In 2009 (and also: 1997-2000, 2005-2008) Birra Menabrea became the first Italian beer to be awarded the gold medal at the World Beer Championships. Sometimes referred to as the Ferrari of beers, making up just half-a-percent of all beer produced in Italy. Through rigorous selection of the malt, combined with the purity of mountain water, Birra Menabrea continues to be recognized internationally.

The Menabrea History

 1846

Italy is still a collection of many independent states; a united Kingdom of Italy the dream of a few patriots. Biella, a bustling little township made prosperous by the woollen industry, belongs to the Kingdom of Sardinia.
It was in this year that Mr. Welf of Gressoney and his brothers Antonio and Gian Battista Caraccio, natives of Bioglio and cafe proprietors in Biella, founded a brewery. This was the beginning of a marvelous entrepreneurial adventure that would endure until today, spanning a period of over 150 years.

1854

A document, bearing the date of 1854, allows us to establish that it was in this year that the sole owners were the Caraccio brothers. In the same year the Caraccio brothers rented the brewery to Jean Joseph Menabrea and Antonio Zimmermann, both from Gressoney and partners in the Zimmermann Brewery that was founded in Aosta in 1837.

1864

On October 3rd, a contract for the sale of the brewery was drafted, passing the title from the Caraccio brothers to Antonio Zimmermann's and Giuseppe Menabrea (after the Unification of Italy in 1861 his name had been italianised from Jean Joseph to Giuseppe) for a sum of 95 thousand Lire.

1867

On September 17th, a partnership agreement is concluded whose participation is as follows:Antonio Zimmermann (25%), Giuseppe Menabrea (50%) and his two children, Francesco and Carlo (25%).

1869

Giuseppe Menabrea gives his two sons half of his stock in the brewery which resulted in the formation of a new partnership whereby all members had an equal share in the brewery.

1872

Antonio Zimmermann's interests gravitated more and more toward his business in Aosta and he decided to leave Menabrea. Therefore, on July 6th another partnership was founded:- G. Menabrea and Sons -, between Giuseppe and his sons Carlo and the 19 year old Alberto. On August 5th, 1880, Alberto died at only 27 years of age.

1881

On April 18th the patriarch Giuseppe was laid to rest. During the year Carlo, now alone, formed another partnership with his brothers-in-law Antonio Mehr and Giuseppe Bieler, paying himself and his partners a salary of two million Lire a year.

1882

Business was going very well: Menabrea was successful making a blond Pilsner style beer and a dark , Munich-style beer. The latter became the favourite of the market. Menabrea beer also earned the appreciation of the Minister of Finance and the founder of the Club Italiano Alpino, Quintino Sella, who, in a letter, called it an exquisite beer, that brings honour not only to the brewery but to the people of Biella as well.
On October 5th Carlo received the title of Knight of the Order of the Italian Crown. 

1885

Carlo died, leaving behind his widow Eugenia Squindo and their three young daughters Albertina, Eugenia and Maria, age twelve, nine and seven years old.

1888
 
In order to keep the operations of the brewery running smoothly, Carlo's widow assigned it to her brother Pietro, who managed it with wisdom until the death of his sister Eugenia.

1896

The two brothers-in-law Emilio Thedy and Augusto Antoniotti, husbands of Eugenia and Albertina Menabrea, founded a partnership that would continue the operations of the brewery.

1899
 
The business practices of Thedy and Antoniotti were far-sighted and successful. In production, only the finest raw materials were used.
The first acknowledgements came, a Silver Medal at the Turin Exposition, followed by a Diploma of Honour and Cross in Dijon, France and awards in Munich , Germany and Ghent, Belgium.

1900

For the illustrious company the dawning of the twentieth century began with the winning of a Grand Prix at the Universal Exposition in Paris.
In that period there were some thirty full-time employees working in the brewery and production was about 8 to 10 million hectolitres per year.
It is curious to note that, at the turn of the century, around 90 percent of sales was for the dark Munich-style beer as distinguished from the lighter, Pilsner style which, in subsequent years has overtaken the market and became the clear favourite in the eyes of the consumer.

1905

At the exposition of Varallo, the beers of the Menabrea Brewery won the Grand Award of Honour.

1911

Further recognition came at the Turin Exposition where Menabrea beers win the Gold Medal.

1924
 
A golden year for Menabrea Brewery. In this year Menabrea would win four Grand Awards and several more Gold Medals in Milan, Rome, Brussels and Paris. In the French capital, Menabrea was also named as a member of the Jury of Honour.

1925
 
With the death of Albertina Menabrea, Eugenia Menabrea formed a partnership with her five sons: Federico, Carlo, Alberto, Eugenio and Franco.

1930

The Biella company bought up several prestigious taverns in Turin and Novara that quickly became local watering holes for the fashionable people of the local society.

1964

Carlo Thedy with the help of his nephew Paolo, son of his brother Franco, runs the business which had since grown significantly after much hard work.

1980

In the beginning of the 80's Birra Menabrea was producing over 36 thousand hectolitres and has since gone on to do over 40 thousand. After carefully examining the market, the company decided to produce a traditional product, Edel Bier, alongside imported German and British beers.

1991
 
In Italy the consolidation of larger brewing companies was making it more and more difficult for the smaller ones to succeed. This consolidation and a long-standing industry-based friendship, favoured an alliance between Birra Menabrea and the Forst Group.

2010
 
Today Birra Menabrea, under the guidance of Paolo Thedy, fourth descendant of the
founding family, produces around 100 thousand hectolitres of which a small but increasing part is exported to around 20 countries throughout the world.
In recent years, thanks to a forward looking and quality-orientated strategy, Birra Menabrea has achieved something which none of its peers can boast.

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