Truckee craft beer industry dates to the 1800s
Lake Tahoe’s Boca Brewing in the 19th century shipped its lager worldwide. Photo/Truckee Donner Historical Society
By Jay R. Brooks, San Jose Mercury News
We think of Lake Tahoe as a major tourist destination, famous for its ski slopes and deep, blue water. But in the 19th century, this region was prime mining territory, mined for gold and silver — and the lumber needed by growing settlements throughout the West. The area’s first breweries sprang up to satisfy those early fortune seekers.
The earliest of those breweries was probably Truckee’s St. Louis Brewery, which was also known as Grazer & Stoll. It began its 14-year brewing stint in 1874, the same year that saw the opening of the Paul Menk Brewery & Saloon. Think of it as an early brewpub, or at least a bar that served its own beer.
The short-lived Truckee Brewing Co. — which began as Kielhofer & Woods — opened in 1896, followed by the Eureka Brewery, which ran from 1899 to 1911.
