friendships were forged and forgotten over Bushwick-born brews? How many baby boomer children were conceived over a few too many Rheingolds? How many generations owe their entire existence to the hoppy pilsners of Brewer's Row? Coming up short on hard data here, I'll resort to wild estimation: Without the breweries of Bushwick, the Vietnam War would have never ended, Huey Lewis would never have recorded "Sports," and Princess Diana might still be with us (I'm a hard-core Gladwellian). You might fairly contest my counter-factual hypothesis; what you can't argue with is the smooth drinkability and high quality of Bushwick's pilsners, which were unmatched in the rest of the country.
Brooklyn's rapid development meant abandoning its quickly drying system of wells in the mid-19th century and the import (or in the eyes of Queens, theft) of Long Island's water. The brewing process is one that is largely shaped by the environment in which it is produced; in Bushwick, the large German population capitalized as they knew how on the influx of soft water to make the perfect pilsner.
Bushwick's first major brewer was Claus-Lipsius, founded by John Schneider in 1865. The brewery's first location was on Manhattan St., but the fast success of their operations enabled an upgrade to Humboldt Street between Scholes and Meseroles, right near what is now the Montrose stop in the heart of Brewer's Row. Schneider's was considered "one of the largest and best equipped plants in the U.S.," if the American Brewing Academy of Chicago is to be believed (I've always been a Siebel's Institute man, myself). Unfortunately, the company soon faced a financial pinch and was forced to sell, becoming the Williamsburgh Brewing Company in 1876 and finally the Congress Brewing Company before completely shutting down in 1904. However, John Schneider's mark on the Brooklyn brewing scene would not fade soon, as Claus-Lipisius had trained a number of future brewers, most notably among them Otto Huber. A German immigrant, Mr. Huber stayed at Claus-Lipsius through all of its owners and incarnations. After the demise of Congress, Huber worked as a foreman at another brewery before going on to found the Edelbrew Brewery at 1 Bushwick Place. Its Goldenrod brand was second only to Rheingold in output in the years prior to Prohibition.
If you hadn't noticed, Bushwick's rise to brewing prominence was somewhat ill-timed. In 1919, with a large number of breweries active in Brooklyn, the Volstead Act and the eighteenth admendment were passed and no drink could now contain over 0.5% alcohol. By the time the act was repealed in 1933, only seven breweries survived selling "near-beer." Of course, in these 14 years, brewing did not cease in the neighborhood. New York City was home to some 30,000 speakeasies, and that booze had to come from somewhere. One of those somewheres might have existed south of Broadway on Pulaski Street.
Excelsior Brewing Company was a modest establishment that opened at the turn of the century that became an early victim of the Volstead Act, being sold to Charles Mandel in 1923 for $189,200. The sellers of the property were pushing the possibility of the plant being used to manufacture soda, or to possibly be scrapped in favor of some other industrial activity. Mandel had a different business model in mind. At least, that's what the feds believed when they raided the Hercules Garage on DeKalb and found 8 trucks with empty beer barrels and a system of pipes that lead directly to the brewing plant. The government felt they had sufficient evidence to tie Excelsior to legendary gangster and bootlegger Jack "Legs" Diamond. Unfortunately for them, the case was thrown out of court for the lack of a warrant. Another year went by, another raid attempted (this time with papers), and another case was dismissed by a judge not impressed by the weight of the evidence that had led to the issuing of the warrant. Excelsior survived in this extralegal limbo until they were crushed by competitors during the post-Prohibition boon.
Of the breweries that survived Prohibition, Rheingold and Trommer's stood out as undeniable NYC institutions. Trommer's sat at the far end of Bushwick Ave (near Evergreen Cemetery) and held a reputation for holding out to old-world brewing traditions. Its Beer Garden was not too different from what you might see on any given summer day in Astoria these days: hundreds of people from all walks of life brought together by good beer and warm sun. Rheingold, at Forrest and Wilson, never was a central gathering place but extended in the opposite direction--out. The Liebmann brewers, makers of Rheingold, had built one of the first successful beer megabrands, aided in part by an enormously popular Miss Rheingold contest that drew out almost as many NYC voters as a presidential election. By 1947, Liebmann had more plants in operation than Anheuser-Busch, Pabst, Miller, or Schlitz. Yet the wheel of history was not to be denied. Once again, just as Bushwick breweries were at the top of their game, they were quickly brought to their knees. A strike in 1949 crippled the industry for 81 days, and brewing in Brooklyn was never the same. Rheingold finally folded in 1974 and Brooklyn endured 20+ years without a brewery. Brooklyn has now had one for a decade, but Bushwick is still is without.
Of course this doesn't mean you can't find a good selection of beer in our neighborhood. The streets may be littered with $0.99 24oz Coors cans like used up scratch tickets, but for the more discerning customer a vast m�lange of beer can be had for a reasonable price.
My favorite spot is right in the heart of old Brewer's Row: the Millennium Mini-Mart and Video on Bushwick and Meserole. I've never known them to sell video; the place could be mistaken for any other larger bodega in Bushwick--but their beer selection and pricing are rare for these parts. You'll find a diverse range of brewers from across the Northeast, in addition to the standards. It's also one of the few places in the neighborhood where you can find a 12 pack of Yuengling for $10.
The recent extension of Brooklyn's Natural injected some much-needed hops into Morgan Avenue. This is now the premier place for a wide beer selection in Bushwick. Over 50 brews are represented at any given time, including many that you've likely never heard of. Be prepared to pay for the privilege though, you'll be hard pressed to find a six-pack for less than $10.99.
