Lausitzer
Lausitzer
Lausitzer Porter is the undisputed flagship and national calling card of the Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau – one of the most traditional and at the same time most modern breweries in eastern Germany, whose roots stretch back to 1846, when the foundation stone for the first brewhouse was laid in the East Saxon town of Löbau in the Upper Lusatia region. Since 1846 the brewery has been firmly rooted in the region, and although it long remained a purely regional brewery, it underwent a fundamental renewal at its 150th anniversary in 1996 with the construction of a new facility in the Löbau-West industrial estate. When Steffen Dittmar took over management in 1999, annual output stood at just 7,000 hectolitres – within just a few years the operation developed into one of the most modern breweries in Europe with a current annual production of around 200,000 hectolitres.
The heart of Bergquell-Brauerei and its most important product is the Lausitzer Porter – a top-fermented, legendarily drinkable dark specialty beer and one of the oldest porters in Germany, for porter was already being brewed at Bergquell in Löbau in 1895 and was at that time already a popular drink throughout Lusatia. In the glass it presents itself in a dark copper-red-brown with a beige head, where an enticing bouquet of roasted malt, caramel, black cherries and toasted nuts gives way to a full-bodied, fruity-sweet palate with notes of forest berries, a hint of liquorice and milk chocolate, which despite its 4.4% ABV finishes with a surprisingly complex and long-lasting character.
With the «Lausitzer Porter» brand, Löbau brewing specialities gained nationwide recognition and popularity, and the range has been continuously expanded ever since: based on the original porter, the mixed variants Kirsch-Porter, Erdbeer-Porter and Porter+Punsch as well as a Porter-Radler were created, while the range also encompasses a Lausitzer Hefe-Weizen, a dark strong beer Strong-Porter and further regional specialities. As a brewery that still uses its Percheron cold-blood horses for weekly barrel beer deliveries by horse-drawn cart, maintaining a living connection between Upper Lusatian brewing tradition and artisanal pride, Bergquell-Brauerei Löbau stands as one of the most impressive examples of how a small regional brewery can become a nationally recognised and respected brewing brand through passion, quality conviction and one truly unique product.