Firestone Walker Brewing Company has announced that it has reached an agreement to assume stewardship of Trumer Pils’ U.S.operations, and will now brew the award-winning German-style Pilsner for American drinkers.
The story of Trumer Pils spans continents and centuries. Trumer Privat brauerei, the original European brewery, traces its roots to Obertrum, Austria, a small town outside of Salzburg, where brewing rights date back to 1601. In 1775, Josef Sigl, a Bavarian hops merchant, acquired the brewery and established the Sigl family’s stewardship of the brand, which continues today in its eighth generation. For decades, Trumer has been known for its precise, balanced Pilsner brewed in the classic European tradition.
More than two centuries later, Trumer started a new chapter in the United States in 2004 when Carlos Alvarez, founder of The Gambrinus Company, began to brew Trumer Pils for the United States market at the Trumer Brewery in Berkeley, California. Alvarez assembled a team of craft brewers that imported Trumer Pils’ hops, malt and yeast from Europe into the United States. It was a revolutionary idea: rather than import a European lager across the Atlantic Ocean, Alvarez chose to brew it locally with the same methods and ingredients as the original beer.
Under the leadership of longtime Brewmaster Lars Larson, Trumer Pils became known regionally and throughout the United States for its freshness, balance, and drinkability, winning 21 gold medals in the world’s most prestigious brewing competitions in the last 21 years. This latest chapter in Trumer’s storied history begins with Firestone Walker assuming stewardship of Trumer Pils in the United States, continuing its California brewing tradition while protecting the quality and freshness that define the brand. Trumer Pils will now be brewed at Firestone Walker’s Paso Robles brewery as part of a long-term commitment to honoring its legacy while supporting its future growth. As part of this evolution, The Gambrinus Company will begin winding down operations at its Trumer Brewery in Berkeley.
“Our priority has always been to grow and steward Trumer Pils and ensure its future here in the United States,” said John Brozovich, CEO of The Gambrinus Company. “Entrusting the brand to a family brewery that understands this responsibility was very important to us. Firestone Walker approaches brewing with the same respect for tradition and quality, and we are confident they will carry Trumer Pils forward with great care.”
Firestone Walker shares a complementary heritage. Founded in 1996 by the Firestone and Walker families on California’s Central Coast, the company remains family-led and brewer-driven, built on the belief that beer is a craft passed from one generation to the next.
“Some beers are timeless,” said Nick Firestone, CEO of Firestone Walker Brewing Company. “Carlos loved this beer so much he brought it to U.S. drinkers and built a brewery to brew it…and I understand exactly how he felt. Trumer Pils is a sensational beer with a deep lineage. Our job now is simple: protect what makes it special and make sure this great beer continues to reach American drinkers.”
Firestone Walker Brewmaster Matt Brynildson will oversee the brewing transition. Internationally recognized for his work brewing precise, balanced pilsners, Brynildson emphasized that the goal is preservation rather than reinterpretation.
“Pilsner brewing is a discipline built on detail and patience,” Brynildson said. “Trumer Pils is a beer I have admired for many years, and our responsibility is to protect the balance and drinkability that have always defined it.”
Seppi Sigl, owner of the original Trumer Privatbrauerei in Salzburg, Austria, concluded, “We are very pleased that the quality of Trumer Pils is so widely appreciated in the United States, and that we have been able to partner with Firestone Walker—a brewery that shares our values and has always put quality and family first.”
The Firestone Walker and Trumer US teams will work together in the coming months to ensure a smooth transition for distributors and retailers. Consumers should expect uninterrupted availability of Trumer Pils going forward.
