The corona pandemic forced the traditional Werneck brewery to give up. The Ochsenfurter Kauzen Bru has now taken over trademark rights and recipes.
The Franconian brewing industry is suffering badly from the Corona pandemic even after the easing so far. The Werneck brewery had to give up and closed at the end of September, over 400 years after it was founded. And this despite the fact that the Lang family of owners recently invested a lot of time and energy in developing the brand and the market. In Werneck (district of Schweinfurt), the decision caused consternation. Now the Ochsenfurter Kauzen Bru has taken over the leading brand “Frankonia Brauspezialitten” and the associated recipes and promises to serve the previous customers in the usual quality. Only that from October the beer will no longer be brewed in Werneck, but in Ochsenfurt (district of Wrzburg).
The main pillars have broken away
Gastronomy and events were the main pillars of the Werneck brewery. Both broke away at the start of the Corona crisis. To continue operations, the brewery should have got into debt, says junior boss Christine Lang, for the planned construction of a new brewhouse alone, with uncertain prospects for the end of the crisis and the tough price war with breweries. “We have never taken out loans if we didn’t know whether we could repay them,” said Lang. So now was the right time to give up the brewery. “You have to make such decisions as long as you can, not when you have to.”
“It’s nice that at least some of us are preserved, and Kauzen gains a new brand in the crisis.”
Christine Lang, Brewery Werneck–
Christine Lang is pleased that at least the “Frankonia” brand is retained. In Kauzen Bru, who is also family-run, a partner was found who shared the same values and with whom long-standing relationships exist. “It is nice that at least some of us are preserved, and Kauzen gains a new brand in the crisis,” Lang continued. “Despite the sad circumstances, it’s a win-win situation.”
Beer sales plummeted by two thirds
Kauzen boss Karl-Heinz Pritzl also relies on this tailwind, although the situation for the Ochsenfurt brewery is currently anything but rosy. Beer sales have slumped by two thirds and are only gradually recovering in view of the previous easing in the catering trade. “Many customers still have the refrigerators full and don’t order until the kegs are empty,” says Pritzl. The external circumstances do not indicate a rapid increase in beer consumption. “Beer is a sociable drink,” says Pritzl, “that people stay seated in good company, that’s not happening at the moment.” The business with parties and events is completely complete.
Photo: Kauzen Bru
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Karl-Heinz Pritzl is the chairman of the Mainfranken-Bier association, in which private breweries have come together to give the regional brewing industry more weight and voice in competition with the large breweries. At the moment, however, there is “radio silence” in the club, says Pritzl. Every brewer had enough to struggle with his own problems. Kauzen has also registered short-time work. In the meantime, working hours have increased from 50 to 80 percent.
“Many customers still have the refrigerators full and don’t order until the kegs are empty.”
Karl-Heinz Pritzl, Kauzen brewery Ochsenfurt–
The transfer of Frankonia trademark rights is understood by Karl-Heinz Pritzl as a sign of trust. “It was important that you saw a future,” he says. Junior boss Jacob Pritzl stands for this future, who is starting out as a master brewer and business economist to take over the management of the brewery and who is already having an impact on brand development and tracking consumer trends.
Will Helles soon be more popular than Pils?
An example of this is the increasing popularity of Hellbier. Jacob Pritzl even expects the Helle near Kauzen to outperform the highest-selling Pils in a year or two. The “Wolf Bier” brand, which Kauzen took over in 2009 after the Wolf brewery in Fuchsstadt (district of Wrzburg) closed, is particularly benefiting from this. “Wolf beer, which is still brewed according to Wolf recipes, is a very strong brand for us, especially in the regional trade,” says Karl-Heinz Pritzl.
Jacob Pritzl would like to take this up with the Frankonia beer from Werneck. In the five brewery-owned restaurants of the Wernecker brewery, it will continue to be served and the signals from the other customers are also positive, says Christine Lang. In order to continue the customer relationship, Kauzen has taken on a sales representative from the Wernecker brewery. Jacob Pritzl is confident that the taste of the beer drinkers in the Schweinfurt / Werneck area will be successful, even if the Frankonia beer is then brewed with water from the brewery’s own well in Ochsenfurt and therefore can no longer be called “Wernecker Beer”.
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