The Schwechat brewery is responsible for the invention of a beer style that is extremely popular today. Anton Dreher senior, master brewer and brewery manager from 1837 to 1863, not only expanded and modernized his company, he also developed the world's first lager. rn
The adventure began with Peter Descrolier, who founded the brewery in 1932. His brewery changed management several times until it was bought in 1796 by Franz Anton Dreher, the father of the inventive Anton senior. With great commitment, the Dreher family ensured that their brewery developed into a true empire. As the cradle of lager beer and Austria's first brewery to use a steam engine, Schwechater beer made a name for itself early on. Thanks to tireless passion, the company was able to survive both world wars and the shortages and destruction that came with them, and continue to establish itself on the market. The brewery currently operates under the umbrella of Brau Union Österreich AG and no longer just supplies the Vienna area with 800,000 hectoliters of beer. To this day , Schwechater Wiener Lager is an integral part of the range and represents a tasty piece of beer history that the entire workforce is proud of. The recipe has been refined with care and the best ingredients and results in a tasty beer that delights with a skilful balance of slightly bitter hops and full-bodied, sweet malt.
Reducing our own ecological footprint and the issue of sustainability are also on our minds. In this day and age, each of us must do our part to preserve and protect our environment. At Schwechat, the project is being tackled on several levels. They are part of the EU-supported Brewing Heat Initiative: All heat generated during the brewing process and no longer needed for beer production is passed on to the surrounding houses. Thanks to this clever move, an incredible 900 households can be supplied with heat for heating and hot water, and 800 tons of CO2 are saved. In order to promote the local network, a collaboration has existed since 2021 with the Dreher family, who not only played a significant role in the development of the brewery, but also set up several agricultural estates in addition to the brewery. Both the Katharinenhof and the Gutenhof in the Vienna suburbs are still managed by the Dreher family today. Together with the Schwechat brewery, the Drehers have now decided to grow brewing barley and have since supplied the brewery with the finest regional raw materials, which are used in the popular Viennese lager, for example. rn
Here you can try the original Viennese lager! rn
