Octoberfest may be winding down but for one historic family in Chicago, the beer bash is just beginning. Or, perhaps we should say there is a sequel to the storied “Sieben’s Brewery” that holds a prominent position in Chicago history. It had been the oldest operating brewery in Chicago until it closed in 1967. And now, nearly 40 years later, Sieben’s Beer is back.
One of my colleagues, Bob Esp, is an engineer surrounded by colorful buttons and tv screens, who ricochette’s satellite signals between loop high-rises to bring you the artistic glory that is WGN Morning News. His great-great grandfather on his mothers side, Michael, founded the Sieben’s Brewery in 1865. The original brewery was located on Pacific Avenue near Clark and Polk Streets. Esp says a slight shift in wind spared the brewery from the Great Chicago Fire. However, it would be at the center of another firestorm years later---a story I will get to in a moment.
Despite the family legacy, Esp knew nothing about making beer a year ago. All he had were the stories.
“It’s something I always wanted to do,” Esp said. “Anyone who remembers Siebens, remembers it fondly.”
Esp connected with a cousin, Richard Sieben, and encouraged him to become partners. Siebens is a senior auditor at Metra, but for the last decade, he’s been experimenting in his garage with yeast and hops, to brew the perfect beer.
“My name was actually noticed in one of my MBA classes by a teacher who suggested maybe I look into it for one of my projects,” Sieben said. “So I went to Barnes and Noble and found a book about beer and saw the name. I bought it and it listed all the reasons not to open a brewery.”
But Esp kept pushing. In 2000, Siebens took brewing classes at Siebel Institute of Technology in Chicago. While going through old storage logs, Sieben discovered that some of the yeast used in his family’s brewery had been preserved in a Siebel Institute freezer. It helped reproduce an important aspect of Sieben’s recipe.
“I was dying to find out what the beer tasted like,” Esp said. “It’s smooth and well-balanced. Not sweet; a clean finish.”
For a fraction of the cost of building their own brewery, they hired a brewery to produce the recipe. After a year of experimenting with ingredients, temperature and ph-levels, the beer will hit bars and stores at the end of the month.
But how does one compete between the big breweries’ marketing budget, and the crowd of catchy microbrew names like Three Stooges Beer or Polygamy Porter ( “Why Have Just One!”) Perhaps the storyline will hold some attraction to Chicagoans.
Sieben’s has a colorful history, which includes doing business with the mob. The details are unclear. But, according to John Binder, author of The Chicago Outfit, prohibition put breweries in a tough spot.
“Either you shut down or make near (non-alcoholic) beer, which nobody wanted to drink, or you sold out to the bootleggers, or you took them in and run full-blast and make real beer.”
Binder said Chicago mobster Dion O’Banion (north side) told his rival Johnny Torrio (south side) he was planning to retire and wanted to sell his share of the Sieben’s Brewery. On May 19, 1924, they met at the brewery, which was raided by police. Torrio knew he’d been set up. O’Banion made sure the cops would be there. He also knew that because it would be Torrio’s second prohibition offense, that Torrio would end up behind bars. This is what led to the infamous “handshake murder” of O’Banion at his flower shop. It was the spark that set off the north and south side gang wars, including the St. Valentine’s Day Massacre in 1929.
Most of Esp's and Sieben's relatives discouraged them from pursuing the beer business. They say "You don't own a brewery; a brewery owns you." They know that in family businesses, the pressure for profits can sometimes add dysfunction to family. But these two Sieben ancestors seem less concerned with their financial portfolio; for now, they value the art of beer making. Like TV, beer is also a synthesis of science and art, but Esp is far more passionate about his family brew than bouncing satellite signals. Perhaps that inspiration will ultimately be more effective in attracting Chicago beer customers than bikini models caressing another watered-down beer.
Glad I'm under contract for a few years. Could you imagine trying to re-negotiate now? "Gee, Pat, we'd love to give you a bump, but we're kind of tied up with Alfonso for the next 8 years. Can you wait until then?" Don't think I'm taking a shot at Tribune now- quite the contrary. $136 million is unthinkable money! And I'd pay him before I paid me too! I didn't hit 41 homeruns last year. I didn't even SAY "homerun" 41 times last year.
