OeTTINGER Brauerei GmbH

About OeTTINGER

OeTTINGER Brauerei GmbH is an owner-managed German beverage manufacturer headquartered in Oettingen in Bavaria. The company produces beers (Pilsner, Export, Helles, wheat beer, Radler and non-alcoholic variants), beer mixes and non-alcoholic soft drinks under the Oettinger, 5,0 Original, Oe, JoyBräu and Karmeliter brands as well as private labels for supermarkets. The brewery group operates brewing sites in Oettingen (two breweries, connected by a 3.6 km beer pipeline), Mönchengladbach and Braunschweig, plus distribution warehouses in Walldorf and Braunschweig; the Forstquell-Brauerei inn in Wassertrüdingen has existed since 1731. In 2023, total output amounted to around 7.5 million hectoliters; in 2024, OeTTINGER was number 25 among the world's largest breweries and the sixth-largest brewery in Germany. In accordance with the beer purity law (Reinheitsgebot), the products are distributed without advertising and without intermediaries directly via its own truck fleet. In addition to beers, the company produces lemonades, fassbrause and iced teas; in July 2025, the closure of the Braunschweig site for spring 2026 was announced.

Site

Oettingen

Processes

Brewery tours (Oettingen and Mönchengladbach), Direct distribution with own truck fleet, Production of private labels, Reuse recycling (crown caps/bottles), Fan shop

Materials

Beer brewed according to the Reinheitsgebot, Non-alcoholic soft drinks

Founded

1731

Employees

800

Industries

Beverage industry, Brewing, Soft drinks, Food retail

1. 01

   Brewing and fermentation

2. 02

   Filtration

3. 03

   Bottling in bottles, cans and kegs

4. 04

   Direct distribution with own truck fleet

Products & Processes

Locations

Oettingen

DE

Headquarters with two brewing sites, connected by a 3.6 km beer pipeline

Materials

Beer, beer mixes, soft drinks

• Modern brewing and bottling facilities

Mönchengladbach

DE

Brewery, branch office

Materials

Beer, beer mixes

Braunschweig

DE

Brewery and logistics center/distribution warehouse; closure announced for spring 2026

Materials

Beer (among others 5,0 Original)

Walldorf

DE

Logistics center / distribution warehouse

Wassertrüdingen

DE

Forstquell Brauerei – adventure inn & brewpub since 1731

Materials

Brewpub beers

Inside the production

History

1. 1333

   First recorded mention of the Princely Oettingen-Spielberg court brewery in Oettingen

2. 1731

   The Höhenberger family is granted the brewing right; founding of the brewery in Fürnheim (today Forstquell-Brauerei)

3. 1956

   Otto and Günther Kollmar acquire the cooperative brewery in Oettingen; 5,000 hl/year with eight employees

4. 1970

   Günther Kollmar takes over; economies of scale, renunciation of advertising and direct distribution with own truck fleet

5. 1989

   Second brewery in Oettingen goes into operation

6. 1991

   Acquisition of a brewery in Gotha

7. 2003

   Acquisition of the Hannen brewery in Mönchengladbach from the Carlsberg Group

8. 2008

   Licensed brewery in Mytishchi/Russia and later in Eastern and Southeastern Europe

9. 2009

   Acquisition of the Feldschlößchen brewery Braunschweig from Carlsberg; closure of Pritzwalk and Dessow

10. 2011

    Closure of the Schwerin site; annual production approx. 6.21 million hl

11. 2013

    Death of Günther Kollmar; son Dirk Kollmar (managing director since 1993) dies in 2014

12. 2020

    Pia Kollmar takes over the leadership and develops the brewery into a beverage manufacturer

13. 2023

    Sale of the Gotha brewery to Paulaner Brauerei

14. 2024

    New labels, renaming to Oettinger Getränke; No. 25 of the world's largest breweries and sixth-largest brewery in Germany

15. 2025

    Announcement of the closure of the Braunschweig site for spring 2026