Saint Louis Brewery

After enjoying an authentic pale ale at an English pub overseas, lawyer and co-founder, Tom Schlafly casually proposed the idea to bring traditional styles to the states to a good friend of his Charles Kopman, a lawyer as well. Kopman then introduced Schlafly to his son, Dan, who had worked at a British brewery and had extensive knowledge in the field. Dan was privy to the idea of starting a microbrewery but Schlafly was concerned as Anheuser-Busch had the beer market cornered. On August 22, 1989, Schlafly began the incorporation process. Due to Missouri’s legal restrictions, Schlafly opened its first brewpub, a small brewery with an adjoining restaurant that would only sell its beer on premises. On December 26, 1991, the Schlafly Tap Room opened its doors to the public. A few weeks later, The Saint Louis Brewery completely ran out of beer and the St. Louis Craft Beer Revolution had begun.[3]

With Kopman and Schlafly’s plan to open a brewpub came struggle with Missouri Law. Following Prohibition, Missouri lawmakers had introduced a three-tier system to prevent perceived dangers of breweries owning and controlling taverns, which would in turn decrease competition. This law made it illegal for any brewery to hold a retail liquor license, making it impossible to distribute beyond brewery-restaurants. There was an exception to this law that made it legal for Anheuser-Busch to own restaurants and entertainment facilities while distributing.[2]

In the fall of 1992, Schlafly began meeting with various lawmakers and drafted an amendment to the Missouri Microbrewery law. By January of 1993, the amendment was heard in court along with a bill to sell beer on Sundays in grocery and convenience stores. After negotiations with senators and meetings with Anheuser-Busch, the amendment seemed to be coming to fruition. In May 1993, the amendment had been rewritten “behind closed doors” decreasing the maximum barrel production from 17,500 barrels to 10,000. However, Kopman and Schlafly continued on and began selling their beer in St. Louis area establishments. The increase in local consumers led to a demand for bottled beer, but the barrel capacity limited production quantities. In 1996, Schlafly hired a contract brewery in Minnesota to brew and bottle for Schlafly styles and in June, bottles had hit the St. Louis market.[2]

In 1997, Schlafly again wanted to amend the law but found that a new liquor license would change the way Schlafly distributed and sold beer. Later that year, Schlafly was first sold in Busch Stadium and found its way into several other fine establishments in the St. Louis area.[4]

The Schlafly Tap Room

In 1989, Schlafly and Kopman began brainstorming locations for The Saint Louis Brewery. After careful consideration, the pair landed on Locust Street. They decided to buy a historic building previously owned by John S. Swift, home of Swift Printing Company.[5] The building was authentically built and had even appeared on the National Register of Historic Places, but had suffered fire damage in 1976. Schlafly renovated it and opened its doors on December 26, 1991.[2]

Schlafly Bottleworks

In 2001, Schlafly decided it was time to expand to a bigger brewery which would expand brewing capacity. Looking to refurbish an abandoned supermarket, Kopman and Schlafly chose an empty supermarket in Maplewood, Missouri. On April 7, 2003, Schlafly Bottleworks opened its doors to the public for tours, dinner and beers at the bar.[6]

Schlafly Pale Ale, IPA and Summer Lager are all staples of The Saint Louis Brewery.

Schlafly Beer has long set the standard for green practices in the craft beer industry. From using 100 percent renewable energy to urban revitalization of the Bottleworks garden, Schlafly leads simply by example. Solar panels sit atop the Bottleworks roof and both facilities have minimized waste from brewpubs, cellars and breweries. In 2018, Schlafly traded in one of their vans for an electric smart car.[7]

• Schlafly Beer won the Gold Medal for Best German-style Kölsch in the World Beer Cup in 2010.[8]
• Schlafly took home the Silver Medal in the Pumpkin/Squash Beer or Pumpkin Spice Beer category for its Pumpkin Ale in 2017 at the Great American Beer Festival.[9]

• Best looking production staff 2019 (repeat champions since 1991)

Each year Schlafly hosts numerous beer festivals and events at both locations. There are five main festivals: Cabin Fever, Full Moon Festival, Art Outside, HOP in the City and most notable, Schlafly’s Stout & Oyster Festival. Stout & Oyster Festival is a 2-day celebration of seafood and dark beers held every March. Schlafly flies in more than 80,000 oysters from both coasts along with celebrity shuckers.[10]