New York State
Just a Taste of Brewing History

Some came from Ireland and many came from Germany. But, wherever they emigrated from, they brought their thirst for good beer to New York State. These ambitious men and women established a legacy for New York State that continues to this very day. And in each corner of the state, there is a story to be told, a brewing history that the entire world can appreciate. So read on and enjoy “just a taste” of New York State's brewing history.

Water, Water Everywhere ...

Many immigrants from Germany settled into what is now New York’s lower Manhattan area. Due to a large influx of brewers to this lucrative business location, the street became known as “Brouwers Straet” or “Brewers Street.” By 1657 “Brouwers Straet” was so busy with the comings and goings of the brewery business that residents asked the local authorities to have the road paved with round stone. Wagons, bringing kegs of beer in and out, often got stuck in the mud. The mud presented other problems for the residents and customers as well, who deemed the street “unfit for public use.” The neighbors pledged to furnish the stone for the street, themselves. And with this action, “Brouwers Straet” began to be called “Stony Street,” and became the first paved street in all of America! Centuries later, “Stony Street” emerged on maps as “Stone Street,” the name it is known by today.

The need to pave a street for breweries was a small problem in comparison to the issue of the area's lack of clean water. In addition to addressing this imperative health concern, the immigrants wanted to re-establish a part of their culture in America. It seemed only natural for them to favor beer, since drinking it was a custom of their native country, and in their new setting, it was considered healthier than drinking the available water. Drinking beer would seem to be an easy answer to an unhealthy water issue, however the brewers were finding it hard to meet the increased demand, because clean water is also a necessity to the brewing process.

For years preceding this era, the residents of the area had been struggling with the dreadful quality of the water. Many ideas were conceived, and many others were even employed, to alleviate this drought, but none of the methods tried seemed to be able to keep up with the ever growing population. Finally, in 1842, thirty-five million gallons of fresh, clean water began flowing in daily from the Croton River. What seemed an impossible situation was relieved when a forty-one-and-a-half-foot-long stone aqueduct was constructed to transport the clean water from northern Westchester County into reservoirs in Manhattan. This is how brewing history expanded in that part of New York State. And with the stage set, the starring roles were ready to be cast.

George Ehret

In 1857, a 22-year-old man named George Ehret came to America from Germany to meet up with his father, who had immigrated to the New World five years earlier. What made this young man stand out from the rest? He was to become one of the greatest brewers in America.

Back in Germany, Ehret studied brewing and the art of cooperage. It turns out this was the beginning of what was to be a long career in the brewing industry. After coming to America with his family, and reuniting with his father in what is now New York State, Ehret started working for Anton Hupfel, who owned a brewery in Manhattan. Ehret was such a competent worker that he ascended to brewmaster within six years. Two years after becoming brewmaster, he had saved up enough money (perhaps supplemented with a loan from his employer) to start his own brewery. Ehret chose a location near the East River known as “Hell Gate,” on the upper east side of Manhattan. Ehret appropriately called his new business, “George Ehret’s Hell Gate Brewery.”

In 1866, Ehret began building his dream, and just one year later it was a reality. Then in 1870, a fire destroyed the brewery. What any other businessman would see as a disaster, Ehret saw as an opportunity to improve and expand his business. By 1877, with his newly-refurbished brewery, “George Ehret’s Hell Gate Brewery” was the largest in the entire country! Ehret held this prestigious rank for the next eighteen years. What makes this accomplishment astounding is that his sales distribution area was almost completely limited to New York City.

In 1927, when George died, his heirs sold the brewery to Jake Ruppert.

Jake Ruppert

One year after George Ehret started his Hell Gate Brewery, his competition was born. Jacob Ruppert Jr was born to a small time brewer. Jacob Sr had started his brewery in 1862, also on the Upper East Side of Manhattan, just a few blocks away from Ehret’s brewery. At “The Jacob Ruppert Brewery,” Jacob Jr, known as Jake in his youth, assisted his father and learned the trade. During this period, Jake served in the Seventh Regiment, National Guard of New York, and was subsequently appointed a Colonel on staff for Governor David E. Hill. This is where Jake earned his title Colonel Ruppert, a title which stuck with him even when he became a Congressman in 1899. Colonel Ruppert served four terms, and then returned to the brewing industry after his public service.

The Ruppert Family did so well financially in their business that Colonel Ruppert started taking on real estate interests in Manhattan. One of his investments, entered into with a business partner, was to acquire a baseball team named the New York Highlanders. After the team's sale to Ruppert, they were renamed the New York Yankees. Ruppert parlayed his investment by purchasing the contracts of some of the best known players in the history of baseball. He was responsible for bringing the Yankees Babe Ruth, Carl Mays, Lou Gehrig and later, Joe DiMaggio. With this star lineup, Ruppert was raking in the cash, which would later help the family brewery survive during Prohibition.

In 1915, when Jacob Ruppert, Sr. passed away, Colonel Ruppert took over as president of the brewery. He used the synchronistic connection between sports and beer to boost both of his businesses. 1923 brought the completion of Yankee Stadium, another feat of Colonel Ruppert. In fact, the Ruppert Family would often change the well known expression “the house that Ruth built” to “the house that Beer built.”

The True Brewing Legend—Hops

By the way ... what are hops? Hops, Latin name Humulus lupulus, are perennial plants that flower for many seasons. This climbing vine with dark green, heart-shaped leaves, can reach up to 15 to 25 feet in height by the end of the growing cycle. The flowers of this plant, which are cone shaped, are the part many refer to as hops, and are an essential ingredient in brewing beer. Hops are used in beer brewing because of their bitter flavor. This flavor offsets the sweetness of the malt used in the brewing process and creates a wonderful harmony of flavor. Another reason hops are used is for their antibiotic effect in beer. Hops stop spoilage from the wild bacteria sometimes found in beer. Before the days of refrigeration, hops acted as a preservative. There are over one hundred different varieties of hop flowers that can be used in the brewing process, which results in hundreds of different flavors!

Hops Crop in Central New York

History shows that hops were first brought to America in 1630. However, it was not until 1808 that hops found their way to New York State. In Madison County, James Coolidge planted the state's first recorded commercial hop yard. The other farmers in his area paid no mind to this “strange” crop that Coolidge was growing, until 1817, when he sold his crop for $1000 a ton in New York City.

Soon after, Coolidge had turned in his cash crop and the other farmers in his area wanted to jump on the bandwagon. The climate and the soil conditions in Central New York were perfect for growing hops and by the mid 1800s transportation was getting better, and therefore less expensive. By 1840 it was reported that 43 counties in New York had at least one hop yard. Just nine years later, New York was the leading producer of hops in the nation, with eighty percent of the American hop crop coming from Central New York. In 1855, still leading America in production of hops, the state was harvesting over three million pounds of hops annually. Crop productions continued to skyrocket year after year. Between 1879 and 1880, yields peaked at over 60 million pounds per year.

The hop market was soaring, and along with it, hop prices. Many farmers wanted to make their own quick cash. The famous writer James Fenimore Cooper wrote in his work Reminiscence of Mid-Victorian Cooperstown (NY), “Those were the days when the hop was king,” and the whole countryside was one great hop yard, and beautiful. It was the hop that built many of the big farmhouses, now abandoned. Many a farmer made the value of his farm out of a single good year’s crop.” The abandoned farmhouses he spoke of came as a result of many unforeseen tragedies. First, in 1909, downey mildew, also known as the blight or the blue mold, ruined the hop crops. By two years later, farmers hit by this blight were out of business. In 1914, the farmers that survived this first adversity were hit by aphid attacks. And finally, the few hop farmers that remained, were forced out of business because Prohibition had made the use of hops almost obsolete.

The “ghosts” of this time can still be seen throughout Central New York. You can visit museums that hold artifacts of a time “when hop was king” or tour hop kilns, once used to dry and store the hop flowers. Although these hop barns now lay empty and abandoned, visitors can envision the boisterous activities they used to know.

An Introduction to Adventure

Sometimes “just a taste” of something makes you want more. This sample of New York's brewing history should serve as an appetizer to jumpstart your Empire State Brewery Trails adventure. There are a multitude of great stories to be heard, as well as many great brews to be sampled. So choose a designated driver, and hit the Brewery Trails to start your journey!