The Meteor brewery

Established in Hochfelden, Meteor is the first independent brewery in France, which has been managed by seven generations of the Haag family. And, after the closing of the Schutzenberger brewery 2006, Meteor is the last large independent brewery in Alsace.

In 1640, a man called Jean Klein installed a brewery in Hochfelden at the site of the current one.  In 1795, at 20 kilometers of Hochfelden, the Haag family brewed in the small village of Ingwiller.  Martin Metzger, brewer of Strasbourg, purchased in 1844 the brewery of Jean Klein, known then under the name of "Brasserie de la Couronne" (brewery of the Crown).  His son Alfred  took the succession.  In 1898, Louis Haag, one of the heirs of the brewers from Ingwiller, married Marie-Louise Metzger, the sole daughter of Alfred Metzger.  The brewery resulting from this union was renamed "Metzger and Haag".

In 1914 Louis Haag succeeded to his father-in-law after his death and created with his two sons Frederic and Alfred the brewery "Louis Haag, Metzger and company".

During 1925 Louis Haag, shouldered by his two sons, called his brewery METEOR, brandname that suited more to the French market.  Two years later, the brewery launched the famous "Pils", which is obtained from a Czech hop selection recalling the famous beer of Pilzen.  And for the first time in Europe, thanks to the authorization granted by the Czech administration, Louis Haag could call his beer " Pils".

The Fifties were the years of development, lead by the increasing vogue of the label "Alsace".  The limit of 100 000 hectolitres was exceeded in 1956, that of 200.000 in 1966. 1959 see the installation of the brewing room which is always in activity and which contains three immense copper brew kettles which can produce each one up to 300 hectolitres of beer per day.

In 1975, Michel Haag becomes the director of the brewery. In 1982 the 300 000 hectolitres were reached and the Meteor brewery obtained the Gold Bay-tree of international quality.

In 1988, the innovating Meteor brewery launched a non pasteurized beer into mini barrels of 5 liters for home, which was a real event in France. The 400 000 hectolitres were reached in 1990.  Whereas more than 70 breweries disappeared since the First World War or were purchased by the big groups, METEOR refused the logic of the concentration.  It remained a family and independent brewery.  

Beside the famous "Meteor Pils", the brewery brews various special beers and beers of speciality like the "Mortimer", a single malt red beer, "La Blanche", a white beer with malt of wheat and the "Wendelinus", beer of abbey.  It also manufactures products with the trademark of distributors, as well for its French customers as for the foreign ones.  Meteor is present in the United-Kingdom, in Italy, Switzerland, the Netherlands and in the USA. The export, which represents approximately 8 % of the production, is a strategic field.  On the whole, some 500 000 hl were produced in 2004, always with a manpower of 200 men, and 560.000 hl of beer were produced in 2006.

The brewery on the internet :

   A collector's Website :

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