ERDINGER Weißbräu – private brewery since 1886

Quality, enjoyment, tradition and a cosmopolitan outlook – these are the values of Privatbrauerei ERDINGER Weißbräu. For over 125 years, our passion for Bavarian brewing skills has inspired us to produce wheat beers of outstanding quality.

What makes the private brewery so successful?

Above all one thing: ERDINGER has remained true to itself. This philosophy is personified by Werner Brombach, an owner who has always politely declined all offers to buy his brewery and prefers to keep the reins firmly in his own hands. Enjoyment of life, reliability and consistency are the main pillars of our corporate culture. The quality and flavor of his wheat beer mean everything to Werner Brombach – he accepts no compromises. In this respect, he’s just like his father Franz Brombach, the company’s long-serving CEO who was offered the chance to buy the brewery in 1935. Annual output at the time was around 3,500 hectoliters (hl) and beer was sold exclusively in the Erding district. Franz Brombach guided the local brewery through the turmoil of the war years and lay the foundation for its success in the post-war period. In 1965 when his son Werner Brombach joined the company, annual output had reached 40,000 hl and the brewery bore the proud name ERDINGER Weißbräu.

Industry pioneer

As a graduate in both beer-brewing and business administration, Werner Brombach proved to be a pioneer within the industry. He was the first to sell wheat beer outside Bavaria, using modern marketing techniques before the word “brand” had even been used in association with wheat beer. This was the decisive breakthrough for the brewery. After his father died in 1975, Werner Brombach bore sole responsibility as owner. With his entrepreneurial vision and policy of small successive steps, he steadily developed the brewery into the global market leader. In 1977, output had already reached 225,000 hl and 13 years later in 1990 the magic 1-million hectoliter mark was passed for the first time. Thanks to Werner Brombach’s unswerving commitment to quality and consistent brand strategy, the brewery continues to grow. Today, around 1.8 million hl (2014) of wheat beer leave the brewery every year and more than 90% of all Germans know ERDINGER Weissbier

Bavarian roots

True to its motto “Beer needs Roots”, the brewery sees no reason to brew anywhere else than at its home base in Erding – in strict compliance of course with the Bavarian Purity Law of 1516. This is the only way to ensure quality and flavor. ERDINGER is therefore a wheat beer specialist that prefers to supply the world from its base in Erding than to let others around the world brew for it under license.
You can also taste Bavaria – for example with a glass of ERDINGER Weissbier. Then you’ll know what traditional brewing without gimmicks is capable of. The recipe is over 125 years old, unchanged and closely guarded – a true treasure. What’s no secret though is the Bavarians’ love of life. Together with their passion for a cozy and jovial atmosphere, this has established Bavaria’s reputation for hospitality – something which ERDINGER Weißbräu has long adopted itself.

Good things need time

Bavarians don’t like to rush things – everything is given the time it needs. Applied to wheat beer this means: allowing it to slowly mature until the special yeast (cultivated in the brewery) has done its work in a carefully temperature-controlled environment and the wheat beer is perfect. If other breweries choose to use modern tank fermentation, that’s their decision – ERDINGER has no intention of changing. Wheat beer is still matured in the bottle here: firstly, because it’s our tradition, and secondly, because it tastes better.
There is no high staff turnover or constant management changes at ERDINGER Weißbräu. The archetypical entrepreneur Werner Brombach is a reliable employer for his workforce of 530 – the many portraits of loyal company servants who helped shape the company’s success over 15 years or more hang proudly in the filling plant and can be viewed during factory tours.

ERDINGER shaking up the market

With the non-alcoholic wheat beer ERDINGER Alkoholfrei and its brave positioning as an isotonic thirst-quencher for athletes, ERDINGER recently shook up the market again. The brand soon established itself as the leader in Germany and has helped maintain the overall growth momentum for non-alcoholic beers.