Apex Brewing Company, Inc.
(1934-1938)
and
Rheinlander Brewery, Inc.
(1938-1939)
In April of 1933, Alvin Hemrich
established the Hemrich & Western Brewing Companies - referred to as
plants No. 1 & 2. Then on 14 March of 1934, Alvin established a new corporation
with $40,000 in capital stock. Two months later, he completed the sale of the
Western Brewing Co. (plant No. 2) to Rudolph Samet, along with the rights to the Hemrich
brand. The Western plant, at 5225 E. Marginal Way, became the new Hemrich
Brewing Co. and continued in operation until 1940.
North end of Apex Brewery,
c.1934 (Sick's Century Brewery can be seen at right)
He then made capital improvements to plant No. 1,
and in May of '34, resumed business as the Apex Brewing Company, Inc.
Apex was the last Washington brewery to be issued a
U-Permit number, WASH-U-1218. Plant No. 1 was just north of, and adjacent to, Sick's
Century Brewery (previously the Bay View Brewery)
and can be partially seen at the right in the Apex Brewery photo.
Alvin was president, and
his youngest son, Walter, had by now earned the position
of superintendent. Unfortunately, this arrangement was about to change. Failing to
rally from a fall on icy pavement, Alvin Hemrich died from a blood clot on the 25th of February,
1935.
The new president of the company was Edgar Maclay Steell, with
Walter Hemrich assuming the position of vice president. Alvin's old partner in
Hemrichs, Inc., Isadore Luxenburg, remained as secretary.
The treasurer was Ray Johnson, and William Weiss continued as brewmaster.
Corporate records, dated
24 December, 1935, show an increase in capital to $186,380 -
yet the business
continued to struggled. At some point the National Grocery Co. of Seattle became
an investor.
A 1937 credit
report showed them to own one-third of the brewery.
After a fatal heart attack took Walter's brother, Elmer E.
Hemrich, in early '37, he left Apex to assist his widowed
sister-in-law with the running of Gold Seal Breweries, Inc. and Hemrich Wineries
Corp. in Tacoma.
With the Hemrichs now completely out of the picture, the Sick organization chose
to acquire the business, plant, and fixed assets of the brewery. On 22
May, 1938, it was announced the company was sold, and in the following month, on the 4th of June, the
board of directors filed to dissolve the Apex Brewing Company.
Note: Apex breweriana shown below.
Lester R. McCash, formerly secretary and treasurer of the Hemrich Brewing
Company (plant No. 2) on E. Marginal Way, was named manager of the new Rheinlander Brewery.
The
Seattle Brewing & Malting Co. (called SeaBrew by insiders) chose not to
purchase the "Apex" brand, but to use the plant solely for the
production of their "Rheinlander" beer. The adjoining Century plant would then
specialize in the production of the recently acquired "Rainier" brand.
Rheinlander Brewery in August of 1938
The plant at 2918 Airport Way was now the Rheinlander Brewery, but
only until May 1939, when the Horluck's Brewing Co.
was purchased by the Sicks' enterprise. The Horluck plant then became the new home of "Rheinander
Beer," and
Lester McCash moved there to serve as co-manager.
The original plant No. 1 was merely absorbed
into the SeaBrew complex, and used for additional storage, or cellaring.
In 1948,
this facility was converted to an entirely different purpose. It was converted
to a
fully staffed and equipped central laboratory to provide constant quality
control for all the breweries in the Sicks' organization, both in the U.S. and
in Canada. The lab was organized by Nicholas L. Vacano, who had been the
brewmaster for the Rainier brewery in San Francisco. Vacano took over technical
supervision for all the Sicks' breweries, and within four years became
a director and vice president of Sicks' Brewery Enterprises, Inc.
The forgoing discussion dealt with the succession of brewing activities at Alvin Hemrich's plant No. 1, located at 2918
Airport Way. While it was the home of "Rheinlander Beer" - if only for
11 months - this article only touched on the history of the Rheinlander brand. The following
chronicles the brand's 10 year progression.
When Emil Sick acquired the old Bay View brewery, he needed a name for his
product. In his 1958 memoirs, he recalls:
"When our Century Brewery
was in operation a few months, we used the brand name of "Rheinlander," which
was a name we took pretty much out of thin air."
"Rheinlander" remained the
company's flagship brand until the 1935 formation of the Seattle Brewing &
Malting Company, in which the Rainier Brewing Co of San Francisco partnered with
Sick, giving him the right to produce "Rainier Beer" in the northwest.
"Rainier" became Sick's primary brand, and with the
May '38 purchase of the Apex
Brewery, as explained above, "Rheinlander" production was moved to that plant
the following month. Labels
from the 11 month stay at the Apex plant clearly state "Rheinlander Brewery, Inc."
On May 1, 1939, the Horluck Brewing Co. was purchased by SeaBrew
and the plant was renamed the Century Brewery. Production of Rheinlander was
then moved to the new plant which became the new "Home of Rheinlander."
Production of "Rheinlander Beer" continued until war time restrictions, and
faltering sales, caused the brand to be dropped in late '42.
Since the new Century
plant was merely a subsidiary of SeaBrew, the beer made there
didn't mention the Century Brewery on the labels, just that it was from Seattle
Brewing & Malting. Consequently, it's difficult for collectors
to determine if a "Rheinlander Beer" label, or any item, is from
either the 1935-1938, or the
1939-1942 period - with Rheinlander Bry. Inc. right in the middle, from June '38
to May '39.
"Rheinlander" ball tap knob,
c.1935-'38 or '39-'42?
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