Independent family brewery in Altenburg – brewing, bottling, brewery museum and gastronomy since 1871
Altenburger Brauerei GmbH
AltenburgNew on Amplifa
About Altenburger Brauerei
Altenburger Brauerei GmbH is a group-independent family brewery based in Altenburg (Kauerndorf district), Thuringia. The company brews and bottles a range of beer varieties, including Premium Pils, Helles, Karli's Kellerbier, Festbier, Bock, Winterbier, Sommerhell and, since 2025, an alcohol-free Helles. Brewing is done traditionally with cold fermentation and long maturation; the raw materials, including Elbe-Saale hops and malt, are sourced predominantly from the Central German region. The listed brewery complex in the industrial Historicism style with its historic 5-vessel copper brewhouse is used not only for production but also for brewery tours, beer tastings, a brewery museum, gastronomy and events. The brewery is a sister company of the Leikeim brewery in Altenkunstadt/Upper Franconia and secures more than 50 jobs in the region; as a training company, it was named a TOP training company by the IHK East Thuringia in 2022.
- Site
- Altenburg
- Processes
- Brewery tours, Beer tastings, Brewery museum, Gastronomy/events, Apprenticeships, Online shop
- Materials
- Elbe-Saale hops, Barley malt, Brewing water
- Certificates
- DLG award (annually)
- Founded
- 1871
- Employees
- 50
- Industries
- Brewing/beverage industry
- 01
Brewing in the historic 5-vessel brewhouse
- 02
Fermentation
- 03
Maturation
- 04
Bottling
- 05
Distribution via retail, gastronomy and online shop
Raw Materials & Brewing Process
Elbe-Saale hops
Regional hops from the surrounding area, including from nearby Monstab, give the Pils its fine bitterness.
Barley malt
Pale and special malts from the region form the basis of the beer varieties.
Brewing water
The basis of all beer varieties, drawn from the company's own site.
Location
Altenburg
DEBrewery, administration, brewery museum, gastronomy
- Materials
- Elbe-Saale hops, malt
- Historic 5-vessel brewhouse
- Fermentation tanks (renewed in 2003)
- Modernised steam generation (2026)
Our Beers
Inside the production
Industries
Additional services
Quality
The beers are regularly awarded by the DLG and have received multiple international accolades such as the World Beer Awards and gold medals at the Women's International Trophy.
| Evidence | Altenburg |
|---|---|
| DLG award (annually) |
Brewery History
- 1871
Founding of the Actienbrauerei by seven citizens of Altenburg; the grounds of the Kauerndorf manor were purchased
- 1872
Construction of the brewery in Kauerndorf as the town's second brewery
- 1873
Start of brewing operations with brown beer, followed by Urtyp Hell
- 1896
Annual production of 130,000 hectolitres reached
- 1912/1913
Construction of the new brewhouse based on a concept by Theodor Ganzenmüller, casting capacity of 230,000 hectolitres
- 1921
Merger with Brauverein Gera and the Leipzig brewery to form Reudnitz Riebeck & Co. AG due to hyperinflation
- 1948
Brewery becomes a VEB (publicly owned enterprise)
- 1968
Affiliation with the Leipzig beverage combine
- 1990
Annual production of 330,000 hl of beer and non-alcoholic beverages; cooperation agreement with Kulmbacher Aktienbrauerei
- nach 1990
Acquisition by Brauhaus Leikeim (Altenkunstadt/Upper Franconia) after production fell to just under 10,000 hl
- 2003
Purchase of new fermentation tanks
- 2016
Andreas, Bastian and Anna Leikeim become shareholders
- 2017
Revamp of the brand image; swing-top bottles with plastic closures
- 2019
World Beer Awards: Helles named best beer in the Lager, Helles/Munich category
- 2021
Admission to the values-based association "Die Freien Brauer"; launch of Sommerhell and Winterbier; TOP training company 2022 of the IHK East Thuringia
- 2025
Market launch of the first alcohol-free beer "Altenburger Alkoholfrei Hell"; gold medals at the Women's International Trophy for Festbier, Bock and Sommerhell
- 2026
Commissioning of the modernised steam generation on 12 March, approx. 60 t less CO₂ per year