Joseph Wolf Brewing Company LLC

About Us

Welcome to the new and the old. As great grandchildren of Joseph Wolf, we've decided to reopen the brewery and sell Wolf beer again. Here is the history of the Joseph Wolf Caves: In 1868 Martin Wolf established the Martin Wolf Brewery. He created a small set of caves, his own brew house, and several wooden buildings. In March 1871 Joseph Wolf and Joseph Tanner purchased the site, creating Wolf, Tanner & Company. A year later a fire destroyed all of the buildings except Martin's Brewhouse. Two men lost their lives and all inventory was lost. The Company pressed on and rebuilt. In 1873 they opened the 1st state of the art steam powered brewery in MN. Wolf became the sole proprietor in 1876 with new name The Empire Brewery. 1880 was a successful year for the company with 5000+ barrels of beer produced and the Caves were completed, taking 8+ years to finish. The name change to Joseph Wolf Brewing Company was in 1896 and Wolf's Sons came into the business. 1919 was the best year with over 25,000 barrels of beer produced. Prohibition legislation was in the works and set to go into effect. In early 1920, Wolf's Beer production ceased and the company converted operations to bottled water, soda, and sparkling water. In 1921, at age 89, Joseph Wolf died suddenly and the family blamed Prohibition, claiming it had broken his heart. In 1925 the company shut down and the buildings were rented. In 2010 the great grandchildren of Joseph Wolf reignited the legacy of brewing beer under the name of Joseph Wolf Brewery.