On April 5, in 1841, two brothers Albert and Hermann Wernecke started a small brewing company in their parent’s house in Magdeburg Germany. Albert Wernecke was a skilled brewer and his brother Hermann was trained in banking and the grain business, so the company prospered quickly.
After Albert and Hermann Wernecke passed away, the brewery changed its name to the Actien Brauerei. From 1887 through 1888, large castle-like buildings were constructed to further expand beer production. The facility added a fountain, an ice house, larger steam engines and even its own railway station.
Since the brewery possessed all the necessary machinery, equipment and buildings, and also a separate 40-horsepower steam engine for the operation of the brewery, it was decided to convert the company into a corporation, with a registered capital of 2.7 million marks.
By 1941, the facility became the largest brewery in the province with 680 workers. With an annual production of nearly 250,000 hectoliters of beer, it was the largest brewery in the province of Saxony.
After the Second World War, 70% of the buildings were heavily damaged and destroyed by artillery. Despite the damage, production resumed just one year later and the brewery quickly bounced back to life. In 1947, the brewery became a state-owned enterprise and was renamed as VEB diamond brewery of Magdeburg-Neustadt. At that time, VEB Kombinat Magdeburg had an output of 550,000 hectoliters of beer.
In 1994, the brewery was shuttered and the facility became a crumbling industrial ruin, except for a small portion of the campus which was brought back to life as a small brewery and restaurant.